Meeting a forester/logger tomorrow - what should I ask him?

[OlympicYJ]

Yeah, but then he got pissy when I called him out on his rates being too low (even sent him the DNR's price report from 2011 - which my forester said stays pretty consistent year to year), and he shot back "I was quoting sight unseen" blah blah blah... I quoted low on my diameters so there wouldn't be any surprises (still in timber DBH, but I shaved 3-5" off my measured diameters as that's a more "average" size than my largest trees), and he came back with pawnshop prices on high grade wood. Telling me the most you'll pay is half is a good way to get me to shut you out, and then claiming it's because of "quality being selective" - BS!

I'd do better cutting it for firewood than what he offered. When the guy's offering half price at best, there's no point in bringing him out. It was substantially better than the forester was offering, but I don't know if the forester knew that I was clearing so much when he was talking dollars. The initial discussion we had, I was only clearing the aspen, but the truth is that I want a lot more taken out; just in select areas. I'm looking at 20-30ish acres cut to the dirt.

You don't have enough volume to command a high price. A logger supplying large volumes can negotiate his price.

 

[Jim Timber]

That could be it, but this guy is running out of a pole barn with a woodmiser calling himself a mill. I've got 80 acres of aspen I want gone too, it's not just the clear cuts. Surprisingly, he offered the same price as the forester for the aspen, and said there was no market for it.

Once hunting season wraps up for me, I'll try to get the DNR forester who was supposed to do my plan in and see what he says. Looks like I'm on my own for the near future, and that's not entirely a bad thing.

This is along the corridor I want cleared. Trees that have been cut are a boundary to keep trespassing/poaching neighbors out, which also does double duty as small game habitat.

 

[Jim Timber]

Here's a different spot earlier this spring before leaf out.

This is actually the wife's garden, and there's only a few big oaks and aspen remaining inside the tape. It's still got a decent amount of down wood that needs to be hauled off and stacked before the last trees fall.

 

[sinawali]

That's the diameter you want to sell? Not very large.