# Is Baltic Birch, Baltic Birch?



## rweerstra (Feb 9, 2010)

I am wondering if there is a wide range of difference in the BB that one would purchase at a Menards or Lowes compared to my trusted suppliers. I have only been able to find 5 ft by 5 ft sizes at the normal source but the big boxes have 4 by 8 sheets for the same price. Does anyone have a comment on the quality of the various sources? Thanks for any help.


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## RainMan 2.0 (May 6, 2014)

I go to Windsor Plywood and there BB in 3/4" and 3/8" comes in 5/5 sheets , but there BB in 1/2" comes in 8/4 sheets . No idea why . The quality is awesome IMO , dead flat and no voids .
As a matter of fact I refuse to use normal plywood anymore , well unless it's to replace drywall


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## Stick486 (Jan 4, 2013)

rweerstra said:


> I am wondering if there is a wide range of difference in the BB that one would purchase at a Menards or Lowes compared to my trusted suppliers. I have only been able to find 5 ft by 5 ft sizes at the normal source but the big boxes have 4 by 8 sheets for the same price. Does anyone have a comment on the quality of the various sources? Thanks for any help.


never saw BB in a big bog w/o special order...
Birch ply.. but not BB...


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## MikeMa (Jul 27, 2006)

True baltic birch only comes in 5'x5' sheets. I saw Menards advertising 4'x8' baltic birch a few years ago, but I was not convinced it was the same stuff, but rather a close approximation.  Fortunately I have couple sources for BB Ply locally, both priced about the same. The stuff is great to work with.


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## schnewj (Nov 18, 2013)

Although BB can be had in 4 x 8 sheets it is really uncommon. If that is what is in the BBox stores it is more than likely Birch plywood, an entirely different animal than true Baltic Birch. 

Read the PDF's that Stick added above and you will get a better understanding of the differences.


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## Stick486 (Jan 4, 2013)

MikeMa said:


> True baltic birch only comes in 5'x5' sheets. I saw Menards advertising 4'x8' baltic birch a few years ago, but I was not convinced it was the same stuff, but rather a close approximation. Fortunately I have couple sources for BB Ply locally, both priced about the same. The stuff is great to work with.


that use to be...

Thomes Canada - Baltic Birch Plywood
Baltic Birch Plywood - Hardwood Plywood | Edensaw Woods Ltd.

.


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## Semipro (Mar 22, 2013)

link to baltic Birch plywood 
Ultimate Guide to Baltic Birch Plywood: Why It?s Better, When to Use It |


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## Herb Stoops (Aug 28, 2012)

MikeMa said:


> True baltic birch only comes in 5'x5' sheets. I saw Menards advertising 4'x8' baltic birch a few years ago, but I was not convinced it was the same stuff, but rather a close approximation. Fortunately I have couple sources for BB Ply locally, both priced about the same. The stuff is great to work with.


It might be Russian Birch which is sometimes marketed as BB, but is a slightly lesser quality. It has other woods as cross cores,not birch and the cores are not as good quality, still 9 plys tho.

Herb


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## Multiwood (Feb 24, 2013)

I don't know about BB, but I bought 3 sheets of Oak plywood from Lowes, it was made in China and it was junk. Bought Oak from local lumber yard that was made in USA cost $30.00 more per sheet and was excellent quality. I haven't been back to Lowes and never will. If I have to pay more for local GOOD lumber I will.


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## JimSC (Apr 17, 2014)

Just yesterday I stopped at Lowes in Fort Mill, SC and asked at the "contractors desk" if they had 1/2" Baltic Birch plywood. This guy showed me some warped sheets of who knows what, and said that was Baltic Birch. Off I went to a real lumber yard.


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## DesertRatTom (Jul 3, 2012)

I just bought a number of sheets of BB in half and 3/4 inch and what a difference working with it. I am going to use the remnants of a HD , $50 a sheet, maple top ply for shelving. Absolutely the worst piece of ply I've ever seen. One layer of the junk appears to be narrow strips of some scrap bamboo. Cannot make a clean cut in it. So, enough of the cruddy Borg imitation wood for me. I have to drive 60 miles each way to buy real BB in my old truck, through back roads down a mountain pass, but for BB, I'll do it.


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## DesertRatTom (Jul 3, 2012)

I recently paid $50 bucks for a 4x8 sheet of HD maple surfaced ply that was the worst piece of junk I have ever tried to use. I'm swearing off buying any more ply there. When I tried to cut a dado (very sharp blades) it splintered horribly. When I looked inside, I saw one layer was made up of tiny pieces of what looked like bamboo! I am using the remnants for shelves to store jigs. I do buy some dimensional wood from them, but make sure I get there right after a fresh shipment and then go through every piece there to find the right grain direction and straight pieces they have. 

I have to drive my old truck 60 miles each way down mountain roads, through a pass to get real BB from a good lumber yard. Storage is always vertical and I generally clamp several pieces together to keep them as flat as possible. I've been making jigs lately, and there is no point to making them out of HD ply. The other Borg store is even worse for lumber. 

What you have to remember is that the Borgs' management must pay more attention to making a profit for stockholders than the needs of a small portion of customers. The SEC requires that and any management that doesn't look at investor ROI will get the boot immediately. This means that when you ask for halp at a big box, you will discover they've replaced the experienced people with kids who haven't a clue what you're talking about. We need to patronize the real lumberyards. Bite the bullet and buy from suppliers who give a rip about we woodworkers.


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## DesertRatTom (Jul 3, 2012)

Sorry about the double post. My browser crashed with the great Router Forum too-many-ads breakdown.


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## Herb Stoops (Aug 28, 2012)

I have noticed that too,Tom, even the plys are not butted together But overlapped and pressed flat causing the face to be irregular. I didn't know that you could still get USA made plywood anymore. All the big mills here moved to South America or Korea. 
Where I get my BB they were out of stock for a long time as the Chinese were buying it all up, so they were replacing it with Russian birch in 4X8 sheets. The last time I was there, they had a small quantity of 5'X5' BB, but the selection of thicknesses was not good. 5/8" instead of 3/4". I have found that 2 sided MDO or HDO plywood makes excellent substitute for jigs and cabinets, I use that a lot. Have to go to a lumber yard to get it. You might check on it there. Apple Ply is good too.

Herb


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## Semipro (Mar 22, 2013)

DesertRatTom said:


> Sorry about the double post. My browser crashed with the great Router Forum too-many-ads breakdown.


@ Tom
the ads and slow down have been addressed with the administration waiting for answers and fixes 
John


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## senebraskaee (Apr 29, 2012)

Same issue with poor quality from Menard's. It ain't BB, or even close. It is not even consistently the same thickness! Huge voids and overlapping butt splices! Junk at a premium price. Learned my lesson.


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## Semipro (Mar 22, 2013)

I called the hardwood supplier i use with these questions,
their bb plywood come from Russia , 9 ply, the reason that it ship 5 by 5 it is mainly used 
in the building of cabinets if used in the building of standard cabinet there is less waste.
1/2 sheet 30"


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## Moz (Nov 13, 2015)

SO much stuff to learn. 
I love your guys beyond measure for helping me learn.

I always thought ply was ply. I saw birch for the first time on my last visit to HD, and thought "I'mma try that when the table saw is assembled for my jigs."
Now I know better, thank you. Bamboo is a VERY tough grass, and I can easily see it shredding all to heck as a ply layer. Tsk.

Thanks to you guys and gals, I have also found local lumber places, and now know what to look for.
It's hard enough learning just the basics of grains, and blades, and joinery (Thanks, Teig Frid), now I've learned how to better inspect plywood before buying.

~M


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## UlrichJ (Feb 16, 2012)

I purchased Baltic birch plywood from our local hardwood store. It was 5' x 5' and 12 ply. I also bought shop grade birch plywood from the same store. It was 4' x 8' and 7 ply.


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## Moz (Nov 13, 2015)

UlrichJ said:


> I purchased Baltic birch plywood from our local hardwood store. It was 5' x 5' and 12 ply. I also bought shop grade birch plywood from the same store. It was 4' x 8' and 7 ply.


What was the price difference between the two?
Since 5x5 is 25 sq. ft, and 4x8 is 32 sq. ft, 
would the difference in # of plys make up for any price difference?

Please update when you cut into them, and let us know if they handle noticeably different, especially if it has any bamboo plys.
~M


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## DesertRatTom (Jul 3, 2012)

Semipro said:


> @ Tom
> the ads and slow down have been addressed with the administration waiting for answers and fixes
> John


Thanks. It is particularly evident with a pad. I have 54 mbps Fios, so I know it isn't here.


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## firstmuller (Aug 28, 2014)

Last year I bought 2 sheets of 3/4" 4X8 sheets of BB plywood and they had 2 types, 1 was there good grade the other was what they said was for backs and were it would not show. I used one sheet for the back of a large cabinet and want to use the other to make a material mover. The sheet I used did have some voids in the layers. It was about $20.00 less then there better grade and for my use it was OK.
Allen


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## UlrichJ (Feb 16, 2012)

Moz said:


> What was the price difference between the two?
> Since 5x5 is 25 sq. ft, and 4x8 is 32 sq. ft,
> would the difference in # of plys make up for any price difference?
> 
> ...


The cost of the 3/4 5'x5' Baltic Birch is $54.99. I don't have my receipt but I recall the 4'x8' shop grade Birch plywood was about the same. The pieces I have have all been cut. They have no voids and appear to be very stable. The ply's in the 3/4 Baltic Birch appear to be the same thickness vs the shop grade where the ply's do not appear to be the same thickness. As far as bamboo, the Baltic Birch is supposed to be all Birch. I don't know how I could tell if there was bamboo in it.


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## Stick486 (Jan 4, 2013)

UlrichJ said:


> The cost of the 3/4 5'x5' Baltic Birch is $54.99. I don't have my receipt but I recall the 4'x8' shop grade Birch plywood was about the same. The pieces I have have all been cut. They have no voids and appear to be very stable. The ply's in the 3/4 Baltic Birch appear to be the same thickness vs the shop grade where the ply's do not appear to be the same thickness. As far as bamboo, the Baltic Birch is supposed to be all Birch. I don't know how I could tell if there was bamboo in it.


there are voids, de-lamination, bamboo, thin veneer, surface defects, metal content, poor uniform thickness, blisters, glue starvation, poor flatness, not square, no validation stamps and insecticide contamination in chinese BB knock offs...
other than that it's cheaper...


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