Pulp Conversion

[SwampDonkey]

If it's big aspen, keep an eye on them big upswept limbs on trees with conks on the trunk. Danger trees.





These were around 77 feet tall and 24" at dbh. They are on the ground now for worm food. Three years since the photos. Back in 1984, dad had cut 300 cords of aspen off 10 acres of ground in this site, just the aspen. These trees are near the property line. When they start to tip, run!

[Gary_C]

First the trailer. Most mills will not allow you in their yard with a pickup and trailer unless you have log bunks so that the logs are supported off the deck of the trailer. Believe me even the semi trailers get beat up from those huge grapples on the loaders those mills use and they do not like paying for damage to your trailer.

Cutting 30-50 cords per week is just not realistic with one person and a tractor. That would be between 11 and 18 of your trailer loads per week or 2-3 loads per day. Just loading and hauling 3 loads per day is going to be tough unless you have a log loader with grapple and rotator. And I would guess that you will half kill yourself to cut and load one 6 cord trailer per day. You could easily figure an hour to load, an hour to the mill, an hour at the mill, and an hour back to the woods. That's four hours per load. You will be lucky to get two loads in a day with the mill hours they have.

I have a lot of equipment including a cut to length harvester and a big double bunk forwarder that can cut 5 cords per hour and one 12 cord load per day is tough to do every day. But I have a long drive to the mill. I know two brothers that work together and have a feller-buncher, big grapple skidder, and a slasher and they work long days to get one semi load of about 12 cords of pulp for each of them to take to the mill each day. That's 24 cords per day with two people and a lot of big equipment.


Course this does depend on how big the Aspen is as you can obviously do more with big trees. But still, you are in for some very long days and dissapointment if you expect to do that much.

[SwampDonkey]

I agree with the production Gary, but you'll only learn by doing. I'd say if 20 cord per week got cut with the tractor and hauled it's going be a loooong week.  It's one thing to haul it into the field, and other to buck and load and haul to the mill. But, I'm not making the comment to defeat your hispa, just being practical. 

[ahlkey]

I will use a local trucker to take the pulp to the mill.  The trucks will be able to pick up the loads around the entire 80 acre hay field as I stack it.  My approach is to cut, winch, buck, and stack on the field's edge which should help eliminate a lot of time transporting the logs to the roadside.    The trees for Aspen are larger than typical.  Time will tell how much I can get done in a week but my week will be a full seven days. My equipment is simple; 4X4 tractor, farmi winch, snatchblocks (many), and the metavic log loader (articulated trailer) with a 360 rotator grapple capable of lifting at 16 feet close to 2,000 lbs.   Maybe not be the best equipment but enought to get the job done and clear cutting should help increase production dramatically.   I will start cutting in two weeks so I will know soon enough how much can done per week.

[4genlgr]

The trucks will be able to pick up the loads around the entire 80 acre hay field as I stack it.

Please for the truckers sake don't make "little" piles around the edge of your field he will go nuts   have at least a load in each spot  alot of truck moving to load slows him down and you have the equipment to pickup the extra to move it to the next pile to keep things cleaned up    nobody gets paid until the wood gets to the mill   so   the better your wood is put up the easier and quicker the trucker can load   the sooner he's out of your yard and on to the mill and his next load.  i can tell you  if your not a regular for your trucker and your wood is neat, ready to load, without many moves he will be happier and more willing to work with you. i have been on both ends of this stick as a trucker and logger.

from a truckers mind   stay safe   

[Woodcarver]

Scanning through the thread I didn't see any mention of sawbolts.  Have you looked for a market for bolts in your area?  The aspen pulp I sold this spring brought $70.00 a cord at the mill.  The aspen sawbolts (100" sticks, 8" diameter on the small end) brought $110.00 a cord.



 

[Gary_C]

Scanning through the thread I didn't see any mention of sawbolts.  Have you looked for a market for bolts in your area?  The aspen pulp I sold this spring brought $70.00 a cord at the mill.  The aspen sawbolts (100" sticks, 8" diameter on the small end) brought $110.00 a cord.

That's a good question. Here in MN there is no market for bolts on Aspen and very little on anything else. But there is that Bessemer Plywood in the UP that used to buy Aspen bolts for good prices. Better check them out before you start cutting as they require longer lengths (104 inches I think) and they have tight specs on quality. Must have solid centers as they spin those logs.

Maybe you know of other markets?

[Woodcarver]

There are two or three small family owned sawmills in this area that buy aspen bolts. Probably too long a haul to be worthwhile.

How far north are you, ahlkey?  In the past I've sold bolts to a mill in the Wausau area.  I don't recall the name of the mill, but I could look it up if you are interested in contacting them.   

[1938farmall]

woodcarver,  i'm doing a mfl cut this month and would appreciate info on sawbolt buyers you mentioned.  please pm to my email.  thanks, ag

[chevytaHOE5674]

But there is that Bessemer Plywood in the UP that used to buy Aspen bolts for good prices. Better check them out before you start cutting as they require longer lengths (104 inches I think) and they have tight specs on quality. Must have solid centers as they spin those logs.

Maybe you know of other markets?

Best of luck getting bolts into Bessemer plywood, I know of a deck of logs that is/was destined to go there. Its still sitting and probably starting to rot. But maybe you could get lucky, its worth a shot. 

[beenthere]

Might just be that fresh logs have a better chance. Old logs that missed their chance, might not be worth much.
It is rough to figure out log purchasing from the sellers end.

[chevytaHOE5674]

Might just be that fresh logs have a better chance. Old logs that missed their chance, might not be worth much.

The logs were fresh at one time , but Bessemer plywood wasn't taking wood for a period of time, and when they took it was limited amounts (to the tune of single digit numbers of loads a day), so lots of wood went to waste. And last I heard (a week or so back) Bessemer plywood was taking wood on a VERY limited scale.

[Ron Scott]

Ditto! to all the above; some good comments made on production, marketing, and trucking. Watch for excessive "white rot" in any of the large old age aspen.

[ahlkey]

I had planned to cut the better sawlogs into lumber using my portable sawmill/kiln but the market is small and it is a tricky species to dry and condition correctly.    In any case, the issue at the moment is that I have more Aspen than I can use and finding alternatives to just a straight pulp sale is hard.  I would certainly be interested in the small pallet company near Amherst if the price was worth it.  Bessemer is the best option but they are specific in only taking the butt logs with a minimum of 9" inches on the small end and 103 inches in length.   I talked with them again today and they are willing to come down to take a look.  If after paying the trucking company I am better off than the local paper mills why not.  I am trying to finalize the route to go soon as a hard freeze is just around the corner.