Small scale timber extraction

[Andy Collins]

Luftwaffe, I hear where you are coming from re quad use. But they'd have their place, like having a smaller saw to compliment a large one. I have used quads where tractors simply can't get to, where harvesters just simply are not viable and their time is better spent elsewhere on site. It's literally horses for courses, each machine does a job, but doesn't do every job

[luftwaffe]

Luftwaffe, I hear where you are coming from re quad use. But they'd have their place, like having a smaller saw to compliment a large one. I have used quads where tractors simply can't get to, where harvesters just simply are not viable and their time is better spent elsewhere on site. It's literally horses for courses, each machine does a job, but doesn't do every job

 

Andy hi, If we can't get the county's in a wood because they are to big, then that job i call an amenity wood where piece work is not possible owing to the jobs small scale. then as you know that is a different ball game from production felling.

[northumbriaforestry]

Andy hi, If we can't get the county's in a wood because they are to big, then that job i call an amenity wood where piece work is not possible owing to the jobs small scale. then as you know that is a different ball game from production felling.

 

Now you've seen the bigger bigger picture.

[luftwaffe]

 

Now you've seen the bigger bigger picture.

 

For me these sort of jobs rarely come around, mainly because there is no money in it for the woodland owner, if i suggest they will have to pay me for doing the job, they look at me as if i'm growing hornes on the side of my head, most of them are only interested if i'm going to pay them, otherwise they will just leave the trees where they are, or get someone else.

[northumbriaforestry]

It's a big industry & more varied than some folk realise. There's space for lots of different outfits working lots of different jobs. It sounds like your business concentrates primarily on large loads of timber in short spaces of time. We on other hand do allot of woodland restoration & low impact thinning. So having small gear with a tiny footprint at our disposal as well means that we can carry out this work to the very best standards. For a clear fell or heavy thin we'd take a tractor & bigger trailer, but as I've suggested it's not always what's required.

 

The other thing I find myself considering is that not everyone has the need or indeed the money to invest in big gear. If a pedal bike towing a homemade trailer to shift a few branches cut with a pruning saw back from a local wood is all they need, haven't they shown great wisdom by not going mad with an rdpe grant & a copy of the forestry journal.

 

This website, is not exclusive, it is as far as I'm aware open to all to join. Full time, part time, home use only, small business or big business. Stick collectors, horse loggers, quad loggers, heavy plant users, harvesters & timber merchants should I believe be able to respect one anothers methods & the areas within which they work.

 

And above all, this thread is entitled small scale timber extraction.

Am I ranting, it's a bit early for a rant, my apologies.

[Chris Sheppard]

Fair enough, but by modern standards the county tractor is not that big these days, it was 30 years ago. how do manage in bigger timber? or steep uphill exraction in difficult terrain where you want some power.

 

By calling in someone with bigger gear to deal with that job or that part of it.

 

The kit we currently run is probably the bigger end of compact and works well on the right sites and even on not so ideal sites it doen't do too badly. We've been running the same extraction route with the forwarder for months and can hardly even see where we've been with it, even over the last few weeks - Big machine would have left huge ruts by now.

 

We tend to get jobs that are either too small a site to justify hauling a bigger machine, or sites where access with a big machine wouldn't be easy without cutting big racks in etc. That said though, the last job we're on should be getting on for 7-800 tonne by the end of it - all forwarded out with the trailer in my avatar.

[skyhuck]

Not wishing to have a go as it were, but using these small machines etc smacks of just "playing at it", For me its far better to have a couple of hard working county's and 2 lads on the saws, between the 3 of us i'd be looking to cut 150t per week, is this acheiveable with using quad bikes etc,? Is it sustainable to consistantly use small machines like these to base running a business around?

 

A Little Story

 

The businessman was at the pier of a small coastal Mexican village when a small boat with just one fisherman docked. Inside the small boat were several large yellowfin tuna. The businessman complimented the Mexican on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took to catch them. The Mexican replied only a little while.

 

The businessman then asked why he didn't stay out longer and catch more fish? The Mexican said he had enough to support his family's immediate needs. The businessman then asked, but what do you do with the rest of your time? The Mexican fisherman said, "I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, take a siesta with my wife, Maria, stroll into the village each evening where I sip wine and play guitar with my amigos; I have a full and busy life, señor."

 

 

 

 

 

The businessman scoffed, "I am a Harvard MBA and I could help you. You should spend more time fishing and with the proceeds buy a bigger boat. With the proceeds from the bigger boat you could buy several boats; eventually you would have a fleet of fishing boats. Instead of selling your catch to a middleman, you would sell directly to the processor and eventually open your own cannery. You would control the product, processing and distribution. You would need to leave this small coastal fishing village and move to Mexico City, then LA and eventually New York City where you would run your expanding enterprise."

 

 

 

 

The Mexican fisherman asked, "But señor, how long will this all take?" To which the businessman replied, "15-20 years." "But what then, señor?" The businessman laughed and said, "That's the best part! When the time is right you would announce an IPO and sell your company stock to the public and become very rich. You would make millions." "Millions, señor? Then what?" The businessman said, "Then you would retire. Move to a small coastal fishing village where you would sleep late, fish a little, play with your kids, take a siesta with your wife, stroll to the village in the evenings where you could sip wine and play your guitar with your amigos."

 

The fisherman, still smiling, looked up and said, "Isn't that what I'm doing right now?"

 

-Author Unknown

[luftwaffe]

A Little Story

 

The businessman was at the pier of a small coastal Mexican village when a small boat with just one fisherman docked. Inside the small boat were several large yellowfin tuna. The businessman complimented the Mexican on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took to catch them. The Mexican replied only a little while.

 

The businessman then asked why he didn't stay out longer and catch more fish? The Mexican said he had enough to support his family's immediate needs. The businessman then asked, but what do you do with the rest of your time? The Mexican fisherman said, "I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, take a siesta with my wife, Maria, stroll into the village each evening where I sip wine and play guitar with my amigos; I have a full and busy life, señor."

 

 

 

 

 

The businessman scoffed, "I am a Harvard MBA and I could help you. You should spend more time fishing and with the proceeds buy a bigger boat. With the proceeds from the bigger boat you could buy several boats; eventually you would have a fleet of fishing boats. Instead of selling your catch to a middleman, you would sell directly to the processor and eventually open your own cannery. You would control the product, processing and distribution. You would need to leave this small coastal fishing village and move to Mexico City, then LA and eventually New York City where you would run your expanding enterprise."

 

 

 

 

The Mexican fisherman asked, "But señor, how long will this all take?" To which the businessman replied, "15-20 years." "But what then, señor?" The businessman laughed and said, "That's the best part! When the time is right you would announce an IPO and sell your company stock to the public and become very rich. You would make millions." "Millions, señor? Then what?" The businessman said, "Then you would retire. Move to a small coastal fishing village where you would sleep late, fish a little, play with your kids, take a siesta with your wife, stroll to the village in the evenings where you could sip wine and play your guitar with your amigos."

 

The fisherman, still smiling, looked up and said, "Isn't that what I'm doing right now?"

 

-Author Unknown

 

Stuff that, don't like fish, wine, or guitar's for that matter,

 

Get that timber out as fast as you can, thats the name of the game,

 

Its with this very attitude in the story above, that some counties in europe find themselves in need of the odd bailout here and there,

 

Luftwaffe........ wiping the sweat from his brow!!!

[Hodge]

Good one Huck:) great analogy .

[skyhuck]

 

 

Its with this very attitude in the story above, that some counties in europe find themselves in need of the odd bailout here and there,

 

Luftwaffe........ wiping the sweat from his brow!!!

 

You are totally wrong!!!

 

Its them taking the businessman's advice and borrowing to do it thats caused them the problems!!!!!