Looking for someone who is using or has used cherry lumber from Irion Lumber Company of Wellsbora, Pa.
What did you think of quality of material? Did lumber received match their description at their website? How does their cherry lumber compare to other suppliers you have used?
Thanks,
JP7
Replies
DO IT BUY IT NEVER GO ANYWHERE ELSE!!!!
Myron is one hell of a guy and if you describe what you want, he will do his darn best to get it just the way you want it. Beware though that there is an additional charge for matched sets and a 200 bf minimum for any type of delivery (been trying to get them to drop that minimum). You will also probably find the wood a tad more costly, but if you order 4/4 your gonna get 4/4. If your near, you really need to take the trip over and see the place. Once there, hope that Louis is there and in a sharing mood. Have had the opportunity to visit his house and its like walking through a museum. All made by him of course.
Chris
P.S. - You can also try Good Hope Hardwoods if you want the extra special not gonna get it any where else kinda curly cherry that makes your eyes water! At $14 a board foot it's not for the everyday bathroom vanity.
Edited 8/3/2008 5:55 pm ET by hdgis1
Thanks, I appreciate your response very much.
JP7
Just funnin ya!
You sound like a TV Ad guy!
All my KIN.. Ok Most.. (within a 150 years or so are PA folks) .. Lansdale PA. We PA. folks never rip off anybody unless there is money to be made.. BIG Money to a old PA. coal miner family was a $20.00 Bill! Hell, if I recall rightly'.. what my old Grandmother yould's say.. (besids yse'n and thems'en)...
A man handed me a $5.00 bill for some washing on the old scrub board.. I did for him.. I thought he was God... so I washed his feet with my hair! I think she was 'funnin' us kids... BUT grandma was VERY serious! ALL the time!Never bought anything there. But if he is PA folk' got to be the nice guy! If you ask, he may even invite you to Supper, before the long hall back with all that wood!
My friend and mentor (and FWW contributor) Randy ODonnell uses them as one of his sources for lumber, so I bought curly cherry for a highboy and a lowboy from them. The boards arrived marked out as bookmatches, case sides, drawer fronts, etc. They know the what you need for high end work, and can accommodate it. I was just looking over the material today to select drawer fronts. "Screamin", as Randy said...
Where are you located?
Bio
Approx 1000 miles south of Wellsboro.
JP7
Not to be rude, but I have no clue of where that is :)
Bio
Vicinity of Memphis, Tn
Thanks,
JP7
Another source to look at is:
http://www.horizonevolutions.com/
Pete is really nice to work with.
Good luck!
I ordered cherry for a dining table I made a couple of years ago, along with some other wood to get enough to ship to the midwest.
The material was marked out and perfect for what I was wanting. I could not have asked for better service, material, or experience. Cal
Went to the Horizons web site last night and behold, they have some awesome cherry. From what I read, shipments from them would arrive flat and in good condition. Man they sure have some awesome looking equipment to produce a fine finished product.
Thanks for your time and information.
JP7
Have spent a good deal of time on their web site and contacted them for prices, etc.
These people have the grade of cherry I have been looking for (Premium) and are super nice to deal with. They now have a new customer.
Thanks for responding to my post that allowed me to hook up with Horizon.
JP7
I purchased 2 bookmatched cherry boards for a dining table top from Horizon last fall. After an email to them I had photos the next morning of boards to choose from. They were 20" wide each, 8.5 feet long prime cherry. They were at my door in a week via UPS, banded together and wraped in a water proof covering. The service and selection cannot be any better. They are not inexpensive but the best never is. You will talk to George, Dan, or Pete and you will be very happy with what you receive!
I'd check with Colco on Jackson Avenue in Memphis before I drove a 1000 miles.
If you don't like what's in the showroom make them show you what they have in the warehouse - - there will be several pallets of roughsawn, FAS Cherry to look at I'm sure.
http://www.colcofinewoods.com/
Edited 8/4/2008 7:11 am ET by PanBroil
Thanks for your help. Cherry grown in the southeast has tooooo many gum voids for my uses; whereas, cherry grown in Northern Pa has the least amount and generally a better grade of lumber because it grows slower in colder climate. Will have Irion freight-line my order.
To all responders to my post, I thank you for your time and help. Irion seems to be the winner and my choice.
JP7
They carry Pennsylvania Cherry, not just Southern Cherry with all the pitch pockets. In fact, I can't remember the last time I saw any Southern Cherry there. If they don't have two thousand feet or so of the good stuff for you to pick through I'd be a little surprised. They also carry lots of tropicals, some of the European Oak species, all the major N. American furniture woods. They don't just carry species indigenous to the southeast.
If you live close to Memphis, you'd be crazy not to at least take a look.
Edited 8/4/2008 1:59 pm ET by BossCrunk
Thanks Boss. Memphis is a reasonable drive for me. If they have some real good Pa cherry, it sure would be cheaper than shipping from Pa.
JP7
You need to familiarize yourself with what they have regardless. I'd be shocked if they couldn't fill a nice-sized order for some great Cherry. They'll sell you a single board or five thousand board feet.
Pan, I drove to Memphis today and looked thru all the cherry Colco had and the best grade today was 8.50 per bdf "select". You can imagine my disappointment when I was looking for "premium" stuff.
I do appreciate your spirit of helpfulness though and I want to thank you again for your thoughtfulness in responding to my post.
JP7
That's very disappointing to hear. I'll see if I can find out some news.
I could not recommend Irion more highly. As other posters have said, they cater specifically to those interested in making high-end furniture, and "get" why you cannot accept a 20" wide board with a big ugly knot in the center. Most other lumber centers will look at you with a blank stare and say - "It grades out as FAS - that's the best you can expect"
One caveat, however - North American cherry has proven very popular in Asia, and it's very difficult for any lumber supplier to compete for the best logs with the veneer guys. I say this simply because a number of us have run across stashes of cherry cut 40 years ago, and modern supplies don't compare well in either color or figure.
While I have never personally ordered wood from Irion, I do know of two horror stories. Back when I was a student at Rio Grande under Lonnie Birds instruction I had several classmates buy wood from Lou to make the Pennsylvania Secratary. Out of six students that all pretty much placed the same order, two of them ended up with a dissapointing lot of wood, that all pretty much spent the same amount of money. This was several years ago but it taught me a lesson about buying wood sight unseen, always describe to them the lumber that you want and be very specific. Have them describe it, or send pics of what they are sending.
Thanks, Matt.....sounds like good advise to me.
JP7
While I have never purchased lumber from Irion, I do have some comments.
First off, the 200 b/f minimum is a definite turd in the punchbowl, unless you are building a highboy or live within a couple hundred miles of the place. Especially when you start talking about $10 and up per b/f.
Secondly, I have been told by two very prominent furniture makers this same story: When Lou Irion sold his furniture making business he did so with the stipulation that his lumber company supplied all of the lumber to the new owners of the furniture company. What this means is that the really primo stuff goes to the furniture company and everything else is offered up for sale.
I'm not trying to drag Irion's good name throough the mud here, but I would be cautious about shelling out big $$$ for (minimum) 200 b/f plus lumber sight unseen. Even if a bunch of people here had a good experience with them.
Good luck,
Lee
I agree, the 200bf min is a lot unless you have a shop with a bunch of projects lined up and there are a lot of other dealers that you can order wood from that is high quality, hand-picked, and much cheaper. I challenge you to give Chad a call at http://www.crlumber.com and see exactly what he has. I order from him all the time and can get as little or as much as I want. While I don't have any pictures of his Cherry, I can show you a piece of Walnut that he sent me after I stressed how I wanted it to be the centerpiece of the display. I loved it and the client's response was, "Oh my goodness, that is BEAUTIFUL!"
I guess I say this to say that I would assume that everyone who has started these businesses to sell wood over the net would be cognitive of how important it is to give you good stuff because if their reputation is stained their business will be ruined. Good luck, I really hope you look a little more before you pay that price.
Bio
Mapleman, just got through perusing the website you recommended and they have some awesomely pretty curly cherry and prices are reasonable.
Just wish I lived closer and could go by and hand pick mine. May just make a trip up there in October when the weather is cooler and the leaves are pretty.
Thanks for your time and information. I am grateful.
JP7
My apologies.....BioHaz......meant the reply to go to you.
JP7
One comment in defense of Irion's minimum order of 200 b/f: This is actually something that helps out the buyer, presuming they are shipping the lumber a long way. Irion doesn't typically sell short boards, and typical lumber lengths exceed the maximums for direct-to-consumer shippers like UPS and FedEx.
Therefore, lumber like this has to go as freight with so-called "Common Carriers". These freight companies will charge quite a bit, and the cost has a rather odd structure - if it's more than a certain minimum (If I remember correctly, 2000 lbs.), the cost is a lot less than it is for just under that minimum - in absolute terms as well as cost per pound.
Myron Yoder at Irion has told me that they will occasionally ship a short board by UPS or FedEx for a special need (i.e., someone didn't order any extra and ruined a drawer front), but anything less than 200 b.f. is going to result in a very high fractional cost due to shipping if it's typical lumber lengths and is shipped by common carrier.
When did you go to Rio? I was there for two years (05-07) and not a one order came in less than perfect. Cant say that about the mill around the corner though! How was life under Lonnie. Didnt get to take any of his classes but instead with Eric. Had a wonderful time and would recommend not just Rio, but any good program, as the knowledge gained in such a short time was invaluable.Chris Hedges
Edited 8/5/2008 8:25 pm ET by hdgis1
Hi Chris, I went to Rio from '97-'99. I think I went to school with Eric, he was a year behind me. I recall partying with him a few times. I think everybody that I went to school with hated it as much as I did. Lonnie did a great job of teaching the X's and O's of woodworking, but his style then was that of a drill sargent, and you didn't make it through unless you were very driven to succeed. It was a sink or swim atmosphere. I hated it but at the same time I loved it. We started with 31 students and after two years only 12 graduated. I think the experience has made me a much better woodworker. I will never forget my years at Rio Grande and while I hated it at the time, I now look back with fondness.
Party with Eric? Come on! At least you started with that many students - I started with 13, lost 5 after first year and by end of second year only had 4 left! Eric wasnt much of a drill sergeant but focused more on technique than creativity. Not sure is that was a good thing or not. Hell, after 5 years at the helm, we were still building the projects Lonnie left behind! The only way to separate yourself from the pack was to be creative on your own. You still doing furniture or gone to where the money is?Chris
I went to where the money was at. I did a stint on the east coast building furniture but its a hell of alot easier to make a living doing millwork and cabinets. I moved back to northern michigan and work at a small shop and do a fair amount of side furniture work. What did you find when you left Rio workwise?
For the most part, Im doing the gallery thing. Made some good connections at a furniture show in Knoxville TN and send stuff out to three different galleries. Good way to get your stuff out but man they sure do take their cut! Do some commissions on the side. Best part is that I only walk 30 seconds to my job! Going to give the furniture side a few more years before I turn coat :) and go to cabinets.CHris
i gotta tell ya...they are totally committed to providing wood to woodworkers...i bought a bunch of quilted cherry while back when i bought the wood for the bombe ..i have been working with it for 2 months now....its great stuff....and what i love best..they wont sell it piece meal....if you want it you gotta get the tree too....that means ...matched boards ...color and grain.....its awesome....
"T" what company are you speaking of. Several got mentioned in responses.
Thanks,
JP7
sorry...irion lumber....myron is the man.....
Just the thought of you speakin' Bostonian with Myron kind of makes me chuckle!Oh yeah...completely of the subject, but every time I wanna show my buddies something they simply wont believe...I show em the video of you cutting down the sides of that bombe with your circular saw! Chris
hey man...thanks for watching the show....i hope you consider joining the 207.....i really didnt know how else to cut the sides.....just went with what i have been doing my whole career...ya know...sill ...a pretty crazy thing to do i guess
There are few things that keep me entertained on the internet but, I must say, it's nice to see someone get some recognition who makes 'real' furniture. Not too many guys who make bombe anything can entertain people!ChrisP.S. - Posted pic of last years big project on the 207
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