Almost 40 years ago, a real estate developer made me “an offer I couldn’t refuse” on the Barney & Carey lumber yard at the Neponset River in Milton. The deal included them building me a brand new, much larger, turnkey facility at the old quarries in Quincy. After...
This is a pretty basic concept for all of our professional customers; however, there are a lot of newcomers to woodworking and carpentry who find it confusing when they are just getting into it. What Is S4S Lumber? For starters, a standard “2×4” does NOT measure...
Understanding Rough Lumber We sell a lot of rough lumber, both hardwoods and softwoods, at Barney & Carey, and customers ask a lot of questions about it. As a rule of thumb, hardwoods are best kiln dried, as are finish softwoods used for trim, furniture, and...
In last month’s blog, I discussed furniture repair, and offered some rules of thumb on whether or not it would make sense to repair an old piece of furniture, as opposed to buying new. It all depends on the quality and value (financial OR sentimental) of the piece,...
Back in the 1990s, Barney & Carey accidentally got into the furniture repair and refinishing business. Cindy and I were regulars at the highly esteemed Boston steakhouse, Grille 23 & Bar, and we became friends with the general manager, Tim. One day, he...
