How do you tally your board-footage?

[Dave Shepard]

I'm interested to know how people are tallying their footage around the mill. Footage log scale, actual board tally, "block" tally? I haven't had to worry about the tally of the lumber I saw, but I'd like to start tracking it for a couple of different reasons.

[arj]

I use actual borad feet I cut. Have a pad and write down what I`ve cut after
each log, and enter into spread sheet that calulates bt.ft. and totals for the
year. I also use exact size and length (1 1/4 X 6 3\4 ) I charge for what I
cut not what the log scales.
                                                         arj

[Dan_Shade]

i saw a lot of random width stuff.  I can't keep up with keeping track of individual logs or individual boards.

I scale the log, using international 1/4 scale

[arj]

I only scale & tally as I saw, only takes a couple of minutes. Of corse I have a
manuel mill, and can use the rest. You are losing up to 30% just scaling the logs.
                           arj

[Dan_Shade]

How do you guys that tally by board keep up with it?  board by board?  log by log?  or at the end of the day?

and how many bf do you process in a day?

[Tom]

I depended upon the off-bearer to stack the lumber in like stacks.  I counted it at the end of the day.  It usually took about 10-15 minutes to count and tally.  It was also time we used to unwind.  The customer was almost always very helpful and would hold the end of the tape on the other end of the stacks.

I also found that it instilled a bit of trust and ownership when the customer helped.  Sometimes there would be two or more and all I had to do was write down totals.   You find that you pretty much know what you have cut even before counting. 

[Magicman]

I count at the end of the day.  How many of each size board, BF for each, and then total BF for the day.  I use a different color crayon each day to mark the boards counted.  If the customer counts the boards....then good.  I never question or re-count his total.

For random width boards and all cedar, it's hourly rate.

The customer would hold the end of the tape on the other end of the stacks.........I also found that it instilled a bit of trust and ownership when the customer helped. 

I agree 100%

[ellmoe]

   Strickly for my own use I use the log scale, International 1/4". Historically, logs 12" dia. and under we yield 25% overrun. On logs over 12" I use the straight scale. This gives me a pretty good production estimate. I'f we're custom sawing ,we stack like boards together, count at the end of the day, and do minimal consolidation into bundles.

Mark

[backwoods sawyer]

The customer would hold the end of the tape on the other end of the stacks.........I also found that it instilled a bit of trust and ownership when the customer helped. 

I agree 100% as well
I tally at the end of the day. I keep like sizes together and then measure the stack. And write the bft on each stack and total them up. As for length, I round down to the nearest foot. Length x width x thickness / 12 = bft
I let my customers know that I do consider a 10' 2"x6" to be 10 bft feet like the lumber stores do, to me a 2"x6" is measured as the size milled. So a standard size green Doug fir 2"x 6" is really only 7.83 bft. It may not seem like much until you add up a couple thousand bft. then they are getting a savings of 434 bft which is $130.00.

[Brucer]

I saw timbers to order. All the side lumber is 1x4, 1x6, or 1x8.

I keep my cut list(s) stuck to the side of the mill with magnets. I tick off the timbers as I saw them. At the end of the day I calculate the BF of the timbers I cut and tally the 1x for the day.

Even when I charge by the hour, I estimate my BF sawn each day and record it.

The numbers let me keep tabs on my production, which in turn allows me to estimate how long a job will take.

Board feet are calculated according to the National Lumber Grades Authority, which gives an operational definition for calculating board feet of softwood: nominal thickness (round up to the nearest inch) x nominal width (round up to the nearest inch) x length rounded down to the nearest foot.

[Kansas]

If we are custom cutting, we measure each layer as we stack, wether we are stickering to go in the kiln, or dead stacking if they are taking it green. That's a smaller portion of our business. For everything else, we tag the logs coming in, measuring on the Doyle scale. That is entered into an Excel spread sheet. Every log that is cut is recorded, and deducted off that sheet. In my computer accounting program,  every log we buy is entered into inventory on the Doyle scale. When lumber is sold, it comes back out of inventory based on board footage. Periodically, we can inventory the tagged logs and make appropriate adjustments in the computer to accurately reflect the true inventory.

[bandmiller2]

We stack and stick in 4' wide lifts easy to tally as you go along or at the end of the day.When we cut for ourselves or for stock we don't worry about it, tally when we sell.Frank C.

[Chuck White]

We do exactly as the majority here does!
We stack all like sizes in piles, therefore each pile of boards will be a different size.
At the end of the day, we count the boards and look at the scale for each size board and that gives us the board footage of each piece and multiply that times the number of boards and that gives us the total board footage sawed!

[Ron Wenrich]

My cutting is considered as subcontracting work, and I get paid for what I do, no the the time I spend.  So, I've kept counts of my production for a lot of years.  I don't have time to tally or count logs.  I'm also doing a lot more production in a day, so individual board count is out.

I do a layer count for the boards.  Our standard bundle is 42", and we put all our bundles 30 layers high.  We also separate our lumber by length, so a standard layer count will give me a fairly close estimate of the lumber.  For blocking, its just a simple piece count.  We also have standard sizes for those bundles.

Since its a continuous operation, I count lumber each night.  My daily production is the night time count + what was taken out of the mill during the day - previous night count.

I have also counted lumber during production.  Its a little easier since usually all the logs are the same length.  I just add up each board in my head as I go.  You get pretty good in knowing how many board feet are in each board that you're pulling.  You can write down after each log, or you can tally each 100 bf.  

[Larry]

I like to tally in layers but sometimes it's more trouble than it's worth when every log is a different length.  To many piles and too many steps for the off bearer (mostly me).

When I went to the NHLA grading short course they taught surface measure and fractions.  Took me a bit to catch on.  After a few thousand boards of doing the math in my head the answer started coming automatically...no math required.  Makes it easy to run a tally sheet.  Used to be a full time sawyer down the road that could keep the tally in his head and only had to mark it down after each log.  He rarely needed to use his tape either.  Bet there is a few here that do it that way also.

[DR Buck]

When they're off-bear'd, have them stacked by length.   At the end of the day I measure each stack.


Length (in) x Width (in) x height (in) ÷ 144  =  Total Board Ft

I've been doing it this way for over 5 years without a single complaint from the customers.   I usually fudge the count a little in their favor or throw in a smaller stack of odd size at no cost to them.   ;D

[scsmith42]

When they're off-bear'd, have them stacked by length.   At the end of the day I measure each stack.


Length (in) x Width (in) x height (in) ÷ 144  =  Total Board Ft

I've been doing it this way for over 5 years without a single complaint from the customers.   I usually fudge the count a little in their favor or throw in a smaller stack of odd size at no cost to them.   ;D

When I am sawing by the bd ft, this is how I do it as well.  If I tally it after it's loaded in the kiln, I do the same thing and then subtract the total thickness of the stickers from the height.

[ErikC]

   I count the boards for each log and write them as I go, and mark the ends with a lumber crayon so I can remember where I was In the pile. It is just a few seconds per log, and no counting at the end of the day. I go over the tally with the customer at the end of the day, and there is a detailed receipt at the end of the job. I have noticed people don't really know or sometimes even care what it all means, as long as you seem to know and you keep them informed. Almost every break when I see them, I say "well we're up to so and so board feet now", and since they see me counting as we go, they take my word on it.

[Dave Shepard]

DR_B and scsmith, you are both doing what I call "block" tally. Actual volume of sawn wood. Is there any way that can come back to bit you? I was block tallying the cherry I was cutting last summer. After it was graded, the board footage was much less, as the boards were a heavy 4/4 (1 3/16"). The grader was obviously using surface measure. It was all of our own wood, so actual volume sawn wasn't really important, however we did want an accurate tally of what went to the kilns. What would be the best way to tally for a custom sawing client? Thanks for all of the input.

[kelLOGg]

I probaby will get the lazy and best under-estimate award for my method. I measure the small end of the log in inches, multiply by the length in feet and divide by 24. Comes out in board feet - it ignores the kerf and the stuff I cut from the slabs - but still a boon to the customer. Of course I don't make a living sawing and I don't saw a lot for others.
Bob

[Dan_Shade]

wow...

a 15" dia small end 10' log scales 95 BF International, and 76 Doyle.  your method shows 6 BF!

[kelLOGg]

wow...

a 15" dia small end 10' log scales 95 BF International, and 76 Doyle.  your method shows 6 BF!

oops I left out a step.  >:(Square the diameter, so 15^2=225 x 10 / 24 = ~94. Thanks for catching that. Customer still comes out quite ahead when I cut the slabs.

Bob

[DR Buck]

I probaby will get the lazy and best under-estimate award for my method. I measure the small end of the log in inches, multiply by the length in feet and divide by 24. Comes out in board feet - it ignores the kerf and the stuff I cut from the slabs - but still a boon to the customer. Of course I don't make a living sawing and I don't saw a lot for others.
Bob

This comes out that you're shorting the customer on small logs.   10" log 10' long scales at 35 bf.  You method is  41 bf.   

[Dan_Shade]

where did you find that formula?  it looks pretty slick (and easy)

it's high on the small diameters, and shy on the large diameters, but probably close enough for many jobs.

[scsmith42]

DR_B and scsmith, you are both doing what I call "block" tally. Actual volume of sawn wood. Is there any way that can come back to bit you? I was block tallying the cherry I was cutting last summer. After it was graded, the board footage was much less, as the boards were a heavy 4/4 (1 3/16"). The grader was obviously using surface measure. It was all of our own wood, so actual volume sawn wasn't really important, however we did want an accurate tally of what went to the kilns. What would be the best way to tally for a custom sawing client? Thanks for all of the input.

Dave, if I've been sawing something other than 4/4, rather than measuring the height I'll count the layers instead, and multiply them times the square feet per layer.

Thus, a 4' x 8' stack will be 32 bd ft / layer if it's 4/4.

Times 1.25 if it's 5/4, or 40 bd ft / layer.


times however many layers I have.  This is also what I base my kiln measurements on.

I'm getting to the point where I only want to load FAS or better lumber in the kiln, which means that I have to acquire the best logs possible.  It doesn't make financial sense to spend all of the time and costs to dry poor quality wood.