How is cubic board feet in timber converted into linear board feet in timber?
Cubic board feet is not a term used in the lumber industry, but it’s obvious that a cubic foot is a cube that is one foot on an edge. A board foot, which is a common term used in the lumber industry is a piece of wood that is twelve inches wide, one inch thick and one foot long. Ten board feet would be a board one inch thick, twelve inches wide and ten feet long. (And no, a board doesn’t have to be 12 inches wide. If it’s 6 inches wide and 2 inches thick and one foot long, there is still one board foot of material there.) To make a cubic foot of wood, one might take one board foot of wood (12″x12″x1″) and put it down, then stack another eleven pieces just like it on top the first one. That’s 12 pieces of wood that are 1″ thick for a total of 12″ in height, and which are 12″x12″ (length and width) giving us a volume of wood that is 12″x12″x12″ or one cubic foot.
