Re: Choices for bed kits?


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Posted by Dave Langford on Thursday, June 07, 2001 at 12:38PM :

In Reply to: Choices for bed kits? posted by Galen on Thursday, June 07, 2001 at 12:11PM :

Especially if you live in the east, you can go to alot of country sawmills and buy "green" white oak in various dimensions. I have not done a bed, but I have built many things with white oak I had sawn up from my own forest plot. What I have found works best is to get it sawn rough-cut (not planed), in a size like 1 1/4" thick by 7" wide by 9 feet long. Then I put it up in a dry place like a loft or attic, with spacer sticks for air movement, and place cinder blocks on the top for weight. After about 6 months (for 1 1/4'' thick), I take is down, plane it to the desired thickness, e.g. 1", and rip it to the desired width, e.g. 6". Finish with an appropriate wood preservative and it works great for outdoor projects, as white oak (not red oak) is relatively rot resistant and very strong. You only need kiln dried wood for interior projects like furniture. Therefore, there is great savings with getting "green" lumber from a sawmill. All it needs is patience and access to a planer and table saw.
Two caveats though, is to avoid especially knotty lumber(it wants to warp), and buy it longer than you need by about a foot, as the ends typically crack a little during the drying process.



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