MacBlack offers a range of quality timbers in a variety of grades and dimensions, locally-grown and harvested in New Zealand.
Select your own boards from the retail racks at our yard in Whanganui or see our species list for options for ordering online.
For larger orders, or to organise delivery around New Zealand, please get in touch.
Species
Cypress
Macrocarpa – C. macrocarpa
Ovens cypress – C. ovensii
Mexican cypress – C. lusitanica
Leylands cypress – C. leylandii
Acacia
Blackwood – A. melanoxylon
Silver wattle – A. dealbata
Eucalyptus
Mountain Ash – E. regnans
Brown Barrel – E. fastigata
Southern mahogany – E. botryoides
Blackbutt – E. pilularis
White Stringybark – E. globoidea
Yellow Stringybark – E. muelleriana
Tallowwood – E. microcorys
Silver top Stringybark – E. laevopinea
Other
English Elm – Ulmus procera
English Oak – Quercus robur
Coast Redwood – Sequoia sempervirens
Himalayan Cedar – Cedrus deodara
Poplar (Populus nigra/deltoides/yunnanensis hybrids)
Dimensions
Standard dimensions:
- Width: 50, 100, 150, 200mm
- Thickness: 25, 40, 50, 100mm
Grades
What do we mean when we describe timber as "clear"? Or panelling or dressing grade? Read on as we explain what these terms mean when you buy from MacBlack Timber.
Clear three sides means free from knots or defects and boards are straight. Clear is the finest grade of timber and has a premium price. It’s suited to fine joinery and furniture. Architects like specifying clears for cladding and interior panelling too because of the clean, elegant appearance.
Dressing is close to clear but is distinguished by small tight knots and perhaps pinhead black knots. Can be used for all the same things as clear; you’d choose dressing either because it’s more affordable or because you prefer the look of it (or both).
Panelling is a mid-grade product: think the classic knotty macrocarpa look. It has larger tight knots (up to a third of the width of the board) and maybe small black knots. (Tight knots are stable, black knots may fall out.) Typically used for wall and ceiling panelling, also for decking.
Merch is getting down there but it has its uses for sure. And some people really like its rustic look with tight and black knots and maybe insect damage. It creates a particular kind of look; people line sheds (or their man cave) with it and make rough, chunky furniture. In the softwoods, it’s less than half the price of clear.
Boxing: to be fair this is the last stop before the firewood bin. But if you want oversize dimensions for garden beds or concrete boxing, this is what you’d use. Expect large black knots, surface splits, insect damage, bark wains, bow and crook (that means bends in either dimension).
Ideally, there would be one grading standard consistent across the country. The NZ Farm Forestry Association publishes carefully considered grading schedules and MacBlack largely follows this. But other merchants may have individual ideas about grade parameters. If you're not selecting timber yourself, it pays to clarify what to expect.