stump grinder:to buy or not to buy

[THE88MAN]

weighing up the pros and cons of owning a stump grinder.maybe use one once a month(hired at 120 quid).would appreciate all experienced opinions,thinking if i had one in the armoury maybe could charge more/do a quicker and thorough job,but what about maintenance? another bit of kit to hump around? desirable to thieves? longevity and re-sale value? best model and place to buy? fill me in guys,thanks,steve

[arbormaster]

you could get a loan for a grinder repaying £120 a month and get a machine for the cost of your current hire rate. plus you will push to get more stumps if you have your own machine IMO

[THE88MAN]

ok,i obviously pass the 120 quid on to the customer at current hire rates,if you own the machine (or hp it)is the tendency to just add a few quid on per stump/hour,price the stumps seperately etc? suppose i'm asking will it just provide a service or make me a profit?

[arbormaster]

i would say make a profit mine pays for its self easily only have to do 1-2 stumps a month to pay for it

[treediver]

Wont make you much profit though all depends if you buy new/secondhand and obviously what size stumps your grinding. Expensive kit for 1 stump a month.

Probably cheaper to get someone else local with one than hire.

[THE88MAN]

thanks arbormaster,hired several now,last one was a hawk? honda engine,liked its juice but did the job ok,can you recommend a model/dealer?

[THE88MAN]

Wont make you much profit though all depends if you buy new/secondhand and obviously what size stumps your grinding. Expensive kit for 1 stump a month.

Probably cheaper to get someone else local with one than hire.

to be honest i try to recommend others and dont really want the job,just seem to get asked more these days so weighing up the odds

[Mesterh]

We used to hire a stumpy quite a bit but we found it a bit of a hassle ie time spent picking up dropping off the machine etc so ended up buying a second hand sc252 for about £5000

 

Its like most pieces of kit once you have it you find more work for it. It doesnt make a massive amount of money but it probably wins a few jobs since its a bit cheaper to grind the stump out if your felling the tree.

Once youve bought one, you will probably end up getting asked to do loads of stumps where you cant get access with the stumpy

[Tom D]

i bought a knackered "little david" which had a junk engine, it did'nt cost much to repair, it now has a 18hp v twin and goes very well, way better than most of the cheap hire machines. It has paid for itself many times over in the last 4 years but then it only cost me £1200 all in. If we get a massive stump then I contract it out to a friend who has a big carlton.

 

TBH if you can get one cheap then its a great idea, but don't spend loads especially in these economically uncertain times.

[arbormaster]

id get as gooder one as you can afford as they take a quite a beating i paid 14K for mine