“Hobby wood” is just another name for shorter pieces of very high quality hardwoods and softwoods. I never fail to be astounded at some of the completed small projects our customers bring in to show us, from simple cutting boards to magnificent mantle clocks, bird carvings, and just about anything you can imagine. My usual response is, “Hey, are you looking for a job??” And, yes, we have hired a few extremely talented people over here!
When you are crafting small projects, you need small pieces of wood. You don’t need to be buying an 8′ or 10′ piece of Rosewood at a very hefty price, when your project only needs an 8″ piece. Most lumber companies, Barney & Carey included, will probably not be willing to cut you an 8″ piece off an eight footer, although we will cut one foot pieces off of longer, odd length boards—say a nine footer. The good news is that we operate a large woodworking shop that uses the finest woods available, and we create lots of cutoffs from our projects…a.k.a. hobby wood!
All the really nice, defect-free pieces go into our hobby wood section. Also, unlike other DIY and tool stores who dabble in hardwoods, we don’t have to charge crazy prices for hobby wood! Our hobby wood selection is constantly changing, with additional stock being constantly added. This also includes blocks and squares of various clear and straight-grained hardwoods for wood turning.
I had a wonderful customer, Phil, who was a superb carver of birds (and no, not turkeys on Thanksgiving). His preferred medium was thick chunks of soft maple. Whenever I got any, I saved it for him. He carved until his eyesight failed him, and he passed away at 90+. I’m happy to be the owner of three of his birds, prominently displayed on my own mantle.
So, whether you want to glue up multiple strips of different species to make unusual cutting boards, or you want to turn champagne glasses on your mini lathe, we have the hobby wood for you!
