How bad is the lowest grade of hardwood?

the carpenter · 06-14-2009, 10:08 PM

I love the character of the low grade hardwoods, but a salesman told me not to buy it because it's crap. I realize there's no warranty with it, but he went as far as saying there would be tongues missing. I don't care about knots as long as they're not loose. The odd small check is alright too. Anyone ever worked with the lowest grade before?

pinwheel45 · 06-14-2009, 11:11 PM

Tavern grade. It'll be mostly shorts. Longest board probably 24". Lot of mineral lines, knots, yeah, some missing tongues. It has a great primative look if that's what your after. Normal overage to order on quality wood is between 5-10% I normally order 5% overage cause I don't waste material. I'd recomend ordering 20% over & cull boards that don't suit your taste.