BF cost of blanks

[sbarton22]

Do you ever take the time to figure the BF cost of the blanks you buy?

I, almost exclusively, buy larger pieces of lumber and mill my own blanks. Sometimes, I find a nice batch of blanks off ebay and grab them. Even more rare is when I buy a single blank.

I was doing some basic shop accounting and I was figuring the different BF costs of some of my recent supplies.

I wanted to give a Dymondwood blank a try. 5/8" x 5/8" x 5"..... that equals 0.0136 BF. Sure, the blank only cost me $2.69, but that tallies up to a whopping $198.10/BF!!!!!

I'm not complaining, I just found it pretty shocking. I thought I would share. :biggrin:

 

[GoodTurns]

don't do the math on Chittum burl...it hurts.

 

[mredburn]

I figured that out a long time ago. I Stopped buying blanks and started buying boards.Then I stopped buying boards when I realized I wouldnt make enough pens in my lifetime to use them all. :biggrin::biggrin::biggrin: I just have to stop!

 

[Alzey]

I had wondered about this but was afraid to do the math:crying: Now that i have been turning a few months and start to see what I like to turn and what other people like to get/buy, I guess I will be looking for boards:smile-big:

 

[ghostrider]

Just a few months ago I wondered to a friend how amazed I was that other people actually buy wooden blanks.

Since meeting with Buzzzz4, I've picked up a considerable collection of acrylic blanks (plus the cobra skin that's waiting to be cast, plus the fiberglass resin waiting to be turned into micarta, plus the Pearl Ex powders that I bought just because I had a 50% off coupon, etc...). The only time I purchased a wooden blank was when I was bought a six pack of Cocobolo because I considered on of the blanks in the pack worth the money for the whole.

Then again, I was just telling him yesterday how I reaally need to cross cut some of the aromatic cedar to offer up on the forums, and he responded by bring up the small matter of the 200 lb Box Elder stump I left in his driveway (we just tell ourselves that it's still there because it's still in the process of developing worm holes:wink. That doesn't count all the Box Elder. Wilow burl, Australian Cypress, Cherry, Lignum Vitea (both Argentine, and original flavor), and I'm still missing a piece of black walnut (aside from all the other black walnut that I have) that's missing.

I think I've gotten enough to the point that I can start wasting wood on diagonal cuts.

I can see people buying individual rare burl blanks for $15, but I haven't gotten through what I have yet.

 

[Finatic]

I did the same cost accounting with my boat. Got the cost per year, cost per month, cost per week, cost per day and since that did'nt hurt enough, I figured the cost per hour to own that hole in the water into which you throw money, and damn near fainted.

 

[SDB777]

At first glance buying and board or a slab will break you heart when shipping comes around. Who wants to purchase a $50.00 slab, just to turn around and pay another $75.00(or more) to ship it by goat on a slow boat?!?!?
I've tried several methods of shipping boards and slabs and determined that it a pain in the backside. So I just don't do it anymore....but anyone that wanted to, could stop by and take a few home with them:biggrin:cheap!


Most of the cost of blanks is time....think about someone standing in front of a bandsaw for hours just trimming up blanks. Especially if it's outside in the summer, in the south! Is it outrageous, sometimes yes, sometimes no.






Scott B

 

[monophoto]

Most of the cost of blanks is time....think about someone standing in front of a bandsaw for hours just trimming up blanks. Especially if it's outside in the summer, in the south! Is it outrageous, sometimes yes, sometimes no.

The cost of the time require to cut the wood - plus markup for the various middlemen.

Yes, $2.50 per blank seems expensive on a $/BF basis. But that's the price that is built up from various cost components as the wood moves from the forest to the retail store. Most of that price goes to people who don't actually add any value to the final product.

 

[thewishman]

Cost per board foot doesn't matter to me. I only turn very interesting woods, mostly burls, and would rather spend $$ to get special pieces.

When I first started, there was a great section of curly maple in the center of a large board at Woodcraft. I had to buy half the board to get that section. Those great looking blanks cost me about $15. Later I saw some ridiculously-curly maple blanks here for about $1 each - they were several orders-of-magnitude better than my board.

I still have the board - never even cut it because the other blanks were better. What was my cost per board foot on the blanks? Pretty high. The board I bought was cheaper by the board foot, but I ended up getting ZERO blanks from it. Which was the better buy?

I would rather use a $7 blank and make a $50 pen, than use a $0.25 blank and make a $15 pen. Especially since all of the work on each pen would be identical.

 

[Andrew_K99]

Would you rather be making pens or cutting blanks? My time in the shop is limited and I'd rather be turning a pen then cutting up blanks. I also don't want 30+ of the same looking blanks (what a 1'x1'x1" board could yield).

Just my 2¢

AK

 

[edicehouse]

A friend of mine was telling me about what he figures it "costs" him per Poly Resin blank to make. But what about the initial cost of the resin/powders/molds/ect?

So you buy a board foot of this wood, cut 3 or 4 blanks and make pens, get bored with that and put it to side because you have another piece..... Double edged sword.

 

[Displaced Canadian]

Any time I'm near a store that sells fancy woods I'll stop in and see what they have. I find the best materiel when I'm not expecting it. To me the biggest advantage of buying a 3' board is that you can decide how to cut it. However you will find that you will never turn the whole board into blanks. I bought a Cocobolo board a bit ago that was 3' long and 6" wide and had great grain and color on about 1/3 of the board. The rest was a little on the boring side so I cut it on an angle just to make it interesting. Ended up with some great blanks and a fair bit of waste. The best place to look for boards is in the scrap bins because pieces that are too small and defective for general woodworking usually make nice pens. And because they are scrap you can get them cheap.

 

[sbarton22]

I was not complaining about the cost of a blank. $2.50 for a blank is no big deal. Heck, for the right pen, $50 for the blank is fine. I was just amazed at how that price actually translates into how we normally price wood.

I also don't think it is such a big deal to cut blanks. The whole "I'd rather be doing other things than cutting blanks"" argument doesn't wash with me. It takes 30 seconds to cut a blank. Big deal. It's not like I am talking about building a lathe to turn a pen. If am cutting the blank, then I can choose exactly how to design with the grain. Even if I account for waste, I am going to be able to throw away half of my material and still be in the black.

With that said, I do enjoy hearing other people's perspective on how they view their time and resources.

 

[mrcook4570]

Blank or board does not matter to me. If it looks exceptionally good, then I shall buy.

 

[Texatdurango]

Do you ever take the time to figure the BF cost of the blanks you buy?

...... I'm not complaining, I just found it pretty shocking. I thought I would share. :biggrin:

What's equally shocking is to figure the per blank cost when a member visits the local lumber yard, buys a board for $4 a board foot then spends 15 minutes cutting up a few hundred blanks then offers them for sale at $2 - $4 apiece.......... And people stand in line to gt them!

 

[mredburn]

I also bought the boards so that I can make other things than blanks. Since I dont make but a few pens in a year, multiple blanks from the same board get used here and there not all at once. Plus I have multiples of multiples of boards to choose from. Some times it takes longer to select the blank than to make the pen.

 

[zig613]

I wanted to give a Dymondwood blank a try. 5/8" x 5/8" x 5"..... that equals 0.0136 BF. Sure, the blank only cost me $2.69, but that tallies up to a whopping $198.10/BF!!!!!

I'm not complaining, I just found it pretty shocking. I thought I would share. :biggrin:

This price isn't shocking… it's all part of "value added" chain. I work in the forest industry with landowners and we are at the very bottom of the "value added" chain. We sell standing timber on the stump for prices ranging from $150-$500 a thousand board feet. After the various steps in the value added chain (e.g., logging, milling, drying, planning, retailing, etc.) the wood ends up in Home Depot or a set of kitchen cupboards for $6,000-$8,000 a thousand board feet. Most industries have a similar "value added" chain… pen blanks or pen making is no different.

Wade

 

[MartinPens]

If the board is exceptional I'll go for it! I can always cut it up and offer some of it here on the forum. That BF number is horrible if you're not selling pens. But if I buy a $8 blank and sell a $125 - $200 pen, then the BF cost shock is reduced and compensated for.

Sent from my iPad using Forum Runner

 

[Marker]

I have done both, depending on what type of wood of course.

when it comes to me cutting my own pen blanks, My problem is that sometimes I have a hard time justifying cutting up big pieces of nice lumber to make pen blanks. I have found that some pieces of lumber sell for a premium when they are in larger sizes.

I worked in a saw mill for over 3 years as a hardwood lumber inspector. I have found alot of nice lumber, such as curly maple, Birdseye maple, spalted maple, quilted maple, culry cherry, curly walnut, and lots of unique pieces of wood.

There has been times where I cut up a piece of lumber, and then wish that I would have made something else with it. I guess my problem is that I am alittle indecisive, when it comes to me deciding on what to do with nice a peice of lumber, like right now I have a maple burl board that is 6/4 and eight foot long, with very nice figure, and some culkry oak that the grain almost goes in circles. I just don't know if I should cut them up into pen blanks. I have cut up pieces of, Brazilian, and Madagascar Rosewood That I bought just for making pen blanks, and then kicked myself latter on for cutting them up.


So I have decided that I rather just buy pen blanks, mostly because I get more of a verity this way, and also because if I were to make my own I would have to make like 40 pens with the same type of wood.

 

[crabcreekind]

Cost per board foot doesn't matter to me. I only turn very interesting woods, mostly burls, and would rather spend $$ to get special pieces.

When I first started, there was a great section of curly maple in the center of a large board at Woodcraft. I had to buy half the board to get that section. Those great looking blanks cost me about $15. Later I saw some ridiculously-curly maple blanks here for about $1 each - they were several orders-of-magnitude better than my board.

I still have the board - never even cut it because the other blanks were better. What was my cost per board foot on the blanks? Pretty high. The board I bought was cheaper by the board foot, but I ended up getting ZERO blanks from it. Which was the better buy?

I would rather use a $7 blank and make a $50 pen, than use a $0.25 blank and make a $15 pen. Especially since all of the work on each pen would be identical.

I agree with this statement, i buy pen blanks, because i will never use the whole board. unless i get a huge order.(which has never happened)

 

[TerryDowning]

Found wood is by far the least expensive

 

[LandfillLumber]

I think many don't realize what kind of work goes into cutting logs/burls,stacking them,drying them,unstacking them,processing them,marketing them,and finally shipping them(oh and I forgot some things that happen in between the above).This is what cost so much and the reason that lumber has not dropped in price even though demand is as low as its been in fifty years.I really picked a great time to break into the lumber biz,lol,I have good timing.I think blanks up tp the $6-7 range is fine for really great blanks,but most my high end stuff is still wihin the $5 mark mostly $3-4.Just remember that a ton of back braking work goes into processing wood,and its not your back while lifting the package off your door step(LOL).My two cents,Victor

 

[Ted iin Michigan]

Scott (and everyone else) - I haven't checked your math, BUT - did you account for the saw kerf? I'm thinking that you'll be WELL over $200/bf if you dare to do that (a lot of stuff winds up on the shop floor, even if you use a band saw).

Oh, well.......

 

[wolftat]

Some other things to remember when figuring in the costs of a blank.. The waste where the boring sections of wood are cut off, the time involved in finding the wood (since the mills around here don't sell anything like Honduran Rosewood Burl by the board foot), and the question of what to do with all the extra wood if you were to buy it by the board foot. I'm sure a lot of people have bought a couple feet of a nice curly maple and it is mostly still sitting around your shop, so add in storage now for that and once all the other little things are added in, $5 a blank is actually pretty inexpensive.

By the way, if you shop around, you can buy diamondwood in large sheets or bowl blocks and cut your own blanks as well, just make sure your saw cuts straight or there is more loss.

 

[Drstrangefart]

A majority of my blanks are ones I harvested from working as a landscaper, as well as lots of random stuff getting cleared out of other blank collections. Tye REALLY expensive ones for me are PR blanks. Even when I make my own, they still cost about 3 bucks a pop. I fully understand why guys that are good at casting can demand 5-8 bucks a blank. Think of board/foot costs for that.

 

[sbarton22]

Scott (and everyone else) - I haven't checked your math, BUT - did you account for the saw kerf? I'm thinking that you'll be WELL over $200/bf if you dare to do that (a lot of stuff winds up on the shop floor, even if you use a band saw).

Oh, well.......

Good point!

 

[SDB777]

The kerf on my bandsaw mill is about 1.25mm, not that bad in the world of bandsaw mill kerfs. My vertical Bandsaw will generally be right at 1mm. I'm not even worried about the kerf....it makes good sawdust for the wife's flower beds!!!:wink:

Now I can cut a boatload of blanks from a log measuring 24" in diameter, especially if the log is 10 foot long....but those blanks need time to dry, and some will crack, warp, or be absolutely useless for whatever reason. Those will go into the burn barrel, because I believe, "If I won't turn 'em, I'll burn 'em"!:biggrin:

My cost per blank have gone way down. Reason, it doesn't take me all day to cut 100 from a log. Then again, most of my blanks are not going to cost $2.50/ea, more like $0.15 to $0.40 each for the same blanks that are being sold by others for $1.75/ea! Are they upset? I dunno, maybe they are buying mine to re-sell.




Scott (only buy what you can afford) B

 

[QuicksilverL]

I like cutting up found wood for pen blanks. It's kind of like a treasure hunt for me. Sometimes it's a bust, but other times I discover really beautiful wood.

 

[okiebugg]

Carpathian Elm

I have some Carpathian turning squares from England. I purchased them back in the late 70's, early 80's for next to nothing. I have been offered big bucks for just 1 of them by a gentleman in NY. Based on the amount offered, I'm going to figure the price by BF and report it on this page.

The only exports of this type of elm is veneer, and that is wood from downed or diseased trees. They are remarkably striking.

 

[butchf18a]

Whatever I spend on any given blank including inlay kits, goes into the price I charge for the pen. How many of us are turning $8.00+ TruStone blanks and loose money? None of us I would guess. Calculating the BrdFt costs is interesting intellectual exercise perhaps, beyond that, not worth considering.

semper fi

butch

 

[okiebugg]

BdFt

I will many times calculate the BdFt price of wood blanks offered on Ebay and other websites just to make comparison between two or three different offers. Ha! figure Cook Woods sometime. It is mind blowing. In objects I make and sell, the cost of the material is considered in the price. However, calling the calculation of BdFt as being an intellectual adventure is just wrong. I cant ever spell ahntelictoouhl. Have a very nice Christmas.