Daily price of wear and tear, chains, fuel etc for contract milling?

[flatyre]

Hey folks I do a bit of hobby milling but have been asked to do some contract milling for a local firm, maybe two or three days a week for a while to sort out a back log. I'll need to buy a decent quality Alaskan mill, 48" bar and chains to fit an 075. Firstly are there any good quality mills out there other than Granberg? Also would tig welding some extra bracing to counteract the stresses of a winch warp the mill frame? What would a suitable mill/bar/chains kit cost roughly? and as per the title, how much should I add onto my daily rate to cover overheads? thanks J

[Stephen Blair]

Also consider your body! Milling is brutal ! Sore back, sore hands ( winch will make it better I'm sure)
You are going to break stuff for sure.
Last milling job I did with the 2 ,088's I used 3 cans of Aspen for 8 cuts on a hard as hell big Butan Pine.
I'd add £100 onto you normal tree cutting rate .

[billpierce]

Do you really need 48''? Quite a bit cheaper at 36. Check out chainsawbars.co.uk if you haven't yet. 100quid on top of normal day rate sounds right to me.

[flatyre]

thanks folks, I've already given my daily rate and its fairly low so I don't burn myself out, hey Bill hows things?, the customer has some big lumps of timber and i'm a firm believer in the old "better looking at it than for it" saying. would pulling a 48 incher through 36 inch timber be more expensive than having to say "I can't mill that bit cos I don't have a big enough bar"? A 36" bar is pretty big but once you loose an inch either end on the mill and have to start your cut wondering if you've got the length to make the pass? Just don't want to scrap good timber because I wasn't properly kitted out.

[Rough Hewn]

Get a big GB or canon bar from Rob D.
Has to have a sprocket end.
You will lose 6" approx with an Alaskan set up correctly.
Bars are about £300 ish and chains retail about £70.
Also milling is hard on your machine, fuel,oil, etc.
The 075 is a strong saw but you will need to use the manual oiler on 48" bar.
(Get an auxiliary oiler from rob d).
I charge upwards of £425
Per 8hr day with two people. Bio degradable chain oil and motomix.
Many saws, mills etc.