Maybe it is just vernacular but what is the true dimension supposed to be of 5 quarter or 8 quarter thickness. It seems to vary from mill to mill where 5 quarter is anywhere fron 1″ to 1.125″ but never 1.25″ why does this have to be so confusing and is there really a standard. I hear say it is the dimension before it goes through the planer. Why don’t we just speak in plain facts and call it what it is?
We may be slow, But we’re expensive.
Replies
Myci,
It's much more funner this way...I mean, we can't afford all the tools we need....skills are always changing...but if you know the lingo, your in the club house no questions asked.
The 5/4, 10/4, etc. measurements refer to the thickness of the wood when it was cut green...with drying comes shrinkage. For furniture, the moisture content needs to be in the 6-8% range...
It's even more fun to talk about things like planes....there you've got names and numbers (kinda like golf used to be) you can float back and forth to...shoulder, block, jack, smoother, jointer.
On the other hand, no one talks too much about nail sizes...they are no fun...they have names and numbers too...but for some reason they're boring.
This way we get to pay for the shrinkage, waste, milling, and the transportation based on the rough board footage. FWIW I look at this as the opportunity cost for my access to good hardwood in SoCal thousands of miles from the nearest hardwood stands. Otherwise you're left with only "1 by" (3/4") dimensional lumber priced by the lineal foot at the big orange box. Also it forces you to think and therefore allow for the waste to get a smooth, flat board - just add a 1/4 to what you want to end up with. If you want 3/4", buy 4/4 and get home with 25/32". A couple of passes with your implement of choice to loose the mill marks and you have a full 3/4". Viola.
Where it really gets scarry is when it's priced by the pound. Then you know you're into the really spendy stuff.
John O'Connell - JKO Handcrafted Woodworking
Life is tough. It's tougher if you're stupid - John Wayne
I always find your 1/4 system odd and almost laughable. Here we buy measured by the dry dimensions ( about 15% in my area) on rough sawn boards and pay by the cubic meter. this way you kow exactly what you are paying for and exactly what you are getting.
Philip
I was at a lubmer yard earlier this week and spied some 3/8" cherry that would be perfect for panels for cabinet sides and doors. The sign said $3.80, and since everything in this yard is priced in board feet (except for ebony, which is by the pound), I thought I'd landed a real deal. So I picked through the pile and hauled my stack to the front of the store where the proprietor measured it up. The price he handed me was huge! So I went back to the sign and looked a little closer: it was priced by the square foot! Turns out I can resaw 4/4 stock to 3/8 for a lot less money. Oh well.
Then I was at another year that sells dimensioned cherry. When I asked the price I was given some ridiculous figure, so I asked whether it was by the linear foot of the board foot. The salesman turned his nose up at me and said it was by linear foot...and why was I asking? Seems he wasn't aware you can buy lumber by the board foot...
If you can find a yard that sells rough stuff that's properly dried, you can justify a bad saw and planer real easy.
This forum post is now archived. Commenting has been disabled