The Astroliner

[OP827]

That is very strange. I find the baltic birch plywood here very strong and clear no voids... I buy it from a P J White Hardwoods (now it is owned by Richelle out of Quebec) supply chain location in Edmonton.

[dales133]

I had to pay alot fo bb ply and it had minor floors

[Atomic77]

The veneer on the plywood here is so thin you can see the glue showing through the grain...

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[OP827]

It's all junk until you get to about the $80 per sheet range around here

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What is the thickness you are talking about, the price seems quite high. Since I am building the trailer more like an aircraft than a tank, I decided to use 3mm thick baltic birch plywood and clear pine sticks to build inside furniture to save on weight. It is plenty strong when if reinforced properly. I'll use thicker (maybe 8mm) plywood for top surface of seating.

[Atomic77]

1/4"

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[Atomic77]

You can get it for $30 but it's junk.

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[OP827]

The veneer on the plywood here is so thin you can see the glue showing through the grain...

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That must be not a Baltic Birch ply. I saw something like that in Homedepot here, I think it looks almost like a decorative paper glued on a surface and it warps the minute you take from a pile and bring it home.
I think it is imported from somewhere in South America, but I maybe wrong.
For me, I am not looking anywhere further after I started using BB (baltic birch) plywood. Great and strong glue, water resistant of maybe even waterproof, although I did not test it, some user on this forum reportedly did keep a pice of BB ply in a water pale for months and it would not deteriorate.

[noseoil]

Michael, go to a lumber supply which caters to cabinet shops (4/4 hardwood, good veneer ply, etc.) & ask for 5' X 5' Baltic Birch. You should be paying between $12 & $15 a sheet for 3mm (1/8") or you're in the wrong yard. Also available in 1/4", 1/2" etc.

[aggie79]

Michael, go to a lumber supply which caters to cabinet shops (4/4 hardwood, good veneer ply, etc.) & ask for 5' X 5' Baltic Birch. You should be paying between $12 & $15 a sheet for 3mm (1/8") or you're in the wrong yard. Also available in 1/4", 1/2" etc.

They're a little more expensive in my neck of the woods. "Russian" Birch, B/BB veneers, 5' x 5' sheets are $19 for 3mm and $21 for 6mm. The "B" veneer is: "Select one-piece face has a uniform appearance and is free from defect. This face grade is uniformly sanded."

[aggie79]

Me too... just over two years. I had no idea it would take so long...

I feel your pain. Mine took 3-1/2 years.

[Atomic77]

Around here, Lowes and Menard have run all the lumber yards out of business. There are a couple specialty cabinet shops who have 4x8x1/4 birch for $65 to $85. That's about all there is around here...

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[dales133]

Worth the xtra for the good stuff.
I used australian hardwood ply on the exterior made from eucalyptus and fijian kauri ply for the ceiling. Baltic for the interior walls

[OP827]

I am quite surprised that I pay less for baltic/russian birch plywood here in Canada than you in US and Australia.
Michael, it also takes me a long time with my build simply because I did not have a good ready-to-build plan or drawings, I figure it out as I do it and sometimes just take a big break from it. I know that you will finish your build and it will be great, you did so much work already.

Oleg

[Atomic77]

I'm surprised as well. Not only is the wood here outrageously priced, it's all junk! I remember years ago when we had a "nice" project going on, we would go to the local lumberyard where they had anything and everything you wanted in beautiful quality. Eventually the local yard went out of business and we had to drive 20 miles to Kokomo to go to Carter Lumber. Then it was Furrows. And Big C Lumber. Now all we have is Menards and Lowes and the quality is absolutely horrible. It's your basic homeowner crap. Nothing of quality for a craftsman that's for sure.

I have enjoyed this project very much. Carrie and I have invested many hours into it and it's not always been easy and it has tested our skillsets. But... there is a lot of pride in the fact that we designed it ourselves... built it ourselves... we have something no one else has... and it ain't too shabby. LOL! I enjoy the friendships here as well because you guys and your projects are all really cool for sure! I think the 1 1/2 hour drive one way to get to the shop is taking it's toll, and we're just ready to have it done so we can go camping!!! Oh well, camping season is over now for the most part anyway so we're going to give her one more big push and see if we can wrap this thing up by spring, summer at the latest! Thank you all for the kind words and encouragement along the way... It certainly helps! We appreciate each and every comment, big or small and each person who follows the build. When we started this we didn't expect to make new friends as a result but we sure have! And we certainly didn't expect to have people following our build from 10 different countries! That's just crazy! So... thank you. Keep on building, keep on creating, keep on dreaming...

[Philip]

I'm surprised as well. Not only is the wood here outrageously priced, it's all junk! I remember years ago when we had a "nice" project going on, we would go to the local lumberyard where they had anything and everything you wanted in beautiful quality. Eventually the local yard went out of business and we had to drive 20 miles to Kokomo to go to Carter Lumber. Then it was Furrows. And Big C Lumber. Now all we have is Menards and Lowes and the quality is absolutely horrible. It's your basic homeowner crap. Nothing of quality for a craftsman that's for sure.

If your close enough to run to Kokomo. Peru has a lumber yard. They keep 1/4" cabinet grade ply in stock. It is exterior glue. Its a lot better than the ply in the box stores at Kokomo. Price was $5 a sheet above the trash price at the box stores.

They are currently out. I cleaned out all they had on Monday. They are reordering another skid.