Some big timber and the reality of falling

Wesspur
Rugged made
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That article(s) is kind of older but does represent a lot of the modern reality. The booming export market of the
last couple of years has gotten some younger guys in the woods but not as many as twenty years ago.
A lot of young people simply don't want to make the sacrifice of living the lifestyle that comes with working in
the woods and the potential health risks. I'm not having any problem though finding young people that want
to work in wildland fire. I had over 600 applicants last year for three jobs. Nice video.
 
I was just in Sweet Home today. Checking out a couple timber sales... Jameson, you got a lot of West Coast in ya for never having been out here. One of these days you'll have to make a trip. I feel like you'd be in awe of timber that so many take for granted. How's that school treating you anyway? Done yet?
 
Jacob J. said:
That article(s) is kind of older but does represent a lot of the modern reality. The booming export market of the
last couple of years has gotten some younger guys in the woods but not as many as twenty years ago.
A lot of young people simply don't want to make the sacrifice of living the lifestyle that comes with working in
the woods and the potential health risks. I'm not having any problem though finding young people that want
to work in wildland fire. I had over 600 applicants last year for three jobs. Nice video.
Click to expand...

Well said.
 
Trade...I'd love to cut for a skidder. Heli is going to start flying units soon. I don't know how much $ it is but I'm sure the logging is costing way more than the logs are worth on the open domestic market,
 
My sources tell me that China is finally getting its fill of our cheap exports (damn, that's a weird thing to say) and will soon be buying only 2-saw or better. The market will get weird after that, you can be sure. I'm guessing that they're gutting Siberia instead, as it's closer, cheaper, and more corrupt. Back here, in the absence of a strong demand for building materials, you'll likely see timber prices crash, but not likely to 2009 lows. I'm thinking it'll settle out to something like early 2011, when my notes show our timber going for about $450/Mbf, with our 20% FSC premium. That means elsewhere in the region should expect somewhere on the order of $380/Mbf. That's a bit lower than current prices, but way higher than just a couple of years ago when we bottomed out just above $200/Mbf. My hope is that with the rush to export raw materials to Asia waning, the domestic market will stabilize some, and we can find some semblance of equilibrium between cutting and growing.
 
Cutting for skidders vrs. Strip sawing for line machines or helicopters

This post is in regard to the good natured teasing that forestryworks has been getting for being a flatlander. I was broke in cutting by my father for Columbia Helicopters. Pretty much all of my time as a cutter has been doing time for line machines and helicopters, and sporadically some shovel ground and for the most part it was all to be 100% bucked. The rules were simple, keep your wood on the hill and fall it where you can buck it. Made it from 1992 to 2010 without falling one stick for a skidder of cat. When I came back to the home country to work I had hell with falling for the skidders. Falling a tree against it's lean just seemed so wrong...needless to say some operators had words with me in the beginning.....then there was the whole cutting tree lengths in the right of ways...never have I heard of this, and then they tell me that all the butts have to face the machine.......after a while I got the hang of it, but never really cared for falling on the flats, and would choose any day of the week to break over the hill for the tower rather than run the axe for the skidder....wedging just don't come natural to me!! In conclusion, the men that fall for these wheeled and tracked monstrosities have my utmost respect. Don't sweat the slopes Jameson, in my humble opinion it's by far better duty.
 
madhatte said:
My sources tell me that China is finally getting its fill of our cheap exports (damn, that's a weird thing to say) and will soon be buying only 2-saw or better. The market will get weird after that, you can be sure. I'm guessing that they're gutting Siberia instead, as it's closer, cheaper, and more corrupt. Back here, in the absence of a strong demand for building materials, you'll likely see timber prices crash, but not likely to 2009 lows. I'm thinking it'll settle out to something like early 2011, when my notes show our timber going for about $450/Mbf, with our 20% FSC premium. That means elsewhere in the region should expect somewhere on the order of $380/Mbf. That's a bit lower than current prices, but way higher than just a couple of years ago when we bottomed out just above $200/Mbf. My hope is that with the rush to export raw materials to Asia waning, the domestic market will stabilize some, and we can find some semblance of equilibrium between cutting and growing.
Click to expand...

They're expecting Russia finally to sign up WTO ratification this year. Currently Russians are charging €50 customs duty for each exported cubic meter of round wood. If/when they'll join the WTO, they'll not be able charge that much anymore.

Russians dislike the idea of the Siberian timber floating to China. All the timberland is owned by the Federation, but as you remarked, aside of the customs duties, they'll not have any chance to hold their timber crossing the borders.

Funny thing is, Chinese will get all the FSC certificated timber they need from Russia. I've asked a couple of Russian forestry professionals, how come virtually everything they produce is FSC certed, since the standards are pretty hard to meet even for the Finns. Well, they'd laugh and say 'Money can buy you things'.
 

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