Why I Don't Sell Lumber from my Sawmill
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 11 มี.ค. 2022
- I've been asked many times to sell lumber to people but I always come back to these things. On today's episode I'll go over the reasons I don't sell lumber from my sawmill for profit. It ultimately comes down to a numbers game for me as well as a time commitment. Don't get me wrong, making money with a sawmill is something I'd like to do and something I think is worthwhile. However, based on the research I've done, the numbers have to be just right in order to make consistent profit in a sawmill-rich climate like I have around my area. As you'll see in today's video, I'm comparing the board-foot price of various lumber sources including big-box stores and large sawmills and comparing them with the costs of purchasing saw logs and making lumber yourself. Although these numbers are rough, they give you an idea where the real money can be made with a sawmill, at least in my opinion. Glad all you folks are here and hope all is well out there. Happy sawing!
- บันเทิง
![[Watch Party] RoV APL 2024 Bacon VS TDT ( AlmonP Wanoiz )](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/LvZvKzu3VSk/mqdefault.jpg)
The thing that always turns me away from selling my lumber is the time investment to market the wood and to deal with the customer. I'm not an outgoing person, so to spend hours taking pictures, making the listing, answering questions, explaining how to properly dry the wood, and aligning schedules for pickup sounds about as fun as scraping paint. Actually... I'd rather scrape paint...
Yeah I know what ya mean there
You are right but I did put a few adds on FB marketplace. People have mainly bought pine and cedar. They do ask a bunch of questions and a lot of people want the wood for free. That being said having your own trees is a major plus. I have made around 20k since September just from FB marketplace. I have a full time job so I kind of pick the jobs I want by my price. If someone says I can get it for this amount at lowes I avoid them. The good thing I found is if a tree is blown over I can cut it up and sell it. Nothing like making money on dead trees.
@@HilderbrandOutdoors 20k on the side is nothing to sneeze at. What dimensions do you sell the most of? Or are you selling live edge stuff?
@@Coalzak I’m selling mainly pine and eastern cedar. One guy bought some white oak for trailer boards. Not having a good way to dry it hurts me on the hardwoods. I advertise as rough cut and cut to order. Right now I’m telling them three weeks to a month. That turns a lot away but I still have more orders than I can handle right now. I usually multiply the lowes price by .8 on pine and charge $3 bdft on cedar. I had 2 orders as slabs on the cedar. I put a $100 min on orders but most orders have been from $200 to $4500. I had one customer give me $6000 for a split rail fence. I used a lot of cedars that had fallen over for that. I try to let my inventory grow until someone needs it. That way I don’t have to guess what they want. Like I said I just started in September selling to people. I have had the sawmill for 5 years and I have less that 200 hrs. Just been cutting for myself.
@@HilderbrandOutdoors Yes we have over 1,000 dead ash! Shocker
I'm in the mid south USA, and I have a sawyer a few miles from me. He doesn't sell wood, what he does is saw logs for other people and charges by the yard. Also charges 75$ if he hits a nail and it he has to change the band blade. He's 69 years old, but still working and he's happy. He told me he had so much work just by word of mouth, he didn't know what to do with it all. He picks what he wants to do and does it. If you like something, do it.
Great points Sandy, I saw logs for people and sell lumber, I enjoy it, it’s a sideline for me but it does get hectic with meeting demands so I try to pick my orders help everyone and keep it simple as possible, when it gets to the point I don’t enjoy it I will stop selling. Awesome research and great work.
Howdy Sandy- great information. Thanks for doing all the research for this video. You have a great channel for helping people like me get going with their mills. God bless
Glad you liked the channel and great to have ya here
I really enjoyed your point of view. My grumpy lumberjack and I (Andy & Sandy) have had a sawmill for 44 years it was a side hustle as we both worked corporate jobs at a nuclear plant. Andy retired 13 years ago and it is nice to have the sawmill making extra income. We both get to pick and choose what orders and enjoy selling on Saturdays at the Kitchener's Farmers Market. Our busy season is the spring and from August until Christmas but that is our choice. You hit the nail on the head availability of logs, costs, the workload, time constraints and living in Ontario is wreaking havoc at the Mill right now. Thanks for your input and good luck
Such great perspectives again Sandy
Hey Sandy,
What a extremely informative video. Thank you for sharing your insight on all the costs that come along with cutting lumber whether it be as a hobby or to make a few extra dollars.
Stay safe
Dirk
Thanks for doing all of that research. This was always meant to be a retirement hobby for me, when I finally retire, but most people consider making a living out of their hobbies at some point.
Good morning Sandy. Your spot on once again! I've only sold lumber to a neighbor for a structure for their ducks. Think if you're going to sell lumber you need a mill with hydraulics and digital features to really produce lumber quickly. I love my hm130max (Milly 😁) and have no regrets buying, but it's a manual labor mill. Take care and have a great weekend Sandy! ❤🇺🇦
Thanks Jill! you too
You’re a smart guy. Love your videos and because of you I ordered an HM126 and am expecting delivery in a few weeks. Hope to get setup just like you!
Right on Travis! Nice machines for sure. Hope all goes well when it gets all set up
Hey Sandy! I appreciate the discussion and that was a solid 2 cents! Thanks for sharing this! All great points and things to consider!
We don't even have pennies anymore so figure it must be worth now a good 5 cents haha
Good video, your insights are spot on. I saw mainly for myself and a few select friends and customers. I do sell lumber to the local school for the woods class there. They prefer the rough cut so that they can take the kids through the whole process of finishing the materials.
I don't want the sawing to become work, but I sell enough each year to cover all of my costs so that the lumber I keep for myself is free.
A very comprehensive analysis Sandy. Excellent video.
Thanks Frank!
Great information brother, I have been researching all of this for a long time. Good video today.
Thanks Thomas
Love these videos...always learn something from them. Thanks! 👍
Great to hear that Joe!
Thanks a lot this information was really helpful for me!
I appreciate your videos specially this one!
I am glad you did this video, there are so many people, who think everything is free and they are doing you a favour. I bought a new woodlands hm130max last year. Hugh,learning curve working, repairing mill an people you do work for. As always enjoy your video, comments an experiences thank you
Glad you like the video Bryan. Hope all is well
A lot of good points. Thanks for sharing.
Always welcome
I agree with all of your points because years ago I did Saw lumber mostly walnut that I sold through a broker but did some custom sawing also. The biggest X factor to help you make money is the gain from the log footage to the lumber footage which mostly is about 30%. This is from using the doyle log scale. Great video Sandy
Yeah that makes sense. Thanks for watching Jeff
Great video! I agree with keeping my HM126 for my own use. Too much trouble sawing for others. Takes the fun out of it.
I'm with ya Randie. Thanks for watching
Ditto Sandy.
3 years ago I sold wood and made a modest profit. Today, just not worth the hassle. Back to sawmilling for my own projects and enjoyment.
Great video as always.
Good economical breakdown, I agree if you can find a niche in the market you can make it a business. Thanks for taking us along today.
Always happy to have ya
wonderful video sandy you put alot into it thanks for the info
Thanks Robert
Great video, good information! I live in Ohio and just purchased approximately 200 bft of rough sawn kiln dried lumber for $3 per bft. A mixture of hickory, maple, poplar. $3 - $4 is the going rate around here.
I'm not in the business but I've entertained the idea of getting a mill. Thanks for your analysis, I found it very informative.
One idea I came up with to stop tarps from flapping and ripping themselves apart, was to use 550 paracord.
I put two horizontal cords from one side to the other, (dividing the tarp into thirds). Make them as taut as possible. Do this again, but on the inside of the tarp at the same spots, essentially sandwiching the tarp between the two tight cords.
I had to do this here in Southern AZ for a 10x20 car port. It flapped like crazy on the sides and end panels. This method stopped the flapping completely.
Great information! Thank you
Glad it was helpful
Another excellent video Sandy!! Why do so many people fail to realize there is a reason that these mills are usually considered hobby mills!!! I love the way you "tell it like it is"! It is hard to believe that retail lumber prices are higher in your area of Canada (Dollars Canadian adjusted) are higher than in my area of Wisconsin.
Thanks for that! Yeah expensive to buy lumber around these parts for some reason
Hey love the video I really would like to possibly get into this. I live in Alabama USA. We have lots of pine trees. Like you expressed I know a man who makes his living on rough sawn 4x6 and the steel company here buys him out because they can not get any from the large operators now! It does take 2 men though to stack 4x6’s. He is having a hard time getting logs delivered as well! One more thing you may be able to get the inspectors at the large mill to put a hammer stamp on your lumber then you can sell that lumber for structural lumber Also the best angle I found is you build them rough sawn elevated deer blinds as well. Take care!
Thanks for all the info!
thanks for tuning in CJ
Sandy, Your arguments against selling were pretty much the same ones I had. I will cut and say I made it from my own trees, I’ll do it because I enjoy it. My neighbours also have big lots with nice Hemlock and are interested in selectively cutting here and there, and would share their logs.
Sounds like we're on the same page Larry! Thanks for watching
Very good explanation.
Thanks for that Steve
Very insightful. I've got the same mill as you but I'm further south (still in Ontario). Everything I cut is hardwood from the bush on my farm. I've found the same considerations as you mentioned. Competition is a big one. You'll never beat the big boys just because of volume. They also have the ability to sell and ship all over North America, which of course, we don't. I find word of mouth through friends and acquaintances to be more than enough work. Like you I've already got a full time gig doing other stuff. Maybe after retirement............
Yeah the big operators sure can make the wood a lot faster than me and as you mentioned makes it hard
Retirement helps!
Yes it's nice to have it as a side hustle, now that we are retired we get to work and make as much money as WE DECIDE to. We are in Inverhuron, Ontario so winter is not a good time to run the mill. We sell a lot by word of mouth and sell at Kitcheners Farmers Market. It is a great life, for sure.
They have the ability to outbid you, It happened to me, I stopped sawing to many problems acquiring logs, and that was 30 years ago. I made furniture for 10 years with my kiln dried wood.
Hey buddy how are ya? Another great video!!! Lumber Prices are ridiculous here in Kaliforniastan. At Lowe’s in town a 2 x 4 x 8 costs about $1.62 out the door with taxes and lumber surcharges. There are local guys with sawmills that charge $1.25 a board foot for pine in for four dollars a board foot for oak nine dollars a board foot for redwood and $15 a board foot for black walnut. I found it easy to find Sawing jobs locally I charge by the hour if the logs a bunked up. I cut for myself and neighbors, and on occasions for cash. I hope to have the sawmill paid off by end of summer. I love running my sawmill. I’m a retired old guy, so I saw when I am not cleaning up storm damage hehehe. Thanks buddy and GOD bless you and yours. Thanks for being our sawmill guru!
Sounds like your setup would work well for making some extra cash. Can’t go wrong with that!
Thanks Sandy for the great information numbers all the above it does make total sense I'm the hobbyist mill in the mid US and you would not believe the amount of people that actually have Mills and have the high Hope dreams of just making a ton of money selling lumber which isn't the truth of the matter most of my phone calls are people acting like customers who have Mills just wanting to know pricing just so they can use that as their own reference which I think is the mistake because time is time there's a income ceiling. hence custom cut orders take it away and dry it. competition is brutal so that's why I am the millwright hobbyist who loves the Mill and boards produced and will stay that way
Not looking to start a viewer debate I know all the viewers and people that are here probably have Mills and are trying to sell their lumber as much as possible but with all said thanks for the super amount of information and I love the videos totally dig the operation thanks so much for sharing!
Always happy to help and thanks for watching. I know what ya mean
As a sawmill owner I think there are a couple factors that stand out as to why I would not want to sell lumber. The first one is the amount of work needed to fell, limb, bunk saw and stack the lumber. This is fine when you consider the cost of buying at a big box store vs the effort when you have free trees and so it make economical sense to do it for yourself. Plus you have the pride in knowing YOU truly made "this". Second, what I see a lot of is people who want things for free, or rather don't want to pay a fair price for your time and effort. Now I realize that we are all out for the best deal we can get so I do not begrudge anyone looking for the best deal they can get but just as I do not expect anyone working for me to do it for free, my time is valuable. I take considerable pride in the things I do. That 2x4 I just made may only be worth $6 (USD) to the customer but to me for the reasons mentioned above it is worth much more. Just a side note. I have recently seen a lot of these sawmills for sale used. I think people do not realize how much work is really involved in this... I love to work at my sawmill, I think doing it for money might change that and take the fun out of it. JM2C Hope everyone out there is doing well. Love your videos Sandy, thank you for all you do to bring the rest of us up to speed.
You are spot on.
Myself I get free logs from the local tree service guy.
50% of what I get are firewood quality.
The rest I saw up into whatever I feel like doing at the time and then stick and stack it and forget about it until someone wants something.
If I have what they need I sell it to them.
Mostly I feed my hobby of woodworking and make a buck now and then.
I keep the real nice stuff for myself.
That's a great setup you've got with the service guy. Although not all are ideal sounds like a good opportunity even if some ends up as firewood.
A good metal detector is a must when cutting trees from peoples yards. It gets hard on blades hitting nails and other metal objects embedded in them.
@@loveistheanswer8137 So far, I have hit nails, screws, barbed wire, syrup taps, bullets, arrowheads and strangest of all, a brick. No idea how that happened (tree must have grown around it I guess)
Interesting, reminds me of a conversation with my wife and one of her friends. My wife likes to do beading. She has sold a few pieces quite profitable, BUT she said if it became a job it would no longer be fun.
I know what ya mean there
Not worth competing with other mills and chasing penniesIworked with my buddy and he had no hydraulics on the mill,it was a tough day.He went to custom cutting,live edge and mantle,beams,for interior work.Way Way more money,less labour,1 off jobs pay HUGE money.I seen a dead white ash,square timbered,8X8 log 8 ft,dead simple cut,290.00 bucks for a mantle log.The people could not get the money out quick enough.That job may have taken us,45 mins to cut.High production cutting means,timelines,stress,deadlines,we do enough of that in our daily lives.Great vid,thanks.
I know what you mean there. Hard to compete
Well put Bro, thanks I wish I could still do it . Nothing seems to be like we think does it? Story of my life.
Great video! I have a woodland mills hm130 just like yours. I also have my own trees I cut on my property. I cut for a hobby as well and if I get more than I need...well I may sell a few boards. I also cut what I want or what gives me pleasure as far as lumber size. I dont take custom orders because at that point I am obligated. It goes back to what you said its a hobby. I guess if I had to purchase trees to cut lumber I may not have bought my mill in the first place. I guess I could sell live edge slabs from trees I get from my property or tree services but still yet. Its a hobby. Live edge is real good but. There is competition. I only cut a few live edge slabs that are real unique so I stand out in from the rest of the crowd. Once again... great video and advice! Well done!
Absolutely! Hobby keeps it fun
Hey Sandy I just picked up my saw mill in port Perry yesterday
You helped me decide what saw mill to purchase thanks again for all your honest information
That's great to hear Cory. I've been meaning to make a trip down that way to see the new place. Heard it's pretty nice.
When the awsome staff asked me if I had any questions about the new purchased sawmill I replied that Sandy answered all my questions about the saw mill lol
That's great to hear Cory! Nice folks down in Port Perry
Good break down on hobby/business thinking.
Thanks Roger
Awesome video Excellent information
Thanks Scott!
I'm like you Sandy, hobby all the way. The one thing I do maybe a little different. I'll cut my log cants as big as I can 8x8, 10x10, 4x4, and stack them until I need them, that way they can air dry better and if I need 2x4s I'll pull out 8x8. Or 4x4. And it kind of like money in the bank. Good talk keeps a person thinking. 👍
I like that idea of cutting the cants. I may have to give that a try
Thanks to Sandy first for this video (and all the others). And now thanks to you for this common sense/great idea (not to suggest I was doing it too) of sawing up the biggest (and longest cants) you can "like money in the bank". Sure gives you more flexibility to fill future orders and seems like the cants would air dry more efficiently, taking a little longer to dry than lumber maybe but less time to stack and with less warping in the mean time.
Really great information, Sandy. I think many people think only of the end product and forget about the overall cost of materials, capital depreciation, fuel, equipment and mill maintenance and consumables (blades, washer fluid in cold weather, etc). Perhaps for people that are retired or otherwise financially stable, own a wood lot, and have lots of time on their hands, you might make a few bucks selling wood from a consumer-grade mill. Otherwise, most will find they might make 5 bucks an hour… so from a money perspective you’d be better to work at McDonalds! Selling live edge slabs was a good gig for a while, but with the proliferation of TH-cam and the boredom of Covid, consumer mills have been selling like crazy and there are slabwood sellers everywhere, so good luck trying to make money unless you’re already well established.
Many good points there
" so from a money perspective you’d be better to work at McDonalds! " Umm No. Running your own saw mill is much more satisfying than working at Any service job ever! You need a better anaolgy Prof Dave. Just sayin', think about it. 😉
@@JosEPh-zy3yr I very clearly said “from a money perspective”. I wasn’t referring to job satisfaction or any other value. My point simply was if someone was thinking of doing it for the money, unless they have a free source of logs and already own all the necessary equipment, the dollars per hour IN CANDA would very likely be higher at a minimum wage job. McDonalds was simply an example of a minimum wage job.
Great points Sandy i am not selling lumber but soon will be. these are great points to keep in mind. take care
Thanks!
Good information , sort of simmilar as a self employed carpenter there is lots of compition which makes it difficult to make money but being able to do own work it's a big saving
For sure Ken
I was curious about that. Thanks for putting the numbers out there. IF big IF we eventually sell, it will likely be with friends and neighbours, and likely surplus only, however for now there are so many projects that there is no surplus. lol. Enjoy the woods!
Sounds like a good plan
been waiting for this episode
Great to hear!
@@sawingwithsandy well explained and i think you have the right formula now as you seem to really enjoy your hobby.
Seems like in most industries it's getting harder and harder to compete with lower volume and there are less niche markets. Another great video, had to sub👍
Thanks Andrew! Welcome to the channel
Honest and straight. Custom sawing works, but Standard Large volume sawing, have mills that produce much higher rates. Equipment is made to do the volume. Also the dollars that go into such operations much higher cost, Just from the startup. And generally it takes more employee’s to maintain and specialized skills so everything higher also. Cost accounting to profits. Like your mill is considered hobby verses production. When you have your own logs, you do save on cost. 👍👍👍
Great points Lincoln
Love your video. What do you do as a job for your income? How many days a week are you able to cut lumber?
Good video as usual. I would think if you had to buy logs it would be hard to make much of a profit. If you have property that needs to be thinned out anyway and you have a way to drag it to the mill I can see how you could make a little. We are new owners of a mill like yours so at this point I will focus on cutting for some projects I am doing but at some point if I have lumber left over I might try to sell some.
All great comments.
Thanks very much for watching!
Hardwood saw logs are generally free in my neck of the woods. Make friends with a few of the local arborists. If they haul away the logs when they cut a tree, they typically take the logs to the dump. It costs them money to dump the logs at the dump. If my place is on the way back to the office or not too far out of the way, they'll dump the logs at the end of my driveway. Free for them, free for me. If my place isn't on the way, they'll often give me a call, let me know where they're working, and invite me out with my trailer. They'll even load the logs on my trailer. Since I want the logs to be 10+ feet long, it also saves them time and equipment wear because they're making fewer cuts. The only down side is you're getting urban trees and that means you're cutting a lot more nails than you'd like! But, I'd say only about 5% of the logs I cut reward me with a nail or screw.
Sound good ideas in there for sure
@Sawing with Sandy as an arborist, I agree. I have a hm126 and I can't saw the logs fast enough. You may have to take some stumps and knotty logs as well, but it is worth it. A lot of tree services have to pay to dump the logs so likely they would love a free dump site. I sell custom cut pine for $1usd per bf and it is hard to keep up doing it as a side hustle. Thanks for all the useful info you put out, gonna use your video tomorrow when i change my drive belt!
That’s the same reasons why I only saw for myself as a hobby. Great video
Thanks for watching Mark!
@@sawingwithsandy always enjoy your videos, I’ve gotten a lot of tips for my own sawmill. Thanks!
Hi, great videos, I'm new to milling, I have my woodmizer set up on an old deck, but still need to build a sawmill shed, curious, did you sink your posts? i live in New Brunswick, very swampy around here, I have about 4 acres of trees for my own use, lots of things to build for my boys...
hi there would have to agree with what you were saying . when i got my sawmill there was never a plan to make money . i have cut for people but most the time it turns me off . might be metal in the wood . expecting 10 2x4s from a 8 " tree . i even had a person wanted 17 foot board from 16.5 logs . then there are banana logs if you can't cut them in 1/2 all the cutting is to get the bow out . keep it a hobby an you will only be disappointed when you make a goofy cut . take care hears to many board feet of fun sawing john
"17' board out of a 16.5' log is too funny
Another Great video.. I think the only way you might come out ahead with a manual mill would be custom cutting orders at a premium price. You would want to do everything possible to reduce manual material handling. I started out custom cutting with a manual mill and it got old really quick. Turning logs larger then 18” by hand all day long will wear you out. Cranking the head up and down didn’t play nice with my shoulder. Smaller logs yield to little and increase handling time.
Air drying lumber takes forever. Generally, for hardwood allow 1 year per inch of thickness. Softwood might be a little less.
People tend to forget the overhead cost and equipment you need to handle the logs. (Tractor, forklift, skid steer, which every you prefer. Unless you have secondary uses for them, I could not see them paying for themselves with a single operator on a manual mill.
I don’t sell lumber, or offer a mobile mill service anymore, however if someone wants to drop off logs or timbers for re saw I’ll do it for a fair price. One can make a few dollars to pay for upkeep or buy a few other toys / pieces of necessary equipment.
I agree Rick
Yes my lumberjack has been working at the sawmill for over 44 years as a side hustle. He is all crippled up and you can see the wear and tear. But he is strong and definitely in shape, better than a personal trainer or gym
Great breakdown of cost and profit. There’s very few ways to make money other than going to work as most citizens do. Milling for profit is starting to sound like mlm’s nowadays. 😂😂
Northern Ontario here!!
Owner/Operator custom cutting/ Cedar mill, lots of competition but theres enough room for everyone!
Smaller mills tend to make a nicer finished board, customers appreciate the quality of the lumber.
Timelines can put pressure and make things stressful I agree with you!
I have my own skidder and bush lot. selling sawlogs usually $0.80-85 cents a BF in cedar .50-60 for pine , spruce. Worth alot more to me to mill them myself... Busy spring lined up!!
as for the fuel costs, fuel surcharge is an option, total cost of order + 2-5% covers fuel costs, 10% of profit goes towards maintenance!
@@its_wheezer1855 You can always edit your comments by clicking on the 3 vertical dots to the right of comment.
If the tarps end up being to weak, you should look into the roll up tarp for big rig trailers. It's heavy duty, and has a metal bar in the bottom. It's heavy enough to hold place and light enough to roll up easy. It's made for heavy wind and dramatic temp changes
Great idea. I know the tarps ya mean. Those things are tough
Exactly! I will never become a business to saw logs into lumber for profit. I do community sawing only on the barter system. People come to me because I do custom sawing, I have softwood and hardwood trees, I put a price on it then barter for things in the same price range, wither it be the use of a piece of equipment that I don’t have, or items like having a field plowed or straw and hey for livestock it all works out in the big scheme of things. Also don’t have to worry about the taxman either. Great show good info. 👍🏻
Know what ya mean William
Custom trailer decking is a common thing for us.
They want a full 2" or 2.25 ect ect.
The real $$$$ is in the full size beams.
We do up to 8"x12"x26' with are mill. The side affect is you need really good/big trees and the logistics of a beam that big is its bigger then most trees.
Your TH-cam channel is responsible for my HM 126 purchase .
I appreciate the support on my channel and hope you're enjoying your mill
nice video you are right. i think hardwood and custom sawing are the only way to make any money. take care, be safe and well.
Thanks John! Hope all is well with you
Great Video. Have you ever look into building a Solar Kiln for your own needs?
It’s on the to do list for sure
@@sawingwithsandy I'll look forward to seeing it in a future video!
I was a sawyer in US for 20 years, cost of logs very high. Yes you must specialize if you want to make a living. Much competition to buy logs. Big boys will roll over you to get them. Now he is right live edge slab tables very popular. But people want dry wood. Long c air dry, expensive kiln dry. I had 2 kilns. Slab tables weren't "in" in the 80s. Remember what b is good now will be replaced by another product as market changes. Keep it a hobby, and if you can't build all your buildings yourself, and repair and maintain all your machinery. It will be an expensive hobby.
Good talk, Sandy. Hard hitting, practical and easy to grasp from various aspects. You Done Good.
Joe S
Nothing will kill a hobby quicker than trying to make a profit out of it I find only using the money to upgrade or keep your equipment up is the best you can hope for 🤔😁
That’s my thinking as well Leigh
Faster usually means danger when it comes to dealing with machinery. Especially machinery with teeth lol. I think the only way a 1 man operation could cut faster is with a faster machine like a swing blade mill. I've been looking at swing mill myself eventually. My property used to be a sawmill with a kiln once upon a time. But the Alaskan mill works for now for all I need. I'm building a timber frame addition in the next year or two. Luckily for me I live up north and all my neighbour's have logs they'll sell me and bring over with the tractor no problem
I live in Tennessee and I just got a 26 woodland about 3 weeks ago and the clean up is 3 times the cutting but I try to clean as I go. 5 gallon buckets and a chainsaw are my friends (+ a fire pit) you should’ve a spokesperson for woodland but you kinda are.
Hobby/personal use here. The occasional “customer” is nice to defer some cost, but we are concentrating our efforts at home as well.
For sure!
Making decent money in the sawmill biz requires a sizable investment, hydraulic bandmill(minimum), anicilary equipment edgers/planers, log decks, large tractor/forklift/loader, metal buildings, kilns, diesel truck & gooseneck trailer, etc. Anybody can cut portable or run a small manual band mill but to make good money cutting wood, you will need the equipment listed above and need to be fairly mechanically inclined and need the tools & space to service your equipment. All adds up to being space, labor, and capital intensive.
One of your best videos at least for me , I can tell you for sure you turn it into a business it will not be fun anymore.
Great to hear that Clement!
At what point did you convert to making fire wood for burning and splitting?
Seems to me that live edge, with logs just sawn through in slabs, is more expensive than cut 4 sides. That defies my logic as just sawing through a log making it into slabs and leaving the bark on is a lot less time and labour than sawing to a dimension.
Yeah around my parts live edge can be pricy
I saw white pine logs ,around 30 inches in diameter. I can get 50 2x4 per log. Sawing a log like that takes me about one hour! The log diameter greatly increases productivity! I’m not sawing Toothpicks!
I e had circular saw mills Mobile da mentions and a timber Champ basically big and little brothers, I now have the Hm130, I couldn’t keep up with the sawdust or chips from the circular, I did sell so many packages but now my projects are many so I don’t sell now but can see cutting live edge birch to sell, it’s really gone up in price the last few year
I've thought about getting certified to grade lumber but I use almost all of what I cut. Plus the hassle of finding contractors and meeting their demands seems it would take the enjoyment out of my sawmilling. Perhaps if I were younger and looking to make it a career.
That’s good point.
I have found even with your own trees, all you do is trade your trees for a wage. Covid has helped small mills with the high prices. One point you missed, is you can’t build with nongraded lumber unless it’s just a shed or something building codes don’t apply to. You can have it graded, but that adds to the price.
Not that I am the business of cutting wood, but what price do you put on happiness and the sheer joy of doing something because you love doing it ? My thoughts? Hobbies are food for the soul, not your wallet. Love your videos. Your common sense approach to everything is admirable.
....cutting wood....oy
Very well put
@@justdora440 You can always edit your comments by clicking on the 3 vertical dots to the right of comment.
I just bought 20 acres, full of oak, and I get my wood mizer on Friday… I’m gonna try to sell milled oak lumber and even some 2x lumber from the sugar and digger pines…my land is hopefully gonna make money for me in several various ways, the sawmill is one of them…
That sounds like a good opportunity
Hello Sandy. Over here in Newfoundland, a permit is required from the Department of Forestry for all mill owners (be it a band saw or even a chainsaw mill for that matter). There are 2 types of permits, a domestic and a commercial. Under the domestic, you are allowed to saw up to 5000bf per year and not allowed to sell/trade, etc any lumber. In order to sell lumber a commercial permit is required. A domestic permit is pretty easy to get but a commercial not so much. Is there any such requirements for permits in Ontario?
Geez. Makes me appreciate the permit process for Texas!
What's a permit? lol
mills in my area were flat out last summer, couldnt saw enough were giving customers a 6-8 week lead time, which turned away most people.. and they werent giving the stuff away it was probably over a dollar a board foot if not 1.50$, i dont think a band saw mill will ever be sensible to go fill time sawing dimensional lumber with, can always just saw what you would like to saw and if you run out of uses for it post it up for sale, or take orders one at a time to fill and not worry about building a customer base or full time gig
if you want to pump out 2x4s you need to be pushing log after log onto the mill that are delivered by trucks and ripping them into boards with a circular blade and about 120HP
I'm with ya Andrew
Question..70c per board foot for a log. How big is the log and how many 2 by 4 s can you get from that log. Let's say you can cut 4 2×4s from a log then the cut board foot price is about 18c. Is my maths or logic wrong, what am I missing?
Make due with what you have. It may look ramshackle at times, but honestly you can waste a lot of time shopping. I keep notes and get what I need once in a while and sometimes grab what I think I need. Anyway, you are wealthy in this market having a surplus amount of lumber.
For the structural use you need to certify your boards by the lumber inspector
Yeah definitely worth looking into
I'm in southern Ontario and the small one man mills here are moslty charging $2 a board foot.
Is that right eh. That could add up some profit quick!
@@sawingwithsandy last summer all the building stores were out of fence posts. If I had a mill I'd be cutting 4x4 and 6x6 posts and listing those for sale when supplies are short again.
if you start cutting orders for other people it does take the pleasure of having fun with your mill it become and obligation for every day no Mather what or what kind of weather etc. Specially air dry like you said where do i put all this wood i am doing it for my own project got a roof 17 feet wide 29 feet long 7 to 9 feet high you start a stack and had to it your bottom wood is ready to use but you got all this other lumber on top i think you get the point so i keep doing it for pleasure and not for a living but i do sell a piece here and tere well have a great day
I wouldn't think that the logs you have are large enough to make sales worth it but only you know that. I used to cut boards and just stack it to size for myself to use or if someone liked what I had, I gave them the choice of yes or no on what was there.
Yeah that would be another issue getting the larger logs. I've got some big white pines around but would hate to cut them down
Really excellent video Sandy.
Numbers matters. Thanks for going to the effort of hunting down Big Box and big sawmill prices as a comparison.
On unrelated matter.....is it advisable to restack an airdrying stack of 2×? material (softwoods) in order to lessen warpage etc? Is resorting so the boards in center of stack are moved to outside and outside is moved inward a good use of time?
Also, is this effort better used on bigger stacks?
Thanks
Great question Will. Normally you can strap the pile of wood so pressure is applied to all boards. I tend not to do this and haven’t noticed any issues with the warping
@@sawingwithsandy Thx
The second biggest problem with selling lumber is dealing with people who want a dozen boards or a handful of 2x4s. The biggest problem is when said people make arrangements to show up at a certain time and then can't be bothered to show up at all.
What I'm doing from now on is implementing a minimum order of 400 bdft. Another way around the problem is building sheds, thereby making a value added product and reducing the frequency of contact with the public at the same time.
Can imagine that is challenging for sure. Great points
Well ill be dipped i live in ontario as well. Been milling for 20 years custom stuff pays or market as a product. Dimensional softwood is not viable. For your own use awesome savings and convenience. The joy of making your own is the best. To sell no. I custom build sheds and that makes it work
Hey brother.I say this with all respect. 100 2 by 4 by 8 footers is 800 board ' Not 500 board ', unless I missed it somewhere. Chip
If you turn your sawmill into a business it wouldn’t be fun anymore. Now it’s a job. Nice video Sandy.
That's my thoughts as well. Thanks for watching!
A bad storm ripped a dark walnut, cherry and a "Hackberry" i think is the correct name. I have milled some of the walnut in 2inch thick X 6ft and 10ft X 10 to 20inchs wide. Its green, being air dried and its some pretty stuff. There's folks wanting to buy it but I can't figure out what to charge it! Its like a secret or a riddle trying find out how you price it.. please please give me some kind of idea what to tell people. Thanks sandy, your vids helped my Woodland mills 126 14hp get going 👍
I'm not even sure to be honest. I want to say $7 Canadian per board foot but that's just a guess
So you say they were charging 70 cents per board foot for logs, are the figuring how many boards you should get out of it or, are they charging 70 cents per linear feet for logs. If the latter, then you would need to refigure the cost.
well Sandy, I am not trying to put you down, but what you have is a home owners hobby mill that is not mobile and will not keep up with a production mill with hydraulics/log turners and such . I did my first job a couple weeks ago on the guys property, I did not charge a premium as I am still a rookie. I have a Woodmizer LT35HD witch I do not consider a production mill but pretty close. I took 13hrs over 2 days and cut him 2000 bdf of his lumber and made $700 U.S.. So there is a notch in the sawmill business that people can have, you just have to have a better faster mill.
Our Sawmill has always been a lucrative business even as a side hustle