Comments on: Get me some wood in the Bay Area.

Question: Get me some wood in the Bay Area.

fief — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 11:43:17 -0800

Where can I buy wood in the Bay Area that is not Home Depot or Lowe's? I am planning a couple of projects in the near future for which I need decent hardwood veneered plywood, matching long stock (1x1, 3x1, etc.) and matching trim to cover the edges (the work will be stained). Where matching means same type of wood. I am not sure what type of wood I want yet, that will depend partly on cost.

Home Depot is pretty much a miserable place to go into, they have poor selection and what they have has been picked over such that what's left is crap. Lowe's while better stocked, and the stock they have is generally better, is still quite limited. So in short, I seek a local Bay Area source for wood for the amateur woodworker.

While I am not immediately looking for a source for materials for fine woodworking, I would be interested in hearing about local sources for that as well.

By: iamabot

iamabot — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 11:44:18 -0800

Mac Beath Lumber in Berkeley

By: ...tm...

...tm... — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 12:09:50 -0800

One of my favorite places to go for most things in Urban Ore in Berkeley (at Ashby and 6th St.) It is a salvage yard that has very reasonable prices. They have everything from old record collections to the more typical salvage of cabinets, doors, bathtubs, windows, tiles, and lumber. While it most likely wouldn't work to go in with a project in mind and find what you need, there is always a good possibility of finding something unique and amazing which suggests the project to you. Plus, I'm a crunchy Berkeleyan who loves reusing things.

By: gt2

gt2 — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 12:15:27 -0800

Not sure about this being a source of wood for fine woodworking, but a lot of contractors use Truitt and White in Berkeley

By: iamabot

iamabot — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 12:18:46 -0800

Mac Beath is right across the street from Urban Ore, you could hit both places at once.

By: ORthey

ORthey — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 13:15:07 -0800

And Truitt and White (as has been mentioned) is quite close too, so you could go to all three! T & W is a very green-friendly place (it's where I got my recycled denim insulation, for one) to shop, an added bonus.

By: jamaro

jamaro — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 13:21:35 -0800

Southern Lumber, "The Wonderful World of Wood", just south of downtown on Monterey Highway.

By: jamaro

jamaro — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 13:22:13 -0800

(downtown San Jose, that is).

By: jasper411

jasper411 — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 13:50:20 -0800

Discount Builders Supply in San Francisco (Mission right near the freeway)

Goodman Building Supply in Marin, around Mill Valley, near 101

By: wemayfreeze

wemayfreeze — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 14:52:32 -0800

Seconding Truitt and White. Also, White Brothers and Ashby Lumber. I've had good experiences at both T&W and Ashby, and the folks at White Brothers seem real nice (though I've never bought anything there).

By: Quietgal

Quietgal — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 16:47:12 -0800

For carpentry-type lumber in San Francisco there's Beronio Lumber. For millwork and fancy architectural doodads (not all wood, some plaster) there's San Francisco Victoriana. For fine woodworking tools and wood, in Alameda there's The Japan Woodworker.

By: samthemander

samthemander — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 17:31:18 -0800

Seconding Southern Lumber-- oh how I love the smell of that building...

By: spatula

spatula — Sat, 09 Feb 2008 20:00:10 -0800

My father (an amateur cabinetmaker) would get normal lumber from

Rafael lumber (North bay, google map)

and more exotic things like mahogany/darkwoods from Handloggers (Richmond, map)

By: jewzilla

jewzilla — Sun, 10 Feb 2008 15:43:36 -0800

Global Woodsource in San Jose has a remarkable selection. Not sure about plywood, but lots of wonderful exotics (and domestics).

By: RikiTikiTavi

RikiTikiTavi — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 10:38:45 -0800

Woodfinder.com

(I've never used it, myself.)