Whats a single slow grown pine worth?

[jimllshiftit]

Hi all,

Ive just felled a 25-30 meter tall pine. It had been slow growing in our garden but judging by the fact it had not had any needle on it for the last few years we decided to bring it down. Sad really as it was quite a land mark.

Any way, im guessing, err, hoping, the timbers worth a few quid so any advice on what price to put on it would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance,

Jim

 

[Hddnis]

Does it have a lot of branches? Straight trunk? What diameter?

The value of the log is determined either by the board feet it contains or its weight.

Do you have a mill in the area?

Another place to check my be a woodworking club or group, also a cabinet shop or funiture maker. They might not be interested by they might know of someone who is.

Do you know if there are any nails or bolts or rocks in the tree, basically anything that would jam up or dull a saw blade?

Hope this helps, I've really got no idea about lumber prices on that side of the pond.


Mr. HE

 

[jimllshiftit]

Ive found somewhere that can mill it for me but Im not sure what sizes I want it milled into. Plus ive got to pay to transport it to and from the mill and to mill it. Thankfully I cant see any nails or rocks in it so it shouldnt damage thier blade if I do go for that option but it is still getting costly.

The tree is dead straight and doesnt have many branches at all, probably about 10 every three foot. Ive no idea what it weighs but its average width is about two feet over its 90 feet length.

 

[Mike Van]

Thankfully I cant see any nails or rocks in it so it shouldnt damage thier blade if I do go for that option but it is still getting costly.

.

There's no way you'll be able to see hardware from 20 or 50 years ago, as it gets grown over. Good luck with it though, better as lumber than chips.

 

[BobL]

I never pay for yard trees. Depending on what it is I will mill for a share of the timber but the home owner pays for damaged chains. If I have to travel some distance to mill it I might also charge the home owner for gas.

 

[mikeb1079]

pine value

well, first i should say that i'm certainly no expert so take this with a grain of salt. i've noticed that alot of folks (my former pre milling self included) believe that a tree has some inherent cash value. what they fail to remember, though, is that as it lies the tree has no value whatsoever. the value of the timber can only be created through the (hard) labor of cutting it into usable boards/transporting it/drying it properly/ etc. needless to say, all this takes time, labor, and money. in fact, a tree sitting on your property is much more of a liability than anything which is why most folks pay someone to remove it/cut it into firewood.
don't get me wrong, and i don't mean to sound harsh, but unless you're able to mill it into usable lumber i don't think it's worth a cent.

 

[jimllshiftit]

Thanks for all your input. Even if I get it milled ive got to find a kiln to make it worth anything, and transport it about through the process.

Looks like im alright for logs this winter!

 

[Ted J]

Ive found somewhere that can mill it for me but Im not sure what sizes I want it milled into. Plus ive got to pay to transport it to and from the mill and to mill it. Thankfully I cant see any nails or rocks in it so it shouldnt damage thier blade if I do go for that option but it is still getting costly.

The tree is dead straight and doesnt have many branches at all, probably about 10 every three foot. Ive no idea what it weighs but its average width is about two feet over its 90 feet length.

According to the board foot log calculator, per your dimensions, it is about 1880 BF on average (Scribner). That should help you decide if whatever price you end up putting out from cut to kiln is worth it.

 

[Backwoods]

I have not found that pine needs to be kiln dried unless you are in a hurry to use it. Look for a portable sawmill service in your area, as that will save you the hassles and cost of moving the logs to the mill and the lumber back again. I went out and milled up a tree of roughly the same size today. Total cost to the customer, which included helping him stack it in his shop, was $300.00, and he now has a shop full of properly stickered wood that will be air-drying for the next year or so. As far a selling the tree $0.00 and no clean up.
I think where people get the idea that there is value in a single tree is because the big mills are buying trees, but what is not being seen is that a tract of land is harvested all at once reducing the cost per log deliver to the mill. but for a single tree the time spent getting the tree into log form, loading, hauling, plus fuel for one log verses a truck load, the value of the single tree disappears, in to the labor cost.
I had a custom who logged off 40 Acers, and by the time he paid everyone including Uncle Sam, he just broke even. Therefore, he fell a few more trees and had me mill them up so that he would wind up with something out of all of his time, besides a new pasture full of stumps and brush.