A Proposal...

[ROb McGilp]

Hi all,

Many North American members of the various Woodworking Forums mention their jealousy regarding the beautiful, exquisite, beautifully rich and textured timbers ( I can gloat here ;D) that we have in Australia.
After a chat with the ubiquitous Tezzer recently and having made some very preliminary enquiries, I am wondering if anybody would be interested in being involved in shipping a container of assorted Australian Hardwoods to one central or several regional points in the US.
If there are enough people interested, I am prepared to continue to make enquiries and put something concrete on the table.
If you are interested, please respond here or by PM or email (if you're shy). Please only respond if you are genuinely keen to see this happen. I tried setting up a Festool Cooperative here and when I finally put the final framework in place, nobody was interested, even though they got a 1/5 share of a Domino for AUS$150!!!
There is some work to be done to finish such a proposal.

So..

What d'ya reckon?

A cautious but optimistic pessimist (God help me!!)

Rob

 

[bruegf]

Any (rough) idea of costs involved yet?

Fred

 

[ROb McGilp]

Hi Fred,
At this point I guess it's just expressions of interest that I am after. Many of these timbers such as Red Gum and Jarrah Gidgee and Ironbark are very dense and weigh a bit. The object for me at least is to be able to ship timbers not readily available because of this weight impediment. You Can buy flooring timbers such as Brush Box and Spotted Gum I believe, but in general, they can ft more of the boards into convenient less costly pack I guess. I'd like this to be an opportunity for people to get the pleasure of working and understanding Australian hard  (and soft) woods.

Perhaps these two sites will give you an idea, not of price, but some of the timbers available.
http://www.afttimbers.com/home.htm
http://www.mullumbimbywoodworks.com.au/

Ultimately costs will be related to the type and quantity needed. Once I have some concrete interest, I can go further. So this really comes down to how much you want to try these timbers to make what would be very exclusive furniture, artworks, bowls etc. Don't forget we also have some sooooper Burls!
BTW, I'm not in this for the money, though I will want to cover all costs.

Rob

 

[Woodenfish]

Rob, After viewing your pictures of the projects you have created using your native Aussie timbers I was wondering if any of them pose any type of particular health hazard while maching them other than the dropping of such on your toe?

 

[ROb McGilp]

Hello Mr Fish,

Most timbers are safe if you use the usual precautions. I would expect that a data information sheet would be mandatory for import of timber also and depending on the types of timber ordered, I would point out any problems that may arise.
The AFT site under products gives the weight of all timbers sold by them. You can assume approximately 8% moisture content.

Here's a comparison of two timbers to give you an idea of weight.
American Rock Maple

Weight

  (kg / m3 )                    720 kg/m3 

  (lbs per ft3)                45lbs /ft3

Australian Red Gum

Weight

  (kg / m3 )            1010 kg/m3

  (lbs per ft3)        63 lbs /ft3

Regards,

Rob

 

[Eli]

The subject never came up on our 'tour' the other day Rob (thanks for that Terry and Rob), but my Uncle owns a customs brokerage here in Melbourne. Was a great help in getting our stuff here. Your options are custom crating the timber on a pallet up to a certain size/weight, and then it becomes cost effective to get a 20' container, usually around half full, probably sooner, as most of what I'd think our US festoolians would be interested in would be really heavy. If there is a consensus on how much timber (if any) people are interested in getting over there, I'm sure I can get a cousin to give us a quote with no strings attached.

BTW, Rob took me around to all the timber merchants here in Melbourne, I've never seen so much beautiful hardwood in my life.

 

[ROb McGilp]

Hi Eli,
Thanks for that. It looks like we may have a "goer". All we need now is enthusiastic response.

Regards,

Rob

 

[Dave Ronyak]

I could be interested.  Is there any price information for any of the species being contemplated?  I don't know enough about the other species to know if I might have an interest.  I am interested in using some lacewood (aka Australian silky oak?) to accent an entertainment center I am now designing.  I believe I can obtain and choose from individual boards at Woodcraft stores, and I don't a large quantity for that entertainment center.

Dave R.

 

[Lou Miller]

I could certainly be interested. Of course, final pricing will ultimately be the deciding factor. I think logistics is going to be a concern as well. The US is a pretty large land mass with a lot of ports. Figuring out where exactly to send it to here could be a problem. For us on the east coast, it would certainly get very expensive shipping wise by the time it got to our homes if the shipment went through LA (most logical port I'd guess) or somthing like that. The opposite would be true for those on the west coast if the shipment went through a port on the east coast. In other words, good luck making everyone happy with that.

 

[ROb McGilp]

Hi everyone,

The issue of shipping costs is foremost in my mind. Yesterday, I spoke to Tezzer about this and will need to speak with Eli as well. The idea most likely is that we would put together a pallet or so of the timbers that people most request. Then come back with a final figure which the majority may accept or reject. Again, this is an idea I hope will fly as it will generate good will between woodworkers in both countries. Already we are seeing the benifits of cross pollination of iseas and methods, this seems a logical extension.
Dave, contact me off line and I'll send you some Silky Oak.

Regards,

Rob

 

[ROb McGilp]

Hi all,

Just thought I'd post some photos of Silky Oak for you to see. It's a very light timber, but with great character.

Regards,

Rob

 

[MarkF]

Ron,
Is that the way it looks flatsawn or quartersawn?

 

[ROb McGilp]

Mark.
I believe that is flatsawn. I have two separate boards, about 110mm x 25mm, about 3.5m all up. It feels almost as light as Balsa whenyou pick it up. To me it's a perfect timber for inlay or for panels in a box. Which is what I think I will use it for in conjunction with the Gerronggang I have, or with Jarrah or Red Gum.

Regards,

Rob

 

[MarkF]

Ron,
Thanks for the reply!  If you can work out the logistics of importing some of that and other hard to find stock I would be interested in getting some of it on the East Coast (North Carolina) if the price and quality is good.  I've seen that wood here but the price is prohibitive for non commissioned work.  My concern about all of the plans for importing lumber is getting the container released by US Customs in Australia and the ship navigating the busy waters off Long Beach Harbor in California.  I fly into LAX  and Orange County (SNA) frequently and I am astounded by the volume of ships waiting to dock.  We are truly addicted to cheap imports from Asia!!!  My employer imports 100% of our products (healthcare equipment) from NZ into Long Beach and LAX.  Since December it's been difficult to project when containers will be unloaded and released.  Be sure to look at available space on Quantas and Air NZ 747s.  We sometimes get very competitive shipping rates on pallets of equipment.

Mark (cooking in 112 degree heat index weather in NC...this ain't no dry heat!!!)

 

[Dave Rudy]

Rob,

I would be interested in small quantities of select hardwoods -- have to figure out how to get it to Colorado though.

What is the difference between silky oak and lacewood (already available in limited thicknesses and sizes here -- I could check on prices and get back to you if it would help)?

Dave

 

[Dave Ronyak]

Hi all,

Just thought I'd post some photos of Silky Oak for you to see. It's a very light timber, but with great character.

Regards,

Rob

Yep, that's that great looking wood I was thinking of - to use as an accent on a large entertainment center [81" H by 108" W] I am now designing and planning to build primarily of American red [or black] oak.

I am somewhat puzzled by the statement that pieces are light like balsa.  The boards I have handled at my local Rockler or Woodcraft store don't seem to be of low density.

Dave R.

 

[ROb McGilp]

Hi all,

Sorry for the tardy response.

I have been down to AFT to check on Silky Oak AKA Lacewood availability. This timber is now getting quite rare. It grows on the edges of rain forests both here and in Africa. It is a species of Grevillia.
It weighs approx 34-36lbs/ft3. When you're used to moving Red gum at 63lbs/ft3, the Silky Oak feels like balsa.
AFT have a "reasonable" amount of this timber, but not all as highly figured as what I have shown. Regardless, I always hand pick timber for my needs and selecting for you guys would be no different.
Silky Oak sells for AUS$9,000/meter3, but at 34lbs/ft3, shipping could be reasonable.

So.. Eli informs me that he is now in a position to laud a Kapex over all of us, (a move I feel should lead to all posts symbolically giving him "the bird"). He suggested that we load some bits and pieces of what is available and let you all decide what you lust for. This gave me the idea of "sample packs", which would include a selection of interesting hard and softwoods which we have reasonable certainty of being able to supply in quantity. You would have to pay for the timber and shipping. Figures I can find out for you within the week. These would be uniform packs, which will allow you to Get a taste for the timber. Probably if you don't like one, someone else will take it from you and vice versa

(Dave and Mark, could you contact me by PM regarding your personal requirements please?)

Eli, when you read this, perhaps you could give a quick rundown on what you saw during your "Aliens Guide to the Woodwork side of Melbourne. I think people could gain an understanding of the warped minds and serious, almost dangerous enthusiasm of Aussie WWers.

That's all I got today... That's all I have to say. (Simply Red, Holdin' back the years)

Regards,

Rob

 

[Eli]

Well, Rob's right that it seems light by comparison. He was joking about it being as light as balsa. I had never hefted anything as heavy as Redgum or Kauri before I got here, with maybe the exception of a steel construction beam. These woods have mass like you wouldn't believe, seriously dense, and the timber places we visited have some massive great boards. Although I've been mostly successful by now using a metric tape measure, I haven't even started to grok the size of a cubic meter, a problem maybe compounded by the fact that I never really bought by linear board feet either.

Rob drove me around to a few timber places, we visited both his and Tezzer's shop, and we went to a place called Carba-tec which is like Rockler but more big machines and fewer hinges and cup pulls. I've since visited a recycled timber place and I'm really excited for a project I have in the next month or two fitting out a microbrew bar for a friend.

I do have a lot of new things out in the shed. I've been messing about deciding which tools and accessories to get for a month or two and finally started taking delivery from Ideal Tools this week. I had planned on chopping some boards up with a Ka... you-know-what today for a treehouse for Kai the Unruly (oldest boy, almost three) but it's raining on and off.

 

[Tezzer]

I had never hefted anything as heavy as Redgum or Kauri before I got here, with maybe the exception of a steel construction beam. These woods have mass like you wouldn't believe, seriously dense, and the timber places we visited have some massive great boards.

Wait until you see 2 "massive" slabs that i will be getting soon. They will blow your mind ;D ;D ;D 

One is a 3100 x 1100 x 60mm slab of Mango and the other is a 2500 x 1000(top) x 1450(bottom) x 60mm slab of a timber called Raintree ;D

Two magic tables comming up ;D