Help pricing lumber please. I'm a wood working newb.

Hey Bill
It sounds like a great price depending on it’s grade and if it’s dry enough to use. Check out woodfinder.com for comparison.
http://www.woodfinder.com/

-- W James Brokenbourgh Custom furniture maker http://artisticwoodstudio.com/

2 bucks is a nice price for air dried cherry – assuming it was stacked dried straight with stickers between the layers.
look for insects evidence (beetle holes) and check the moisture content and grain. If it is a lot of light sapwood, I wouldn’t bother with it. but straight flat wide 4/4 stock like that is a bargain at 2 bucks.
I am usually buying kiln dried in the midwest from a lumber dealer at around 6 bucks a board foot.

-- "_If we did all the things we are capable of doing, we would literally astonish ourselves_." Edison

Agree with A1Jimmer … but if you can get cherry at that price id save it and use something else for the bench .. but thats me. Welcome aboard by the way … youll be smokin the lumberjock rock in no time. Full blown addiction.

-- "there aren’t many hand tools as awe-inspiring as the #8 jointer. I mean, it just reeks of cast iron heft and hubris" - Smitty

http://hardwoodstore.com/lumber-prices

Yes that’s a great price depending on the grade of wood. Out here in Ca I pay something like 3.97 a brd foot. So you’re getting a good deal.

-- An investment in knowledge pays the best interest. Benjamin Franklin

Thank you guys very much. If the guy still has them and they pass the visual inspection I’ll post some pics of what I pick up.

In line with this pursuit why is the wood referred to in whole fractions? I understand that 8/4 equals 2 inches… I just don’t understand why the industry does that?

Thanks.

-Bill III

-- Do or do not.... there is no try.

unless you have a moisture meter to be sure, i would let this dry a while longer to be sure.

It depends on the grade of the lumber. If it is clear, it is an outstanding price. If it is common with knots, etc. which means some waste, then it may not be a good deal. You need to see it, know the moisture content and how it was dried, whether it is warped, bug infested, etc. Take a look at it before deciding. You will learn quickly when you view the materials and compare over time.

The 4/4”, 6/4”,8/4” rule is typically in reference to rough-cut lumber. Depending on the sawmill 4/4” lumber is usually cut out of the log between 1 1/16” to 1 1/8” thick to allow for shrinkage, cupping/warping, and still being able to mill the board to a 3/4” finished thickness.

-- There is no such thing as scrap wood! Rastus NE www.nativelumber.net