Box Store Wood Frustrations

[AZ Pete]

A great reference for wood products, grades and use is Wood Handbook from the Wood Products Lab. it has been the standard reference for decades. https://www.fpl.fs.fed.us/documnts/fplgtr/fpl_gtr190.pdf

We used it in Forestry School, and it will answer about any question.


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[strutaeng]

A great reference for wood products, grades and use is Wood Handbook from the Wood Products Lab. it has been the standard reference for decades. https://www.fpl.fs.fed.us/documnts/fplgtr/fpl_gtr190.pdf

We used it in Forestry School, and it will answer about any question.


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This reference is like a bible for any wood product. I have used it several times before. My boss has a hardcopy also.

To the OP: isn't the wood going to get screwed/bolted to steel? Even if it is a little crooked you can adjust it against the steel when you screw it in.

 

[Jon_E]

OP doesn't say where he is, but there are parts of the country that have black locust. That stuff will outlast any trailer you bolt it to, dry or green. I've got fence posts made from it, that were in the ground for 25 years, pulled back out, and they are just as solid as the day they were installed. Some of it grows big enough that you can buy 2x lumber. It's probably a little more expensive than PT or white oak but many times more rot-resistant (and ridiculously durable).

 

[KEH]

Mush Creek;

Look for a man with a band saw one man sawmill. If you are near, or are willing to drive some distance, to Woodruff call Eddie 864 580 0562 and tell him your needs. He is retired and may not want any more business. He has plenty of oak trees. If you are in the central part of the state, check in the SC Market Bulletin in which farmers, pet owners, horse people, etc can list things for sale. Andy Morris near Newberry advertises lumber but I don't have a copy of the Bulletin with me now and don't have the web address. This is a SC governent publication.

Someone asked about fastening boards to trailer frames. The commercial trailer makers use self tapping small bolts. Not sure of the procedure for reflooring a trailer with those fastners. I have floored a small cattle trailer using 2 x 6 oak boards cross ways. Trailer has an angle iron frame,, I drilled through the board and through the steel frame members and fastened with 3/8 or maybe 1/2 inch machine bolts. I use machine bolts with flat washers. I don't like carriage bolts because when the wood rots the shoulder of the carriage bolt will turn in the wood if you want to tighten or remove them.

KEH

 

[bfr57]

I've decked more than a few lowboy trailers and we would always use dried oak for it's durability. The owner tried to be cheap one year and get fresh cut oak and it only lasted a little more than a year and a half.
How did fasten the boards? Pre-drilled? Lag bolts?

Lots of interesting responses to my original post. I am in Tucson, AZ, so selection of different types of woods is limited at best. We don't get the oaks and different hardwoods others get around the country. I used non-PT lumber as HD didn't have the size I needed for my trailer in PT. I believe what I got is pine. The way my trailer is set up is that the boards free float; no bolts/screws needed. Each end has channel iron that "sandwiches" the ends to the cross members. To replace the boards, I had to cut the welds on one end, remove the angle, install new boards, and weld the channel back on. Hope that makes sense.

 

[wssix99]

I believe what I got is pine. The way my trailer is set up is that the boards free float; no bolts/screws needed. Each end has channel iron that "sandwiches" the ends to the cross members. To replace the boards, I had to cut the welds on one end, remove the angle, install new boards, and weld the channel back on.

In addition to not holding up as well as a hardwood, pine is going to want to curl like a fruit roll up in this application. Part of it is the nature of softwood and the other dimension is that construction lumber is cut from smaller trees than it was back in the day. (The new stuff will curl and warp if not secured and constrained along it's length.)

Do you need something clean? Could you use something like creosote lumber, that would stay wet. (I'm thinking you may have more of that in your area vs. hardwoods.)

 

[red61cj5]

OP doesn't say where he is, but there are parts of the country that have black locust. That stuff will outlast any trailer you bolt it to, dry or green. I've got fence posts made from it, that were in the ground for 25 years, pulled back out, and they are just as solid as the day they were installed. Some of it grows big enough that you can buy 2x lumber. It's probably a little more expensive than PT or white oak but many times more rot-resistant (and ridiculously durable).

Its certainly durable, but you have to pre drill every nail hole.