The bigbox stores near me all carry western red cedar. The problem is all the long stuff is junk and so is most of the short stuff. But, by visiting the stores on a regular basis, I find clear boards now and then, mostly 1 x 6's, in the 8ft. length. Once I have 2 or 3 of these I can scarf up any lengths I need.
Before I built my first boat I spent a little time doing practice epoxy-glued scarfs. Now that I know how to scarf I could build a stripper out of a pile of scrap 4 foot long 2 x 4's. It wouldn't be much fun but I could do it.
If you have the time to learn scarfing you will find it is an invaluable skill.

: Guess I should have combined this with my last post, but didn't think of it
: at the time.

: Does anyone know a good way to seek out "clear" redwood or cedar
: lumber? The traditional hardware stores here (Menards, Lowe's, etc) don't
: really carry any. I'm sure they could special order, but then I'd be stuck
: with whatever came in. I'd like to look at it before I buy it...

: Chris Noel