School me on a portable saw mill please

[Glen2504]

I'm liking the idea of getting of a portable saw mill as a side job/hobby. Wood has been semi easy to get my hands on. But I'd like to invest in a portable mill and travel within a 100 mile range to cut. I have access to most of the necessary equipment. A backhoe, several saws, chains, skid steer, truck and trailer. I have a full time job, so this would be a part time after work and on weekends. Pro/ cons? Or would I just be asking for trouble and lose money?

 

[Dave Boyt]

Glen, this is a good place to get info from the people who are running sawmills. Are you already in the tree care business? What is your experience level with the equipment you have access to? If you've got some background in mechanics, that's a really good start. I've found that running a sawmill is 35% dealing with wood, 65% dealing with machinery, 60% dealing with people, and 70% business (you do the math). Starting out milling for yourself as a hobby is a good way to begin. Get your experience locally and take the time to learn to operate the mill effectively before you put it on the road. A large part of being successful is finding a niche for your business. If you compete with the big boys and try to manufacture pallet lumber, for example, you will lose money. Custom work, on the other hand, can be very sustaining, once word gets out. The more you can process the wood, the more money you can make. Kiln dry wood is worth twice as much as boards off the mill, and planing can re-double the value. Some woodworkers will pay a premium for wide slabs with natural edges, and area farmers are often looking for barn siding, trailer flooring, and other lumber. Don't be afraid to accept a challenge, but don't be afraid to turn down a job if you can't make money on it. A manual sawmill (no hydraulic log handling) would probably work for your application, at least to start. Part of my decision to buy a Norwood portable sawmill was based on the idea that I can start out with a manual sawmill and add hydraulics to it later, if I need to. It has worked out very well for me, since I mill some pretty good size logs (last job had 10' logs 34" diameter), as well as small odd pieces such as walnut crotches and large diameter, short logs, and the 28" blade opening is good for wide slabs. The trailer option works well, and it sets up quickly for milling. Work out the business side, and figure out what makes money. There isn't a lot of room for wasted time or money, and you probably won't get rich, but if you enjoy it as much as I do, you'll get by, and love every minute of it! Don't quit your day job until you're out of debt and the mill is paid for. I'm sure others will chime in with their ideas, as well.

 

[Franny K]

It seems to me folks that have had someone come in with a band mill have done it a few times before. They have seen the kind the guy rides on it and totally manual ones. None of them had to pay half of the logs or boards like I have read on the internet. I would find some folks who have had this service done and try and determine what deal they are used to. Not just the money/share end of it do they stack the logs on runners with the fat end one way. Are the logs dragged or transported with forks or chains off the ground to the cutting area.

It is really a shame not to have an edger to go with a band mill as the pieces could stay horizontal and way less handling.

Once you get the mill and find someone local to sharpen the bands they will tell you how many others that you had no idea of in your area.

Do you have a second person to bring the skid steer with forks while you bring the mill? What were you thinking of leaving your customers with lumber on a palate with stickers between the layers? It is a lot of work handling the material. Lots of youtube videos just go to the end and a whole bunch more show up. Note the use of rollers.

Hope this helps

Fran

 

[Dave Boyt]

Fran brings up some good points. First, there are a lot of different payment arrangements. By the board foot, the customer knows exactly what he or she is paying. By the hour reflects your costs. Cutting on shares assumes you can use or sell the lumber you wind up with. I charge by the hour, because that gives the customer the incentive to have the logs arranged for me, and to help stack, which cuts down my work substantially. It also means that the customer is less likely to provide trashy logs that are more trouble than they're worth. Once you quote a price per board ft, that's it. You can't go back and raise the price if the job turns out to be more work than usual.

An edger is a great tool, but not easy for a portable sawmill. Hydraulics help a lot and increase productivity. You can charge more per hour, but you will have a bigger investment in the equipment, as well. Some customers have loaders, some just load it onto trailers. I make sure they understand how to properly stack the lumber to air dry. If they have good success, they'll be more likely to call me again, and to recommend me to friends.

 

[Glen2504]

Thanks for all if the great information. I'm not in the tree care business so the supply of getting good wood is a concern to me. I've heard of people just towing to a customers that already has wood but that just seems like a bad idea to depend on someone to have wood and to need wood cut all the time.

I would be able to pull both a skid steer and the mill but it would also increase my operating cost for a job.

 

[Dave Boyt]

There are a few portable sawmills built on the idea of taking the mill to the customers. Part of it depends on where you are, how much competition is in your area, and the need for that service. Portable sawmill work is about 30% of my business. It is best to have a diverse customer base, diverse source of logs, and a diversity of products and services, which may even include firewood. I get some logs from tree care services, and some from people who have a tree being removed from their yard and don't want to worry about it. Sometimes I'll clean up the brush in exchange for the sawlog, or cut the branches to firewood length, but it is rare that I pay for a tree. On the down side, yard trees are more likely to have nails, which are hard on saw blades. Most mills won't take them, and you will ruin a few blades on embedded metal, but that's just part of the business.

You normally don't want to pull your skid steer to a job (though you're welcome to leave it with me when you're not using it) unless it is a large job. I use a winch and a pair of ramps to load the mill. Much easier to bring to the job site, and much less expense. Of course, if a customer has a front end loader, I don't complain.

Finally, you need to decide whether you're a lumberjack or a sawyer. I very seldom cut trees for a customer, and never cut near a building or power line, even if it is leaning the other way. I let someone who is bonded & insured take care of that.