Good Deal??

[Bigboat123]

So this was my first trip to a lumber yard, and i have no real idea what I should be paying for actual lumber.  I found this guy through a neighbor.  He sources all the wood from tree services and mills and kiln dries it in house.  I was looking for some specific sized boards for shelving.  I wanted at least 4/4 and 10 to 12 inches wide.  I need at least 7 foot lengths.  We went through his warehouse and found some southern yellow pine about 11 inches deep and just over 4/4.  He said he could straight line cut both sides.  I got a 4 boards, he charged 70 bucks.  I feel like it was a pretty good deal but like I said this was my first time buying wood outside of a Home Depot so I don’t really have any reference points.  I would like some opinions cause i am in the process of setting up a little shop in my basement and already have some projects in mind and want to know if I should keep going through this guy.

[wtnhighlander]

Sounds like a decent guy to work with. Hard to comment on price, as it varies according to availability of the given species in you region.

[Coop]

Yeah, that's a little more than $2.50 per bf, which is probably what you would pay at the big box if they had that width.

[minorhero]

Prices vary by where in the world you are. However, anyone you buy from should advertise the price per board foot. Some places will charge more for larger widths, others won't bother. I personally would be suspicious of anyone who didn't tell you upfront how much the cost of the wood is by board foot. 

In maryland paying more then 2.50 per board foot for pine is VERY high from a lumber yard. I can get oak for that all day long. But maybe pine is rare in your neck of the woods... Either way it pays to shop around. Try using woodfinder.net to look up some other hardwood sellers in your area. Many will advertise online their price lists these days. Others you can just call and ask what they charge for local species. This will let you find some good options.

[Mick S]

I suspect you were paying a little bit of a premium for him straight line ripping it for you in such a small volume. You may have paid for a setup fee that might otherwise have been amortized over a large run, thereby reducing your BF price.

 

Edited August 28, 2015 by micks

[Eric.]

It's almost impossible to say whether or not it's a good price when you're buying from a "guy" who sources green lumber locally and "kiln dries it in-house."  Unless you're getting properly graded lumber according to NHLA rules, you don't know if you're comparing apples to apples.  We'd have to know what grade it is and if it was properly dried.  Those two variables are the most important when pricing lumber, and we have neither to form an opinion.

$2.50/bf for any kind of pine sounds pretty high to me unless you somehow got your hands on legit old growth.  SYP is abundant, cheap, and not really special in any appreciable way.  But as long as you feel like you got a decent deal, I suppose you did.

[Guest]

 I don't know the grades for pine (softwoods are graded on a different standard than hardwoods, except for cypress for some reason).  But if it is all clear, vertical grain then it is a steal.  If is clear and plain sawn, probably an okay deal.  If is is knotty, then not so much.  

Eric is right, SYP is abundant and cheap... in the the south.  As you get further north you only really see it in pressure treated material.  Most "pine" sold around here at the box stores is a mix of construction grade sprice/pine/fir from canada, which is softer than SYP.  Some of the hardwood dealers around me do stock higher grades of pine, but it is usually eastern white.