Price per board foot to work.

[BaldBob]

For many years I was logging contract supervisor for a large timber company - supervised harvest of 45 - 60 Millionbf/yr. We had both hand fell and mechanical operation contractors ( and some that used both)l .  We never paid the mechanical operators more than the hand fell operators. A good feller/buncher operator can usually put 2-3 times the volume down that a hand faller can. Due to lower labor and workman's comp costs it was rare that the mechanized operation had higher falling costs than the hand felling - despite much higher equipment costs.  Even then the much lower skidding costs associated with feller/buncher operations more than made up for any difference in felling costs.
Of course this was all in conifers. I imagine the dynamics would be considerably different with hardwoods - especially large limbed species such as oak.

[bill m]

The mechanized crew, IF they care enough to try, can produce amazing amounts of wood in a short time...while mechandizing the whole tree (Usually) and leaving the tract looking like a park...virtually no rub trees, no destroyed regen.
Like I said, they get more for the work, but they produce so much more with less damage and waste that there's no comparing the two.

I disagree with this remark 100%. You should come look at the job I am on right now. No waste, No rub trees, no saplings bent over , and no destroyed regen. I work with a tractor, winch/grapple and forwarding trailer and I take great pride in doing a neat clean job. And I get paid very well for the quality work I do.

[LeeB]

had another job I did by the cup but they payed by the quart

did you ever get them to fork over any cash?

[timberfaller390]

Timberfaller- I under stand what your saying about operating costs. Naturally it costs more to operate a feller buncher than a chainsaw. When I can cut 2-4 thousand feet a day the depending on the skid, a feller buncher and grapple machine are putting out 10-12 thousand feet or more a day depending on the ground. So that crew will produce 3-4 times more meaning more production and more money for the day. Plus a feller buncher can cut on windy, nasty days, where a hand faller wouldn't attempt it.

I understand too (and agree) that a mechanized crew gives way more production. The original post asked how much it costs to cut skid and buck logs. That question covers a pretty broad spectrum. Not knowing anything about the type of job he was on or what kind of crew he was wanting to hire, I was just trying to illustrate that there is a big differance in operating costs between the two types of crews. It is impossible to give an approx. operating cost without knowing wht he was wanting to operate. Or maybe I just misread the original post.

[KyMasterLogger]

Timberfaller- I under stand what your saying about operating costs. Naturally it costs more to operate a feller buncher than a chainsaw. When I can cut 2-4 thousand feet a day the depending on the skid, a feller buncher and grapple machine are putting out 10-12 thousand feet or more a day depending on the ground. So that crew will produce 3-4 times more meaning more production and more money for the day. Plus a feller buncher can cut on windy, nasty days, where a hand faller wouldn't attempt it.

I understand too (and agree) that a mechanized crew gives way more production. The original post asked how much it costs to cut skid and buck logs. That question covers a pretty broad spectrum. Not knowing anything about the type of job he was on or what kind of crew he was wanting to hire, I was just trying to illustrate that there is a big differance in operating costs between the two types of crews. It is impossible to give an approx. operating cost without knowing wht he was wanting to operate. Or maybe I just misread the original post.

i believe you have misread the original post or i may have mistyped what im trying to find out. im wanting to know what guys are getting paid to harvest timber by the thousand and how that price breaks down to each task involved with the harvest . im not interested in expenses involved to get the job done. 

just for kicks, lets say i have 500,000 bd ft...how much would you charge me to cut, skid, buck and load onto a truck for?

[Jamie_C]

Timberfaller- I under stand what your saying about operating costs. Naturally it costs more to operate a feller buncher than a chainsaw. When I can cut 2-4 thousand feet a day the depending on the skid, a feller buncher and grapple machine are putting out 10-12 thousand feet or more a day depending on the ground. So that crew will produce 3-4 times more meaning more production and more money for the day. Plus a feller buncher can cut on windy, nasty days, where a hand faller wouldn't attempt it.

I understand too (and agree) that a mechanized crew gives way more production. The original post asked how much it costs to cut skid and buck logs. That question covers a pretty broad spectrum. Not knowing anything about the type of job he was on or what kind of crew he was wanting to hire, I was just trying to illustrate that there is a big differance in operating costs between the two types of crews. It is impossible to give an approx. operating cost without knowing wht he was wanting to operate. Or maybe I just misread the original post.

i believe you have misread the original post or i may have mistyped what im trying to find out. im wanting to know what guys are getting paid to harvest timber by the thousand and how that price breaks down to each task involved with the harvest . im not interested in expenses involved to get the job done. 

just for kicks, lets say i have 500,000 bd ft...how much would you charge me to cut, skid, buck and load onto a truck for?

Around here we are paid by the thousand based on mill scale/grade for hdwd sawlogs (between $125-$170/ Mfbm) and the rest hits the road for about $34/cd .... mechanized or conventional both get the same rate. Mind you our hdwd stands are nothing like yours ... we have trouble getting 20 cd/acre in a clear cut sometimes in pure hdwd.