The wood-dealer blues

[Xaromir]

Just came back from the dealer, sort of depressed, you maybe want to stop reading here if you don't like wine.

I just came back from the only wood dealer i know round here that deals with "exotic" wood.

I wanted to get some 1mm - 2mm thick pieces of wood for inlays and some massive wood for the boxes i want to make,

on which the inlays should go on.

Sadly he mostly deals with veneer, i asked for holly, purple heart, zebra, wenge, blood wood, maple, mahogany and poplar.

It started with what was actaully available, the only thing they had was

mahogany, purple heart, and zebra, maple, but it was mostly bad, i couldn't be bothered to pick it up for that price.

I came home with 3,78m² (40ft²) / 1,5mm (0.06") mahogany of acceptable quality,

0,3m² (3,9ft²) / 0,6mm (0.037") of at best b-grade maple and 1,03m² (11ft²) / 0,6mm of actually nice louro faya.

All for the price of 124€ or 160 of your american dollars.

Now i need to find some fine wood with i can use that stuff on as inlays for only 20€ or better for nothing,

because that's what i have left for this month.

Using veneer this thin for inlays will be tricky enough as it is, and i have a deadline for this one.

I wouldn't mind the hard work, but i'm feeling 50 years older when ever i attempt to buy some material.

It's either not available, of bad quality, tons of trouble, or costs A LOT, or everything combined,

like that 15 kilo log of ebony, which i wish i wouldn't have bought, people from the old forum may remember that:

I'm this close to selling my tools and quitting.

I asked in german forums as well, but did not come up with any reliable sources of wood, not even online.

We are a nation that was literally build from the ground up again after WW2,

a nation of craftsmen one may think, and i can't even get the material i need? That's really sad.

I depend on resellers that can sell me small amounts, i just can not handle and mill own lumber.

We are having a woodworking Head to Head over at worth1000,

another person said how much she is enjoying going to the wood dealer.

I always come out poor, depressed, and never with what i wanted.

If someone from germany reads this:

Please tell me where i can order my material, i'm desperate.

I really wouldn't mind the making process, but so far i'm doing nothing, because i have nothing to make anything with.

Complaining and whining isn't nice i know, but this kills my enthusiasm/motivation, i guess it helps to talk about it.

[jpenme]

Xaromir

I wish I could help man. I don't have a solution for ya but just wanted you to know that your not alone.

I not struggling with finding mterial but rather with the the cost of the wood itself. After a many year sabatical (20years) from woodworking I just started again.

I can't believe how expensive things are and how low the quality is for the price.

I remember when 5 bucks a board foot was considered crazy expensive and was researved for the high end exotic woods.

I remember this hobby being inexpensive (except for tools) and lots of fun. Now I feel like if I can't screw this piece of wood up because it cost too much.

Frustrated Along with you

Jon

In San Diego

[Xaromir]

Thing is, for that kind of money i could have gotten a very nice drill press, router, or even a table or band saw,

or maybe even a workbench to work on, currently i'm use my desk, and my only powertool is a dremel.

But so far i wasn't doing much woodworking due to the lack of materials,

so that it would have justified power tools as necessity, not as comfort.

But spending that money on tools would be a lot better than on material especially as a newbie.

But i also need the material.

[PaulMarcel]

I'm on a couple other forums and one has a lot of Europeans. I posted your request there a little over an hour ago and have 3 replies already including addresses in Germany. You'll have to create an account to reply, but certainly you can read it here. Let us know how it goes. I'm also waiting on a reply on the other forum though the people who will likely answer I know are on about 11 hours from now.

[DeanJackson]

1. Where are you?

2. You're looking at imported exotics. It's going to cost a lot, and supply is going to be limited.

I live in Pennsylvania, in the US. The supply of exotics is either phenomenally expensive, or picked-over quality, often both. Maple, oak, cherry, and walnut are regional; they're still expensive, but since they're coming from within 200 miles, the prices are affordable. Working with regional woods has far, far, far extended the amount of material I can afford to work with, and creative use of pigment stains, dyes, and toners extends the range of colors I have at my disposal.

What regional materials do you have, and would those come from a better store?

[PaulMarcel]

1. Where are you?

His posting seems to imply Germany or very close to Germany:

I asked in german forums as well, but did not come up with any reliable sources of wood, not even online.

We are a nation that was literally build from the ground up again after WW2,

a nation of craftsmen one may think, and i can't even get the material i need? That's really sad.

I depend on resellers that can sell me small amounts, i just can not handle and mill own lumber.

We are having a woodworking Head to Head over at worth1000,

another person said how much she is enjoying going to the wood dealer.

I always come out poor, depressed, and never with what i wanted.

If someone from germany reads this:

Please tell me where i can order my material, i'm desperate.

On the other forum, I requested information on exotics dealers in Germany and so far 4 are listed besides a couple European mail-order places. Unsure if the guy has seen them yet or if those work (or anything!)

[Xaromir]

I'm from southern germany, near nuremberg to be more exact.

Very common are spruce and cedar, but also the usual fruit trees like cherry,

as well as birch, oak, ash, alder, pine, larch, linde, poplar etc,

but to be honest, "common" exotics like mahogany and rosewood are better looking,

they are easier available (at least at my wood dealer) and they are also nicer to work with,

than trash wood as cedar pine and spruce for example,

that's what most of our needle-woods are compiled of and they are constantly harvested because they have to.

If you want a nice piece of cherry, or walnut you still get billed big time, and you may even have to place a reservation.

Paul:

Thanks mate!

I gave it a quick look just now, i'm really busy, but i will give it a good look this evening.

People and companies from holland are usually reliable, i will see to it how the import will work EU internal.