DWSmith
Still Plays With Blocks
- Joined
- Feb 28, 2011
- Messages
- 578
- Reaction score
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Sorry I haven't been around lately, the work load has been heavy enough I have little time to do a lot of reading or posting. And this post isn't one that I really enjoy having to write.
The cost of walnut is rising fast! In the past several weeks I have seen a 35% increase in prices for the better grades and the #1 common is starting to rise almost as quickly. #1 common has more defects, knots, splits, warps and wane which is why it is graded as it is. With the last load of the better quality walnut, I still had to throw away about 30% of what we worked on and with #1 common the waste will be closer to 45% or more. I really hate to see the waste hit the dumpster.
What is to blame - A beetle is boring in the tree trunks and on its back it carries a something (don't know what the official name is right now) that leaves the beetles back and starts to bore into the cambium (I hope I got that right) layer of the truck which eventually will kill the tree. It is bad enough that trees that are cut must be saw milled and kiln dried within the same county they are cut in. Prices are rising fast and the quality is dropping as fast. I believe most of the walnut is growing in the mid-west, IL, OH and around that area.
So with that explanation stated, I have to announce a general price increase in the cost of walnut boards as well as now all the walnut boards ordered will be on a made-to-order basis only. I simply can't afford to buy a large enough stock of walnut to fill the shelves.
Other than that, maple has seen some price increases, almost $1.00 per board foot and cherry has held somewhat steady. Good quality wood, like I was accustomed to, is getting somewhat more scarce. But I am making do as I can. The maple shelves are almost full and the cherry shelves are filling up quickly. What walnut I have will be on the shelves this week and my supplier is working to find a better source of walnut for the future. But that isn't looking very promising.
The cost of walnut is rising fast! In the past several weeks I have seen a 35% increase in prices for the better grades and the #1 common is starting to rise almost as quickly. #1 common has more defects, knots, splits, warps and wane which is why it is graded as it is. With the last load of the better quality walnut, I still had to throw away about 30% of what we worked on and with #1 common the waste will be closer to 45% or more. I really hate to see the waste hit the dumpster.
What is to blame - A beetle is boring in the tree trunks and on its back it carries a something (don't know what the official name is right now) that leaves the beetles back and starts to bore into the cambium (I hope I got that right) layer of the truck which eventually will kill the tree. It is bad enough that trees that are cut must be saw milled and kiln dried within the same county they are cut in. Prices are rising fast and the quality is dropping as fast. I believe most of the walnut is growing in the mid-west, IL, OH and around that area.
So with that explanation stated, I have to announce a general price increase in the cost of walnut boards as well as now all the walnut boards ordered will be on a made-to-order basis only. I simply can't afford to buy a large enough stock of walnut to fill the shelves.
Other than that, maple has seen some price increases, almost $1.00 per board foot and cherry has held somewhat steady. Good quality wood, like I was accustomed to, is getting somewhat more scarce. But I am making do as I can. The maple shelves are almost full and the cherry shelves are filling up quickly. What walnut I have will be on the shelves this week and my supplier is working to find a better source of walnut for the future. But that isn't looking very promising.