Iconic Melbourne Timber

We recently acquired some old hardwood, that was delivered to us by the company that was developing an old industrial site. On the delivery day, the tip-truck driver, an elderly Italian man, told us that the site was part of an old Footscray market plaza. He commented that the warehouses were built at least 30 years before the Melbourne Olympics.

When we polished the first boards, we found a mixed-species of Eucalyptus Hardwoods. The timber had a mellow, light blondish pinkish hue, in it’s natural state, and a light chocolatey brown when treated with Japan Oil. We were so taken by it’s tone and lustre, that we decided to investigate further, and visited the site. The old Italian man’s reckoning was on the money.

We started to sort through the timber, and found that under the rough-sawn skin, the timber was intact. It was a mammoth task processing the timber- nails, screws, sheet metal, tacks, etc. It was a never ending affair. But we persisted because we had the feeling that we were onto something.

These planks were mainly part of the extensive roofing structure, consisting of trusses, purlins, and beams. Because the timber had air-dried for so long , that it was well suited for timber joinery.

“Melbourne” is our theme, and a rescue like this, awakens our spirit, despite the toils of working with reclaimed timber.

We still have plenty of the timber left. It is amazing to see the huge piles of the timber all tangled up, full of nails and tacks, and splintery as all hell. But, it becomes so beautiful, after it is processed. This timber is ideal for all kinds of furniture, and bench tops. It is worth coming down to our warehouse to see what comes to us before it goes to land-fill!