LT15 for a side business?

[TN woodcutter]

Hey guys-I'm looking at getting a small sawmill to use on my two half days off every week. I'd love to do custom cutting and slabbing for folks (I do have a market for it), and maybe get into a specialty market. I mainly want something to get me started in the forestry industry, and to turn around some cash on my days off. Would an LT15 or similar sized mill be enough for a small, part time gig? This would be paired with a winch for turning/loading logs and cants, and a trailer for transport. Thoughts?

 

[SeMoTony]

Hey guys-I'm looking at getting a small sawmill to use on my two half days off every week. I'd love to do custom cutting and slabbing for folks (I do have a market for it), and maybe get into a specialty market. I mainly want something to get me started in the forestry industry, and to turn around some cash on my days off. Would an LT15 or similar sized mill be enough for a small, part time gig? This would be paired with a winch for turning/loading logs and cants, and a trailer for transport. Thoughts?

A friend bought 208 acres many years ago, he sold logging of the property which covered half the purchase price. He kept back enough pine to mill on wood mizer. Used that wood to build his house, really nice place. that more than paid for the mill. He actually uses the mill very little and even tho it's on wheels has not been moved. When he loads a log uses tractor lift. I get come n look notices from wood mizer and a couple others, alaskan mk lll is mobile for me. If you really think there wood be enough production time after set-up in half days seek a demo that you can observe. Some how this all looks faster and easier til I start doing. Learning curve tends to be slow with out a mentor to work with on his set-up. Just my $.02 Hope for best for you

 

[SeMoTony]

Hey guys-I'm looking at getting a small sawmill to use on my two half days off every week. I'd love to do custom cutting and slabbing for folks (I do have a market for it), and maybe get into a specialty market. I mainly want something to get me started in the forestry industry, and to turn around some cash on my days off. Would an LT15 or similar sized mill be enough for a small, part time gig? This would be paired with a winch for turning/loading logs and cants, and a trailer for transport. Thoughts?

A friend bought 208 acres many years ago, he sold logging of the property which covered half the purchase price. He kept back enough pine to mill on wood mizer. Used that wood to build his house, really nice place. that more than paid for the mill. He actually uses the mill very little and even tho it's on wheels has not been moved. When he loads a log uses tractor lift. I get come n look notices from wood mizer and a couple others, alaskan mk lll is mobile for me. If you really think there wood be enough production time after set-up in half days seek a demo that you can observe. Some how this all looks faster and easier til I start doing. Learning curve tends to be slow with out a mentor to work with on his set-up. Just my $.02 Hope for best for you

 

[ChoppyChoppy]

We have an LT40 Super at the shop. It works well, though IMO it's kind of slow. I'd imagine an LT15 would be slower.
Fast compared to a chainsaw mill, but a circle saw would smoke the LT40.

 

[TN woodcutter]

A circle saw, as in a Lucas mill?

 

[DTrap]

A Lucas mill would definitely do the trick. It all depends on the type and size lumber you want. The bandsaw will be able to cut big beams where the Lucas will be limited to 8x8's I believe. But it will cut 2x's way faster than any band mill in the same price range will.

 

[Boogedy_Man]

I've thought a lot about this...while I imagine some people do with less, it's hard for me to consider trying to make any money without a hydraulic mill in the $25,000 range. If anything I would think that would be the starting point for a business. I'm eyeing a B20 right now, and that's bottom end of what I'd want to base a business on.

 

[Ted Jenkins]

A guy that I have done many jobs for bought a used 24'' band saw for $7500 and put $2,00 into it with extras. He lets me use it from time to time and after a few screw ups have learned how to make nice beams. Loading a 24'' by 14' log with a Kabota is quite easy and does not take much tiem. Working a few hours at a time will work just fine, but after your investment and still working another job will it pay off? Unless the joy of producing nice look wood planks is your thing then that is what you should do. Thanks

 

[JTM]

I've had a Lucas mill on my property milling logs I had cut. The Lucas came out in the bed of a pickup truck and milled the logs right where they laid on the ground. It was fast and there was no turning of the logs which saves a lot of time. I have friend with an LT40 that I've had long discussions with. With the bandmill you are going to need a way to move the logs, you will be limited on diameter (he says you have to whittle down anything over 30"), and if you are doing anything beyond a couple of logs here and there you really need hydraulics to turn the logs. But the finished boards from a band mill are very nice. Good luck. I'm wanting to do the same thing as you and have yet to decide which way to go.

 

[Picaso]

I would spend most of your free time researching just how much ($$) of a market you really have. In my area Im surrounded by people with mills of all sizes, which drives the prices down low. Like most successful businesses, if you aren't offering something nobody else has, then you have to have connections or offer it cheaper. Cheaper takes longer to pay you back for your equipment investment, while connections take time to build.

It might save you lots of money and time in the end to find the other outfits operating in your area and get a good idea what you're up against. Start making connections, and maybe take the jobs you get to another mill to start, adding your cost. Then you can get a first hand idea of the real costs and even make some money, while spending very little. Then you can get the right sized mill (whatever you find that to be) with confidence and a growing customer base.
(and I know you are asking ahead of time) but once you have already bitten the bullet on your equipment you might find it keeps you from getting what you actually want/need.

Maybe none of this is helpful to you, but Im speaking from experience so Im paying it forward. I only do chainsaw milling now, and only for unique slabs, not bd footage. Too much competition. Now those mills call me when they need a slab cut that's too wide for their BSM. Good Luck

 

[Sawyer Rob]

I've had a Lucas mill on my property milling logs I had cut. The Lucas came out in the bed of a pickup truck and milled the logs right where they laid on the ground. It was fast and there was no turning of the logs which saves a lot of time.

Sure you can saw without turning a log, you can do that with a band mill too...

BUT, you can't "grade saw" with out turning a log with any mill! AND if you want the higher grades of lumber out of a log, you have to grade saw it!

I don't turn the logs on my mill because I "have to", I turn them to get the much better grade/quality of lumber out of my logs.

SR

 

[JTM]

Sure you can saw without turning a log, you can do that with a band mill too...

BUT, you can't "grade saw" with out turning a log with any mill! AND if you want the higher grades of lumber out of a log, you have to grade saw it!

I don't turn the logs on my mill because I "have to", I turn them to get the much better grade/quality of lumber out of my logs.

SR

Well I am not sawyer but that blade would turn 90 degrees. I don't know about grade either but this table looks real good my father in law made for my daughters wedding present using that wood.

 

[Sawyer Rob]

I understand, but anyone sawing cabinet grade lumber for sale, surely wants the best grade available out of a log! That's what brings the most money, so of course it's most desirable.

As a retired furniture maker, I always picked out the highest quality boards for my projects...

You can NOT get the best quality out of ANY log, without turning it...

SR

 

[JTM]

I understand, but anyone sawing cabinet grade lumber for sale, surely wants the best grade available out of a log! That's what brings the most money, so of course it's most desirable.

As a retired furniture maker, I always picked out the highest quality boards for my projects...

You can NOT get the best quality out of ANY log, without turning it...

SR

10-4

 

[Franny K]

Ignoring the grade aspect things often start to curve as material is removed from one side.

 

[Ryan'smilling]

I guess I would highly recommend going and running a band mill for a couple of days before you take the plunge. Do you like working in dusty conditions? Do you like the constant drone of loud air-cooled 4-stroke engines? Personally, I don't like the work environment a sawmill creates. And don't get me wrong, I like the larger chips and intermittent noise from chainsaws.

Another thing to consider is the market, as others have mentioned. Figure out what your costs are to run the mill on an hourly basis, blades, grease, gasoline, air filters, etc, and don't forget depreciation and insurance (I'll come back to that topic), then add your desired wage, which should be at least $20/hr. Now, think long and hard about whether anyone will pay you what you need to make money. When I was trying to make some income with my B20 I was turned down many many times when I was charging $50/hr, and that is a fully hydraulic portable mill with more HP than an LT15. I honestly think that if you want to make money with a mill, you have to sell lumber or something more valuable than that. Custom work is too much hassle in most cases; customers are flaky, want to talk you down, want you to fire up for one log, want you to saw their yard trees, didn't read where they signed that they'd pay for ruined blades because of all the metal in their yard trees, etc. And if you're talking about milling on-site there's even more room for losing money; there's time wasted driving there to give a quote, etc.

And, back to the insurance topic: this is a BIG PROBLEM if you want to run a mill. I don't know who your insurance is through, but tomorrow morning, call up your agent and tell them about how you're going to start a sawmill business. Chances are that they'll be ready to cancel your entire policy. That's what happened when my agent saw my mill. Even when I told them that it was there for storage and that I only used it on customers' properties. It didn't matter. You could sell 300 cords of firewood a year and have all the associated equipment, but you say the word "sawmill" and everything changes. I had a darned near impossible time finding someone who'd even consider insuring me while operating a mill, and it wasn't cheap. And it's not a business that you'd want to run without insurance either...

So, that was my experience in buying a mill for some side income. I hope you make a more informed decision than I did.

 

[Franny K]

And, back to the insurance topic: this is a BIG PROBLEM if you want to run a mill. I don't know who your insurance is through, but tomorrow morning, call up your agent and tell them about how you're going to start a sawmill business. Chances are that they'll be ready to cancel your entire policy. .

What sort of insurance are you discussing here? liability insurance against a lawsuit? I would think disability insurance for the instance of getting squashed by a log or a piece of machinery would be the first order of business. Guess working all but two half days should come with medical insurance. He is probably young so the hernias and back problems will show up later and can not be insured against.

 

[Sawyer Rob]

My insurance man came over to look at my barn one day... He happened to spot my sawmill and said "hey, we need to get that on your policy"...

I can't see where insurance is a problem at all, at least around here...

And, YES, he knew I was sawing for others...

SR

 

[Ryan'smilling]

What sort of insurance are you discussing here? liability insurance against a lawsuit? I would think disability insurance for the instance of getting squashed by a log or a piece of machinery would be the first order of business. Guess working all but two half days should come with medical insurance. He is probably young so the hernias and back problems will show up later and can not be insured against.

I'm referring to liability insurance. The OP didn't mention whether he would do custom work on-site or at his location, but either way, there's plenty of exposure to liability. All it takes is one customer to get pinched by a moving log on your property while unloading their logs to make a lawsuit. Or they could get hurt while you're operating your equipment on their land. I'm not saying it should be that way, but it is. But yeah, disability insurance for yourself would be great too. Just guessing here, but I don't think you'd be able to pay for the sum of those two policies with 2 half-days of sawing per week. Again, just a guess, maybe you could, but like i said in my previous post, it's gonna make your hourly rate seem high to potential customers.

@Sawyer Rob, does your insurance cover liability? Who's it through?

 

[rarefish383]

I've had a Lucas mill on my property milling logs I had cut. The Lucas came out in the bed of a pickup truck and milled the logs right where they laid on the ground. It was fast and there was no turning of the logs which saves a lot of time. I have friend with an LT40 that I've had long discussions with. With the bandmill you are going to need a way to move the logs, you will be limited on diameter (he says you have to whittle down anything over 30"), and if you are doing anything beyond a couple of logs here and there you really need hydraulics to turn the logs. But the finished boards from a band mill are very nice. Good luck. I'm wanting to do the same thing as you and have yet to decide which way to go.

From what I've seen on videos, the Lucas shines for making boards (dimensional lumber), I don't think you can cut a 30" slab with it? Joe.