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We talk a lot around here about the Woodsmith Store. For a little over fifteen years, it was a small, out-of-the-way haven for woodworkers tucked into the Beaverdale neighborhood of Des Moines. Then in 2003 everything changed.

That was when the old Payless Cashways building in Clive was remodeled and Des Moines became home to one of the largest independently-owned woodworking stores in the country. It is truly a regional destination store for woodworkers from all over the Midwest. The store, now over 20,000 square feet in size, is filled with woodworking supplies, tools, machinery and hardwoods. Think Cabella’s, Bass Pro Shops, or L.L. Bean.

This coming weekend, Friday, Saturday and Sunday (September 21st, 22nd and 23rd), the Woodsmith Store will celebrate its 20th Anniversary with a Fall Fair event. There will be a lot going on, not only in the woodworking departments, but in the painting and gardening departments as well. I just thought it deserved a shameless plug here. Hope you can stop by.

It’s funny how we spend a lot of money to make our floors glass-smooth. Tile, laminate flooring, and prefinished hardwood are at the top of the list. And for those of us with 100-year old hardwood floors, we spend a lot of time sanding and refinishing to get a smooth surface for our stocking feet.

Well, as proof that what goes around comes around and that history repeats itself, HomerWood® Hardwood Flooring (a subsidiary of Armstrong World Industries, the vinyl flooring manufacturer) has come out with a line of “hand-scraped” hardwood flooring. Yep.  Hand-scraped. By humans.  The Amish, as a matter of fact. They’re calling this new line of flooring the Amish Hand-Scraped™ Collection. Now, I don’t know what HomerWood is charging for this flooring, but I bet it isn’t inexpensive. And apparently there’s a segment of our population that is willing to spend the money for a “hand-tooled” finish.

Personally, I think they misnamed it.  Why?  Because in the photo on this page, the Amish man is using a hand plane (looks like a No. 4). And in the photo on this page, another Amish man is using a drawknife.  A drawknife?! Neither of which can be called a “scraper.” When I think of a scraper, I think of a Stanley 112 or at least a No. 74.  Or the modern Lie-Nielsen Large Scraping Plane or the Veritas® Scraping Plane.

In any case, I think “Hand-Tooled” might have been a better name. Maybe we ought to offer to go teach the marketing folks at HomerWood a little about hand tools.

After visiting Dunedin, Florida (see “Woodworking on Vacation? Part 1” below) we headed north a couple hours to the town of Cedar Key. Cedar Key is definitely “old Florida.” I’ve heard it referred to as the “anti-Mouse.” It’s stuck out on an island in the middle of the Gulf of Mexico. (Yes, you can drive to it). From when we first entered the town I felt like we had jumped back 50 years. There are some modern accommodations (though we stayed in a cottage built in 1914), but you won’t find any McDonald’s or Holiday Inn’s here. It’s clearly a “laid-back” fishing community (especially known for its clams).

While driving around town we came onto an old building that was the home of “Wells Wood, Outdoor Furniture.” We found out later that it used to be a Baptist church and I read in the local newspaper that there is some effort to get it onto the National Historic Registry. The large barn-style doors were completely open so we stuck our heads in to see what was going on.

There didn’t seem to be anybody in the shop so we just sort of looked around. We saw this sign on one of the benches (click on photo at right to enlarge). We heard later that the “Wood God” was an older man with an incredible amount of energy. His main product seemed to be cypress outdoor furniture such as Adirondack chairs. They were very comfortable.

Most of his equipment was old Sears Craftsman. I wondered about why he had mounted his table saw to a single pedestal (click on photo at right)?

Here at Woodsmith, ShopNotes, andWorkbench magazines we’re always showing off the latest and greatest ideas in router tables. But check out these two I saw at Wells Wood (photo at left). They’re just a router mounted to the bottom of a piece of fir plywood with legs added. For the “Wood God’s” needs, they probably work just as well as our fancy, schmanzy router tables!

Finally, it’s a good thing I didn’t have a truck with me. Wells Wood was selling beautiful, clear long boards of cypress for only $1.25 a board foot! That would have been tough to pass up.

If you ever get to northwest Florida, stop by Cedar Key. And check out Don Duden, woodturner, as well. His shop is The Natural Experience Wood and Clay Gallery at 334 2nd St. Unfortunately, he was closed when we were in town but I’ve heard some great things about his skills. I understand that he turns daily in his glass-enclosed workshop.

I love old wood.  Not only the wood found in antique furniture, but I mean old wood found in old barns and houses.  There are companies that systematically tear down old barns piece by piece just to reclaim their wood.  I once saw some lumber cut from large chestnut beams from a barn.  It was estimated to be at least 100 years old.  It was some of the most beautiful wood I’ve seen.

For me, using reclaimed wood in my projects means I can give new life to old wood and hopefully it’ll be admired for years to come.  Here’s an article I ran across that talks about the demand for old wood:  Race for Rare, Old Wood

I recently received the following email notice from the Minnesota Woodworkers Guild. It illustrates the problems with buying online.

Wood SCAM

In the Nov/Dec Guild Newsletter there is an ad offering 400,000 bf of lumber. The advertisement leads with the line “Lake Elmo Lumber closes doors.” Sadly, it is true that Lake Elmo Hardwood Lumber has closed.

They have however informed us that they have nothing to do with this offer. Please don’t call them! It has also been brought to our attention that the offer maybe too good to be true. Be prudent, do not pay in advance. If advanced payment is required, arrange to use PayPal or some other 3rd party. Hopefully the offer is good.

Apparently, if you were interested in buying lumber from the person running this scam, the first requirement was that you pay money down before delivery. Predictably, the material is never delivered. I’m told several local businesses and some individuals did lose some money and the police are investigating the scam.

As the email notice states, if the offer sounds to good to be true, it probably is! Just be careful out there.

I’ve been looking for a local saw mill that will sell me a veneer-grade red or white Oak log for green wood chair making. After doing a little bit of searching, I happened upon the Amana Shops. The Amana Shops is the online store for the Amana Colonies a popular tourist destination in eastern Iowa.

Buying hardwood (especially exotics) online has become more and more popular in the last few years. Finding a good source for cocobolo, paudauk, and even spalted maple or black cherry, often means making a patient, diligent search until you find an importer or saw mill that specializes in these products. I’ll guarantee one thing, you won’t find Bubinga or Purpleheart at the local big box. So going online to find what you’re looking for definitely has its place.

Sometimes though, it can be hard to find good, reputable suppliers who are willing to work with you. That’s why I’m glad I’ve found the Amana Shops. They’ve been real easy to work with.

I’ve lived less than 100 miles from the Amana Colonies for most of my life and I didn’t realize the Amana Shops even existed until I ran across them while searching for local hardwood suppliers at Woodfinder.

Note: I’m listing serveral other sources for online hardwood suppliers below. (Links to all of these suppliers and more can be found at Woodfinder. Be sure to mention them if you end up buying from one of these suppliers.)

Amana Forestry

Larry Gnewikow, forestry manager for Amana, is a graduate of Iowa State University and has worked for the last 25 years overseeing the growth and development of Iowa’s largest privately-owned forest. Larry has put me onto some good pricing for white oak logs and after visiting their website (and with Larry), I’ve also found out a little more about their hardwood for sale.

Larry says they regularly work with buyers who have special needs and they’re now able to ship hardwoods to anywhere in the country. They currently list red oak, quartersawn white oak, cherry, locust, and spalted soft maple harvested and kiln-dried from their own forests. They also offer Iowa-grown walnut for sale. The prices are reasonable, and for simplicity’s sake, they offer 7 and 10 board foot bundles with maximum lengths of around 32″. But, Larry says they’ll work with anyone who has specific requirements or needs larger quantities.

Being one of the few green wood chair makers in Iowa, it’s been a slow process finding the right supplier for oak logs. But now, thanks to Woodfinder and Amana Shops, I’ve found several good online sources for hardwood lumber should I ever have the need.

Woodworkers Source

Collector’s Specialty

Talarico Hardwoods

Irion Lumber Company

Homecraft Veneer

Hearne Hardwoods