Pine rant

Rennie Heuer

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Constantine, MI
Pine can be a pain. Making some frame and panel doors for some built-ins. Found some really nice 1/4" knotty pine ply for the panels. Unfortunately, even though I picked through about 80 boards at Lowes, the pine for the frames is anything but straight and stable. Having lots of problems with movement after machining.

I know, what am I doing with big box pine. Well, this entire bedroom built-in project started out as an experiment in furniture building with off-the-shelf, big box only materials. I'm determined to see it through. :doh:I'll cuss a bit and throw it across the shop a few times. That might help.:rofl::rofl:
 
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My lumber yard carries properly stored/dried pine for about what the BORG charges for their junk. Is their a yard nearby? Sorry, that was a dumb question . . . I too have been guilty of knowing better than to buy certain things at the BORG but thinking, insanely so, that just this once for some obscure reason; it will be different. It never is.
 
rennie ,,pine is notorious for movement.. i made some notions for the better halfs quilt store and had one look good when done but after it set a few days moved at lease 3 " and that was being attached to some plywood as well.. so hang on and plan on redoing anything in pine..unless its old pine from a yard.. they have to buy from similar places to maintain the pricing they need to stay afloat against the box stores
 
...even though I picked through about 80 boards at Lowes, the pine for the frames is anything but straight and stable....

Rennie!

You live in Idaho. Isn't there a Boise-Cascade dealer nearby? :dunno:

Get some good stock from them and leave the Lowes stuff for the folks that are building rabbit hutches and chicken coops.:D:D:rofl:
 
Are you comfortable when walking around in the BORG? That would be because of the conditioning of the air, Cool in the summer and Warm in the winter. BUT that lumber was shipped on a big ole truck w/o air conditioning on the trailer. Wood is exposed to whatever nature is providing for the trip. Then slam dunk it into the Comfortable BORG Building. Ta Da ! We got massive movement and Dancing of the wood fibers.

Whilst the common Lumber yard, has for years kept its lumber out of the weather yet exposed to the same conditions as it will be exposed when it is being used, Thuse the movement is slow as the change of climate that engulfs it.

Now this does create a slight problem when WWers take materials into their conditioned shops. Again it is exposed to a rapid change in climate and should be conditioned slowly (we call that Climatized)

The Borg means well as it tries to make eveything comfortable for the customers and employers but this forgets the wood's needs. We on the otherhand have to consider these climate problems when we select our purchases and transport them.

My truck has a Black cover over the bed, in the summer it is quite warm under that cover, Then should I buy a nice straight piece stored in the AC, then stacked in the back, drive home and by the time I get there, I am the proud owner of a Boat Keel. Who's fault is it? The BORG? The Tree? The Wood? The Truck? or Me? for not considering the possibilities.
 
Keep in mind also that com lumber is most of the time not kiln dried and if it is it only has to go to 19% to make grade I always used #2 as it was a little better #3 sometimes looks better then #2 but it will move and shrink a lot more than #2. If you want pine that will be more stable you need furniture grade and it is to be KD to 10% to make grade.

I used to go through at least 3 units a month and every time I used #3 it bit me, I used #2 almost exclusive and got along pretty good with it.

I was making raw wood products for the Tole painter back then and they were a picky bunch.

Jay
 
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