Michael C

Is £160 not only a 'starting bid' though, which he probably has no intention of selling 6 m3 of logs for?

Its probably a good way of advertising that he has firewood for sale.

1hr 20 mins will tell a lot!

I agree totally with that. I just do not understand the people who process straight into their trucks as seasoned just because it has been felled for a year or so

Because it makes the job a lot easier. There is a guy not far me buys in a lot of spruce, stacks it (in a way that allows air go through it) in his yard and covers it with plastic sheeting. Its left for at least a year, and he processes it on delivery day. He claims its dry, but its hard to believe a 3m 14" log will be dry in the middle.

Still though, at least he is trying. Others do the same with an uncovered stack that was delivered to their yard a month earlier!

There have been several threads recently requesting a supply of cord. Are you all planning to process it and sell it this winter?, I assume thats what you have in mind but hardwood simply wont be dry enough for optimum results.

 

I have been processing stuff over the last few months that has been felled for between one and three years, the soft will be ok but the hard wont. I tested some Silver Birch, end grain of logs about 6%, in the center once cut and split was nearer 40%.

 

A

The same thought crossed my mind! (unless its going to be Kiln dried)

I have taken ash and sycamore out of my own forest in the past 2 months and it wont be going anywhere this winter.

Your test also confirms that timber will not dry until it is cut and split.

Exactly but dog and new tricks!

Would you be selling most of your wood unseasoned then?

I think its well worth paying extra for the peace of mind of knowing that you have a local dealer 'on your side' to repair breakdowns.

£80 wouldnt be long dissapperaring in downtime, lost wages etc while your saw is touring around in a DHL van. (not to mention courier costs).

And if you can get £4.50 for a net of seasoned logs, it would nearly make more sense to season them all rather than drop £2 a bag.

I would agree with what Windfall says above re the photo's etc, and also I think you should make it clear when describing the items for sale that it is softwood. I think a lot of people wont bother reading the 'FAQ' and may presume its hardwood...

If its faster to process, (and it should be - nice straight easy to handle lengths that wont be hard to crosscut or split) there should be a nice saving in both time and fuel costs, and I'd imagine it would also be less 'stressfull' on the processor.

From the point of view of buying in cord per ton, and end profit, is hardwood worth paying twice the price for?

Seems to me that softwood cord is half the price of hardwood cord, but the difference in price in what people are charging for a processed m3 of either doesnt seem that big.

HI michael whats the cost of this model mate it no very nice kindling all the best jon

Hi Jon, the tractor model appears to be £2995, dont see a price for the petrol model.

Welmac UK Ltd: New equipment in stock

WOOD:lol:

Sorry couldn't resist! I'm using off-cuts from local saw mill mostly

The petrol model looks efficient too.

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ytogT81EIvU]‪URBAN SM70‬‏ - YouTube[/ame]

I normally carry around 30-40 tonne of split logs and try to keep 75-125 tonne of cord in stock:blushing: realise what a small setup I must have compared to lads like you. Oh and running the Briquette machine and the

SM70 branch logger for my kindling(that machine is awsome a 20kg net of kindling in 5 minutes and the're going out at a tenner).

Thanks Phil

What are you using for the kindling?

If its as good as you say, its as new, and I would start by asking maybe £500 less than current new price. That way, it offers a good saving to a potential new buyer and you dont lose too badly on it.

Might well be worth talking to the dealer where you bought it, he may be able to get it away for you.

i want to delete this thread right now tbh, my reasons are the title, it is not a touchy subject, you have slagged off a girl who has just lost her life. You have branded her ' junkie ' and you didn't have the decency to call he by her first name.

So what is your actual arguement here?

This is an arborist forum with the added bonus of a few off topic areas for the regular members entertainment. 9 times out of 10 if there's a contentious thread running it will be in the lounge area. These are nearly always deleted, not because of your ridiculous suggestion of censorship but to keep the focus of this forum where it's meant to be...ARB!

 

I'm afraid we have a different opinion of what defines censorship

I for one dont believe that there is censorship of any kind here Steve, but the minute I read Stephens post above, it did strike me that he was threatening to delete a thread because he didnt share the opinion of the OP, not because it was against forum rules or non arb related etc.

thats true......but to say that a couple of pop stars are responsible for our childrens problems is way off the mark.

I dont think he was saying that, nor am I, but a LOT of teenagers see these singers (and their lifestyle) as 'cool'

this is not a thread i would normally get involved with like many others im used to the press reporting sensationalist rubbish with the only motivation to sell paper,

 

however after reading that the thread may or may not have been deleted on the basis of one persons opinion it reminds us of the power of media and censorship

 

kinda like a super mega rupert murdoch thing

 

imagine if he had a big red button!!

 

terry

I couldnt agree more tbh.

I read the following on another forum regarding her death, and I must admit, it made me think...

'Get rid of pete doherty of babyshambles as well and the kids of today might stand a chance'

Its what we do best in this country analyse, risk asess, method state, time and motion, Strike, delegate, work avoidance, the only thing we seem short on is getting stuck in. If you play with a calculator long enough you will talk yourself out of anything.

Or sometimes INTO anything.!!!

You cant burn ordinary house coal on a stove

 

A

I burn both coal and firewood in mine without any bother.

Pricing is a very simple exercise:

 

What your costs are = x

 

What you need to earn to make it worthwhile = y

 

Sales price = x + y

 

If x + y is uncompetitive then you either need to reduce costs to restore the worthwhile balance or go find something else to do with your time.

 

As the Meerkats say - shimples.

Thats exactly what I was trying (and failing!) to say.

What I have also been trying to say, is that it is very important that 'x' is fully inclusive of ALL costs associated with getting a M3 of firewood to the customers door..

to somebody solely selling firewood, figures may be attainable, probably wildely inaccurate thou, for people selling firewood as well as organising other staff, work etc etc spreadsheet figures arent worth the time of day!!!!!!!!

 

& as for those who talk a good race........ rarely seen at the finishing line first!!

 

i dont know many self-employed people who know how much they do earn per hour, most will know how much they charge per hour.

 

the two are very different!!

 

i may be wrong but overall profit is what i work towards, some weeks that may take thirty hours working, 12 hours on the phone, the following week will be different for sure!! maybe im doing it all wrong!!

I'm not suggesting spreadsheets or anything, and overall profit is of course what matters, but if e.g a firewood merchant doesnt take all costs into account, its not real profit!

Which might explain why some people are ultra cheap and others feel they need £140 per M3 to make it pay.

Can I ask if any of you guys really sit down to do a proper costing?

 

buy-in price or tons/hectare over capital cost land/management/interest of loan

Transport costs in/time/fuel/depreciation of vehicles

Rental value of storage/work space

Packaging costs/advertising/phones/time

Delivery costs incl deprecations and fuels

Banking costs/bad debts etc

Total time:profit ex vat

 

..to work out what you really earn per hour?

To be fair to pgkevet, I think what he was actually asking was how many firewood merchants work out their FULL costs or know how much profit (if any) they are actually making. Surely this is vital in any business?

I know there is at least one firewood seller on here that talks about how much an hour he makes selling firewood.

Ye probably ....aprox the same . I would be a bit peed if you were my supplier and i found those sites. Go with the web guys you are getting .2 m3 extra and its delivered. (the delivery is prob costing them supplier 30-60 quid).

 

I am in the scottish borders hardwood is selling for 40-90 pound per cube. I understand the price will be dependant on the area. However if you are in it for the long haul surely you have too take the online sellers into consideration. If you are in it for the quick buck the probably irrelevant until the sales dry up.

 

Someone already said dont be greedy, Thats what happened to the banks.

Kiln Dried Firewood Logs | Real Firewood Company

Not too where you are getting the 2.2 M3 from. They say themselves its a 2m3 crate and that it equates to '4 bulk bags'

The crate measurements will be external.

Can I ask if any of you guys really sit down to do a proper costing?

 

buy-in price or tons/hectare over capital cost land/management/interest of loan

Transport costs in/time/fuel/depreciation of vehicles

Rental value of storage/work space

Packaging costs/advertising/phones/time

Delivery costs incl deprecations and fuels

Banking costs/bad debts etc

Total time:profit ex vat

 

..to work out what you really earn per hour?

Very valid post.

Delivery to customer is alone a major cost, especially if you have a dedicated delivery vehicle.

Depreciation, servicing, repair, tyres, testing, tax, insurance all add up, never mind fuel.

Jesus you lot really need to get out more. Am i really going to spend all day playing scrap heap challenge building a tower too big for the available equipment.

 

Ill keep my questions to myself from now on.

Apologies, but you havent been very clear so far! I still cant see why you dont put the vented bag on skidsteer forks and process straight into it, either from processor or log splitter.