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log prices and worth.

Started by paul case, November 23, 2010, 10:15:47 AM

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paul case

walnut logs are bringing a good price here.



these walnut logs were bought yesterday for $2350. the row to the right came from an oak logging job ,9 logs scaled 430' and paid $350. the ones on the left came off a creek bottom on my property,15 logs scaled 1309' and paid $2000.
 



all the logs you can see on my lot here are oak or hickory and if i paid $.25/bdft for them,which is the going price, they woud fetch $975.when sawed they will be worth about $2500 or more.
i have been doing some of those walnut jobs on the halves to pay for some oak logs.
what do you fellas do to get folks to bring you logs and how do you pay for them.it looks like for my 1 man operation it could take quite some time to build up enough equity to keep a log supply. just wondering.pc
life is too short to be too serious. (some idiot)
2013 LT40SHE25 and Riehl edger,  WM 94 LT40 hd E15. Cut my sawing ''teeth'' on an EZ Boardwalk
sawing oak.hickory,ERC,walnut and almost anything else that shows up.
Don't get phylosophical with me. you will loose me for sure.
pc

red oaks lumber

i buy truck loads from loggers and pay by check
the experts think i do things wrong
over 18 million b.f. processed and 7341 happy customers i disagree

Banjo picker

 



You bring them to yourself. ;)  Tim
Never explain, your friends don't need it, and your enemies won't believe you any way.

laffs

i  dont have enough room to put up more than 5 or 6 thousand ft at a time . so im screwed. other than that people bring their logs to me . i buy some from my nieghbor but like i said 5 or 6 thousand at a time. i  yarded 5ooo ft the other week and had 2 trucks pull in just after that had 1200 each, so i was maxed out.i  cant make any more room without haveing thousands of yards of fill hauled in.
timber harvester,tinberjack230,34hp kubota,job ace excavator carpenter tools up the yingyang,

captain_crunch

M-14 Belsaw circle mill,HD-11 Log Loader,TD-14 Crawler,TD-9 Crawler and Ford 2910 Loader Tractor

Brucer

Quote from: paul case on November 23, 2010, 10:15:47 AM
what do you fellas do to get folks to bring you logs and how do you pay for them.it looks like for my 1 man operation it could take quite some time to build up enough equity to keep a log supply.

I order mine from a reliable supplier. Logs get delivered, supplier sends an invoice, I pay by cheque the day I get the invoice.

I pay a lot more for my logs than my competitors pay. The logs are top quality and generate a lot less waste than "run of the woods" stuff. That means faster sawing time, less material to handle, fewer slabs to dispose of, and a better ratio of timber/lumber. In the end, I'm actually further ahead than guys who pay 20% less.

I couldn't have figured this out if I hadn't kept good records from the days when my main customer was buying (cheap) logs.

I usually have $8,000 - $12,000 worth of logs on site during the sawing season. I make sure I have enough cash at the start of the season to cover my overhead and buy in one load of logs. As the orders start to come in, (and get filled, and get paid for) I'll be generating enough cash to keep the log supply flowing.

Bruce    LT40HDG28 bandsaw
"Complex problems have simple, easy to understand wrong answers."

Kansas

We don't have any choice but to keep a large inventory on hand for two reasons. First one is, there aren't many loggers in the area and we need to get logs when we can. The second reason is the way our business has developed means we have to have them on hand so we can custom cut whatever our customers want on short notice. I bought 6 semi loads of oak logs awhile back to get the 30   20ft logs I needed. Also, a lot of the timber around here is surrounded by farmground, so you have to have enough to get through the growing season. I just bought another 40,000 feet of standing  bur oak, along with some other mixed hardwoods. I don't need it, but its 3 miles from the mill, and you just don't get those opportunities very often. I should be able to have that laid in somewhere around 27 cents straight through. I may try and resell some of the good butt logs to pay for some of it.
We always pay by check. We buy a fair amount at the gate from farmers and such during the winter. They expect it. Also,so many loggers have not gotten paid by mills that went broke that we can get the logs bought cheaper if they know they can get paid right away. Even if it costs us interest on a line of credit, it still works out to be worth it.

paul case

as for keeping records.........
well lets just say i am not the best there is, but i have a plan. when logs come to the mill i usually scale them before i unload them. i have learned to put the butts to the front of my truck and the small end sticks out the back. on the trailer i put them the other way around,little end to the front. as i scale them, i paint the bd ft on the end. cheap walmart spray paint works great. this way even if they set in the pile for months i still know that the log was purchased and for how much. this also helps me keep track of what i am doing. i can tell when the hit the mill how much i have to get out of them to make a profit on that log. its  hard  for me to write and scale at the same time,i wouldnt want to scale any twice ya know.i can keep track when i am writing them down after they have been scaled. if i mess up i can easily get it straightened out without scaling the whole load again. this saves a little labor and roughing the logs up again by only unloading them right into the pile. i realize this wouldnt work on trucks with double bunks and differnt length logs. when i buy logs from other folks who bring them to the mill i always tell them 1 length to bring and usually it shows up on a flatbed trailer and i can agree with them on price before unloading. never had anyone leave with their logs though cause i want good logs ya know. by the way when scaling on the truck i seldom have to bend over. and i still get to see both ends and some of the middle. i have bought 1 or 2 small logs with some wire in them that could have been seen on the ground but the seller gladly ''bought them back with his next load.
kansas,
my view is the same as yours but i am on a much smaller scale.i want those logs close to home and sometimes i have to sell some to a friendly mill to be able to buy the whole lot.even with the close to home jobs, i would rather the landowner get a logger to cut it and sell me the logs , but times havent been logger friendly lately and many who used to pull a lot of wood are now doing something else. because i am doing some logging myself i can get logs while some medium sized pallet mills around me are out of logs.
i always pay by check as well ,and i never dont offer to pay. a good understanding with people who bring me logs is the best policy. that understanding  is i want good logs and am willing to pay a fair price for them. 
pc
life is too short to be too serious. (some idiot)
2013 LT40SHE25 and Riehl edger,  WM 94 LT40 hd E15. Cut my sawing ''teeth'' on an EZ Boardwalk
sawing oak.hickory,ERC,walnut and almost anything else that shows up.
Don't get phylosophical with me. you will loose me for sure.
pc

Peter Drouin

Hi all, you're right about junk logs make junk lumber, but sometimes the logger wants you to buy straight run. The good the bad and ugly. Right now it's $300 a thousand,  if he's on good ground you can make out.. I always go and look first then the logger and I talk. Happy   Thanksgiving.  Pete 8) 8) 8)
A&P saw Mill LLC.
45' of Wood Mizer, cutting since 1987.
License NH softwood grader.

Peter Drouin

A&P saw Mill LLC.
45' of Wood Mizer, cutting since 1987.
License NH softwood grader.

sigidi

Down here we buy logs by the log cubic metre - the going rate is between $100-$150 for hardwood, then I have to pay for delivery to me on top. I don't buy softwood
Always willing to help - Allan

paul case

since youall brought it up and i am not sure if i said so
practically all the timber i have been buying and milling is hardwood. mostly oak and hickory. some erc , sycamore, elm and whatever else is good enough to make boards out of.  pc
life is too short to be too serious. (some idiot)
2013 LT40SHE25 and Riehl edger,  WM 94 LT40 hd E15. Cut my sawing ''teeth'' on an EZ Boardwalk
sawing oak.hickory,ERC,walnut and almost anything else that shows up.
Don't get phylosophical with me. you will loose me for sure.
pc

captain_crunch

The logs in pile in my pic would have brought between 350.00 and 425.00 per thousand at mill but was not a full load and rain made trucking them impossible so mill will eat em before bugs do ;D ;D
M-14 Belsaw circle mill,HD-11 Log Loader,TD-14 Crawler,TD-9 Crawler and Ford 2910 Loader Tractor

Magicman

I hope that your camera date is wrong.   :-\
Knothole Sawmill, LLC     '98 Wood-Mizer LT40SuperHydraulic   WM Million BF Club Member   WM Pro Sawyer Network

It's Weird being the Same Age as Old People

Never allow your "need" to make money to exceed your "desire" to provide quality service.....The Magicman

ely

i paid 350 a thousand for the last walnut i bought. im not sure what they are paying around here now for it.

update, i just called the local circular mill and he said he does not buy any walnut and pays 230 a thousand for everything else. thats pine, hardwood, etc. also no cedar.

paul case

mine brought almost $1.50 bd ft and they will pick them up.pc
life is too short to be too serious. (some idiot)
2013 LT40SHE25 and Riehl edger,  WM 94 LT40 hd E15. Cut my sawing ''teeth'' on an EZ Boardwalk
sawing oak.hickory,ERC,walnut and almost anything else that shows up.
Don't get phylosophical with me. you will loose me for sure.
pc

pyrocasto

Remind me to get into business with you!!! $150 a bd ft is a price I like!  8) :D

paul case

suprised me too. i lined up another walnut logging job right quick.  i had one i put off 2 or 3 years ago when the price fell off and the landowner is ready as i am to make a little extra cash.  pc
life is too short to be too serious. (some idiot)
2013 LT40SHE25 and Riehl edger,  WM 94 LT40 hd E15. Cut my sawing ''teeth'' on an EZ Boardwalk
sawing oak.hickory,ERC,walnut and almost anything else that shows up.
Don't get phylosophical with me. you will loose me for sure.
pc

captain_crunch

Magicman
I live in past ;D ;D ;D Forgot to update it beings batterys are going south on me ::) ::)
M-14 Belsaw circle mill,HD-11 Log Loader,TD-14 Crawler,TD-9 Crawler and Ford 2910 Loader Tractor

Kansas

Have a place I am getting the oak off of that is being logged now. Another guy is taking the walnut. His walnut buyer approached him and said they will start taking oak next week. Logs need to be clean on 3 sides, and 18" in diameter. Paying up to 1.00 board foot at the pile for the better ones. Quite a few of these should make it. I think I will let them go for that. I might be able to sell enough butt logs to pay for the whole job of oak. Normally I use those to get good long logs for trailer decking, but we have a good supply of those now.

paul case

it is a given that on the doyle scale you get more bdft on an18'' log but for $1 a foot i would let them go too. in our woods there would be twice as many that wouldnt make3 clean sides and butt logs so there would be plenty to bring home. when i talked to the outfit that buys grade lumber last week fas was down to$.80 and 2 common was cheaper than pallet lumber price.

i would sell some for $1 bd ft in the log given the chance.  pc
life is too short to be too serious. (some idiot)
2013 LT40SHE25 and Riehl edger,  WM 94 LT40 hd E15. Cut my sawing ''teeth'' on an EZ Boardwalk
sawing oak.hickory,ERC,walnut and almost anything else that shows up.
Don't get phylosophical with me. you will loose me for sure.
pc

paul case

tim ,
i bring quite  few logs to myself too.



and those numbers painted on the ends of logs are pretty handy. pc

life is too short to be too serious. (some idiot)
2013 LT40SHE25 and Riehl edger,  WM 94 LT40 hd E15. Cut my sawing ''teeth'' on an EZ Boardwalk
sawing oak.hickory,ERC,walnut and almost anything else that shows up.
Don't get phylosophical with me. you will loose me for sure.
pc

Banjo picker

When I was running the mill full time I used different color paint on the ends to tell which logger had brough which logs sometimes thats helpfull....Tim
Never explain, your friends don't need it, and your enemies won't believe you any way.

ely

i do that too, tim. only i tell the guys to bring their own paint.

logboy

I'm curious what people are paying for log prices in our current economy.  All but a couple commercial mills in my area have gone under and I know red oak is in the toilet in terms of price.  I want to get a few prices before I buy anything from the local loggers.  Pine, oaks, ash, maple, low grade, pallet grade, higher grades, etc.
I like Lucas Mills and big wood.  www.logboy.com

paul case

I still would pay $.25 for any good logs brought to my mill. I havent had anyone bring me logs since July. When I have to go cut them I only  pay $.10 bdft. PC
life is too short to be too serious. (some idiot)
2013 LT40SHE25 and Riehl edger,  WM 94 LT40 hd E15. Cut my sawing ''teeth'' on an EZ Boardwalk
sawing oak.hickory,ERC,walnut and almost anything else that shows up.
Don't get phylosophical with me. you will loose me for sure.
pc

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