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I'm trying to make a drawer face to match the other cabinet and drawer faces in my kitchen. They are all 1" thick, so I'd like to match that size.

I'm trying to buy some unfinished oak boards that I can cut to size and then route around the edges, but all I can find at Home Depot and such stores is 0.75" thick boards.

I found one place that will special order the boards I need, for US$100 for a 1" x 12" x 96" piece!

Where can I find true 1" thick boards (0.75" boards are listed as 1" "common size" on the website)?

Or could I take two 0.5" boards, glue them together, and then cut and route?

ThreePhaseEel
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rothloup
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    might look at used furniture places for old bookshelves/tables/desks, etc, that use solid oak. I've bought several such pieces at Habitat Restore for cheap, like a large lectern from the 1950s for $20. – dandavis Nov 22 '21 at 21:53
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    Also, unless your house and cabinets are 100 years old there is a good chance they aren't solid wood either but are laminated or veneered, just like most are today. – whatsisname Nov 22 '21 at 22:35
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    @whatsisname I think they actually are, because the original owner of this house was a cabinet builder and built this house. – rothloup Nov 22 '21 at 23:14
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    Never move from a house built by a cabinet maker. Everything else will feel cheap. – crip659 Nov 23 '21 at 00:35
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    I'm not a wood worker but I can only find nominal 1x12x72 for $75. The $100 you were quoted sounds about right... – MonkeyZeus Nov 23 '21 at 15:00
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    @crip659 Unless that cabinet maker also decided to do other renovation work and they suck at it. Like in my house. A handful of excellent shelves doesn't make up for the poor grout work. – Logarr Nov 23 '21 at 15:08
  • Every house built in the 70s/80s in my neighborhood has solid oak cabinets fwiw. Well the faces and doors are all solid oak and the framing/shelves are particle board. You can still buy similar cabinets from the big box stores though. – jesse_b Nov 23 '21 at 21:02

3 Answers3

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If buying rough hardwood (from a mill or reasonable hardwood supplier, perhaps even one that will plane for you), buy 5/4 or even 6/4 rather than 4/4 boards. 13/16" planed is about as much as you can hope for from 4/4 rough. Normally 5/4 should be plenty for true 1 inch planed.

Ecnerwal
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For sure, find a wood distributor in your area. These cater to professionals and might chop up a long board for you with a circular saw so it fits in your van. My friends and I have bought oak and redwood from this kind of place. I got huge chunks of oak; 1" thick is no problem. They'll carry only common woods used for large-scale construction, plus some synthetic materials for decking etc. This will be the cheapest option.

There may also be a boutique wood shop in your area (I've gone to a place called "Wood World". This would be more expensive for such common woods, but cater to the woodworking hobbyist and can (for additional fee) do things like plane it and surface it for you. They'll have a wide variety of "interesting" wood, turning blanks, and plywoods.

I've also bought redwood from places that specialize in just that; they have lumber meant for fences and decks. I've bought 2x4s etc and cut and planed my own stock down from that. My friend bought ugly redwood from the general wood construction supplier; this is to make painted trim, and is cheaper than the pretty stuff sold for fences and decks. I forget what the grades are actually called.

I've bought wood online and had it delivered, dropped off in my yard. Shipping can be pricey, and it's only worth it for a large order or wood that's already expensive.

Go to the local woodworker hobby shops and ask around. Not Home Depot! Places like Rockler and Woodcraft. The sales clerk might know about such suppliers in the area, and even have business cards and a poster display in the store. Lacking such knowledge from a clerk, you might learn about clubs that meet locally, and you can ask there. In fact, for a small piece, getting a cutoff or scrap from a club member might be the cheapest by far.

JDługosz
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    I have never heard of a general wood distributor/lumber supply store that *won't* chop up boards for you on request. The alternative is they don't make that sale, which seems pretty short-sighted. – TylerH Nov 23 '21 at 19:56
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    They sell by the palette, and don't have machines set up to easily to jobwork. He'd rather ignore a walk-in for a single board then neglect his _normal_ customers. The incident I'm relating, an employee grabbed a hand-held rotary saw and just propped up my board on whatever was handy; there's no workstation for that kind of thing. My point is, you are not the normal kind of customer for a store like this, and they might not put up with someone who "needs help" rather than just presenting an order at the counter. – JDługosz Nov 23 '21 at 20:09
  • Gotcha, it sounds like you're talking about an actual mill rather than a *lumber distributor*; a distributor (read: supply stores) would typically have the tools needed to cut up boards because they would be after the lumber mill in the supply chain. They do direct business with contractors and with individuals alike. – TylerH Nov 23 '21 at 20:15
  • Just "google up" a hardwood dealer... they should have 5/4 oak lying around in piles. Walk in, grab a good one off of the stack and say "hey... can you guys plane this down to 1" for me?" and they will... it's what they do. Don't go to a saw mill or distributor or "boutique" store or online... you'll pay an arm and a leg. – gnicko Nov 26 '21 at 21:15
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For the sake of convenience and maybe even cost you absolutely can glue two boards together. If you have a planer I would recommend using two 3/4" pieces and then planing it down to the required size. Make sure the boards are at least slightly oversized in all dimensions and then cut/joint it down to the final size and you will never even be able to tell that it's two boards and it will be as strong as a solid piece.

jesse_b
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  • I think you would be able to tell because the sides show a seam rather than a continuous grain pattern. – JDługosz Nov 24 '21 at 15:01
  • @JDługosz oak doesn't have grain patterns like pine or some other woods, the grain pattern may show a slight tell but if your glue up is good there will be no seam. Even if the grain shows some tells they would be so minimal that nobody would ever notice without being told it's there. This is the board edge we are talking about, not the face. – jesse_b Nov 24 '21 at 15:04
  • The piece I'm looking at in my hands right now has a strong grain pattern on the face; on the edges it has a stacked pattern that would be easy to hide if planed down to the natural transition point between layers, on both pieces; but the ends show a _curved_ ring pattern that would definitely show a seam. – JDługosz Nov 24 '21 at 15:19
  • That would work, but it wastes 1/3 of the wood.... and $$$ – gnicko Nov 26 '21 at 21:12