What's a good day?

[jrider]

For those who sell and deliver wood just what do you consider a good day. I had my dump truck loaded with 2 cords of oak from last night. I left the house at 6:50am and returned 8.5 hours later tired and thirsty for a beer. My numbers: 165 miles driven, $40 in gas, $80 paid out to my teenage helper and 11.5 cords delivered to 7 different customers. Have 8.5 cords scheduled tomorrow and I have the dump truck loaded up with 2 cords for my 7am delivery. Today was a good day in my book.

 

[chucker]

For those who sell and deliver wood just what do you consider a good day. I had my dump truck loaded with 2 cords of oak from last night. I left the house at 6:50am and returned 8.5 hours later tired and thirsty for a beer. My numbers: 165 miles driven, $40 in gas, $80 paid out to my teenage helper and 11.5 cords delivered to 7 different customers. Have 8.5 cords scheduled tomorrow and I have the dump truck loaded up with 2 cords for my 7am delivery. Today was a good day in my book.

I "wood" say so! but don't forget to put some away for a rainy day!! wooden nickel's that is....

 

[CaseyForrest]

Did you earn enough to cover your costs AND buy the beer without having to reach into your pocket?

 

[jrider]

Did you earn enough to cover your costs AND buy the beer without having to reach into your pocket?

Oh yeah!

 

[CaseyForrest]

Oh yeah!

Then it was a good day!

 

[unclemoustache]

A good day is any day that you make a profit above your expenses.

A great day is any day where the weather is good and you worked hard and didn't have many bad things happen.

 

[Sandhill Crane]

I sold the TW-6 a month or so ago.
I sold this splitter (the one pictured) two years ago after using it for more than thirty years.
I just took delivery of two loads of logs, with a lot of huge ones. Bigger rounds than can lift.
So I today I offered to buy this splitter back. I can build a log deck to cut on and roll the rounds on this baby. It had a unique wedge that is long and narrow and then flares. It also has a single stage pump.
I offered to buy it back for $500., the same price I sold it for. He likes it, especially the table. I offered him $600.
No deal...
He did offer to let me use it, but I'm not comfortable with that. And I guess I'm going need long term solution.
So still brain storming.
What I'm coming up with is another log deck/cut table, big enough to cut large dia. (up to 24") X eight foot long logs on, and at one end, set a box store vertical/horizontal splitter on the table in the vertical position to split the rounds. Maybe pull the wheels and make brackets to bolt to the wheel studs to secure it. When Log-Rite ships their log arches that's how they anchor them to the pallet. The splitter would need to be set back from the front edge of the table to make a 20"- 24" deep shelf in front of the vertical beam to position the rounds under the wedge. In short, a table 14' wide x 8' deep or so, x 32" high.
Maybe I'll offer him $700.

 

[jrider]

A good day is any day that you make a profit above your expenses.

A great day is any day where the weather is good and you worked hard and didn't have many bad things happen.

Well it was misting on and off all day so I guess it wasn't great. What is great though is that at this rate, I will be sold out faster than normal which will give me a little break....nah who am I kidding? It just means I'm that much closer to running the saw again.

 

[cantoo]

Sandhill, Engine crane lift to lift the rounds onto your existing table? Don't want to get too elaborate if this is the one and only load of bigger logs you get.
I made my big splitter with a 4 way height adjustable wedge because I have nice big clear logs. I bought a bandsaw sawmill so my firewood supply will now be smaller, crooked logs. The big splitter will still work but I would have done a few things different if I already had the sawmill, just didn't think far enough ahead.

 

[Sandhill Crane]

I have to finish a load of smaller stuff before getting to the new loads of logs.
I did see a home made jib boom on line that I thought was very thought out.
It had a horizontal pivot mid-way in the boom and electric winch.
The winch was mounted at the base, with the cable going up the mast and through blocks at the pivot points.
It was basically a work station crane on his splitter to pull big rounds from a pile.
His comment was that the splitter needed to be level for the jib to keep from drifting with a load.
Very cool because it worked close in and farther out extended.
He mounted a belt pulley on the engine shaft before the love joy coupling, to run an alternator to power the remote electric winch.

We have had a beautiful fall, but this weekend, 2"+ of rain.
We needed it, but a bit much in a relatively short time.

 

[Sandhill Crane]

I'm going to see what the SS will split before spending any money. Plan on stock piling the big logs for the time being if that doesn't work.

There is an SS HD in the Trading Post. That's going to make for a good day for someone.

 

[CaseyForrest]

You're going to have the same issue with a single wedge hydraulic that you will with your SS. You're going to be manhandling the rounds on the splitter, bringing them back and flipping them over to complete the first split. The least expensive option and easier on you, but a bit more time consuming, is to halve them with the 661.

When I get the bigger rounds, Ill start slicing bits off rather than try to halve it with the first hit. In fact, unless a round is small enough to only need to be quartered, Ill take slices off rather than the first split being right down the middle.

 

[cantoo]

Sandhill, I was out in some of that rain cutting some rounds. I seen it coming across the bush but figured I could tough it out. We already had 30 kms winds that were filling my eyes with sawdust and they jumped to maybe 40 kms and the hard rain came. My wife said I was crazy. Her and my son are working in the barn cleaning out my "treasures", I just get arguing when they do that so it's much safer for me to be in the wood pile then helping them. They have a load of what they call scrap steel on the dump truck already. She says I have enough hydraulic hoses all over the place to build 10 wood splitters. I said " thanks honey for the go ahead, I'll head to the shop right now and start welding". I expect the swelling will go away in a couple of days. She also counted 20 saws. Good thing I have a couple hidden in job boxes. She's really starting to talk crazy, she wants to throw out the custom racks I built for the flatbed truck we took off the road 10 years ago. I just sent the truck for scrap last year, wasn't that enough? Crazy I tell you.

 

[T. Mainus]

I'm going to see what the SS will split before spending any money. Plan on stock piling the big logs for the time being if that doesn't work.

There is an SS HD in the Trading Post. That's going to make for a good day for someone.

https://milwaukee.craigslist.org/hvo/d/log-splitter-rayco/6321471110.html

 

[jrider]

Hit my goal of having a 20 cord weekend. A personal record for me. Taking the wife out on a date next weekend!

 

[lknchoppers]

Hit my goal of having a 20 cord weekend. A personal record for me. Taking the wife out on a date next weekend!

That is impressive !! What is your delivery setup? How do you load?

 

[cuinrearview]

Sales are just a hobby for me, so a two face cord day would be impressive!

 

[chucker]

from here on out the winter heating season, if I can maintain a 2.5 cord sales weekly I am in good shape!

 

[jrider]

That is impressive !! What is your delivery setup? How do you load?

I deliver with an f350 stakebody that holds 2 cords. I think I had 4 2 cord deliveries, 2 1 and half cord deliveries, and the rest were single cords. I hire a helper on Saturday and Sunday and all wood is hand loaded. We can load a cord in about 12-13 minutes while 2 cord loads take just under 30 minutes. My average delivery is 10-15 minutes away and I rarely go more than 20 minutes. Both days I loaded my 7-7:30am drop off the day before.

 

[chucker]

already up and over my projected weekly sales. 3 cord down the road with cash in hand and I didn't have to leave the wood yard.. makes my day "a good day" .... even made an extra $10.00 tip so I might be able to afford a bottle of stein house* beer.... lol