Reply To: Getting oak in the UK
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Just a small update…
Things have been chaotic to say the least but this is now much closer to fruition! The new shop is almost ready. Just waiting for my wife to make the curtains (fabric arrived yesterday) before I can move my desk and computer in, but the shop end is in use already, albeit very occasionally due to work commitments and other house projects getting out of hand (when removing tiles from a bathroom wall, don’t drop them in the tub – it’ll leak afterward and need replacing!).
I won’t have as much room for timber as I thought because I can’t put anything heavy on the walls, so a rack is out of the question, and the roof isn’t very high at the edges of the shop (only about 6’6″). I think I’ll end up sawing down pieces to 6′ or so and put them on their end propped up against the wall.
I have also bought a band saw and dust extractor, which I’m picking up tomorrow. I did this because it really opens up more avenues for sourcing timber. I can get air-dried 4″ thick stock and resaw it down to the required thickness. The band saw has 18″ wheels, a 2HP motor, ability to take a 1″ wide blade, and a 12.5″ max depth of cut, so should be plenty powerful and big enough to resaw 8″ wide oak.
It’s also green, so will match the new curtains. That’s how I’m selling it to my wife!
I’ve found a potential local supplier of air-dried oak beams. Once the band saw is in, set up and tested, I’ll order a beam, do some test cuts, and see what the quality is like. Hopefully it’ll be clear and stable enough for furniture projects.
I’ll post again once I’ve done some tests on the wood and the saw.
George.