Look for people on Facebook Marketplace/Craigslist giving away junky or out of date furniture. Ignore the modern/Ikea/Sauder type stuff.
If it's fifty years old or older, it's probably made of good hardwood. It's a crapshoot, of course, but it's a free resource that can get you lots of nice hardwood. Junk pianos also. Yeah, you need to put in a bit of work to disassemble it and remove any nails or screws, but I haven't paid for hardwood in years.
Other good places to check are behind dumpsters at apartment complexes, people throw out kitchen/dining room tables because it has a cracked leg or something minor.
Also estate sales/auction houses. They'll generally trash anything that doesn't sell after the auction.
[This YouTuber](https://youtu.be/zCXgP0Hu1Nk?si=BOE0mo-mEs6WGmyz) made a video about buying lumber from different online retailers. To summarize, it possible to buy good quality lumber from a website and have it shipped it to you, with 2 main downsides. First, it’s far more expensive; since you’re so far away from other retailers, it would be an acceptable price since they ship to you. Second, there’s no selecting the pieces you want to work with and are dependent upon the retailer to choose nice pieces that match color and grain.
Good luck!
Yeah, I've watched his video. I'm inclined to give Rockler a chance.
I actually want to delve into planing rough sawn lumber to avoid bowed and twisted boards, but many online retailers only sell s4s. Some others, including his top pick, have minimum board feet purchase requirements and/or don't give you much choice when selecting board dimensions.
I just wanted to post and ask around and see other perspectives. You never know, someone might be sitting on a great resource I haven't found yet.
Thanks for the reply!
I ordered a bunch of premium S3S 6/4 walnut from Woodworkers source when it was last 20% off(February I think). I had two pieces of the nine replaced with their 100% satisfaction guarantee.
They may be more costly, but if you don’t have all the tools and they can essentially finish the lumber before shipping, it’s not all that bad. It would have taken me hours to get it to where it was when it arrived. Factoring in those costs of time made it easier to chew.
You can always post your location to see if anyone knows of any places. They can sometimes be hard to find, but in my experience most places that aren’t so remote that they have a Home Depot have a good chance of having a lumberyard in reasonable driving distance.
I live in an arid part of the southwest. We have to plant our trees here and water them or they die.
Woodworking was maybe not a well thought through hobby to pick up...
Woodworkers Source is supposed to be good. Based out of Arizona so shipping would not be as bad.
[https://www.woodworkerssource.com/](https://www.woodworkerssource.com/)
I have personally used Woodcraft and have been satisfied. They usually have some kind of wood deal going, in some cases up to 50% off.
[https://www.woodcraft.com/](https://www.woodcraft.com/)
Keep digging and you’ll probably find even better places. Lumberyards tend to fly under the radar.
The rule of thumb is good lumberyards have a functional website, great ones have a website that is only a clipart guy in a hardhat saying “under construction” that haven’t been updated since 1996, and amazing ones have never even heard of the internet.
FB marketplace, ads from local farmers. Also check if there are any Woodcraft and Rockler stores in your state.
Aside from that you can order online. Some offer lumber at reasonable prices, but the problem is with shipping.
Find a lumber dealer in Missouri or nearby who ships freight. It will cost you, but it may still be cheaper than Rockler which overcharges. Just buy a whole lot and it will last you. Lumber doesn’t go bad. One example: https://www.1fhw.net/index.html
I bought from this guy off Amazon. Obviously if you need furniture sized quantities it will get more and more expensive, but if you need enough for a cutting board or something its fine. The wood I got from this guy was actually very nice. Almost no blemishes and cut square.
[https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09Q7N68Y2?psc=1&ref=ppx\_yo2ov\_dt\_b\_product\_details](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09Q7N68Y2?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details)
I bought most of my stuff from woodworkers source before finding some places locally. Bellforest has some nice stuff as well but you will pay extra for the "convenience" .
Also you could rent a U-Haul or Home Depot truck, drive the distance to a mill, load up for your projects and drive back. Do that maybe 2-3 times a year.
I have considered this, maybe even planning mini weekend vacations around places that have better lumber sources than I do.
Though I'll have to figure out lumber storage, as I'm in a garage shop at the moment and space is at a premium.
https://preview.redd.it/9qs4th8ai58d1.jpeg?width=2268&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3e42c81cb373b3484e35d075cda8f63647bd4290
One of the nice things about living in dry air is you can do this
Look for people on Facebook Marketplace/Craigslist giving away junky or out of date furniture. Ignore the modern/Ikea/Sauder type stuff. If it's fifty years old or older, it's probably made of good hardwood. It's a crapshoot, of course, but it's a free resource that can get you lots of nice hardwood. Junk pianos also. Yeah, you need to put in a bit of work to disassemble it and remove any nails or screws, but I haven't paid for hardwood in years. Other good places to check are behind dumpsters at apartment complexes, people throw out kitchen/dining room tables because it has a cracked leg or something minor. Also estate sales/auction houses. They'll generally trash anything that doesn't sell after the auction.
[This YouTuber](https://youtu.be/zCXgP0Hu1Nk?si=BOE0mo-mEs6WGmyz) made a video about buying lumber from different online retailers. To summarize, it possible to buy good quality lumber from a website and have it shipped it to you, with 2 main downsides. First, it’s far more expensive; since you’re so far away from other retailers, it would be an acceptable price since they ship to you. Second, there’s no selecting the pieces you want to work with and are dependent upon the retailer to choose nice pieces that match color and grain. Good luck!
Yeah, I've watched his video. I'm inclined to give Rockler a chance. I actually want to delve into planing rough sawn lumber to avoid bowed and twisted boards, but many online retailers only sell s4s. Some others, including his top pick, have minimum board feet purchase requirements and/or don't give you much choice when selecting board dimensions. I just wanted to post and ask around and see other perspectives. You never know, someone might be sitting on a great resource I haven't found yet. Thanks for the reply!
I ordered a bunch of premium S3S 6/4 walnut from Woodworkers source when it was last 20% off(February I think). I had two pieces of the nine replaced with their 100% satisfaction guarantee. They may be more costly, but if you don’t have all the tools and they can essentially finish the lumber before shipping, it’s not all that bad. It would have taken me hours to get it to where it was when it arrived. Factoring in those costs of time made it easier to chew.
You can always post your location to see if anyone knows of any places. They can sometimes be hard to find, but in my experience most places that aren’t so remote that they have a Home Depot have a good chance of having a lumberyard in reasonable driving distance.
Online stores: Bell Forest Products, CR Muterspaw, Rare Woods USA, Woodworkers Source, Ocooch Hardwoods, Alexander Brothers.
I'm in a similar boat. Rockler, or Amazon are my go too when I'm desperate enough.
Is there no wood where you live? No mills etc?
I live in an arid part of the southwest. We have to plant our trees here and water them or they die. Woodworking was maybe not a well thought through hobby to pick up...
Woodworkers Source is supposed to be good. Based out of Arizona so shipping would not be as bad. [https://www.woodworkerssource.com/](https://www.woodworkerssource.com/) I have personally used Woodcraft and have been satisfied. They usually have some kind of wood deal going, in some cases up to 50% off. [https://www.woodcraft.com/](https://www.woodcraft.com/)
I feel bad for asking. I live literally in the woods, if I’m lucky I can go for a walk and find a downed tree and chop it up with a chainsaw.
Growing up, my dad used to joke that a dog had to walk two hours to find a place to pee. :p
I like in Arizona. There’s a couple spots in the Phoenix area if that’s where you’re at.
Where? There are lumberyards in the cities. Providing even your county would help people help you.
West Texas
Any of these help? Acacia Hardwoods - Lubbock http://www.acaciahardwoods.net West Texas Woodshop - Midland https://www.westtexaswoodshop.com
Yes, actually. I'll be sure to check them out...
Keep digging and you’ll probably find even better places. Lumberyards tend to fly under the radar. The rule of thumb is good lumberyards have a functional website, great ones have a website that is only a clipart guy in a hardhat saying “under construction” that haven’t been updated since 1996, and amazing ones have never even heard of the internet.
Ask them lots of questions, I bet they can help you find more information and supplies.
FB marketplace, ads from local farmers. Also check if there are any Woodcraft and Rockler stores in your state. Aside from that you can order online. Some offer lumber at reasonable prices, but the problem is with shipping.
Find a lumber dealer in Missouri or nearby who ships freight. It will cost you, but it may still be cheaper than Rockler which overcharges. Just buy a whole lot and it will last you. Lumber doesn’t go bad. One example: https://www.1fhw.net/index.html
I bought from this guy off Amazon. Obviously if you need furniture sized quantities it will get more and more expensive, but if you need enough for a cutting board or something its fine. The wood I got from this guy was actually very nice. Almost no blemishes and cut square. [https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09Q7N68Y2?psc=1&ref=ppx\_yo2ov\_dt\_b\_product\_details](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09Q7N68Y2?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details)
I bought most of my stuff from woodworkers source before finding some places locally. Bellforest has some nice stuff as well but you will pay extra for the "convenience" .
Find a cabinet shop and ask where they buy lumber.
We have poplar at the local big box stores. I’ve used it for shaker cabinet doors.
Also you could rent a U-Haul or Home Depot truck, drive the distance to a mill, load up for your projects and drive back. Do that maybe 2-3 times a year.
I have considered this, maybe even planning mini weekend vacations around places that have better lumber sources than I do. Though I'll have to figure out lumber storage, as I'm in a garage shop at the moment and space is at a premium.
https://preview.redd.it/9qs4th8ai58d1.jpeg?width=2268&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3e42c81cb373b3484e35d075cda8f63647bd4290 One of the nice things about living in dry air is you can do this
Lumber yards have the best prices I’ve seen. Especially the Amish lumber yards. If you can find one of those you struck gold.