Strange inquiry on Shipping Lumber from Tenn. To Alaska

[just_sawing]

I have had a inquiry on purchasing Oak Lumber to be shipped to Anchorage AK. This is strange because there should be someone closer but as of now it seems legit. Has anyone had something like this happen?

[TroyC]

If going by truck thru Canada I'd sure check Canadian shipping regulations on wood before getting seriously involved in this.

[YellowHammer]

I get these "inquiries" every week or so.  I don't follow up of them because if it's odd, it probably is a scam.  I forward them to a buddy of mine who pays me a commission if they work out.  I guess his success rate is 1 in 20.  

Many times it is just a company trolling for market information or looking for competitive bids, so they are just wasting your time.  The actually have no intention of buying from you.  

Sometimes it is a scam where they refuse the accept the load on delivery and you either have to let them have it or pay them to freight it back.

Sometimes they simply don't pay.

There are lots of scams.  If you think it's legit, look up their company and do some investigative work.  Have them give you a couple references.  

Remember that even cashiers checks can be bounced.  

If the grammar in the inquiry is chopped or odd, it's a scam.  

[moodnacreek]

In a case like this and long before scam was a word herd every day, I would have to know who they got the last load from and what happened. That is almost always the end.

[handhewn]

Don't see white oak on the West Coast. It comes  from "Back East" just like the red oak White oak tends to not rot where Calif. grown oak tends to rot like Black Oak which rots quickly. You want to buy some lumber to restore your Cris Craft wooden boat, If you are on the West coast you order it from "Back East".

[Magicman]

I have had a inquiry on purchasing Oak Lumber

Since they apparently did not specify which "Oak" species, it's guaranteed to be a scam of some sort.  

I get a few such calls each week, two today.  The good thing is that I can say "no" and hang up, nothing gained and nothing lost.  ;D

[JoshNZ]

You guys have never been tempted to see how their plan plays out? I do enjoy seeing a scammer trolled lol

[YellowHammer]

I used to, but got tired of it.

There was one very memorable hit, I had a lady call from India wanting to come visit and talk about export opportunities.  I initially agreed just for kicks, and a few days later she called again and I told her to quit jerking me around and please stop calling and bothering me.  

She said "Can we at least talk about it?  I'm about 10 minutes from your gate, I flew in yesterday to visit some U. S. facilities."  Whaaa??  Sure enough, in a few minutes, she and her son drove up in a rented Mercedes, and we talked about export opportunities and facility capabilities and somewhere in the conversation she got her husband on the phone, who was India, and then they offered me a job as their U.S. Consultant.  

Anyway, long story short, for many reasons, I politely declined their offer, and haven't heard from them since.

So there's no telling where the hits may lead.

[longtime lurker]

Yup, wood moves around the world all the time and the idea that you're small doesn't preclude you from being a part of that...
Unless you decide it does.

I'll send anything anywhere to a reputable buyer. So my customer list now stands at (to closest major city) .... Belfast, Dallas, London, Los Angeles, Milan, Osaka, Philadelphia, Tokyo, Toronto, Vancouver... plus just about every corner of Australia except Tasmania. Mostly its just the little high value stuff.... turning blanks, gunstocks, fancy pieces suit very high end woodwork like jewellery boxes, guitar and other musical instrument blanks. But they're also mostly repeat customers and one of those was a full container load, and we grow like we climb mountains.... one step at a time.

You're dealing in an internationally traded commodity. Get away from the mentality that you're a small backyard operator and start thinking like you're a boutique business and back it with a quality product.... the only limitations on what you can do are those you set yourself.

[moodnacreek]

L.L., did you say repeat customers?  I love mine and thats what keeps me going.

[longtime lurker]

L.L., did you say repeat customers?  I love mine and thats what keeps me going.

Isn't that the secret to any business? Repeat customers have no advertising cost attached, and most jobs become yours (mine) to lose, or at least I get a shot at it in terms of quoting the job.

You see that post here all the time - How do I sell my wood? And everyone trots out the same tired old answers.
And here's me and my problem is.... how do I keep everyone happy. I've got logs coming out my ears, and more work than I have saws or manpower to handle. I go for a haircut this morning and before I leave the barbers I've got a truckload of white cedar and a truckload of Silver Quandong pointed at me - and good big straight logs at that - and in both cases I asked them to leave them stand for a bit because we can't process it in a hurry for at least 2 months to keep it white because I can't get enough logs through the saw. And I've probably sold a guy a deck, including all the posts and joists and bearers and roof battens... or at least the deck guy will get a quote and locally that means I got the job about 60% of the time.

Why? Same with the little fancy export stuff... I'm consistent. I cut a board thats as good as anyone else in the industry, deliver on time, and price it fairly as a buyer or a seller.... and I stand behind every stick of wood that leaves the place. And I've been operating like that for a dozen years, until most of my customers are repeats. A lot of it is customer selection.... I dont want the guy that will spend $15 a BF on a mantlepiece - well I want him too, but not as much as the builder that does reno work and needs a grands worth of framing a month in good wood not cheap wood.

Those guys are my bread and butter. They don't take a lot individually but between then they take enough to give me the flexibility to underpin all the spec work where the margins are better. And we go around and around.... and you know all this anyway but yanno... not everybody that reads this does. Me, I'd quote work into Alaska tomorrow - boats leave 'straya for the west coast every day. ;D

[moodnacreek]

L.L. always good to read your post's. These repeat customers of mine took a long time to get so don't get any ideas about coming to N.Y.                       Seriously it would be a good meet, Doug

[YellowHammer]

I'm about ready to take a trip down under.  It would be great to meet Longtime in person.  
I'm not sure what Silver Quandong is, but it sounds impressive.  

[longtime lurker]

Always welcome guys - my only advice being if you're coming my way visit in June/July/August/September... the rest of the year she be hot.

[moodnacreek]

Could I call silver maple silver Quandong and charge more?