Hire a professional?

[Dr. Bootlegger]

I want to harvest a couple of my chestnut oaks and use the wood for built-ins in my new home. A friend suggested that some local professionals will come in, drop the trees and mill the wood for a percentage of the harvest. I can barely find time to keep us in firewood so investing in milling equipement and milling it myself is not an option at this point. Any suggestiosn on hiring professionals to do the job? What is a fair percentage for them to take? What pitfalls should I anticipate?

Thanks.

 

[Mad Professor]

If you can get the trees felled, bucked (end coat with anchor seal) and skidded to a suitable place to mill the cost will go way down. If possible avoid getting dirt on the logs.

 

[Dr. Bootlegger]

That is actually within my capability. I have the cutting equipment and my neighbor has a Bobcat with a grappler attachment he uses for moving felled trees. He also has a trailer large enough to do the job. I'll check and see where the nearest mill is, I've heard there are several close by.

Thanks.

 

[aquan8tor]

I agree with the previous suggestion; with the price of oak as low as it is, milling for shares might cost you half the lumber in the tree or more. I've heard anywhere from 35-50% share is standard for the sawyer, but I've never done it, so I can't say for certain. Good luck.

 

[olyman]

and find a miller with a bandsaw, not a circle saw, or youll have a ton of waste

 

[timhar]

While certainly not unheard of, most "professionals" don't mill on shares as it ties up time moving inventory around and capital while finding a buyer. A percentage of lumber doesn't put gas in the truck or pay the electric company every month. I don't know of any professional who will also drop, stage and then saw on shares. They would do better to give you 20 cents a foot for the tree and keep it for themselves after all that work.:greenchainsaw:
Most "share" cutters are hobbyists and, nothing against hobbyists but, many don't really know what they are doing. I agree with the other posters, do as much as you can by yourself and just hire the sawing. Prices vary hugely by region, but 15-50 cents a foot or 35-75 dollars per hour are roughly the going rates. Most sawyers have a minimum billing as well.