Portable Band Saw Service

[Marshy]

Hi guys,
I'm cutting some white pine for a guy that plans to have it sawn into lumber. He has a local guy that he can take the logs to for sawing at $225/1000 bdft. The other option is to have a guy bring a portable band saw to his location and saw it at $350/1000 bdft. I believe round trip distance if he took the logs to his local guy would be less than 30 miles but he can only take about 5 logs at a time. He said he wants to have 2-3000 bdft sawn. What do you guys think of the the $/bdft? I know different markets will have different prices but how do they compare to your area? Logs have been consistently 24-28" just above the butt swell.

His neighbor also has some standing white pine that he wants down. Im not sure the guy paying me to cut (above) wants to mess with his neighbors trees because he's not sure how strong the market is (private sale) for the lumber he's harvesting off his property let alone processing his neighbors and selling it to share profit with the neighbor. If the right deal can be reached, I want to work with the neighbor to take the trees to have sawn for my own. Problem is I'm at nearly a giveaway price I believe. Reason is, I would have to compensate the guy paying me now to move the logs out of the woods, then I'd have to pay to have it sawn and eat the transport cost (I have access to a dual axle car trailer). What do you think would be fair starting point to offer the neighbor? Should it be $/stump cut, or other? Ideas? I might be able to borrow a log-a-saw chainsaw mill. That could save me money but cost me time and IDK how long it would take to saw say 1000 bdft let alone I don't have any experience doing it.

 

[Mike Van]

White pine is best cut during dead of winter, that limits the blue stain in the wood [from the sap] Also it needs to be milled asap before the new crop of sawyer beetles attacks it in the spring. If the stationary mill is an old circular, you'll lose more wood to kerf than the bandmill. Unless the bandmill guy is new, or uses dull mis=set blades, etc. Try to check the work of the guy if you can. I wouldn't make lumber with a CSM, just my opinion, too much left on the ground for the time spent. Once you get all those logs sawn, no matter who does it, all those boards have to be stickered, before mold starts between them.

 

[rarefish383]

I defiantly would not do anything where I had to pay for the neighbors trees. Way too much work/time invested. You say he's "harvesting" the trees. The only way he could make money on the deal is to have a timber company come in and take what he can get. If he has to pay you to take them down, haul to a mill and pay the mill, haul back home, he's gonna loose money. If you are milling it for your personal use, milling to sizes you want/need, that's one thing. Trying to mill a bunch of 2X4's to sell, no way. You can't mill lumber cheaper than you can buy it at the box stores. If you are talking private sales to individuals, you have to let the logs sit, till you find out what your private customer wants. Good luck and be careful, Joe.

 

[Marshy]

He has plans to build a cabin and will use some of the lumber for his construction. That's what spurred this all and the fact that the pine is in the way of the driveway he's putting in. He has the means to transport the logs to his local saw mill guy but not in one trip like on a log truck. The quantity isn't there to have a log outfit come in. There's probably 2-3 acres of combined property between his and the neighbor.

I was just telling my wife if I have to pay 0.225 - 0.35 $ per bdft for milling but have transportation cost to a mill, compensation for the guy with the tractor and have to pay the neighbor for the tree there is no advantage when I could go buy sawn lumber from a local mill for say $0.50/bdft.

In the end we both might say forget the neighbor and I'll buy the sawn lumber from the guy I'm cutting for (maybe at his cost) in trade for me blocking firewood for him. He lost his guy that blocks firewood for him and wants to block 20 cord. It's a pile of trees I cut for him 2 summers ago.

 

[mudfly]

$225/1000 is what I paid last time I had a band mill come to me (Northern MN). The guy actually dropped it to $200 even as we provided nearly all the labor (and a good hot lunch didn't hurt either), he just had to run the mill. We also had 2 full days of sawing (5000+ bd feet) so that contributed to the lower price.

Unless the price includes planing, I think its high.

 

[Marshy]

Thanks for the input.

 

[Sawyer Rob]

NO ONE will saw for $200/K here, except the Amish, and when you see the lumber you get, you will understand why!! lol

$350/K is what you will pay to end up with QUALITY lumber...

SR

 

[Marshy]

Interestingly, the $350/K is an Amish guy. Idk his quality though, that remain unseen.

 

[Sawyer Rob]

Well, if he's charging more, his quality is probably good too.

The Amish here try to under cut everyone, and they do it by having their kids with them for free labor, and not giving a dam about the quality.

SR

 

[Marshy]

I will do a follow-up. I've been doing a lot of day dreaming about building a garage. I even have the means to store the lumber in my pole barn so I don't need to keep it outside covered.

 

[mudfly]

NO ONE will saw for $200/K here, except the Amish, and when you see the lumber you get, you will understand why!! lol

$350/K is what you will pay to end up with QUALITY lumber...

SR

Might be a different part of the country then. The $200/1000 got us all great quality lumber.

The OP asked for input on that price, I provided it based on my experience and I stated our location for reference.

I have another guy that will saw for less $180/1000, but he is really busy. He did 10,000+ bd feet for us over 2 years.

Both guys are fussy and have great quality for portable band mills. Very consistent, not wavy, and spot on dimensionally.