In episode 15 we started our talk about lumber. As I mentioned in that episode, the choice of material is an important aspect of the design process. Understanding the basics of choosing the lumber we'll be using is very vital and that's why we covered some of the pitfalls to look out for, when looking at the stock you'll being using in your project and now in this episode we'll cover even more aspects of choosing lumber for your project.  Most of the talk in this episode pertains to choosing rough sawn lumber, but I realize that many of you probably won't be buying your lumber rough sawn, still many of the issues I'll talk about will apply to pre-dimensioned lumber also.
The first thing we should always do before we head out is to have a cutlist. By having a cutlist we have a check list that helps guarantee we account for all the lumber needed.  I've posted a PDF file that contains a cutlist I created and use for all my projects, you're welcome to use it for your next project.
Second, remember that rough sawn lumber has a little play in the thickness, so keep that in mind when choosing crucial boards for important components. If you're concerned that a certain board won't have enough thickness to it, move up to the next increment to be sure.
Third, always plan on having to buy a little more lumber than you'll actually need. As a good rule of thumb, I always add a minimum of about 20% more bdft to my order then what the project originally calls for. This takes into account the essential oops factor.
This leads into number four which is to buy long. Especially when buying lumber rough, never plan on getting all the wood out of a length of lumber.
Fifth, as I mentioned in episode 15 there are numerous grading scales for the appearance of the lumber itself.  In rough lumber the boards are graded on the total yield of clear wood per board, the actual dimensions, grains and color differences within a single board are less important.
And the last things to keep in mind is more about the actual appearance of the boards.  Ideally we want all our boards to have both an uniform color and grain appearance, but in reality that doesn't happen to often.

If you get a chance to check out some of the weblogs I have listed give them a look.  Until the next espisode Straight Grains and Sharp Blades. Matt

Another important aspect of the entire design process is the choice of material or materials we'll use in our projects. So for this episode let's start talking about lumber.  The first question to ask about the lumber you'll use for your project is what are you looking for? Is the piece we're building in need of a material that helps it stand out, or do we want the exact opposite, are we looking for a material that allows our piece to blend into the background, one where the material is less important than the overall design itself.  Irregardless of which direction your design goes in, there are so many different wood species that will fill the need of your project's final look that the hard part really is deciding which one to use.  A few things to take into consideration when buying lumber already dimensioned from a retailer include many of the same things you'll want to think about when buying rough sawn lumber. These include checking the moisture content of the stock, how long has the stock been sitting around and last but not least is how much warping is there in each board?  All these questions are important when picking the appropriate stock for your project so we'll cover the things you should know when picking your stock.
Terms to remember:
Moisture content - a measure of the percentage of moisture remaining in a board during and after the drying period.
Kiln dried - a method of drying lumber inwhich lumber is dried using a kiln under controlled circumstances and is completed in a matter of weeks vs months or years like in air drying of lumber.
Cupping - warping across the width of a board's face.
Bowing - warping down the length of the board's face.
Crook - warping down the length of a board's edge.
Twist - warping down the length of a board's face in which the board's corners twist out of position.

Thanks to Johnson's Lumber for the use of their catalog as a reference in making this episode possible.  Thanks for listening and coming back.

Straight Grains and Sharp Blades, Matt