Is there any money in starting a portable or small sawmill business? How much land would you need to support it? Just kickin around ideas. This whole working for someone else for the next 30 years isn't floatin my boat anymore. Any info or ideas is much appreciate.
sawmill business??
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smokinj
Minister of Fire
Well The way I see it is a few ways. 1.tree removals 2. firewood 3. anything good enough gets milled. Now you charge for all three. This is using someone elses wood, and still working on the whole plan but thats the meat of it. You get paid on all tree.
SolarAndWood
Minister of Fire
That got pretty complicated didn't it? Three guys, saws, truck, chipper, stump grinder, 4 wheeler, trailer with fat tires to remove. 2 guys, decent splitter, truck to deliver. 2 guys, grapple loader, mill, drying barn to mill. And at least one guy to keep the orchestra playing. And, yep, probably a mechanic to keep the instruments tuned up.
smokinj
Minister of Fire
SolarAndWood
Minister of Fire
I havent see a lot of portable sawmill businesses succeeding. Generally its someone who bought one and is trying to cover some of the purchase price. It usually requires a minimum of two people and a significant investment. I was talking to one person who has a portable milling business and he was going to invest in a kiln and make hardwood trim as it was a relatively high value product. ( I dont know if he succeeded).
Adios Pantalones
Minister of Fire
The potential issue with sawing other people's wood that you take down is metal stuff and nails in residential trees.
Then theres insurance and all the other stuff mentioned above.
Then theres insurance and all the other stuff mentioned above.
smokinj
Minister of Fire
Adios Pantalones said:
nail really isnt an issue if you know what to look for, and you better be set up for sharpening chains thats a must!
peakbagger said:
Sounds like a great idea, but...
There are several guys in my area who have Wood Misers. They mostly end up donating air-dried hardwood planks to the local Northeast Woodworking chapter's annual auction. Even there - for a worthy cause - a choice lot of cherry or black walnut can be had for around $2/bd.ft. by the time the hammer falls. When I worked at Woodcraft, we brought in lots of local hardwood. This stuff was air-dried and run through a planer. We paid very little for it, and very little sold. In fact, for a store that sold hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of tools while it was open, we sold very little of any kind of wood the tools were actually designed to be used on. Figure it out.
Everyone tells me that logging has never been as bad as it is now. Mills are shutting down right and left. We have two left in my area, but they are cutting rough-sawn pine and hemlock and selling it cheap to the local farmers and such. If a huge operation with decades of experience and contacts can't make it buying logs by the tandem load and using big, fast circular saws for milling, how can a small independent with a band mill survive?
My advice? Get a band mill if you want one. Get some logs and learn to cut and dry planks properly. Try to sell some through Craig's List or the local Pennysaver. Then, when it doesn't work out, donate the wood to your local woodworker's association and put the saw up on eBay.
And don't quit yer day job in the meantime. JM2C
smokinj
Minister of Fire
Battenkiller said:
Thats is correct I know of only one guy who is making it as a miller! With that said you must be more rounded. Milling skillis can be more than just milling. Removals, trimming firewood and Milling. you have a small chance. Oh and good timming sure would help!
SolarAndWood
Minister of Fire
smokinj
Minister of Fire
SolarAndWood said:
I worked for 15 years selling landscapes and all maintenance. (when slow I was on the crew Nov Dec Jan) you can do a lot with a pole pruner and keep your insurance level low.
I also have an independent climber with his own insurance and you bill them separate. (not made the move to full time yet but close) Held Indiana 3a's and 3b's for 15 years. So I have a good grasp but dont think the enomy would support a new buiness just yet.
I will throw some new twist on it though. I think from a selling point on the big old growth tree's (Thats where real money come in) the home owner will love getting a little lumber out of there big old tree to rember it by.......
SolarAndWood
Minister of Fire
smokinjay said:
While it's hard to put a number on it, I value that. My FIL had his logger mill some old growth pine 20 years ago and it has been air dried since. Some of the pine turned into the neighbor's bar this past winter and it not only looks fantastic but has a lot of sentimental value as he has taken care of the property for a long time.
smokinj
Minister of Fire
SolarAndWood said:
Yep I don't think its going to make a lot of money but if the estimates are close I will bet more time than not getting some lumber out of it would lean my way. And most of the lumber would go to me and to sell at a ladder date plus the firewood, so your getting paid on all sides. I also sharpen chains is not a lot of money but just one more thing to help!
I've known 2 guys with portable mills.
One would go on site and saw for someone else at a price per board foot - also cut his own wood and built heavy duty custom to spec oak pallets .
Sometimes the mill sat unused for months.
The other did the same on site cutting and also built back yard sheds. His mill sat for months , too.
Week-end work.
I sure would like to do a bunch of different kind of work - at my whim.
One would go on site and saw for someone else at a price per board foot - also cut his own wood and built heavy duty custom to spec oak pallets .
Sometimes the mill sat unused for months.
The other did the same on site cutting and also built back yard sheds. His mill sat for months , too.
Week-end work.
I sure would like to do a bunch of different kind of work - at my whim.
Backwoods Savage
Minister of Fire
Every so often there is a fellow who brings in his portable mill. When this happens, there are several of us who have logs ready. He pulls the mill in and it takes very little time to set up. He runs the mill while the rest of us take care of the lumber and slabs and even roll the log onto the lifter. His mill has a band saw and he never sharpens his blades. He simply replaces with new blades and says that is how he has always done it.
I do not know how much work he has as the last time he was here he was beginning to think about retirement. He was 75 years old at the time! I wish I could tell how many board feet he cut in a days work but don't remember that either; but it is a pretty good amount, especially for a portable mill. Not certain but I think it was a Wood Miser mill. I was impressed with the mill.
Also, I think all this man did was mill the lumber. Anyone who hired him had to do their own cutting of the logs and if I were to do it, that is probably the way I'd go too.
I do not know how much work he has as the last time he was here he was beginning to think about retirement. He was 75 years old at the time! I wish I could tell how many board feet he cut in a days work but don't remember that either; but it is a pretty good amount, especially for a portable mill. Not certain but I think it was a Wood Miser mill. I was impressed with the mill.
Also, I think all this man did was mill the lumber. Anyone who hired him had to do their own cutting of the logs and if I were to do it, that is probably the way I'd go too.
i3bpvh said:
I think you might be better off with a portable firewood processor . Then go around and process for yourself and sell in your down time and go around and process for others and charge them per hour .
Backwoods Savage said:
Most folks with these mills are using blades like those available from Suffolk Machinery. These blades have teeth that are hardened by electrical induction. This process gives a very hard tip to the tooth for long wear, but doesn't make the body of the blade brittle, so they seldom will break on you despite the glass-hard teeth.
Problem with induction hardening is that the hardness doesn't go very deep, so filing will quickly remove the hardened steel and leave softer stuff that wears quickly. The plus side of using these blades is that they are much cheaper than an equivalent length traditional band mill blade, and they also make a much thinner kerf in the wood. This wastes less wood and helps the blade cut much faster with the smaller size motors found in these value-priced mills. Wood Miser gives an expected life of the blade that you can use along with the cost of other consumables to estimate milling costs.
i3bpvh said:
I think there is the potential to make some serious money with one of these mills, but it won't be in selling the raw product. If you can use it to get real cheap wood for your own manufactured end product (like molding, for example, or hardwood floors), it will definitely earn its keep.
JustWood
Minister of Fire
Needshave
Member
A friend of mine has one of these saw mills. I'm trying to get him to take some of my white pine to use for his barn. It's only a small part of how he makes or saves money. He also does bobcat work, snowplows, street sweeps, builds fences you get the idea. His wife trains horses and riders. Get the mill when you have extra cash from other types of work.
I tried to go on my own with a machine shop ten years ago. I now work for a medical device company.
I tried to go on my own with a machine shop ten years ago. I now work for a medical device company.
drewmo
Feeling the Heat
smokinj
Minister of Fire
smokinj
Minister of Fire
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