"Lee" wrote in message
...
Back in the 50,s my father built a cottage on lake Puckaway in Wisconsin.
I
remember the beautiful knotty pine walls(t&g) with the varnish finish.
Lots
of knots and a reddish yellow tint. It was something I have never seen
again. It was truly some of the most beautiful wood I have ever seen.
"Bob S." wrote in message
oups.com...

Edwin Pawlowski wrote:
"coustanis" wrote in message

That's why they call it KNOTTY pine.
WTF did you use knotty pine for if it's knot what you wanted.

Actually, the number and size of knots differs in the wood often found
today
than it was 50 years ago on older growth trees.

Not quite true. The trees haven't changed - what we are willing to
settle for has. As long as they send the good lumber overseas to people
who won't settle for crap, we'll continue to get the leftovers here.

More true than not true. The cheap and easy old-growth stuff has been
largely cut down here in the lower 48, and you now have to haul it from
Canada, and eventually, Siberia, once they get their act together. The
old-growth that is left is largely in areas that aren't easily loggable,
and/or protected from logging. Try buying clear-grain pine for trim
sometime. (Forget about redwood). All you'll find is finger-joint, unless
cash is no object. I could cry thinking about all the 3-4 foot scraps that I
threw on the burn pile as a kid. Who knew? Any more, I would squirrel those
away for window and cabinet trim repairs. Increased durability isn't the
only reason that faux wood made from sawdust and pop bottles has caught on
for trim work- real wood good enough to not warp in a year has gotten damn
expensive.

I visited northern Europe last year, on the edge of the former USSR, and
positively drooled over the truckloads of lumber I saw heading into the
pallet and crate plants. Due to lack of a functioning market system, a lot
of their forests basically have lain fallow for 50+ years, and weren't
heavily logged before that. Their equivilant of a 2x10, a little thicker and
wider because of metric, is some damn nice looking lumber. I'd love to get a
couple seatrain boxes worth over here for household projects. T&G interior
paneling is dirt-common, and has almost no knots. They usually let it go
naked, or at most, put a clear sealer on it.

aem sends....