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Thread: Buy first, build second?

  1. #1

    Buy first, build second?

    I was reading the thread about the % of extra wood to buy for a project. I don't sell my work or do commissions so for me I think differently I suppose. Sometimes I buy wood from small mills without any preconceived ideas about what I will build. I shop and look for some nice lumber for a nice price. Then I eventually decide what is the nicest piece or pieces I can build utilizing the wood to my advantage. Presently, I am using up the last of a bunch of walnut that has followed me around for too many years to mention. When I got to the last of it, I saw nice colored wood with a lot of defects to work around so I decided on a jelly cabinet with frame and panel sides to take advantage of the shorter pieces.

    As a discussion point, do many others use this approach or do you start with the project and then buy the lumber?

    Ron

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Oct 2005
    Location
    Camas, Wa
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    3,848
    I start with a project and buy the lumber. I don't have room to store wood.

  3. #3
    Quote Originally Posted by Cary Falk View Post
    I start with a project and buy the lumber. I don't have room to store wood.
    I hear that! I retired from teaching where I used to store my wood in the store room, and my father in law's house is in the process of getting ready to sell so I lost access to his big garage. My one car garage has a decent pile of cherry using up 1/3 of the floor space. Will need to work though that next before I shop.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Nov 2012
    Location
    Southwestern CT
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    1,392
    I generally buy per project. Storing leftover wood is a nightmare. I regularly have friends that swing by - with boxes - to pickup hardwood scraps for their fireplaces.
    "the mechanic that would perfect his work must first sharpen his tools.” Confucius

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Feb 2013
    Location
    Duvall, WA
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    706
    I buy strictly on a per-project/as needed basis. The only argument against this that I can think of would be if you're making a bulk purchase in order to get a good price. I don't happen to have a lot of spare storage space, so I can't really accommodate much more than I can use for a current project.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Feb 2016
    Location
    NE Iowa
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    I do a mixture of both. I buy wood I like when I see it, and often build projects to suit from that "available" wood, but I also sometimes design an entire project from scratch and go purchase wood specifically for it. Sometimes a bit of both in the same project - I recently built a blanket chest for my daughter using some serendipitously acquired Eastern Red Cedar for the interior, and then went out and bought some very nice Black Walnut lumber and veneer for the case.

  7. #7
    Same as Steve, both. I keep rough sawn boards (various species), but also buy lumber if it is not something I already suitable for the project in question occasionally. It is indeed cheaper to buy rough in bulk quantity, at least 30% less I would say, though I have not done any calculations.

    I mill 100 - 150 bdft at a time to save time in machine set-up and get them stickered. When the milled inventory goes low, I repeat the cycle. If I only need a small quantity in between millings and need to finish a project quickly, I may as well pay a little and buy dimensioned stock.

    Simon
    Last edited by Simon MacGowen; 02-02-2018 at 5:16 PM.

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Sep 2013
    Location
    Carrollton, Georgia
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    The mix of answers kind of surprises me. Except for my first project or two, and except for a construction project or a big job, I've always had the lumber on hand before I conceive of a project. Of course, from what I'm reading, I guess I'm lucky to have the space for a good varied supply of materials. Being able to buy the lumber when the deal comes up is a blessing.

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Mar 2003
    Location
    Vermont
    Posts
    345
    I have > 8,000 board feet of lumber stored in my shed and garage with no projects in the pipeline. It's the hazard of having owned a portable sawmill.

    I tend to design projects around the stock that is available. A friend and I just completed a 9' long, 44" wide dining room table and benches, built with live edge pine slabs that were simply selected from my available stock. We bought nothing but a few sanding disks and a router bit.
    Jon Endres
    Killing Trees Since 1983

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Mar 2006
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    SoCal
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    I have stock on hand but, still hit the yard for building a piece that falls outside my stock. As a rule I will buy anytime the price or quality is really good. I enjoy having stock on hand to set out and percolate on. I am never sure what is "in there" till I look at it for awhile.
    Last edited by glenn bradley; 02-03-2018 at 10:23 AM.

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Jan 2013
    Location
    Pittsburgh, PA
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    868
    Hi,

    Not only do I buy or otherwise procure wood BEFORE deciding what to use it for, I also do that with tools!

    ”What are you going to use THAT for?”

    ” I Dunno, but I will have it when I need it.”

    Works well for me.

    Bill
    Too much to do...Not enough time...life is too short!

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Feb 2003
    Location
    Griswold Connecticut
    Posts
    6,923
    If you have the space, buy first.
    I have quite a bit of wood that I do not have a project in mind for. Some because it is unique, some was a great price, and my last purchase was a learning opportunity.
    I probably should start selling it off, because it is taking up a lot of space, but it's kind of nice to have it also.
    "The first thing you need to know, will likely be the last thing you learn." (Unknown)

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Apr 2013
    Location
    Kansas City
    Posts
    2,645
    I am a basement shop hobbyist. I've accumulated a relatively large variety of wood, as I come across it. I admit to sometimes picking a project based on a specific piece of wood. Also, guilty of adjusting the project to fit the wood I already have (e.g., a 20" box becomes a 19" box, to use up a certain short board).

  14. #14
    Join Date
    Dec 2017
    Location
    Marietta, GA
    Posts
    275
    I have two product lines. One of them is smaller items all out of 3/4" baltic birch plywood. I buy a unit at a time. I guess I'm buying that in advance but I know what it will be used for eventually. I used to go through a unit (22 - 4x8 sheets) every two months. That's slowed down some, but I have the space dedicated for it and get a significant price break. It's better than money in the bank. My other product uses yellow pine of various sizes. I buy it when I get an order. It just takes up too much room otherwise. I do buy a few extra boards to have on hand in case of problems or a rush order, especially if I run into a particularly nice batch of lumber.

    If I sell any other job outside of these two primary lines of course I buy that, and only enough, when I sell the job.

    I also have a decent stock pile of odds and ends of hardwoods that I've bought and just set aside to play with if I ever get time. Once my supplier had a few 8/4 hard maple shorts at a great price and I bought all of it. That's come in handy. If I see a species I don't have on hand at the supplier when I'm picking up a load of pine I'll sometimes grab a board to set back. As often as not they don't even charge me for it if its not crazy expensive.

  15. #15
    Join Date
    Dec 2004
    Location
    Cincinnati, OH
    Posts
    924
    Also a lumber collector although projects sometimes demand additional materials. Currently have a stock of walnut that I milled from logs in addition to a sizable amount of cherry. I have kept small amounts of bubinga and wenge for building boxes in between the big stuff. The exotics came in handy when I recently built an urn on short notice.

    I am currently building my first chair and accumulated a lot of 8/4 and 12/4 cherry as I saw it at good prices, i.e. $2 - $3 /bd ft. If all goes well, I should have enough for a set of 4. I just completed making 2 entry doors with the walnut that are destined for a new cabin at my friend's farm who has the saw mill. I find it best to design when the urge hits me and have lumber available to try things out.
    Rustic? Well, no. That was not my intention!

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