Sticker Shock!

[Dave Monk]

February I bought a 5 x 5 sheet of Baltic Birch for $20 and some change. Friday I had to give $60 for the same stuff at the same place. 1/8" and 1/2" was about $50.  The price of hardwood wasn't effected much.

[Fish]

The last piece I got was a 4x8 sheet at the lumber yard in my town and paid $35.  That was last June or July.  I’m not sure how much it is now. It was cheaper there than at the retail hardware store- menards.  

[OCtoolguy]

1 hour ago, Dave Monk said:

February I bought a 5 x 5 sheet of Baltic Birch for $20 and some change. Friday I had to give $60 for the same stuff at the same place. 1/8" and 1/2" was about $50.  The price of hardwood wasn't effected much.

I just checked the place where I buy my wood, Cherokee Wood Products, and for a 5 x 5 sheet of 1/8", they are getting $26 if you pick it up.

[kmmcrafts]

I'm thinking I can make more off my plywood as a full sheet than I can spending hours drilling hundreds of holes and cutting the projects out of it.. save me a lot of time to just sell it as is, LOL

A bird flew in from another country and told me this year is going to be a big inflation year.. so I bought about 40 sheets at $11 a 5x5 x1/8.. I should be good for a little while. I also bought a 150bdft. of lumber.. but I need more.. I learned just how fast you can make ornamental fire wood with the CNC and laser. I might go back to my supplier and pick up another 100 bdft.

You can count on hardwood lumber going up if it hasn't already, Talking to my brother at the mill.. hardwood pallets/skids that used to sell for $18 is now $54.. this will be trickling down the line to the consumer soon with just about every product sold. 

Edited June 13, 2021 by kmmcrafts

[Dave Monk]

40 minutes ago, octoolguy said:

I just checked the place where I buy my wood, Cherokee Wood Products, and for a 5 x 5 sheet of 1/8", they are getting $26 if you pick it up.

Check out their price on 1/2'

[ben2008]

I had been buying lumber and some plywood  for some time. I have not bought any this year as I have enough to last me quite a few years now at the pace i work at. Pretty happy about that after reading the horror stories on SSV and other forums about the price of lumber.

[lawson56]

Last yr I was paying $11 for a 1/4 sheet of BB, Now I'm paying $18 so it hasn't hit to hard here, yet.

[Dave Monk]

3 hours ago, lawson56 said:

Last yr I was paying $11 for a 1/4 sheet of BB, Now I'm paying $18 so it hasn't hit to hard here, yet.

That is still a big percentage jump.

 

[OzarkSawdust]

This got me to looking. I get my BB ply from Ocooch, in Aug '20 I got 12 x 12 x 1/8 for $0.93 ea. and 12 x 12 x 1/4 for $1.55. Now 12 x 12 x 1/4 is $2.16 ea. and they don't even have 12 x 12 x 1/8 . I've never seen them out of 1/8 or 1/4 before! Wonder what the price will be when they get some again?

I also checked Walnut and Poplar from that Aug. order...and they are the same price today...? It looks like just plywood is going sky high...for now. 

Now for the $64,000 question. Do you "assume" hardwood will do the same shortly and buy a bunch now...or just get what you need and ride it out?

Edited June 13, 2021 by OzarkSawdust

[redwine]

I don't see any increase in the price of hardwoods at least nothing like construction lumber, 2x4, 2x6, plywood, etc, simply because  hardwoods are not used for construction! Now the cabinet companies will or already have, raised their price because they can say the wood price increased for hardwoods also which it hasn't! Personally I don't thank it will as what I have ordered this year is still the same price as last year! The construction lumber has increased in price at one time, 4 times what it was priced at in 2019 and is still about 3 times as much! This is just my opinion, take it for what it is worth!

Erv 

 

[OCtoolguy]

12 hours ago, lawson56 said:

Last yr I was paying $11 for a 1/4 sheet of BB, Now I'm paying $18 so it hasn't hit to hard here, yet.

Times 4 for a full sheet and that's actually quite a hike in cost.

[kmmcrafts]

This showed up on my FB feed.. I'm betting that the prices will not go back to pre pandemic prices due to inflation and the fact that they are pushing for a minimum wage increase. Some companies have already hit the news stories of raising their wages.. some are doing so because they need workers so they're raising wages in hopes of making the jobs they need to fill more appealing.. Eventually this is going to trickle through the system. BUT that said prices will probably drop some.. I just don't see it at the levels they was due to the demand for workers and rising wages etc.. 

https://www.familyhandyman.com/article/when-will-wood-prices-go-down/?trkid=soc-fhm-facebook

[OCtoolguy]

The answer to the labor problem is simple. The Fed should stop sending out checks! They should also take "minimum wage" out of our lexicon. Once folks start realizing they need to work to survive, they'll take any job at any pay rate. My Dad worked for $0.10/hr during the depression. The pay rate should be based on ability & quality. Get back to Real thinking and not fantasy! JMHO!

[Rockytime]

In 1957 I was 18 and worked for Boeing in Seattle and got a whopping $3.00 an hour union wages. I thought I was filthy rich. In the 8th grade I worked in a country newspaper as a printer's devil for $.35 an hour. At least I had a job. Also turned windrows for farmers when in high school. $5 for a looooong Saturday's work. Back then I was taught the WORK ethic. Too bad it is not taught any longer.

[OCtoolguy]

12 minutes ago, Rockytime said:

In 1957 I was 18 and worked for Boeing in Seattle and got a whopping $3.00 an hour union wages. I thought I was filthy rich. In the 8th grade I worked in a country newspaper as a printer's devil for $.35 an hour. At least I had a job. Also turned windrows for farmers when in high school. $5 for a looooong Saturday's work. Back then I was taught the WORK ethic. Too bad it is not taught any longer.

Another thing that has been lost is taking pride in a job well done no matter what the pay. I was taught that if I did a good job I'd be compensated accordingly. I've always tried to give it my all.