Single_Shooter
ArboristSite Member
Thanks to all of you "EXPERIENCED PROS" in here who give sage advice to us newbs without being condescending or derogatory. The advice you have given others has been very interesting and very educational for me. I will continue to research subjects as they come to me in the field. I now have wi-fi in my truck so I can check something out on my laptop in the field if necessary just to make certain I am doing it right before I do it wrong. I trust my computer's memory much more than I trust my own these days.
But I now see the downside of this biz....hard work...very few days off....long hours....and lots and lots of sawdust and wood chips EVERYWHERE. (the wife gripes about that one)...but I LOVE this work. I find it rewarding and fun...yes, even when I am 30 feet up trimming an oak when the heat index is at 105. I looked like I fell in a pool while i was up there...but it was still fun and rewarding....just really, really HOT!!
So far, in the past three months, I have gotten a big shot with the throw line, a 25 foot 3/4" eye sling, a porta-wrap, an MS660, a 200T, a Vermeer 252 stump grinder, a couple more saws (034 and 024), a Stihl 131 pole saw (and many, many chains for all these saws), a Butterfly II harness (with lanyard, steel core flip line, 2 eye to eyes, 2 single eye split tails, 4 extra carabiners and a 150 foot lifeline), spikes, a Silky saw and more rope....and more rope...LOL Do you ever have enough ropes? Not to mention the assortment of rakes, hoes, shovels and such that I have grabbed almost weekly as we have needed them.
I have now bought 3,000 business cards and flyers and door hangers. (went through the first 1,000 cards really quick and the door hangers even quicker) I have business nearly every day calling me wanting a bid. So far the stump grinder has paid for itself. I am fortunate to already have a 16 foot aluminum enclosed trailer to keep it in and haul it around. (this way the wife doesn't gripe about something else in the garage)
As an example...Today I only had one job but while there the guy's son asked me to do 2 stumps for him right next door and then I got calls to do 2 other stumps and while at those jobs I got 3 calls to do more stump jobs tomorrow. Is it really this easy all the time or am I just really lucky??
And a side note...two of the calls I got today are from door hangers I left 2 weeks ago and they are for a total of 5 stumps and one tree trimming on the same block. It doesn't get easier than that. The door hangers are really paying for themselves tenfold.
All I can say is that now I can call my Mother and tell her she has been a liar since my childhood. Apparently money DOES grow on trees!!!! LOL
I am now crossing my fingers that this continues. All I can say is that I have been paying cash for everything thus far and hope to continue that trend to keep out of debt. But I can see how easy it would be to get pretty deep in debt in this biz if you buy the big equipment up front or too fast. I have met several guys who have had to sell off their equipment to pay bills in the slow months.
So far we have been paying people we know to come run or to rent us their chipper and truck on days they are not using it so they make money and we save money. We also have a guy with a bucket truck when that is necessary. He makes more than we do on a job but the customer is happy and we get good referrals. Win-Win for us all.
If there is something I am doing wrong here please point it out to me...I am always willing to do better.
Happy days and safe days to you all and Thanx again for all the great help on this page guys!!! Keep up the good work.
But I now see the downside of this biz....hard work...very few days off....long hours....and lots and lots of sawdust and wood chips EVERYWHERE. (the wife gripes about that one)...but I LOVE this work. I find it rewarding and fun...yes, even when I am 30 feet up trimming an oak when the heat index is at 105. I looked like I fell in a pool while i was up there...but it was still fun and rewarding....just really, really HOT!!
So far, in the past three months, I have gotten a big shot with the throw line, a 25 foot 3/4" eye sling, a porta-wrap, an MS660, a 200T, a Vermeer 252 stump grinder, a couple more saws (034 and 024), a Stihl 131 pole saw (and many, many chains for all these saws), a Butterfly II harness (with lanyard, steel core flip line, 2 eye to eyes, 2 single eye split tails, 4 extra carabiners and a 150 foot lifeline), spikes, a Silky saw and more rope....and more rope...LOL Do you ever have enough ropes? Not to mention the assortment of rakes, hoes, shovels and such that I have grabbed almost weekly as we have needed them.
I have now bought 3,000 business cards and flyers and door hangers. (went through the first 1,000 cards really quick and the door hangers even quicker) I have business nearly every day calling me wanting a bid. So far the stump grinder has paid for itself. I am fortunate to already have a 16 foot aluminum enclosed trailer to keep it in and haul it around. (this way the wife doesn't gripe about something else in the garage)
As an example...Today I only had one job but while there the guy's son asked me to do 2 stumps for him right next door and then I got calls to do 2 other stumps and while at those jobs I got 3 calls to do more stump jobs tomorrow. Is it really this easy all the time or am I just really lucky??
And a side note...two of the calls I got today are from door hangers I left 2 weeks ago and they are for a total of 5 stumps and one tree trimming on the same block. It doesn't get easier than that. The door hangers are really paying for themselves tenfold.
All I can say is that now I can call my Mother and tell her she has been a liar since my childhood. Apparently money DOES grow on trees!!!! LOL
I am now crossing my fingers that this continues. All I can say is that I have been paying cash for everything thus far and hope to continue that trend to keep out of debt. But I can see how easy it would be to get pretty deep in debt in this biz if you buy the big equipment up front or too fast. I have met several guys who have had to sell off their equipment to pay bills in the slow months.
So far we have been paying people we know to come run or to rent us their chipper and truck on days they are not using it so they make money and we save money. We also have a guy with a bucket truck when that is necessary. He makes more than we do on a job but the customer is happy and we get good referrals. Win-Win for us all.
If there is something I am doing wrong here please point it out to me...I am always willing to do better.
Happy days and safe days to you all and Thanx again for all the great help on this page guys!!! Keep up the good work.
