On 2/24/2014 12:10 PM, DerbyDad03 wrote:
wrote:
On 2/24/2014 8:31 AM, BenignBodger wrote:
On 2/24/2014 9:09 AM, Bill Gill wrote:
...
... yesterday I stopped by the nearest
home supply to get one. They had the rattiest selection of
1 X 4s I have ever seen. They were #3 S4S (square four sides),
but I don't think a one of them had all 4 corners the full length.

...

I am always hearing from people that lumber was better in the 'old days'
where 'old days' is only vaguely defined. I just had the opportunity
(necessity) to become more familiar with the internal structure of my
smallest bathroom, stripping it back to studs and joists, including
removing the damned mud bed floor. I can say from that experience that
1964 was definitely not the 'old days' of superior lumber quality. ...

As always, depended on where the purchaser went in large part...

I need to find out where a local "historical society" bought the wood for a
"railroad storehouse" that they were building. ...

The 1 by material that was piled up inside the building was the clearest,
straightest, most beautiful pine I had ever seen. Everything from 1x2's all
the way up to 1x10's. ...

Probably thru the local full-service lumber yard on special order or, if
you're in a larger metro area there may well be a "real" hardwoods
dealer who'll also handle clear pine and other furniture-grade
softwoods. Be prepared for sticker shock, however, in wider dimensions
4/4 roughsawn clear can go for as much as $4.50/bf in retail quantities.

When doing the barn restoration about 10 yr ago, tried to get some 5/4
for the windows and it was essentially unobtainable at the time--all was
being used by Pella, Andersen and friends. Market isn't _quite_ so
tight now since the big housing crash...

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