Plywood for stickers

[WLC]

Any reason not to use strips of plywood as stickers for stacking lumber for drying?  I''ll preface my question with the lumber would be stacked under a roof and not outside.  I've found myself with quite a bit of scrap plywood pieces to do something with.  Stickers came to mind as one idea.  Any thoughts?

[Chuck White]

I really don't see any reason why the plywood wouldn't work just fine.

The biggest issue I can think of would be the thickness of the plywood.

The layers of sawn lumber would need 3/4" spacing or more for air circulation.

[redbeard]

I've used mainly 1/2" plywood I ripped them 1" wide.
They don't last like edging material dose. When they get  wet they tend to swell. But they been working well.

[dboyt]

I've cut 3/4" plywood into stickers when I was in a pinch for a lot of stickers in a hurry.  They worked fine-- no staining, and would be good for lumber going into a kiln.  For air drying, you probably won't be able to re-use them.

[Tom the Sawyer]

I have been using 3/4 plywood stickers for years.  Consistent thickness, dry, straight, no doubt about which way they go, and quick to make.  I wrap bundles of 25 and carry 4 or 6 bundles with me on mobile jobs.  I would hate to see lumber ruined by a client not having stickers.  If they know they need stickers I'll usually ask for at least a week's notice but I've got up early and made a couple of hundred before a job if need be. 

Most of my clients have never had logs milled before, and may never need them again.  Almost all of them stack out of the weather.  I have some stickers that have been used 4 or 5 times and still work fine.  If you use plywood that doesn't have exterior glue, and they get wet, they'll be fine for that stack but will fall apart when you break the stack down. 

I set my table saw fence just a hair over 15/16", including the blade. That way I will normally get 100 - 4' stickers from a sheet of plywood.  I also make 3' stickers for smaller jobs, favoring a higher stack over a wider stack.  I also get 100 - 3' stickers from a sheet of plywood with enough left to make 50 - 2' stickers (frequently used when someone wants their log stacked in order.

The most important thing about making plywood stickers is the grain orientation.  They must be cut parallel to the 8' side of the plywood.  Crosscut stickers will break and give you more splinters than you care to pick out of your skin.   I charge $16 for a bundle of 25 - 4' stickers.  $13 for a bundle of 3' stickers.  I recently called around to see about ordering some 'professional' stickers.  Price per sticker wasn't bad but the shipping was prohibitive.

Some clients have made stickers from 1x4 'whitewood'.  You can get 6 - 4' stickers, so if 1x4's are $1.50, or less, it is competitive with plywood (@$25) but if there is a knot, that sticker is waste, and many of them don't stay straight.

[WLC]

Thanks for the replies.  Got a pile of plywood and store bought 1X4 cutoffs laying in the shop floor next to the table saw waiting on me to have time to rip them down into stickers. Shouldn't have to worry about stickers for a while.

[Delawhere Jack]

I've recently started making stickers out of 10 ply 3/4" plywood that is being salvaged from shipping waste. Fantastic stuff, I haven't seen a single core void in any of it. It's nearly cabinet grade. No grade stamps, but comparable to AB sheets. The pieces are 43" along the grain, but that's fine. I always advice clients to stack tall rather than wide.

I'll be milling 1,000 stickers tomorrow. If the math works out (shipping mostly), I may be offering them for sale. Sort of a test run tomorrow to see how efficiently I can make them. Of course, a portion would go to the FF.