Chapter 6: Commercial lumber, round timbers, and ties

Abstract

When sawn, a log yields round timber, ties, or lumber of varying quality. This chapter presents a general discussion of grading, standards, and specifications for these commercial products. In a broad sense, commercial lumber is any lumber that is bought or sold in the normal channels of commerce. Commercial lumber may be found in a variety of forms, species, and types, and in various commercial establishments, both wholesale and retail. Most commercial lumber is graded by standardized rules that make purchasing more or less uniform throughout the country. Round timbers and ties represent some of the most efficient uses of our forest resources. They require a minimum of processing between harvesting the tree and marketing the structural commodity.

Parent Publication

• Wood handbook: Wood as an engineering material

Citation

Senalik, C.A.; Farber, B. 2021. Chapter 6: Commercial lumber, round timbers, and ties. In: Wood handbook—wood as an engineering material. General Technical Report FPL-GTR-282. Madison, WI: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory. 25 pp.