Supplier or small business suggestions...

[Chrisrsnow]

I will be traveling from Dallas TX to Myrtle Beach SC during the first week of April. I am looking to see if anyone knows of any good pen making or exotic/local wood supplies along the I-20 corridor that I could stop by along my way to or from. I am looking for shops specifically tailored to woodworking or turning, similar to Rockler of Woodcraft, but prefer locally owned businesses. I an not opposed to a small detour, if it is worth the trip, but would prefer shops within a half hour of I-20. If you know of any good places (other than local general hardware stores) that would be worth the stop, please let me know. I appreciate any suggestions y'all may have!

 

[Woodchipper]

I suggest that you search for wood supplies in each individual state you will be passing through. Try this for starters: bowl blanks south carolina.

 

[GaryMGg]

Try searching https://www.woodfinder.com/

It can show you sawyers, sawmills and probably other similar products.

 

[mark james]

About 10 years ago I did exactly what you are doing, but from Tampa back to Ohio. I found several random woodturning blank suppliers along the way (Carolinas, Virginia, Georgia) and got some of the nicest materials at very reasonable costs. All small local mom/pop type lumber processors/arborists. Well worth the effort to research what is available. MAKE sure they are still in business and open when you may pass by (DAMHIK).

 

[leehljp]

I live near Memphis and there used to be one locally owned store called Colco or something similar. But they closed about 20 years ago. They had a store in Nashville also, but it closed. I just checked for Nashville as I remembered they had another good exotic wood store a few years ago - including the Gibson Guitar maker and here is what I came up with:

Top sources for exotic woods in Nashville include
Good Wood Nashville (specializing in tropical hardwoods, reclaimed wood, and Lunawood) and Woodcraft of Nashville(offering a wide variety of domestic and exotic species for woodworking). Other options include A to Z Exotic Hardwoods, Mimms Lumber, and specialty suppliers like Gibson Guitar.

Check out Nashville - since it is on I-20.

 

[wolf creek knives]

Reminds me of a business trip I was on quite a while back. I was in Atlanta and had stopped by a Bass Pro Shop and bought a bunch of .357cal. bullets...just the bullets, nothing else, (this was when Obama was elected and everyone thought the world would come to an end). So I'm flying home with all these bullets in my checked baggage and I'm sitting in the gate area after going through security. All of a sudden I hear over the loud speaker system "Mr. Thomas Bennett would you please come to the security check area". I'm thinking I forgot to get something off the belt or something like that. So I leave the gate area and head to security where I'm met with, not one, but three TSA agents. This one guy says to me, "Mr. Bennett we've called you back to the security area because as we checked your bag we found all these bullets in your bag". I was a bit bewildered but asked them if it was a problem. The one TSA officer told me "no" but that it looked suspicious at best. After some discussion with all three TSA agents I was cleared and was released to fly home. When I got on the plane the thought crossed my mind that they must have wondered why I had 1,000+ rounds of .357cal bullets in my suitcase. This was something I did all across the U.S. on my travels, buy bullets, and it never crossed my mind that, indeed, it did look a bit suspicious. Just thought I'd share. Funny thing is I still have those bullets and have never loaded them...what a waste.