Thread: australian red cedar

I think it all comes down to who’s willing to pay for what.
I have purchased red cedar for around $2-4k M3.
Also if your selling by the stick and allowing people to pick through it then I’d be looking at more that $4k as you end up with the unsellable odds and ends, not to state the weekends waiting for people to show up, have a yarn, Unrack/unstack and leave.
Maybe I’m jaded ������

Thanks Emit ... maybe we are the same vintage ... both a bit jaded . Go out in the shed and play with timber ... puts a smile on your face . Mark .

Cedar prices are extremely variable. Premiums are paid for wide boards, large sections, colour and grain.

If you’ve got genuine red cedar that’s 4 inches thick, it’s worth a bit more than that.

Originally Posted by Emit

I think it all comes down to who’s willing to pay for what.
I have purchased red cedar for around $2-4k M3. ....... 😂😂😂

That was a good buy !

Just checked Bunnings prices - no red cedar, of course - but they have standard grade, not select, radiata pine listed at from $1,500 to $4,000 per cube. If there is any logic to their pricing practices then it escapes me.

Examples: All for standard grade radiata pine:

190 x 19 x 6.0 m = $34.35 per length. Equivalent to $1,585.87 per m3.

42 x 19 x 1.2 m = $4 per length. Equivalent to $4,177.11 per m3.

[Source: https://www.bunnings.com.au/42-x-19mm-1-2m-standard-grade-dressed-pine_p8401487]

thumbnail_20200303_210255.jpg (219.3 KB)

thumbnail_20200303_210449.jpg (199.8 KB)

adding some pics .

Contact Trend Timbers and ask them the price of Surian or Kalantis, then for genuine Australian red cedar you could add about 50%.

That’s a real mix of lengths and pieces, I personally wouldn’t pay more than the 2-4k guide above for that, there are some impressive, thick pieces but also lots of odds and ends.

Here is 2 cube for $6k, slabbed at 40mm. https://www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/burringbar/building-materials/saw-millers-pack-australian-red-cedar-timber-tables-doors-bar/1237706898

People are right, ARC can be worth a lot more than that, here is an example of a pack that is worth a lot more per cube, but its pretty exceptional https://www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/perth/building-materials/cabinet-and-furniture-grade-australian-red-cedar-bulk-lot/1240399368

And here is 8.5 cube thick slabbed for $14k...going to make some buyer happy I imagine.

https://www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/bellbird-park/building-materials/red-cedar-timber-slabs-8-5-cubic-meters/1236170322

Most cedar on the market is pretty ordinary: from logs too young for good colour or too small for good boards.
And most of it has been sawn by people who confuse owning or operating a mill with being a benchman... it might be consistently sized and square but it's just wood, done soft and red and aromatic. There's no life in it like good boards should have (even if small and pink). Chatoyance and grain are things that can be cut in, not just the result of random chance.

And that's why cedar ranges between 2 and 12 grand a cube.

Now there is a word I have not heard for many years - Chatoyance. That special glow, like a red hot coal. Beautiful.

Originally Posted by rustynail

Now there is a word I have not heard for many years - Chatoyance. That special glow, like a red hot coal. Beautiful.

IMG_20200318_160921.jpg

... even when small and pink like today's. I've always had that eye for knowing which way to present them to a saw to pull the best out of them *shrug*

How've you been anyway Ken? I haven't meant to be ignorant, just been a long run of bad logs and breakdowns, and keeping up correspondence has fallen by the wayside during trying to stay afloat. And now for coronavirus headaches. Don't have to be mad to be a sawmiller but it sure does help.

Good John. Still cleaning up after the fires. Will start sawing in the next couple of weeks. Plenty of charred logs about at the moment.