Big J

I have been selling the kiln dried boards from a couple of cedar logs at a fairly steady rate at £24 a cubic foot. I payed £60 a tonne for it in the round, roadside. That is about £2.20 a cubic foot. Your lump is more or less exactly 100 hoppus foot, so by that reckoning (assuming atlas cedar is as nice as deodar), I'd pay £220 for it.

Other work - no one cuts high value hardwoods outside of winter on the continent.

Quite a lot of it is down to the quality and characteristics of the log. A very good log is less likely to check, but then do you really want to take the risk? I'm not milling anything at the moment that I really care about. I certainly wouldn't mill any oak until November, and other species need to be treated with caution. It's damned frustrating, but you are running a very high risk of just chucking money down the drain. Jonathan

When I got my new trailer a few months ago, I was well advised that whilst many of the trailer manufacturers are very good, an Ifor Williams will depreciate the least so is therefor the best investment.

Pity the poor sawmillers - we can't cut anything of any value at the moment as it will just get destroyed by the hot dry air!

Should I ever get a Unimog, I will have to get a copy of that folder of yours - sounds like it's worth it's weight in gold!

It does yes, though is likely to break down long before that!

I would argue that sawmilling on site is an extension of forestry. I would be prepared to argue that with any VOSA official. Thanks for all the info - lots to read through!

One man's bleak is another's serenely, austerely beautiful. Don't get me wrong, I love most parts of the Highlands, only that there is no where else in Europe like Sutherland. I would avoid the Islands if this is your first trip. Calmac (who operate the ferries) have a 'Think of a price and double it' approach to their fares. I've not personally been to many for that reason. Arran is lovely, but somewhere I'd recommend once you've been to a few other places. Mull is OK, though I wasn't overly impressed. Ullapool really is the place to be though. The Summer Isles are stunning, the mountains are unreal and Ullapool itself is charming. Here is me sat on top of Stac Pollaidh with views looking north towards Lochinver and Suilven: Suilven from Lochinver on another trip: Me going for a swim (at Easter!) at Ceannebeinne: The Summer Isles (not looking too summery!): Let me know if you want any more pointers.

Go further north. The Highlands south of the Great Glen are fine, but the north west coast is where it's at for truely spectacular scenery. Get yourself to Ullapool and follow the coast all the way around to Tongue and head south again. The 'Insel' (island) mountains of Assynt are the finest in the UK (Suilven is my favourite Scottish mountain). The beaches are also second to none, the finest being Ceannabeinne 3 miles east of Durness. If you are going to come all the way up here, you might as well see the best bits!

That is one train of thought that has crossed my mind certainly. There are several ag-spec Unimogs that I know of locally, so legal issues regarding the axles are avoided. Perhaps the best conclusion would be to see how the mobile work picks up with this mill and then consider a suitable tow vehicle.

It's mainly as so much has to come off the length to make it legal here - we're talking 3m. It would have meant completely redesigning the sawmill, meaning a huge increase in cost and a compromise of the mill itself. I don't have a problem with driving a larger vehicle - I wouldn't want to tow something of that size with the Navara, and the extra width of a larger tow vehicle would protect the head rig.

As much as I'd love a G-wagen, it wouldn't be worth it as it still wouldn't be legal.

One of the reasons for wanting something like a Unimog is that it is very wide. I would put hi-viz strips on the head rig. Regarding the logs rolling off, there are lots of manual clamps in addition to the hydraulic one. Better to have it rolling into the clamp than the back stop as the log rolling into the back stops on the Woodmizer always knocks them off square. Josh - I guess it's the running costs that do it. Red diesel, no MOT or Tax, no O licence or all the hassle.

Fair point. You are forgetting though that I will invariably be stranded roadside in the (terminally unreliable) Navara, which is going to put me in a more vulnerable position with regards to legalities!

It has brakes. American ones though, not the standard hydraulic actuated cable drum brakes that are commonly used here.

You mean this one: Chevrolete GMC vandura pickup 5th wheel | eBay So what is the law regarding towing a fifth wheel trailer?

Beautiful views - whereabouts are you?

Because I hate the fact that Woodmizer have the monopoly on sawmills here. They aren't the best, they aren't the toughest, they aren't the most versatile, but they are the most expensive for what you get. A similarly specced machine from Woodmizer would have cost £35k, and it would have still had the stupid single mast system that creates a massive amount of headaches. Additionally, Woodmizer UK don't seem interested in supporting their customers, the parts are incredibly expensive as well as often not in stock, and should you want a Woodmizer mechanic to look at your mill, it's £50 an hour. The machines are so complicated that if you don't have the time and expertise yourself, this is often the only option. What I wanted was a simple, robust mill. No electronics, no electric motors, all hydraulic, all standard parts, twin rail, 4 post head. My option in the UK was Timberking, but they are new into the country and their sawmills aren't legal to tow either. Additionally, I have heard of some issues with build quality. I went with the Logmaster because they are heavier and bigger than all the others. Mobile sawmilling is always a compromise, and I figured the issues with this mill were worth it. I've spent many months trying to figure out the best towing options, and Unimog seems to be ideal. It wouldn't be very often than I need to go out with it, but mobile work is pretty lucrative and needs to be done. Would simply hiring someone else to deliver it to site be the easiest thing to do? Shortening the bed isn't an option. I discussed it at huge length with the manufacturer, and they were of the opinion that it would create too many issues. If they think it can't be done well, I will defer to their experience and better judgement.

Can't put a fold in the bed - we did explore that option.

Because of a few issues: * Overall train length cannot exceed 18m. The choice of 7.5t vehicles that are less than 6.6m overall length is limited. * Would need to sit C1+E licence - that is a week of lost earnings and about a £1000 for the course and test. * Need O licence - several hundred pounds as I understand it * Need MOT * Need Tax * Need regular VOSA inspections, as well as documented 12 weekly servicing (as I understand it) * No 4WD, and the short wheel base of the Unimog is appealing. * Potential to mount crane on Unimog to assist with sawmill loading when out on contract. I did start with a Mercedes Vario 814d in mind, but the advantages of a Unimog started to stack up. I am open to any suggestion that gets me out on the road with my mill economically.

My new Logmaster LM2 comes next month (final tests are being conducted at the moment) and I need to sort out the towing so that I can do mobile work. I will have the biggest mobile mill on the road in Scotland, and want to take advantage of that. This is the mill in question: Log Master It is 11.4m long, 2.55m wide, 3.3m tall and weighs 2.8 tonnes. It is therefor too long to tow on a 3.5 tonne licence. The logical position is to get a ag-registered Unimog. I understand that 100km from base is allowed, but am aware that many travel further. Is this another area of the law that is as clear as mud? Additionally, the trailer is not legal for general towing in the UK as the brakes are US hydraulic surge type with manual engagement for reversing (slip a pin in or it locks the wheels). This is obviously a no no for normal vehicles towing, but a brief read into agricultural towing law doesn't say anything about trailer brakes. Given that it only weighs 2.8 tonnes, as I understand it, it doesn't even need brakes. This is desperately confusing to someone who has only got a B+E licence and hasn't operated anything else. Any clarification would be hugely appreciated. Whilst a Unimog is obviously an expensive vehicle to buy and operate, it means no O licence, no C1+E licence, no tacho, no MOT, no Tax, no 6 weekly VOSA checks, no 12 weekly service intervals and hopefully no trailer alterations. Jonathan

Leyland DAF 4wheel Drive Unimog Fastrac Timber Forwarder | eBay Oh, if only I had the money. One very useful vehicle!

What kind of quality are the larger sticks? Autumn would suit for me.

I'll grab some on the way to work. It was the largest oak on the estate at the time of it's felling, but it had to go as it had a reasonable lean over one of the drives and only 3 inches of sound wood holding it!