Sourcing timber/pallet wood for DIY project?

TidyMax

Hi everyone!

We haven't been able to choose a bed, so i am making one.

My girlfriend has seen a really nice bed on etsy which i plan on making but i am struggling in sourcing the timber.

My plan was to use the wood from pallets so i have spent a couple of days sourcing pallets of which i have had a lot of local offers, however i have just been browsing the net and i have seen a really nice finish on a bed that was made out of pine 25mm x 75mm slats.

Anybody have any idea on the cheapest place to get these? I am going to contact the usual suspects tomorrow but i thought i would check if anyone could recommend anywhere?

DoctorFoster

How do you plan to make the long rails?

TidyMax

Do you mean the sides of the beds? The long bits?

I planned on making the bed frame out of 2 x 4, then cladding the frame in the style of wood we wanted.

The style being reclaimed wood / rough stained timber. I have seen some furniture made from stained pine that has a similar look! Is it possible to post pictures on this forum as i have a picture of the bed i am trying to recreate!

DoctorFoster

So you're going to clad soft wood with a pallet?

Sounds nice.

TidyMax

Have you read what i have posted or are you just here to post sarcastic comments?

DoctorFoster

So you want it rough sawn with nail holes in it?

Maybe use some chep ones if you like that shade of blue.

TidyMax

I posted here to ask for advice on sourcing materials, not for a useless opinion.

DoctorFoster

TidyMax wrote: »

I posted here to ask for advice on sourcing materials, not for a useless opinion.

Well as you haven't said what you can get them for or where you are how can we say if our sources are cheaper?

You've obviously never made anything out of wood before so I take it you've factored in the cost of tools for the bed.

Being honest with you, it would be better to get timber from a reclamation yard.

jc808

pallet wood is used for pallets for a reason

sorry if this sounds sarcastic

DoctorFoster

jc808 wrote: »

pallet wood is used for pallets for a reason

sorry if this sounds sarcastic

And why they cost £1 each second hand.

There's also someone offering all you want pallet wood and similar timber free as fire wood on the net. I think I'll make a dining table.

TidyMax

We contacted a reclamation last yard after a recommendation off a recommendation on another forum.

The pallets we had originally seen come from a local company who import their goods from America. The pallets they had stacked up appear to be built out of 2 lengths of 4x4 @ 2400mm but they wanted about £12 each for them. The timber on top was rough cut but looked decent and as mentioned were 25mm x 75 mm so after i had sanded/planed and stained i thought it would look good.

I wouldn't set out to make a cheap/nasty looking bed with nail holes or a nice blue tinge.

Going over to the reclamation yard to pick up a few bits and see what i can get the finish we want on.