JayTalbott Posted October 4, 2010 Report Share Posted October 4, 2010 What happens when a local mom & pop shop that makes custom butcher block counter tops and cutting boards out of their garage decides that they have had enough of the Arizona heat (this summer has been a doozy) and are moving to Oregon where it's cooler and hardwood comes cheaper, and they don't want to pay to move all of the unused lumber that they still have in stock? A few hundred dollars and a couple of truckloads later, it's now all in my garage! It's a mix of hard maple, black walnut, cherry, and lyptus. Pretty much everything is 8/4, except about half of the maple is 6/4. The only thing is, it's all either short slabs (1'-2' long), or rip cut-offs (up to about 2" wide). There's also several boxes of smaller peices. I figure if you add it all up it's got to be somewhere in the ballpark of 300-500 bf. Even if a lot of it becomes scrap, it was still a smokin' deal at under $1 per bf. Adding this to the 4/4 stock I already had, and I'm set for lumber for a while. My biggest problem was figuring out where to store it all. it took me most of the day Saturday to reorganize the garage to make room for it all. Unfortunately my "shop" basically only gets one wall of the garage to work with. I took some pics after I got home with the 2nd load. I had to pack a lot of the 8/4 slabs into the back seat of my truck. Oh, and those are some really nice 8/4 slabs of cherry on the bottom of the pile in the truck bed. I took a couple more shots after I found most if it a home in the garage. I ended up having to clear off the top of a storage rack for all the long stuff. It's all now organized up there front to back by species (the maple is obviously in front). All the 8/4 and 6/4 slabs are standing on end on the floor. The last shot is a pic of my main wood storage rack which is now packed completely full. Note that I took this picture before I was done, so what looks to be an empty space to the left of the drill press table is now also packed full of wood. What to build, what to build, what to build? That is the pressing question... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillN Posted October 4, 2010 Report Share Posted October 4, 2010 Uhmmmm... maybe cutting boards and butcher block countertops? Really - boxes, resaw and make drawers for other pieces, lots of material for tapered legs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JayTalbott Posted October 4, 2010 Author Report Share Posted October 4, 2010 Yea, I visualized a whole lot of table legs as I was loading it all into the truck... And, believe it or not, I had previously been thinking of building a freestanding end-grain butcher block table, either 18" square or 18"x24" and about 3" thick, for my wife as a Christmas present. Now I've got all the material I need to make one. I'll make the top out of maple, and I'm thinking of making the legs out of cherry and staining them to match the cherry cabinets in our kitchen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulMarcel Posted October 5, 2010 Report Share Posted October 5, 2010 I guess they were smart... I complain about the Arizona heat, but don't move in an attempt to correct the problem. Nice score! Very lucky to get such nice sizes, too. Thing is, I think I remember running into the wife of that couple several times when I'd go to Woodworkers' Source in Tempe. I thought she worked there after seeing her there the third time in a row and that's when she explained she made countertops and butcher blocks. Odd thing was, she was picking and hauling all the wood then he'd show up with the truck. Very gentleman-like Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JayTalbott Posted October 5, 2010 Author Report Share Posted October 5, 2010 I think I remember running into the wife of that couple several times when I'd go to Woodworkers' Source in Tempe. That's probably her. She said that's where they bought most of their lumber. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juicegoose Posted October 6, 2010 Report Share Posted October 6, 2010 Jay I loathe you!!!!! no but seriously good score!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NYHump Posted October 9, 2010 Report Share Posted October 9, 2010 What happens when a local mom & pop shop that makes custom butcher block counter tops and cutting boards out of their garage decides that they have had enough of the Arizona heat (this summer has been a doozy) and are moving to Oregon where it's cooler and hardwood comes cheaper, and they don't want to pay to move all of the unused lumber that they still have in stock? A few hundred dollars and a couple of truckloads later, it's now all in my garage! It's a mix of hard maple, black walnut, cherry, and lyptus. Pretty much everything is 8/4, except about half of the maple is 6/4. The only thing is, it's all either short slabs (1'-2' long), or rip cut-offs (up to about 2" wide). There's also several boxes of smaller peices. I figure if you add it all up it's got to be somewhere in the ballpark of 300-500 bf. Even if a lot of it becomes scrap, it was still a smokin' deal at under $1 per bf. Adding this to the 4/4 stock I already had, and I'm set for lumber for a while. My biggest problem was figuring out where to store it all. it took me most of the day Saturday to reorganize the garage to make room for it all. Unfortunately my "shop" basically only gets one wall of the garage to work with. I took some pics after I got home with the 2nd load. I had to pack a lot of the 8/4 slabs into the back seat of my truck. Oh, and those are some really nice 8/4 slabs of cherry on the bottom of the pile in the truck bed. I took a couple more shots after I found most if it a home in the garage. I ended up having to clear off the top of a storage rack for all the long stuff. It's all now organized up there front to back by species (the maple is obviously in front). All the 8/4 and 6/4 slabs are standing on end on the floor. The last shot is a pic of my main wood storage rack which is now packed completely full. Note that I took this picture before I was done, so what looks to be an empty space to the left of the drill press table is now also packed full of wood. What to build, what to build, what to build? That is the pressing question... Jay, Since we have the same pick-up truck and you have the same name as my son and you have all this wood and I make cutting boards and...........how 'bout sharing? Nice find dude, make some nice end grain cutting boards out of it NYHump Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UglySteve Posted October 10, 2010 Report Share Posted October 10, 2010 your wall is going to buckle under all that weight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulMarcel Posted October 10, 2010 Report Share Posted October 10, 2010 Just realized nobody made this gloat official: Jay, you suck! (there, done! ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JayTalbott Posted October 11, 2010 Author Report Share Posted October 11, 2010 your wall is going to buckle under all that weight. Yea, that thought actually did cross my mind as I kept loading it up. Or if the weight would rip out or shear off the screws holding the standards to the wall. But so far it's holding. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nateswoodworks Posted October 11, 2010 Report Share Posted October 11, 2010 Thick wood like that is perfect, thick for when you need thick, and perfect for book-matching and veneering. Great find, have fun. Nate Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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