The board-foot math, in the open
Slab pricing usually arrives as a single number on a tag with nothing behind it. Here is exactly how every price on this site was built, so you can check the arithmetic yourself before you drive out to West Bend.
Step one: what a board foot is
A board foot is 144 cubic inches of rough lumber — a piece 12" × 12" × 1". Every mill and dealer in the country quotes hardwood this way, which makes it the only fair way to compare a short thick board against a long thin one. The formula:
board feet = length (in) × width (in) × thickness (in) ÷ 144
We measure rough thickness off the saw and use the average width across the board, because the live edge waves in and out. Where the width varies, we round down — you are never charged for wood that is not there.
Step two: the math on each board
| Slab | Calculation | Bd ft | Price | Per bd ft |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 98" × 19" × 2" | 98 × 19 × 2 ÷ 144 | 25.9 | $285 | $11.02 |
| 98" × 19" × 1" | 98 × 19 × 1 ÷ 144 | 12.9 | $140 | $10.83 |
| 55" × 17" × 2" | 55 × 17 × 2 ÷ 144 | 13.0 | $135 | $10.39 |
| 55" × 17" × 1" | 55 × 17 × 1 ÷ 144 | 6.5 | $70 | $10.78 |
Every board lands between $10.39 and $11.02 per board foot. That consistency is deliberate: the price is a function of the wood, not of which board happens to photograph best.
Step three: the whole-lot number
The nine boards still available total roughly 142 board feet (3 × 25.9 + 4 × 12.9 + 2 × 6.5). Bought individually that is $1,625. The all-in collection price is $1,400 — about $9.85 per board foot, because moving the whole tree at once is worth $225 to us in time and storage.
What is and is not in the price
- Included: rough cut milling, kiln drying, live edge and bark line left intact.
- Not included: flattening or surfacing. A wide-belt or CNC flattening pass on an eight-foot slab typically runs $75–150 per board at a local shop, and it is cheaper for you to arrange it after you decide on final thickness.
- No shipping. Pickup in West Bend, WI by appointment; local delivery negotiable.
Why not just charge more?
Retail slab dealers in Southeast Wisconsin are asking roughly $15–19 per board foot for surfaced spalted maple of this width — we walk through those listings on the market comparison page. These are rough boards from one tree sold direct, with no storefront and no shipping department in the middle. That difference is the whole reason the number is what it is.