Lumber

Model Railroader General Discussion (Model Railroader)
1

Ok, since it’s been raining the past couple of days here and I wasn’t able to ride my bike to the local Menards, I have a question.

How much are lumber (plywood) prices for a:

6x6

2x4

1x4

I looked everywhere on the internet and I couldn’t find anything. Like I said I couldn’t make it to the store so if you could kindly give me a rough estimate that would be great. Thanks!

2

Yeah…

3

Alex,

First off, that’s going to vary with the type and quality of plywood you buy. Plywood comes in different grades - e.g. A, B, C and so on. The lower the grade (A being best), the more knot holes or blemishes the plywood has, the lower the price.

Some plywoods come with a veneer on the front and back for furniture building. They are the most expensive of the plywoods and would be rather extravagent for average construction purposes. Grade A or B would be quite adequate.

Secondly, you generally don’t purchase plywood in nominal sizes like the ones you have mentioned above. They usually come in 4’ x 8’ sheets or smaller 4’ x 4’ or 2’ x 4’ sections. If you want those specific sizes, you’ll need to get the lumber yard to rip it to those widths for you - unless you have access to a table saw that has a rip fence.

CAUTION: Ripping wood length-wise can be dangerous if you don’t know what you are doing. Let someone else who is experienced and/or has the proper equipment do it for you.

If you have the lumber yard do it for you, generally the first cut is free. Any additional cuts will cost you $$$.

Thirdly, a piece of 2 x 4 nominal lumber (non-plywood) is really 1-1/2" wide x 3-1/2" thick. Plywood generally comes in 1/4", 1/2" and 3/4" thicknesses. 3/4" is generally quite adequate for building legs and frames. For legs, it’s best to use two pieces that are glued or nailed at right angles to one another to form an “L”.

Alex, if you are building benchwork, you might want to look into purchasing a book on it. Kalmbach has an excellent book on how to do that. Here it is:

You might be able to find it at your LHS or you can order it online from Am

4

Lumber is a comodity item, i.e. the prices can change from day to day. 6x6 is generaly PT (pressure treated) and you really dont want that for a layout, an 8’ piece is about $20 today. 2x4x8’, KD (kiln dried) was today $2.50, green $2.19 - KD is much better for building benchwork. 1x4x8’ can run ferom $1.19 for "strapping (the lowest grade) to as much as $8 for D Select (almost clear). How do I know? 40+ years as a carpenter/cabinetmaker & the past 8 years at the Contractors service desk at Home Depot. The price will also differ geographicly, I’m in the northern NJ area - NY City Metro - where the prices tend to be at the very high end. In a rural area near a mill, it may be 20-30% less! Good luck with your project![:D]

5

Thanks guys. Learn something new everyday. God, all my posts end in humiliation.[V]

6

Alex,

Hey, don’t worry about it. None of us has arrived yet nor has a commodity on learning. The important thing is that you ARE asking and learning. Keep the questions coming…[:)]

Tom

7

Thanks, Tom. Makes me feel a lot better. No, im not lieng or using sarcasm. Thanks.

8

The only dumb question is the one not asked. I’ve been in the hobby 20 years, and still don’t know everything.

The stock size for plywood is 4’x8’. You can usually get Handi-Cuts in 2x2, 2x4, and 4x4 sizes. However, they cost more per square foot then a full 4x8.

I use 3/4" AC plywood for my benchwork. . A 4x8 sheet costs about $35. I rip the sheet into 3 inch wide “boards”. One sheet yields 16, 3/4" x 3" x 8’ pieces that cost $2.19 each.

Prices vary with location.

Nick

9

1/2 inch ply will cost you about $20 for a 4X8 sheet.$10 for a 2X4 sheet.A good 1X4 pine board will go for about $3 for an 8’ piece.

Have a good one.

Bill B

10

Don’t feel bad - it took me 64 years of mistakes & questions to learn what I know today - that’s about 1/2 of what I should know![:D]

11

Try and get your wood before hurricane season starts. Prices usually jump up when coast dwellers start boarding up their homes.

12

Don’t feel bad. I never got anywhere with carpentry until someone pointed out I should maybe turn the hammer around when nailing things. Sheesh that was embarrassing :wink: LOL :smiley:

Hey we all gotta learn someplace. NO ONE is born with this knowledge. Actually no one is born with ANY knowledge about anything.

These forums are the best places to ask questions because we were all [and some of us still are] noobs.

SO never feel humiliated. :slight_smile:

13

T stage rightly advises…

“If you have the lumber yard do it for you, generally the first cut is free. Any additional cuts will cost you $$$”.

OR…

Especially if you have a choice of lumber yards…

  • Find out when they will be quiet.
  • Go and have a quiet word with the manager/head of department.
  • Discuss a price for your cutting list…
  • You can go and buy one piece and have it cut…
  • then go back and buy another piece and have it cut
  • then go back and have…
  • you get the idea.
  • OR you might negotiate a deal for them to sort out your cutting list when they have some quiet time.
  • Keep going back when they are busy drives them nuts - won’t make them your friends but may get you the deal.
  • Or let them see your (large) cutting list and, if they don’t play wander off to the competition.
  • One thing that will not get you a good price is not having a clear idea of what you want.
  • You don’t have to be an expert.
  • Don’t pretend to know what you don’t.
  • Ask the most open and sensible questions you now how.
  • Listen to their answers.
  • If necessary go away and think about their advice.
  • The easier you can make the job for them the more they will help.
  • (So all pieces 36" long get grouped together in the list etc…)
  • Be nice, explain what you want it for, smile, say “Thankyou”… if their eyes glaze over go to the other store…
  • You may strike lucky - one of the staff may be into MRR
  • Let buying glue, screws, nails etc ride on the deal you get on the lumber…

[8D]

14

When you get all your lumber for your benchwork and are ready for assembly work.Pre-drill your holes,countersink for the screwheads(flat head screws),and then use construction screws(I use 1 5/8 inch long screws with a phillips head).

Have a good one.

Bill B

15

Huh???

MilwaukeeRoad, do you want lumber or do you want plywood? The text of your inquiry is for “board” lumber (6 inches by 6 inches; 2 inches by 4 inches; 1 inch by 4 inches); plywood is “sheet” lumber and (usually) comes in sizes of 4 foot by 8 foot.

Nevertheless, the price you are going to pay for lumber in any size is going to largely be determined by market factors in play in your area at any given moment. There is little in this world more competitive than the price of wood products. A fair proportion of the price which you will pay for any wood product is going to be associated with transportation expense and that expense is going to be determined by where Menard’s purchasing agents have bid on the lumber available in your area. I had occasion while on vacation one time to go into a local building supply center - I believe it was a Home Despot - and observed that the price for a sheet of half inch ply was more than two dollars cheaper than I was able to get it here in the far, far reaches of the wild, wild west. There I was in a timber growing area; here I ain’t.

I would imagine that on any given day I might be cheaper on one item than you and you will, in turn, be

16

I agree with those above on getting the lumberyard to make the first cut (or more). Not only is it safer, but it’s generally easier to transport the pieces home and haul them down to your basement.

One thing to be aware of is that they may be a 1/2" off (some places have signs saying that, some don’t). This isn’t a real problem in most cases (this just happened to me, but I didn’t need it closer than that), but if you need a precise measurement you might want to have them cut it an inch wider/longer and do the final trim yourself.

Enjoy

Paul