How Would You Start

[customsawyer]

Where are you located in GA.? North GA. is different from middle and southern GA. I don't think you have a bad idea but I would suggest you be a little more flexible. Most of the hardwood mills are now cutting pine and hardwood. There are lots of landowners that have smaller tracts of timber that they can't get cut. Mostly because the cost for the other guys to move all of their equipment, is more than the small amount of timber is worth. I get calls on a regular basis of folks wanting me to buy the timber off their 5 or 10 acres. How are you going to get the wood hauled to the mill? How are you going to load a log truck? We don't have many self loader trucks around here like they do up north.

[OddInTheForrest]

Interesting read this. Im in the middst of doing this myself, however, in a very different landscape. I live in rural Norway, and the market is very different. Most of what I take down for now, ends up beeing split into firewood and sold. 

But I enjoy this read !

Best regards
Odd
Norways Westcoast

[Ianab]

Most of what I take down for now, ends up beeing split into firewood and sold. 

That can still be a sound business model depending on your local markets.  Main trick is to sell the processed wood for more than it costs to produce. A couple of local businesses just buy reject / odd species logs (cheap) and process them into firewood.