Where to buy wood?

[OCtoolguy]

I am going to try my hand at cutting a wall plaque that will be out of 1/4" wood for both the plaque and the backer board. It measures 8 1/2" x 11". I went to Lowes today to see if I could buy some poplar in that size but 6" width is the widest they sell. Where do you suggest I look for a board that wide? Will I have to do a glue up to get it? I don't want to use BB plywood if I can help it. I have some of that in 5/16" that I am practicing. Any sources that you all can send me to? Thanks for any help.

 

Ray

 

[JTTHECLOCKMAN]

There are a ton of lumber yards in your area. Hardwood dealers too. Look in the yellow pages or do a google search for your area. 

[Scrappile]

Ocooch Hardwoods and Heritage Woods sell nice stuff.  However my experience has been., 1/2" thick is fine, any thing thinner cups.  Has happen with every piece I have purchase from Ocooch Hardwoods.  I have not purchased from Haritage.  You may be able to "un-cup" it, I have not tried yet.  I think you would be better with a glue up, alternating the grains.  Just my opinion, I am no wood expert.  I just know I have several 1/4" pieces of wood I have to figure out what to do with.  I will not buy less than 1/2" in the future and then plane it to the thickness I want.  Not ranking on Ocooch.  They have a great reputation.  Just stating my experience. 

[Lucky2]

Ray, there's no issue with using a glue-up, as long as you pretest the wood to make sure that one piece takes finish the same as the other. So as long as you test for color change and other characteristics, you shouldn't have any issues. This is what I do when I have to use a glue-up, I hate ending up with a two tone project.

Len

[Rockytime]

I've never done glue ups. Do you do it with biscuits?

[kmmcrafts]

If you have a bandsaw you could buy a 3/4 - 1" board and resaw it.. then you have a book matched piece of lumber.. I guessing you don't have a bandsaw or a planner though.. 

If you do end up doing a glue up.. just a word of caution.. the glue line will cut different than the rest of the board.. and it happens a bit before the glue line where it soaks into the wood.. it cuts fine.. just different.. so just be aware of that while cutting.. at least that has been my experience.. I haven't cut too many glue ups but was something I did notice when I did cut one..   

[JTTHECLOCKMAN]

I just reread your request. Will tell you this it will will will will warp so you are better off using baltic plywood. 1/4" is not thick enough for that unless you are going to encase in a frame to keep it from warping. You will not be able to put biscuits in a 1/4" piece. All these things are factors and if you do not have the tools to mill your own lumber than you are at the mercy of outsourcing and good luck with that. They can not control wood movement as well as you can. I see you mention backer board. Again if the backer is not plywood it too will warp. 2 different woods acting against each other makes for problems when getting into wide widths such as the 8" needed. You may want to step up the outer piece to 3/8" at least. Will help in the warping. 

[Blaughn]

1 hour ago, Rockytime said:

I've never done glue ups. Do you do it with biscuits?

Edge gluing is not difficult.  If you buy 3 clamps with 12+ inches of capacity you will be able to handle the length you are likely to use for scrolling.

1.  Cut 2 pieces to length.

2.  Hold the edges together to see if there are any gaps showing (this means the edges are not flat)

3.  If the edges are close to being straight, put a bead of titebond on the edges.

4. Position the clamps on on each end and in the middle.

5.  Tighten the clamps snugly but not so hard that the clamps dent the wood.  

6.  Let the glue dry for 45 minutes then remove the clamps.

7 use a putty knife to remove the excess glue.

8  let the piece dry overnight.

9. Use a sander to level the surfaces.

Decent used Jointer planes are available on ebay which take a little experience but guarantee beautifully  flat edges.  https://www.ebay.com/itm/Stanley-Bailey-No-7-Corrugated-Jointer-Plane-U-S-PAT-APR-19-10/253244584581?hash=item3af68db285:g:8ygAAOSwridZ~7dj

 

Here's a youtube video:  (In my experience he is over-tightening the clamps.)

One word of warning:  You are entering the woodworking addiction zone.........

Bruce

 

Edited November 7, 2017 by Blaughn

[Rockytime]

Thanks for the video. I can do that.

[SCROLLSAW703]

I'm with JT. Anything that thin is near impossible to do a glue up with & get satisfactory results. Yes, you can attempt it, but w/o hand plane experience, you'll wind up with a bigger mess than you'll want to contend with.

My suggestion would be, no offense, but seein's how it's your first plaque, I would use 3/8" baltic birch w/1/4" backer. 1/4" & 1/4" together is guaranteed warp. Or, you could use hardwood w/1/4" backer. Do a search on local lumber stores that sell hardwoods. Sometimes they will plane it the thickness you need. If that's the case, let it set in your shop 3 or 4 days to acclimate before you start your project.

But stay away from ply agin' ply! That's just asking for trouble! just my 2 pennies worth.

[poupster2]

I have to agree with JT also.  I think that Baltic Birch is the way to go  and it stains very nicely too.

[Scrappile]

Just another thought, that well, I just thought,,,, I have found that sometime, well most often, you can purchase 2- 6" wide pieces or 2 - 4" wide much cheaper than one 8" or 10".  I normally go the 2 pieces and do a glue up.  Yep, I am cheap....  And if you insist on 1/4" thickness, I think a glue up is required.  The 1/4" pieces I have, I will have to cut them into narrower strips and glue them up because of the amount they have cupped.  I am first going to heat one side to see I I can "un-cup" them.

[jerry1939]

I do a lot of 1/4" solid oak.  Learned to not mess with anything wider than 1 1/2".  Be sure the finished piece is all from the same board.  Prop up 2 or 3 clamping boards.  Cover with wax paper.  Lay your strips on that (sometimes flip every other one over or turn every other one end over end) paying very close attention to the grain appearance of the total piece.  I just use Elmer's glue. Add another layer of wax paper and gluing boards.  C clamps squeeze your pieces flat & bar clamps to pull together the glue joints.  I let it clamped overnight and sand the glue excess on both sides.  On most of my finished pieces, even I cannot find the glue joints.

 

jerry

[OCtoolguy]

16 hours ago, Lucky2 said:

Ray, there's no issue with using a glue-up, as long as you pretest the wood to make sure that one piece takes finish the same as the other. So as long as you test for color change and other characteristics, you shouldn't have any issues. This is what I do when I have to use a glue-up, I hate ending up with a two tone project.

Len

I understand what you are saying. If I bought a 6" wide piece and cut it in half to make one 12" wide I would think that it would take finish pretty much the same, wouldn't it? I would flip one over to alternate the grain.

Ray

 

[OCtoolguy]

15 hours ago, Rockytime said:

I've never done glue ups. Do you do it with biscuits?

I don't think you could use a biscuit on 1/4". At least I've never tried it. Maybe so. ????????????

[OCtoolguy]

15 hours ago, kmmcrafts said:

If you have a bandsaw you could buy a 3/4 - 1" board and resaw it.. then you have a book matched piece of lumber.. I guessing you don't have a bandsaw or a planner though.. 

If you do end up doing a glue up.. just a word of caution.. the glue line will cut different than the rest of the board.. and it happens a bit before the glue line where it soaks into the wood.. it cuts fine.. just different.. so just be aware of that while cutting.. at least that has been my experience.. I haven't cut too many glue ups but was something I did notice when I did cut one..   

Thanks for that bit of advice. I was thinking that I might be able to fasten them together and do my cutting prior to glue up. That should work, right?

Also, I do have a bandsaw and a planer but I'm lazy.

Ray

 

[OCtoolguy]

12 hours ago, SCROLLSAW703 said:

I'm with JT. Anything that thin is near impossible to do a glue up with & get satisfactory results. Yes, you can attempt it, but w/o hand plane experience, you'll wind up with a bigger mess than you'll want to contend with.

My suggestion would be, no offense, but seein's how it's your first plaque, I would use 3/8" baltic birch w/1/4" backer. 1/4" & 1/4" together is guaranteed warp. Or, you could use hardwood w/1/4" backer. Do a search on local lumber stores that sell hardwoods. Sometimes they will plane it the thickness you need. If that's the case, let it set in your shop 3 or 4 days to acclimate before you start your project.

But stay away from ply agin' ply! That's just asking for trouble! just my 2 pennies worth.

Thanks for that info. I like the idea of using BB ply for the backer. I'll rethink the BB for the plaque too. Maybe 1/4" would be ok. I'm trying to get away from the sight of the ply's around the edge and the openings that will be cut out. This is my first project so I'm trying hard to get it right. It's going to be a gift if it turns out ok.

 

[OCtoolguy]

Let me explain my situation. I said I was lazy. What I should have said is, I live in a mobile home park. I have a nice little shop that has a ton of equipment that I have acquired but I try not to make too much obnoxious noise that would disturb my neighbors. The planer is an example of loud noise. So, I try to only use it on a day when most of my neighbors are either working or away from home. So, with that said, for a small project like this, I thought it would be better to try to buy the wood already planed to the thickness I want. I am going to give the BB ply more thought and maybe just use it instead. I do want to thank all of you for your advice and suggestions. If it all turns out ok, I'll post a picture of it. If not, well, you'll never know.

 

Ray

 

[Bill WIlson]

1 hour ago, octoolguy said:

Thanks for that info. I like the idea of using BB ply for the backer. I'll rethink the BB for the plaque too. Maybe 1/4" would be ok. I'm trying to get away from the sight of the ply's around the edge and the openings that will be cut out. This is my first project so I'm trying hard to get it right. It's going to be a gift if it turns out ok.

 

Consider using 1/8" ply.  The edges aren't as noticeable.  Depending on the pattern, I actually prefer to use 1/8" for many things.

[Brianr24]

U can think about using bb plywood and putting a veneer on it. You can get veneer pretty cheap at b&b rarewoods no affiliation. I like to fancy up plywood with figured veneers. I usually use veneer press but you don't have to you can use contact cement, regular wood glue and clamp iv even just used the same spray I used to attach patterns no issues. Knock on wood. Just be careful removing pattern with heat and don't use solvent it will remove the veneer