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Pallet cost

Started by 4x4American, June 03, 2016, 05:33:31 PM

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4x4American

I found a company that is interested in buying hardwood pallets from me.  Today I went and took a look at other pallets they had to see what they like.  In total, one pallet, with sides, is approx. 31bdft of lumber.  I figure that from the time I start cutting the lumber to length, to the time I have a finished pallet, it'll take an hour.  (nailing by hand).  I have access to some flooring grade oak logs right now, that the logger wants 350/mbf for..so figuring that in and then paying myself, I figured $50.  But that sounds really high to me.  Then again, I'm not sure what a hardwood 42x54" pallet with two sides goes for, I could be too cheap, no idea!  He said they use approx 3,000 of them a year, usually buy a truck of 100 at a time, and they are a 10min drive from my sawmill.  What do you think?  Am I too high, too low, just right?
Boy, back in my day..

Bruno of NH

You don't want to nail them by hand .
Get your self a nail gun if you don't have power at the new mill yard buy a paslode gun .
Lt 40 wide with 38hp gas and command controls , F350 4x4 dump and lot of contracting tools

dustyhat

Is this a error, or did you type 50 dollars a pallet?  might be location but guys around here get around 10 dollars.

4x4American

No error, that's how I figured it.  These aren't featherweight pallets, they need to be able to hold up to 5,000lbs.  All 5/4 and 4/4 hardwood lumber. 

Bruno, no, I don't want to, but I need to!  Only thing I can think of easier would be to screw them together.  Maybe they'll last longer and be worth the extra pesos.  The scorpian screws at curtis aint too expensive. 
Boy, back in my day..

dustyhat

Ok, specialty pallets, yes you might be on to something.

4x4American

lol that's why I'm here, it sounded high to me, but for specialty pallets, idk if the guy is just gonna hang up the phone, order a truck load, or order 100 tt loads when I get back to him on the price...
Boy, back in my day..

Joe Hillmann

I have no idea how much they should cost but if you have 31 bdft of lumber plus an hour to assemble them then $50 appears to be low looking at it from your side.

4x4American

And I could very well be jipping myself.  Would it be unwise to ask the guy what he pays now?
Boy, back in my day..

4x4American

I have no idea how fast I can make one but I figure an hour to be safe.  Once I get some jigs made up I'm sure I can go faster.  But also need to figger, that, I don't have a shop set up.  This is all gonna be done outside.  Which means I need to setup and takedown every day.  Which means prolly another hour of time there.
Boy, back in my day..

Joe Hillmann

Check out this link to uline. http://www.uline.com/BL_718/Block-Pallet

A NEW 5500lb capacity 48x40 pallet for $55.

Bruno of NH

4x4 I use screws in the pallets I make . It's a good selling point when making specialty ones .
I started using screws on most things I build 6 or 7 years ago .
Lt 40 wide with 38hp gas and command controls , F350 4x4 dump and lot of contracting tools

4x4American

Joe thanks for the link.  That one is more expensive and it doesn't even have the two side racks. 

Bruno, I think that would be my cheapest way out right now is to screw them.  It could be a good selling point, I don't have to buy an air nailer, and I don't cost myself alot of time by nailing them.  And I agree that screwing is more better than nailing.  Especially if something breaks, then you can easily take it down to the piece that broke without breaking any more and fix it.
Boy, back in my day..

Lawg Dawg

It'd be my luck he's paying $100 each, and I'd price them at $50 and he'd order 10,000
2018  LT 40 Wide 999cc, 2019 t595 Bobcat track loader,
John Deere 4000, 2016 F150, Husky 268, 394xp, Shindiawa 591, 2 Railroad jacks, and a comealong. Woodmaster Planer, and a Skilsaw, bunch of Phillips head screwdrivers, and a pair of pliers!

100,000 bf club member
Pro Sawyer Network

Joe Hillmann

I'd like to point out you can buy a knock off framing nailer for $100.  Assuming you already have a compressor that could really speed up the building process.  If you don't have a compressor you can buy a pancake compressor for just about $100

rjwoelk

I bought a rechargeable nailer will nail 3.5 inch framing nails. Was good to do all the plywood on a 22x26 ft floor on one battery. . Very happy with it. Couple of batteries to keep you going.
With 2 guys you can do more than twice as much as one guy, which is a lot better that pallet is goi g to be heavy. I would make a couple just to try out first. The jig is a good idea.
Lt15 palax wood processor,3020 JD 7120 CIH 36x72 hay shed for workshop coop tractor with a duetz for power plant

4x4American

That don't sound bad but will the thing actually work?  I generally don't like cheap tools cause they cost ya more in the long run, like that husky air hammer I bought awhile back, it only lasted for one job!  Complete rip off!  Then ya gotta go buy a better one, which if you just bought it the first time, you'd be ahead what you spent on the first one! 

But things like di-grinders, buy the cheapest one you can get cause they're all built about the same and last about as long as each other.  A guy I know conducted a study on it, thats his conclusion at least lol
Boy, back in my day..

4x4American

Yes, my plan was to build one and then bring it to the guy and show him why he should buy my high quality product lol
Boy, back in my day..

sealark37

Air nailing will be cheaper and quicker than screws or hand nailing.  If you get the order, try to work yourself into 100 pallets ahead.  That will give you a cushion against the unseen.  Are you going to build pallets outdoors in the winter?  Good Luck, and Regards, Clark

4x4American

Quote from: sealark37 on June 03, 2016, 09:00:03 PM
Air nailing will be cheaper and quicker than screws or hand nailing.  If you get the order, try to work yourself into 100 pallets ahead.  That will give you a cushion against the unseen.  Are you going to build pallets outdoors in the winter?  Good Luck, and Regards, Clark


If there's work to be done I'll be out there doing it!  Not looking forward to the winter though, I'm in a valley, and there's a 35 mile long lake on the other side of the valley the wind never stops..gonna be brutal, unless I can get some sort of roof with 4 sides put up before then. 
Boy, back in my day..

WV Sawmiller

4X4,

    I am certain you can pick up the production rate by building the pallets en masse. You can cut your components for a reasonable number (25, 50, 100?) set up a building/assembly table or platform and turn them out pretty quickly once you get a system down pat.

    The bottom line is you need to determine what you can build these pallets for and make an acceptable profit. Once you do that present your offer to the client and see if they accept or come back with a counter offer. You might present your offer as different rates for different quantities as that would allow you to buy or rent better equipment, hire help, sub contract some phases of the work, etc. If you can nail for one price or use screws for another bid accordingly. The client may accept a higher bid if it gives them a better product.

    Warning - be sure your quote meets or exceeds the client's specification or your bid will likely be thrown out. Don't be afraid to bid on the specified pallet and also include additional proposals. Maybe they specify oak - be sure to bid on oak - but if you can provide maple or gum or other woods that may work just as well but be more readily available to you at a better price and the client may just never have thought about them. I often sat on bid review committees or did them myself and if the specified items was not quoted the bid went in the trash out of hand. Alternatives were appreciated and considered but only if accompanied by the specified item quote.

    It doesn't matter what other people can produce them for or if the client has paid higher prices to others. What matters is can you provide a quality product in the time required and make an acceptable profit margin.

   Don't paint yourself into a corner by entering into a contract that will cause you to lose money or be too stressful. Good luck.
Howard Green
WM LT35HDG25(2015) , 2011 4WD F150 Ford Lariat PU, Kawasaki 650 ATV, Stihl 440 Chainsaw, homemade logging arch (w/custom built rear log dolly), JD 750 w/4' wide Bushhog brand FEL

Dad always said "You can shear a sheep a bunch of times but you can only skin him once

AnthonyW

I'm just going to put this tid bit of info out there. I just finished building a retaining wall. The blocks came 4000 lbs per pallet. The pallet was completely of hardwood (probably oak) with four spars instead of the traditional three. The return fee per pallet was $30. I am thinking the pallets likely cost less than $30 each if that was all they charged for the return fee.
'97 Wood-Mizer LT25 All Manual with 15HP Kohler

killamplanes

Try to get in with the guy. But around hear 25 would get that pallet by the truckloads. We have a lot of pallet manufacturers that run with a couple percentage profit per day. its dog eat dog around here. And supplying the wood is break-even with just buying the log. very little meat on the bone. But maybe u can sneak in on a niche market. More power to u hope u make millions.   ;D
jd440 skidder, western star w/grapple,tk B-20 hyd, electric, stihl660,and 2X661. and other support Equipment, pallet manufacturing line

killamplanes

jd440 skidder, western star w/grapple,tk B-20 hyd, electric, stihl660,and 2X661. and other support Equipment, pallet manufacturing line

killamplanes

jd440 skidder, western star w/grapple,tk B-20 hyd, electric, stihl660,and 2X661. and other support Equipment, pallet manufacturing line

4x4American

Thanks for the good thoughts.  I know nothing about the pallet making industry, all I know is that there ain't much $ in sawing pallet stock.  Other than that, I have no idea how it goes.  The logger is dropping off a few white oak logs tomorrow for me to do a test run of making some pallets and I'm gonna see how it goes and keep track of things.  I posted on here because the way I wanted to check my figgering.  The guy wants pallets, idk why, if he can't get enough, if he doesn't like the quality of the ones he's currently getting, if he just wants a backup, I'm not sure.  I aim to find out.
Boy, back in my day..

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