Good Appalachian region source for Baltic Birch Plywood (the real stuff)

[Ben Abate]

I read this link yesterday and thought it's a shame that you are having so much trouble finding what you want. If Pittsburgh is not out of the question for driving I'll contact my distributor so you can purchase thru me if you'd like. Baltic and Russian Bitch are just pretty much the same. Russian Birch is a bit less pricey both come in 60x60 sheets depending on thickness. What is the thickness you need? I hate to see someone have to drive that far for a few sheets of plywood

let me know
ben

[Don Parker]

Ben--

it's very cool of you to offer. Pittsburgh is a 4 hour drive for me, so I probably won't take you up on it, but I really appreciate it.

The more I think about it, the more shipping it via FedEx Freight makes the best sense. I can get 60" x 60" sheets into my SUV, but just barely. If I have to drive any further than an hour away, that's gas money and time away from other things like work and family and other responsibilities. And I still have to manhandle the sheets at both ends of the trip. I will talk to Chesapeake and see if they will stop and drop in Charleston, but if they won't, I know Baird Brothers will send me what I need, packed well, and delivered to my garage door.

As a side note, it is interesting to see how internet commerce changes everything, in both good and bad ways. I would not want to try to run a brick and mortar retail business nowadays, but many of the things such businesses choose to do in order to survive tend to make internet shopping the only viable choice, thereby making the brick and mortar problems even worse. Here is an example: I just want decent plywood. Maybe HD and Lowe's don't sell enough decent plywood to justify stocking it. I get that. But to ignore it as a potential item to sell just drives me into the arms of an internet retailer. HD and Lowe's could choose to sell it, but only via special order. They get the sale, at a decent profit, without an inventory investment, and I get to take advantage of their distribution system. But they choose to not do that. Oh, well. It's not my business to run.

[Jim OConnor]

Wood Werks in Columbus

Don, you could also come to one of the Valley Woodworkers of West Virginia meetings and ask there, lots of members and the meetings are right outside of Charleston.