President of Taylor Guitars, Bob Taylor, used a YouTube video to make a surprising but strong statement about the North American penchant for buying only A Grade lumber: It’s unnecessary and wasteful. Why does his opinion matter? Well, it might not, except when we’re talking … [Read more...]

One of the key characteristics that sets J. Gibson McIlvain Lumber apart from the competition is our commitment to quality. Since we’re so passionate about this issue, we’re also passionate about helping our customers understand how grading systems work. In recent years, we’ve … [Read more...]

While plywood and moulding prices have basically remained the same, hardwood and softwood prices have continually climbed. Typically, a price change for raw materials translates into price changes for manufactured or engineered wood products also (even if there is a time lapse). … [Read more...]

Wide plank flooring. It’s gorgeous and incredibly in vogue. But it’s also kinda tricky. Don’t worry; we’re not trying to convince you not to do it. We’re just making you are well aware of the potential hurdles so you can avoid them and end up with the amazing wide plank flooring … [Read more...]

There’s no doubt about it: wide plank flooring can definitely make an impressive design statement. But it also comes with challenges, starting with the natural limitations of various wood species (see Part 1). After you allow for and plan for those limitations, it’s time to … [Read more...]

J. Gibson McIlvain has a long, rich history of selling lumber to furniture makers. In fact, our relationship with them marks the start of the McIlvain lumber legacy, dating back over 200 years. While we’ve expanded into other markets, some aspects of our business, like our … [Read more...]

As we discussed in a previous post, issues relating to the ideal number of layers in plywood hail back to the glue. Glue issues, in turn, typically hinge more on the application than the glue itself, making consistency and quality control in the manufacturing process incredibly … [Read more...]

Wide plank flooring can definitely provide a striking look for high-end residential and commercial projects! In Part 1, we discussed how wide-plank flooring (especially the kind that’s made from extra-wide planks in widths over 8 inches) presents some unique challenges. From … [Read more...]

Wide plank flooring can certainly offer a striking addition to your next build! Particularly suited to large rooms in today’s high-end residential and commercial construction and remodeling industry, planks topping 12 inches in width are becoming increasingly popular. However, … [Read more...]

Hopefully, you’re convinced that buying imported lumber is actually beneficial for the environment and that thanks to CITES regulations, it’s become very difficult to illegally harvest and export lumber. But how can you be absolutely certain that the imported lumber that you … [Read more...]

As we discussed in a previous post, the lumber industry is not the culprit many people assume it to be when it comes to deforestation. While the lumber industry does contribute to 2-3% of deforestation along the Amazon, logging bans essentially contribute to at least 85% of it! … [Read more...]

In a recent post, we mentioned the idea that contrary to popular belief, composite decking is not actually more environmentally friendly than tropical hardwood decking. A key factor in understanding this issue is to realize that buying exotic lumber actually benefits the … [Read more...]

When it comes to lumber, this should go without saying, but it’s not a made-to-order product. Because of that important fact, a person can’t just create any design and expect a given lumber species to always be available with any and all of the sizes and color specifications just … [Read more...]