I have two questions, hope for some advice.
For the past forty years of woodworking, I would come up with a project, buy the wood for that specific project and would end up with very little scrap that would sit for years and then get tossed.
Now I have the space for storing large quantities of wood to have just sitting around waiting for project to be born. I am also thinking of the retirement years and money being lean or at least selective in what I spend it on. So while I am still working, I have had a shop built, bought all the major power tools, and many of the handtools I anticipate needing. I have another 8 years before my earliest retirement date. So I should be able to pick up the remain accessories/handtools by then.
Since the other major expense is wood, I have started to "stock up" on it. I picked up 400 BF of select/clear cherry and about 200 BF of walnut on craiglist so far. I am planning on having a slab poured behind the shop (9'x50') for storing rough cut lumber and looking to end up with several thousand board feet of various species prior to retirement.
So the first question is, what is the best long term storage method for already dried (5-6 years) and still wet lumber that may not get used for 20 years? I am thinking long term investment here, because if wood prices continue to rise, they could be insane 20 years from now when I am retired and on a fixed income.
The second question is something I have not experienced yet. Since I always bought wood for a specific project and used most of it, there was never a hesitation to use it. But now that I am looking at a stack of 400 bf of sweet looking cherry, I have developed the feeling that it is too good for just any project, maybe I should save it for a special project. I am starting to get the fear that I may end up with several thousand BF of nice lumber that will end up being "too good to be used" for just any project. Has anybody else gone through this feeling and ended up with a huge amount of wood that will just never get used, because your are saving it for that "ONE" project?
The first question is serious, the second is more of "Hi, my name is Rob, and I am a wood hoarding and not wood user"...
Thanks for any advice.
Rob
For the past forty years of woodworking, I would come up with a project, buy the wood for that specific project and would end up with very little scrap that would sit for years and then get tossed.
Now I have the space for storing large quantities of wood to have just sitting around waiting for project to be born. I am also thinking of the retirement years and money being lean or at least selective in what I spend it on. So while I am still working, I have had a shop built, bought all the major power tools, and many of the handtools I anticipate needing. I have another 8 years before my earliest retirement date. So I should be able to pick up the remain accessories/handtools by then.
Since the other major expense is wood, I have started to "stock up" on it. I picked up 400 BF of select/clear cherry and about 200 BF of walnut on craiglist so far. I am planning on having a slab poured behind the shop (9'x50') for storing rough cut lumber and looking to end up with several thousand board feet of various species prior to retirement.
So the first question is, what is the best long term storage method for already dried (5-6 years) and still wet lumber that may not get used for 20 years? I am thinking long term investment here, because if wood prices continue to rise, they could be insane 20 years from now when I am retired and on a fixed income.
The second question is something I have not experienced yet. Since I always bought wood for a specific project and used most of it, there was never a hesitation to use it. But now that I am looking at a stack of 400 bf of sweet looking cherry, I have developed the feeling that it is too good for just any project, maybe I should save it for a special project. I am starting to get the fear that I may end up with several thousand BF of nice lumber that will end up being "too good to be used" for just any project. Has anybody else gone through this feeling and ended up with a huge amount of wood that will just never get used, because your are saving it for that "ONE" project?
The first question is serious, the second is more of "Hi, my name is Rob, and I am a wood hoarding and not wood user"...
Thanks for any advice.
Rob