Value of boards?

[myxpykalix]

I had a large oak tree in my backyard that i cut down 5 years ago took the logs to the sawmill had them sawn into slabs from .75 to 2+" thick and from 12" to over 30" wide by 8' long and kiln dried. They have for the most part just been sitting and i haven't used the majority of them and i have someone interested in buying/trading for some of it but i have no idea what this is worth

Everything on the bottom shelf is the oak. How would be the best way to figure out what it's worth? I think i spent about $150.00 to have it sawed and probably $200.00 to have it kiln dried.
It would seem it would have more value as a large slab say 2" thick X 30" wide by 8' long rather then calculated by board foot?

[steve_g]

Jack

My local mill (a 5 hour drive) charges $2.25 -- 3.50 /bf for KD Oak with a 10% up charge for widths over 10". Shorts (under 5') are discounted, sometimes dramatically...

The "Art wood" sawyers are asking in the $10.00 /bf range.


SG

[steve fedor]

Good pricing for oak in Texas. I didn't think oak trees grew down there. In Ohio #1 common in the rough is @ $2.75/ bd ft. S4S is more. It looks like there is some profit potential in that stack. The wood web may be an option.

[garyc]

Jack...

A board foot unit is 1" thick (or nominal, if planed), a foot wide, and a foot long. Thickness is stated as "quarters" as in quarter of an inch. 4/4 (four quarter) for 1", 8/4 for 2", etc.

Here is a formula to calculate board feet:

(width in inches / 12) * (length in feet) * Thickness in inches = BdFt

for example... 30" wide by 8 ft long by 8/4 (2") thick returns: 30/12 = 2.5

2.5 * 8 * 8/4 = 40 BdFt

Most places have a 10 to 15% premium on lumber over 4 or 5 quarter, depending on MC and true. Add more for unique figure or exceptionally straight grain. Depending on local availability, going price varies with region.

Side note: As a shop owner I learned to be wary of "home sawn" lumber, even if kiln dried. After drying, if wood is exposed to ambient humidity above 35% it will have an increase in Moisture Content. Always use a moisture meter when you buy/sell rough lumber

[Brian Harnett]

You would be much better off making stuff from the wood My last order of oak I got was 1.90 a bf for red oak I had gotten over a thousand feet in the order I think the undiscounted price was 2.10 that was kiln dried and delivered.

I mill a lot of my own wood just because of the unique pieces I can get I don't really know how to put a price on that stuff.

[sneakers]

In my area red oak is commonly seen burning in fireplaces and the many sawmills sell it for about $1.00 a board foot.

Good luck
Gary

[bob_reda]

Actually the thicker the board the more it costs per bd foot, not linear foot. Your 2" thick stuff would be 10/4 not 8/4 Thats what they are doing now a days. If you had a piece of wood 11x11x3/4(1 bd foot) that ran $2 price per board foot total price $2 that 11x11x10/4 (approx 2.5 bd ft) would run $2.75 per board ft. total price $6.87 for the piece.

[myxpykalix]

Gary,
Thanks for that info, that is one of the first things you are required to know in woodshop is how to measure a board foot and using the "quarters" designation.
I used to have a Doyle Stick to measure board feet on logs but don't remember where i put that darn thing.
This is what the wood looked like when i first cut it. Beautiful. I kept some that i air dried that still has some remnants but the majority that went into the kiln just lost all the beauty.

Brian,
There's no doubt I could make more profit using the wood to make a table and sell rather then selling the slab, but it was an inquiry from someone who may want to buy/trade for something that has me trying to establish a value.

[cabnet636]

is there a reason it was not stickered ? also is this how it sat for the full time of has it been moved?

[cowboy1296]

Here is the only thing I ever did out of Red Oak. As you can see the grain really pops out at you. I think that red oak is pretty.