Instead, mills saw hardwoods into random widths and lengths to best take advantage of the clear wood in a log. That's because hardwoods-unlike softwoods-aren't cut and milled as dressed, sized lumber in standard nominal dimensions (2X4, 1X6, 4X4, etc.) to only be cut to length for construction. Easy board foot calculation Hardwoods sell in grades by the board foot, a basic unit of measurement that equals a 1'-thick board that's 12' wide and 12' long.
