# Rough Lumber in Connecticut



## CTwoodworker (Jul 27, 2010)

I've been looking for various types of lumber in CT. If any of you that are in CT know of sawmills that have reasonably priced lumber, please reply.

I'm looking for about 300 bd ft of clear poplar (or clear pine), but am also interested in buying smaller quantities of other woods like cherry, walnut, maple, cedar and oak.

The lumberyards around me that I am familiar with do not have very good prices. I have found other lumber suppliers and sawmills, but I have not been able to find poplar under $2. I have found poplar at $1 at several places, but they are all out of state. I do not have a large truck to haul lumber in, so I would have to get it shipped -- usually adds an extra $1 per board foot.

Connecticut doesn't seem to have as many sawmills as other states, but I'm still looking and hoping to find a sawmill that can supply me with poplar for $1.50 or less. Every sawmill that I have been in touch with so far charges 2-3 times what I would pay out of state (especially for hardwoods like cherry and walnut).

Any suggestions?

Thanks,
Luke


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## Daren (Oct 14, 2006)

Try here









.


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## CTwoodworker (Jul 27, 2010)

Daren,
Thanks for the link -- your website was helpful. I'll be calling some more sawmills tomorrow.

A few sawmills in this area are Moore's Sawmill, Gregory Sawmill, Crosswinds Sawmill and Zuwalick and sons sawmill -- is anybody familiar with any of these?

One sawmill I contacted wanted $2.25 for 4/4 rough poplar. I'd like to get to at least $1.50 for poplar though. I know I have seen these prices out of state, (and even a little less than $1), but are there any places in CT that have these prices?

Am I being unreasonable to expect $1.50 or less for rough poplar lumber?

Luke


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## Daren (Oct 14, 2006)

CTwoodworker said:


> Am I being unreasonable to expect $1.50 or less for rough poplar lumber?



.

No, that is fair. Shop around you will find it. Hopefully someone in your area will chime in who ''knows a guy" close to you.







.


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## BIGVIN (Jul 21, 2009)

CTwoodworker said:


> I've been looking for various types of lumber in CT. If any of you that are in CT know of sawmills that have reasonably priced lumber, please reply.
> 
> I'm looking for about 300 bd ft of clear poplar (or clear pine), but am also interested in buying smaller quantities of other woods like cherry, walnut, maple, cedar and oak.
> 
> ...




Conway lumber in New Milford has hard wood and Berkshire products Inc. has hardwood and softwood. Berkshire is in Mass. right over the border from Cannan.


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## red (Sep 30, 2008)

Here is a great place to purchase lumber. I've used them for years when I had my shop in CT. Moores sawmill is not so great or wasn't when I was there. Berkshire Products is very nice also. I purchased most of my lumber and plywood from Allied Plywood in Springfield MA. 

http://www.cwghardwoodoutlet.com/

Red


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## hancockj (Jul 2, 2009)

Try Sekulski Millworks llc. He is on Cedar Lane in New Hartford/Torrington town line. My buddy used him for some custom wavy edge pine siding for a lake house. Milled to his specs and was very very resonable with the price. I have not been there myself. I was told he has a decent selection allready milled. Where in CT are you?


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## CTwoodworker (Jul 27, 2010)

Thanks for the replies. I've looked at CWG's price list. CWG charges about $2.15 for 4/4 poplar. I contacted Moore's sawmill and I think their lumber is a little overpriced. 
I'll contact some of the other places mentioned.

I'm figuring that if I can get it from a local sawmill owner I'll have a better shot for getting a good price.




hancockj said:


> Try Sekulski Millworks llc. He is on Cedar Lane in New Hartford/Torrington town line. My buddy used him for some custom wavy edge pine siding for a lake house. Milled to his specs and was very very resonable with the price. I have not been there myself. I was told he has a decent selection allready milled. Where in CT are you?


East Lyme area.


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## CTwoodworker (Jul 27, 2010)

An update:

I got in touch with a few more sawmills today. Gregory Sawmill charges $2.25 per board foot for poplar (green) and $1.25 white pine. I haven't heard back from Zuwalick Sawmill yet.

I would like to buy poplar, but I am having a hard time finding it at a good price. I have looked on craigslist, and have found some people selling pine and oak for pretty good prices, but they don't sell poplar. I'm not sure if poplar isn't as common up here or what.

Any other sawmills that you have heard of/ have worked with? Also, if you could post their price, that would be great.

Luke


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## BIGVIN (Jul 21, 2009)

If your in East Lyme try Sawalic saw mill in Branford right off 95 exit 56 I think?


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## CTwoodworker (Jul 27, 2010)

Yeah, I think the sawmill off exit 56 is Zuwalick -- I called them today -- they didn't have much poplar now, but when they do, its about $2 bd ft. oak: $3 bd ft

I heard back from 
conway lumber -- $2 bd ft poplar
Kellog hardwoods $1.60 bd ft poplar

I havent given up on finding an inexpensive sawmill locally, but I'm almost thinking that I may just have to drive some ways to get it.
A few I've found out of state:
http://www.oleksaklumber.com/pricing-calculator.php ($.75 -$1.75 depending on the grade) about 1 hr and a half away from me

Bucks Valley Sawmill LLC
913 Bucks Valley Road
Newport, PA 17074 
poplar is $.68 bd ft green and $.96 dry (I won't drive that far -- 5 hrs.)

I found these just searching on the internet awhile ago. I've found a few websites for sawmills in CT, but none of them can come near to this price. 

Nobody near me can beat bonesteelmillandmolding though -- by far the best prices I have seen: $.90 for poplar and $1.60 for cherry. I'm considering having hardwoods like cherry shipped for that price. I can't find it under $3 around here. Most places have it like 5 or 6 bucks a foot. http://bonesteelmillandmolding.com/pb/wp_192dac55/wp_192dac55.html

Shipping adds almost $1 bd ft though. If you can get a good quote, more like .70, but thats still a lot. It would have to be significantly cheaper.

What do you guys think about shipping lumber? Also, anyone know anything about kellog hardwoods? 

Any further ideas are welcome.

Luke


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## CTwoodworker (Jul 27, 2010)

OK,

I think my best bet is Oleksak sawmill in MA. I also found Morse Lumber in MA as well. They have decent prices. I think I'll drive up there to get poplar and clear pine.

I still want to purchase hardwoods from Bonesteel Mill and Molding -- is anyone familiar with Bonesteel Mill and Molding? His hardwoods are very inexpensive and he has a lot of species that other places don't. ($1.60 bf for cherry is hard to beat)

Shipping lumber -- I'm not really sure what the best way to do this is. Is there some way to do a COD with a freight company? For those of you who have gotten shipped lumber before: do you have any tips?


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## sprior (Aug 31, 2008)

I didn't catch which part of CT you're in - I'm in Danbury and would also love to find some good suppliers. I know there's a sawmill on Route 7 in the Georgetown/Wilton area that wasn't on the lists in this thread - haven't found out their prices yet.


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## CTwoodworker (Jul 27, 2010)

sprior said:


> I didn't catch which part of CT you're in - I'm in Danbury and would also love to find some good suppliers. I know there's a sawmill on Route 7 in the Georgetown/Wilton area that wasn't on the lists in this thread - haven't found out their prices yet.


I'm in the East Lyme area.

The only sawmill I have heard of in that area is Gregory Sawmill -- their prices run about the same as all of the other local sawills that I've contacted ($3 BF for oak, 2.25 for poplar)

What is the name of the sawmill that you know of in that area?


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## sprior (Aug 31, 2008)

I hadn't actually noticed the name of the place before, but after researching a little I think it's called "Board Silly" on the Ridgefield/Wilton line. They don't appear to have a website, don't know yet if they have a price list - it may be a place you just gotta go visit and see what's there. Anyone been there before and have a feel for the place?


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## CTwoodworker (Jul 27, 2010)

sprior said:


> I hadn't actually noticed the name of the place before, but after researching a little I think it's called "Board Silly" on the Ridgefield/Wilton line. They don't appear to have a website, don't know yet if they have a price list - it may be a place you just gotta go visit and see what's there. Anyone been there before and have a feel for the place?


I recall seeing that sawmill when I was researching sawmills...like you said, though, they don't have a website. Best thing to do is call them, which is what I did with Zuwalick sawmill, gregory sawmill and a few others that didnt have websites.


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## craftsman jay (Jun 26, 2010)

Thanks for starting this thread. CT is one of the most expensive states to live in. My supplier is $3 for the poplar. Might have to change.


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## sprior (Aug 31, 2008)

I stopped by Board Silly this morning and met the owner - seemed really nice. I hadn't planned to buy anything this trip, but then started looking around for some cheap cherry to practice with. I ended up paying $10 for 4 pieces of rough cut approx 1" thick cherry maybe 36" long which was from his odds and ends pile, plus he threw in a hunk of walnut for free. All of it was just to get some practice dealing with rough lumber and surfacing it, then maybe practicing some joinery. Lots of playtime in the shop for not much money.


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## CTwoodworker (Jul 27, 2010)

craftsman jay said:


> Thanks for starting this thread. CT is one of the most expensive states to live in. My supplier is $3 for the poplar. Might have to change.


Yeah, it is. Best i have seen for poplar in CT is $1.60, but that is kellog hardwoods way next to NY i think. About 2 hrs or so away from me. I can go to MA (anout 1hr 30 mins) and get poplar for $0.75 -$1.50 BF depending on the grade. New England Hardwoods and CWG have poplar for about 2.25. Still a lot more than it is out of state.



sprior said:


> I stopped by Board Silly this morning and met the owner - seemed really nice. I hadn't planned to buy anything this trip, but then started looking around for some cheap cherry to practice with. I ended up paying $10 for 4 pieces of rough cut approx 1" thick cherry maybe 36" long which was from his odds and ends pile, plus he threw in a hunk of walnut for free. All of it was just to get some practice dealing with rough lumber and surfacing it, then maybe practicing some joinery. Lots of playtime in the shop for not much money.


Thats pretty neat! So does he have a shop/warehouse area that you can stop by and see his stock lumber?

I'm not sure how much time you spent there, but did you happen to notice his prices per board foot for 4/4 rough poplar? What about the other types of wood?

Does he have a large amount in stock?

It looks like we are building up a good directory for sawmills in CT -- lets keep working on this!
Luke


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## Waldo (Jul 21, 2009)

*Getting lumber hauled*

If it were me,I would simply buy a trailer and a hitch for my vehicle. Good open trailers are not very expensive and for a little gas money and time you can go to the places that have the good deals. Plus you only have to buy the trailer once. I have driven 400 miles one way for a load of good priced boards.
Good Luck Waldo :smile:


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## sprior (Aug 31, 2008)

CTWoodworker,

I guess I didn't give enough of the flavor of the place (Board Silly). To say it's less formal than other lumber yards doesn't do it justice. I saw no indication that there is a price list of any kind. I think you go there or give him a call and tell him what you need and he comes up with a price which could possibly be affected by current weather conditions, coffee levels, and possibly baseball scores. His stock is scattered in the backs of broken down trucks on the property. He built a kiln out of one of those broken down trucks. If you happen to hate those "employees only past this point" for insurance purposes you'll have no problem at all with this place - it'd probably be fun to see the look on an inspectors face when he saw this place for the first time. The owner's claim to fame seems to be rough lumber and custom live edge mantels. If you took a look at the power tools in the room where he makes those mantels you'd probably be too scared to be nearby when they were running, but I checked and he can still count to ten. He mentioned more than once that if you're looking for something special and give him advance notice he can come up with something nice.

All of this would probably put off some people who are used to more structured business practices. I found it a little kooky, but interesting and probably full of undiscovered treasures. You've just got to go there yourself and meet the owner to understand this place.

Here's a newspaper article on the place:
http://www.thedailynorwalk.com/home-garden/bored-stiff-pay-visit-board-silly

Not much there yet, but he's working on a website for the place:
http://web.me.com/edermer/Site_3/Board_Silly.html

Steve


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## Old61 (Aug 28, 2010)

http://www.condonlumber.net/where.htm in Stormville NY 4/4" Poplar @ $1.55bf & up for 300bf+


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## sprior (Aug 31, 2008)

I went to the Condons in Stormville once. They looked good, but the big impression of the day was made by the maximum security prison across the street. You got a feeling of doom just looking at the outside of the place - yesh!


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## CTwoodworker (Jul 27, 2010)

Hey guys,

I finally went to Oleksak lumber (in MA) today to get some rough lumber.

The guy was really easy to work with -- I called ahead of time, and talked to him about what I needed. He gave me air dried poplar for $1.00/board foot. He also through in basswood, white birch, some white oak, and some maple at that price!
About half of these boards were even planed!

Although some of the boards looked a little rough from sitting out, it was a great deal, and a good purchase. I definetely recommend this place.

Luke


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## hansmike (Sep 5, 2010)

CTwoodworker,

I've read your thread on cheap(er) hardwood and thought I'd go check out Olekak. It's actually closer to me than where I go now (CWG hardwood outlet in enfield) and priced a LOT cheaper. Was all their wood rough or just the air dried?


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## Leo G (Oct 16, 2006)

I can get poplar from Holt and Bugbee out of Ma for around $2/bd ft. That is 12"+, 15-16', skip planed to 15/16 delivered. 250 bd ft minimum. I am sure that many of the other lumber yards would be willing to come close to these prices delivered. This is kiln dried lumber. If you are getting it from a lumber mill rough/green and they want over $2 you are getting hosed.


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## Leo G (Oct 16, 2006)

hansmike said:


> CTwoodworker,
> 
> I've read your thread on cheap(er) hardwood and thought I'd go check out Olekak. It's actually closer to me than where I go now (CWG hardwood outlet in enfield) and priced a LOT cheaper. Was all their wood rough or just the air dried?


CWG in Enfield is a RETAIL outlet and has prices that reflect that. I use them for small jobs where instead of buying a large load of wood and having all of my profit on the wood rack, I opt to pay more and get profit in dollars.


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## CTwoodworker (Jul 27, 2010)

hansmike said:


> CTwoodworker,
> 
> I've read your thread on cheap(er) hardwood and thought I'd go check out Olekak. It's actually closer to me than where I go now (CWG hardwood outlet in enfield) and priced a LOT cheaper. Was all their wood rough or just the air dried?


They have air dried and kiln dried lumber. Some of the air dried lumber I got was already planed (at least on one side). Now, most lumber there isn't planed. However, they will plane it for a reasonable price.

I suggest calling them, I talked to Andrew Oleksak, and he helped me get what I needed. All their contact info (such as phone number, address, etc) is on their website. www.oleksaklumber.com

Give them a call, and they will get you what you need.


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## CTwoodworker (Jul 27, 2010)

Leo G said:


> I can get poplar from Holt and Bugbee out of Ma for around $2/bd ft. That is 12"+, 15-16', skip planed to 15/16 delivered. 250 bd ft minimum. I am sure that many of the other lumber yards would be willing to come close to these prices delivered. This is kiln dried lumber. If you are getting it from a lumber mill rough/green and they want over $2 you are getting hosed.


That's why I drove up to Massachusetts. I contacted at least 4 sawmills around here. They charge $2.25 for rough poplar.

Can you give me some contact info for these places in MA? I'd be interested in contacting them. Those sound like great prices to me.

Luke


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## Leo G (Oct 16, 2006)

1-800-325-6010

http://www.holtandbugbee.com/


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## thefarmersmistress (Dec 1, 2013)

CTwoodworker said:


> I've been looking for various types of lumber in CT. If any of you that are in CT know of sawmills that have reasonably priced lumber, please reply.
> 
> I'm looking for about 300 bd ft of clear poplar (or clear pine), but am also interested in buying smaller quantities of other woods like cherry, walnut, maple, cedar and oak.
> 
> ...


Nov 2013 In Oxford Ct, we just cut down 3 very old very tall poplar trees. Crosswinds mill is located in Oxford. Are you interested?


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## thefarmersmistress (Dec 1, 2013)

*Poplar logs*

In Oxford, we just cut down 3 very large, very old poplar trees. Crosswind sawmill is located in Oxford Ct. Any interests?


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## MasterSplinter (Jan 12, 2013)

thefarmersmistress said:


> In Oxford, we just cut down 3 very large, very old poplar trees. Crosswind sawmill is located in Oxford Ct. Any interests?


Are the already cut in the mill? I would be interested in some


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## aaronhl (Jun 2, 2011)

You guys in CT need to show me your shops, let me know if you need help with anything I am ready to HELP and LEARN more


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## thefarmersmistress (Dec 1, 2013)

MasterSplinter said:


> Are the already cut in the mill? I would be interested in some


Trees were just cut down this weekend and there are more trees that need to be cut. All are very old and tall. Before the others can be done we need to do something with the logs on the property now. Looking at my options. Shame to see this wood all end up wasted rather than used for something constructive.


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