Mail order wood recommendations?

[Beechwood Chip]

I've looked into local mills and hardwood dealers, and decided that given the cost of gas and my time, I'm better off ordering my wood on a website for delivery.

I've watched some videos that rate different sites and done some research on the web, but I'm wondering if you guys have any opinions?

For my next couple projects I'd just need 6' boards, maybe a couple 8'.  Nothing especially long, wide, or thick.

I'm happy to let the wood acclimate and then mill it after I receive it.

Thanks

[Ron Swanson Jr.]

This is the place that Marc recommended on his website. 

https://www.bellforestproducts.com

I don't have any experiences with them but they seem to have a good reputation. 

[Von]

On 9/14/2025 at 10:42 PM, Beechwood Chip said:

I've looked into local mills and hardwood dealers, and decided that given the cost of gas and my time, I'm better of ordering my wood on a website for delivery.

I'm close but have not tried this myself. It's a hour drive to my nearest commercial hardwood dealer. Closer one are smaller operations with just locally harvested lumber - nothing wrong with that, just not much variety and the buying experience can be unpredictable. It's nice to lay hands on the lumber, but yeah, at times it would be nice not to have to schedule an afternoon to go get it. Plus, a confession: I don't own a pickup truck.

On 9/15/2025 at 5:54 AM, Ron Swanson Jr. said:

This is the place that Marc recommended on his website. 

https://www.bellforestproducts.com

I don't have any experiences with them but they seem to have a good reputation. 

Reminder/plug that if you are a WW Guild Member, you get a 10% discount from BF, among a bunch of other places: https://thewoodwhispererguild.com/discounts/ - looks like you have to be a member to access that link since it lists discount codes, you can also see a list of vendors at the bottom of https://thewoodwhispererguild.com/product/subscription/

[Beechwood Chip]

On 9/15/2025 at 8:44 AM, Von said:

I'm close but have not tried this myself. 

I'm in the same boat, for the same reasons.  I did a commission a while back, charging time and materials, and after hitting terrible traffic I realized that I could have saved my client money by ordering the wood delivered.  Also, no truck.

Bourbon Moth did a thorough review of mail order lumber.

 

[BillyJack]

When do we save clients money? My daughter might be a different  case as there would be no charge. 

I charge a price upfront  for the project. Getting materials, etc is my problem. If you feel the need to give refunds, you won’t make as a business man in woodworking. 

[Beechwood Chip]

On 9/15/2025 at 12:53 PM, BillyJack said:

If you feel the need to give refunds, you won’t make as a business man in woodworking. 

I'm not a woodworking businessman, I'm a retired guy who enjoys woodworking as a hobby.  I have a friend who enjoys tower bell ringing as a hobby.  He needed some replacement parts for his bells and I made them for time and materials.

https://www.woodtalkonline.com/topic/33678-unfinished-wood-in-church-bell-tower/#comment-458024

 

[pkinneb]

I have bought a lot from Bell Forrest Products over the years and have always been extremely satisfied. Pretty much all my curly and birds eye maple over the last 5-10 years is from them (Urns). I ordered some ash for a project from them and wasn't thrilled with the first batch they worked with me and we resolved the issue in what I felt was more than fair manner.  

[Beechwood Chip]

There's a lumber yard about an hour away from me that will deliver; free for orders over $300. So I plan to drive out there to make the order, and then have them deliver it to my house.

I figure that I might as well buy wood for three projects at once, to save driving time. A large dresser, a bed with drawers, and an entertainment center. Maybe I'm crazy, but these will be my first "real" furniture projects.  Previously I have only knocked together stuff for my shop.

I'm wondering what's the best way to go from a SketchUp drawing to a cut list to a BF order.  When I've worked with plywood, I'd take a copy of the SketchUp model and disassemble it to separate parts, then lay those parts out on 8'x4' sheets.  I figure I'll do the same thing, but use a 8' x 1' boards, and then count the boards to figure BF for the order.  Keeping track which boards are 4/4 and which are 8/4, and minimum widths, and adding some for test pieces, flexibility and mistakes.

Is there a better approach?

 

[Ron Swanson Jr.]

On 10/6/2025 at 11:29 AM, Beechwood Chip said:

There's a lumber yard about an hour away from me that will deliver; free for orders over $300. So I plan to drive out there to make the order, and then have them deliver it to my house.

I figure that I might as well buy wood for three projects at once, to save driving time. A large dresser, a bed with drawers, and an entertainment center. Maybe I'm crazy, but these will be my first "real" furniture projects.  Previously I have only knocked together stuff for my shop.

I'm wondering what's the best way to go from a SketchUp drawing to a cut list to a BF order.  When I've worked with plywood, I'd take a copy of the SketchUp model and disassemble it to separate parts, then lay those parts out on 8'x4' sheets.  I figure I'll do the same thing, but use a 8' x 1' boards, and then count the boards to figure BF for the order.  Keeping track which boards are 4/4 and which are 8/4, and minimum widths, and adding some for test pieces, flexibility and mistakes.

Is there a better approach?

 

Hi Chip 

 will you be selecting reach piece yourself? It sounds like you will. 

I don't know that you can count on each board being 12" wide. Using that will assist you in calculating your board feet, but for actual planning of your pieces i try to group them logically and plan my boards  that way. So if i need 1 series of pieces that are 4" wide and another series that are 1" wide, i can be pretty confident in choosing a 6-7" wide board for them, so waste is minimized. 

I hope that makes sense. It may help you to make templates for your pieces out of cardboard to get a sense of how you can group them together. 

I usually add a minimum of 1/2" length and width to each piece when i lay them out to account for burning, machine marks, etc. 

And i always buy about 10-20% more than the cutting list calls for, because... Well, stuff happens!

 

 

[BillyJack]

I wouldn’t do it..

[Beechwood Chip]

On 10/6/2025 at 1:10 PM, Ron Swanson Jr. said:

So if i need 1 series of pieces that are 4" wide and another series that are 1" wide, i can be pretty confident in choosing a 6-7" wide board for them, so waste is minimized. 

Good point. The 12" boards were just to calculate BF, so X BF of 4" or better, Y BF of 6" or better.  But I wasn't thinking of grouping pieces like a 1" and 4" on a 6" board.

Thanks!

[Beechwood Chip]

On 10/6/2025 at 1:21 PM, BillyJack said:

I wouldn’t do it..

Why do you think it's a bad idea?

[wtnhighlander]

Rather than drive myself nuts with the math, I figure the total BF requirement, and buy 30% more. Using natural lumber always results in waste, and having extra makes selection for grain match & color mutch easier. Otherwise you'll agonize over picking each board at the yard, and still probably regret some decision by the time you are done.

But then, I've never really had the luxury of pucking board-by-board at the yard.

[Beechwood Chip]

On 10/6/2025 at 1:42 PM, wtnhighlander said:

Rather than drive myself nuts with the math, I figure the total BF requirement, and buy 30% more. Otherwise you'll agonize over picking each board at the yard, and still probably regret some decision by the time you are done.

I'm not going to pick board by board at the yard - I think that would make me nuts.  I have the option of ordering over the phone or going to the yard, and I think I'll be more comfortable talking face to face.  But I still need to come up with a rough BF requirement.

[Von]

On 10/6/2025 at 2:20 PM, Beechwood Chip said:

I'm not going to pick board by board at the yard - I think that would make me nuts.  I have the option of ordering over the phone or going to the yard, and I think I'll be more comfortable talking face to face.  But I still need to come up with a rough BF requirement.

I usually decide if there is one key board or set of boards (e.g. drawer fronts) that is worth highlighting and pick that out, and then don't sweat the rest.

I've always done my layout on paper by hand.

Agree with buying extra (spare parts, finishing practice, etc).  Instead of a fraction or percentage, I usually buy an extra board as large as my largest board for a part.

 

[BillyJack]

On 10/6/2025 at 12:38 PM, Beechwood Chip said:

Why do you think it's a bad idea?

For tye minimal order a 6’and 8’ and if it’s not absolutely perfect, you’ll crucify the company or individual that sent it..

[Coop]

Not sure which of the above is a bad idea? 

[Beechwood Chip]

On 10/6/2025 at 3:57 PM, BillyJack said:

For tye minimal order a 6’and 8’ and if it’s not absolutely perfect, you’ll crucify the company or individual that sent it..

So, make a small order first and see if it's acceptable. If they screw up the order or send low quality wood, then find another place for the big order.  That's not a bad idea, especially for a place that doesn't really have online reviews.

[BillyJack]

They may send you great wood first order, then crappy wood the second. 
 

Here’s a thought… We ate at a Mexican and BBQ place all the time. Enough food to take a doggy bag. Later it was less for the same money..My wife no longer orders from these places. Once they get you to like it, they figure they can start giving you less.

[Mark J]

@Beechwood Chip, what is their delivery charge if the purchase is less than $300?

[Ron Swanson Jr.]

It's worth mentioning that if you're driving out there anyway, they may cut boards shorter for you to help them fit in a car, or you can bring a battery circular saw and speed square. 

You can get a fair amount of lumber into most cars. Heck, there's a guy in NE Mpls who modified his bicycle and uses it to transport impressive amounts of lumber. 

So keep your options open. Delivery is nice, no doubt, but there's always other ways to move the stuff too. 

[Beechwood Chip]

On 10/7/2025 at 9:27 AM, Mark J said:

@Beechwood Chip, what is their delivery charge if the purchase is less than $300?

They don't say on their web site.  They just contract with a shipping company and pass the cost on to you.  It's not like Bell Forest, where they are set up to do business online.  They do accept phone orders.

[Mark J]

12 minutes ago, Ron Swanson Jr. said:

you can bring a battery circular saw

or jig saw.

[Beechwood Chip]

On 10/7/2025 at 9:43 AM, Ron Swanson Jr. said:

It's worth mentioning that if you're driving out there anyway, they may cut boards shorter for you to help them fit in a car, or you can bring a battery circular saw and speed square. 

You can get a fair amount of lumber into most cars. Heck, there's a guy in NE Mpls who modified his bicycle and uses it to transport impressive amounts of lumber. 

So keep your options open. Delivery is nice, no doubt, but there's always other ways to move the stuff too. 

I've done that for a small purchase (one 14' x 10" 8/4 board).  I guess when I calculate the BF I need, I can estimate whether I can fit it in my Outback.  I do own a battery powered circular saw.

[gee-dub]

On 10/7/2025 at 6:57 AM, Mark J said:

or jig saw.

This is what I do if I am not in the truck.  I rarely use boards longer than 60" so if I have to cut down a 10' or 12' board I just look for the best parts and try to divide in that area.  My local yard will do this for me, no charge. 

I have a Tacoma 4-door so the truck bed is more like a purse than a truck bed.  I installed extra pad eyes so I can strap in 10-footers pretty well.  I have a small backpack in the truck that holds my gloves, tape measure, flag, flag clamp, and various ratchet straps.  I must confess that when I make the long trip to my favorite yard a couple of hours away I have overloaded to where I almost pop a wheelie if I hit a speed bump .  I do not recommend or condone this.

The point is that like jointing and planing, you can reduce the size of the blank to make it more manageable without losing the use of your material.