O.K, if you have the patience, please mentor me here. I’m about to build my first real furniture-like cabinet (a glass show-case cabinet for the kitchen).
I’ve not ordered hardwood in years, so I’m a little insecure. It’s not the end of the world if I screw it up, but I’d like to get off to a good start. And, since there is no hardwood supplier here that will deal with hobbyist I can’t go look at it, so I’ll have to order it on the web.
Because I like the figure that I’ve seen on other projects, I want to make the end panels, face frames, and panel door frames from quarter-sawn english sycamore.
I have a jointer that I’ve rebuilt, and a planer, and I’ve taught myself how to use them, so, based on what I’ve read, I think that I want to order rough-sawn material that is 1-1/4 inch thick, that’ll joint and plane down to 7/8″ with no warp, wind, cup, etc – i.e., dead flat & ready to finish.
??? Does the above translate into “FAS, 5/4 rough sawn, quarter sawn, english sycamore with a nice figure please” ???
Or will that get me a good snort from the mill?
Annnnd, is there a recommendation for a good web source for such for the mid-west (Louisville, KY) with a good reputation?
Again, based on what I’ve read, for the inside panels of the cabinet (the carcase) I think that I want hardwood veneer core plywood, plain-sawn maple, grade AC. Pre finished would be nice. Since it’s a kitchen cabinet, the end panels, face frames and panel door frames will be finished with oil based poly. I’d prefer shellac to avoid the yellowing that poly brings, but it’s in a kitchen, and must match the rest of the cabinets that I’m going to build.
As the door panels will be glass, the maple plywood panels will show whether the doors are open or closed.
Does this make sense, or do I need to do more reading?
Mike D
Replies
Check out Hearne hardwoods in PA. I just bought a bunch of cherry from them a few weeks ago (I'm in Maine) and they were a pleasure to deal with. Call 610-932-7742 and ask for Chrissy. They do have sycamore:
http://www.hearnehardwoods.com/Inventory/sycamoreamerican.html
As to a finish, I did a set of kitchen cabinets (my first foray into anything approaching fine woodworking) in cherry and used Waterlox (original sealer two coats and three of high gloss,) appled with a rag. It has held up well. Good luck.
Edited 10/17/2007 3:33 pm ET by smslaw
I would second the recommendation about Hearne hardwoods - I have bought from them quite a bit years back. I do remember some time ago they had a minimum dollar amount for an order to ship - they may have done away with this but it prevented me from using them once.
Also check out Groff & Groff Lumber - it's about 10 miles from Hearne's - they excel at filling orders over the phone even with picky customers like myself;)
Good Luck,
Lee
Mike D
I'm not sure I would order plywood, you might find the cost of it approaches solid wood and adds time to your construction..
I sure do like Shellac as a finish <G>
"I'm not sure I would order plywood, you might find the cost of it approaches solid wood and adds time to your construction.. "
Welll, I'm going to build a lot of cabinets for the kitchen using the solid wood for the face and door frames, and the plywood for the boxes. More stable, less work, more predictable results from me. So, seems like plywood is sort of key.
I really like shellac, too - but let's not ignite that hornet's nest again!! :)
Mike D
So, "FAS, 5/4 rough sawn, quarter sawn, english sycamore with a nice figure please" does make sense? Good!
Mike D
Check out http://www.woodfinder.com You may find there are hardwood dealers that will sell retail a lot closer than you think. By the way, consider maple or curly maple as well as english sycamore. The two woods will be very similar--both are in fact maples, ie. genus acer pseudoplatamus or acer campestre, with hard maple being Acer Saccharum. The english sycamore may be a bit whiter, at least initially but also darkens like the more common sugar maple.
Mike ,
Not all lumber species is always available in FAS , check with the supplier on exactly which grades they do stock , then order away .
Some do not grade rough sawn until it is surfaced .
For example some carry a grade in some species called Superior while some may have #1 common or FAS or even cabinet grade .
Each supplier may create sub grades or proprietary grades that may not be part of the hardwood lumber grading systems , rather they sort out the boards and re grade them .
I'd agree with you that for the boxes plywood panels are the way to go less time and much more stable .
good luck dusty
Be careful with the name "sycamore." There are at least three completely unrelated species of tree (and at least two different commercially-available woods) called "sycamore."
The name "English sycamore" usually refers to Acer pseudoplantus, which is actually a maple, and is also called "planetree maple," "sycamore maple" or "European maple."
American sycamore, which is what Hearne Hardwoods carries, is Platanus occidentalis. The figure is similar, but not identical.
-Steve
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