I want to rip the cedar strips on my first canoe. Been in the market for some cedar and found some options around the Atlanta area. I had one place trying to unload some for close to half off. 2 x 12's for $5.40/BF. I hesitated and it was gone.

What should I pay for western red?

Clear?
How long?

Here's the scoop on WRC.

When you are buying lumber from a reputable lumber source, you'll need to know the grades you want to buy.

"I'm looking for A and better WRC".

This is the clearest lumber you can buy. Very straight grain, no knots, even color throughout the board. Very expensive. $7.00 b.f. and up.

"I'm looking for D and better WRC".

This is the most desirable lumber for boat builders. Mostly clear lumber, some occasional small knots, some color variation. Still expensive because it is a graded lumber $3.50 b.f. and up at the least.

Sometimes you don't have a choice, it depends on what is available. IF you go to Home Depot you will find second growth knotty lumber that is pretty much useless for a canoe. WRC prices go up about 5% min a year and all WRC is pretty expensive now. Another issue is finding long boards which makes it even more challenging. Plan on paying at least $200 for the wood for your boat. Keep in mind that the lumber is only about 25% of the cost of the canoe so don't sweat the price tag.

When I was buying WRC wholesale I would buy if from the mill in Washington state. I was paying about $3.00 b.f for D and better WRC when buying 1000 b.f. It was a hell of a deal for me.

Tom

Good stuff....

I was looking at a clear cut. Seemed like the length was in the 12' range. It was not all the way out to 17-20'. I wasn't too conserned about a few splices. I was trying to avoid knots.

Will pricing vary regionally?

quote tumblehome:


Sometimes you don't have a choice, it depends on what is available. IF you go to Home Depot you will find second growth knotty lumber that is pretty much useless for a canoe. WRC prices go up about 5% min a year and all WRC is pretty expensive now. Another issue is finding long boards which makes it even more challenging. Plan on paying at least $200 for the wood for your boat. Keep in mind that the lumber is only about 25% of the cost of the canoe so don't sweat the price tag.


Tom
"

I have built 2 canoes and am half way through the third with Menard's lumber. Here's the secret...go to every Menards and Home Depot that you can and sort through every board they have. One month later, do it again, and again. 99% of the boards suck, but you can find some gems in there that have planer skip on the good side and no knots. I started doing this because my local lumber yards did not carry D+ Cedar, and if I ordered it I had to take it. I could either take the chance on $5+/BF lumber, or do the additional work and buy it for $2/BF with some pre-planning and labor. If I was building more than a canoe or two per year this would get old, but it works for me.

The other plus to this method is that you get a lot of board to board color variation. Keep the boards together with masking tape and pre-plan your layout and you can come up with some good patterns.

Hi Ben,

I intentionally did not mention Menards since he doesn't have one down there. But the secret is out! I too can find all the clear cedar I need at Menards. As you know, they have a good supply of it and and there are plenty of clear boards in the piles. I've built 80+ canoes and have a keen eye for good cedar.

The Hermantown Menards now carries rough sawn cedar which is mostly old-growth. I wish I had a need for all the clear lumber I can find. There are occasionally clear 20' boards up there but I just don't need anymore than I already have. Sigh.

I used to buy a lot of clear or mostly clear white Cedar from a mill in Ontario. This guy would saw me boards to 18'. I think I'm the only person in the world with clear 18' white cedar. It is far superior to WRC for canoes but is not available to most builders due to the rarity of clear long boards.



Tom

I do the same thing, menards or home depot. Go through the whole stack find the nice boards. But then I also I don't mind using different types of lumber just to mix it up...

Built canoe hulls out of

Pine
Douglas fur
Poplar
White cedar
Red cedar
Cypress
And one even out of treated lumber---that one was heavy lol.

Of course cedar builds your lightest and prettiest boats. I enjoy using different types of wood just for the heck of it..