Big Timber on Netflix

[nybhh]

Anyone seen it yet?  Caught the first episode the other night.  Fairly typical for the logging reality shows but one of the "stars" runs a large mill and that operation got a lot more coverage than the other shows with more discussion of grade, clear wood, rot etc. It is filmed in the PNW and they are harvesting and milling huge cedar and fir trees that make large northeast trees look like weeds lol.  Pretty good so far.

[Old Greenhorn]

Ha, yeah. I have been meaning to make this very same post. Finished the series a few days ago, then my wife watched it too. I enjoyed this much more than axe men and those others. A LOT less cussin', more of day to day reality and grunt work, not so much overbearing emphasis on how anybody could get killed at any second. I found it to be a bit more balanced than a lot of other shows. An enjoyable watch for me anyway. I won't spoil it for anyone, let's just say I am anxious to see what this guy does for the next season, they set it up pretty good.
 I give it a thumbs up.

[nybhh]

Yea, no spoilers, I'm watching EP2 right now!

[Claybraker]

I liked it. Reminded me of Swamp Loggers.

[thecfarm]

I will have to check it out.

[Old Greenhorn]

The reason I like this one more than most of the others was because I didn't get the feeling my intelligence was being assaulted by over explaining narrators, and the drama wasn't being played up to a stupid level. They allowed the story to pretty much tell itself. Yes, we all know this is dangerous and challenging work with a lot of risk, but rahter than keep telling the viewer that, they just let the characters show it in the video. There is some good job site humor, but the serious work is clearly shown as the priority. Sure there was a little overplay here and there, but on the whole I found it to bee good and I will certainly watch any following seasons. The video work showed enough of the equipment that you (as  knowledgeable person in the field) could mostly figure out what was really going on in most cases. In some cases there remained, for me, questions about the 'whys' on certain things. I won't spoil anything by telling youi the principal guy in this buys only used equipment and spends time and money getting it working, but sometimes¢¢ he seems to push the limit on what we would call 'working'. ;D
 I 'watched' this while working around the shop and yard, so mostly I listened to it and didn't see a lot of the video (I peeked when it got tense or exciting). I may just go back and actually watch it to see what I missed. I use netflix and podcasts to keep me company while working alone and machines aren't running. Sometimes YouTube also, but I usually sit and watch the FF videos in the evening so I can see them (those folks on there don't talk unless they need to explain something ;D).

[nybhh]

I stayed up way too late last night and finished the first season.  I really enjoyed it.  I think what I liked the best is the whole process gets covered from felling, transport, milling and even delivery to the customer.  I think the mill got as much coverage as the logging side of things which is nice and they even refer to the mills by name/brand.

I think most viewers will walk away from this show with a lot more respect and appreciation for what it takes to get finished lumber to the end-user and some of you who mill for customers may find them a little better educated if this show gets popular.

I particularly like the episode where the customer needed 35' clear fir for the sailboat decking and they pretty much followed that wood from stump to boat and a lot of time was spent with the mill operator trying to tease clear wood that long out of logs that weren't as nice as they thought prior to cracking them open.

Despite the "well-worn" nature of much of the equipment as Tom alluded to above, i still found myself with considerable equipment envy throughout much of the show lol.

[Old Greenhorn]

Yeah, it seems like these details, which make it a better show for folks like us, get missed in most other shows in favor of drama and danger that is largely overblown to the point of being a real turn off, and that is just what I do, turn it off. ;D 
 This show does a pretty good job of letting a knowing eye see more detail.
 I figured you might binge on it. With out blowing it for the other guys, what did you think of the last episode?

[nybhh]

Are you talking about them wrapping up that claim or where they start talking about the next one with some special "access" issues? Yea, that ought to be interesting lol

[Old Greenhorn]

Yes, the access issues. He states the equipment he needs to get, and she says 'no way'. :D :D It is a good setup. That was one of the episodes I just listened to, so now I am watching the series again so I can see the stuff I missed. For instance I never saw the young gal he had welding, she was on and off so fast. I also want to watch that final one again.
 So many of these netflix things I start watching then just bail out on because of too much cussing, sex, or gratuitous violence's. This is a rare one to watch again, perhaps the first for me.

[nybhh]

He is a master problem solver and fun to watch in that regard and it is nice all/most of his employees seem to have a lot of respect for him but it is pretty obvious who the real boss is!  Probably true for most of us  :D :D

[Old Greenhorn]

Behind every great man there stands a smart woman.

[jmouton]

that is a pretty cool show,,,  waaaay better then swamp logger s ,,, he sure does know how to billy rig just about anything,,toilet seal and wood shims ,who knew.

[Old Greenhorn]

......., he sure does know how to billy rig just about anything,,toilet seal and wood shims ,who knew.

I think he had to have learned that one from @mike_belben  :D ;D

[mike_belben]

Sawdust in a pail.  

No one turns down a thunder bucket in the middle of a ____ storm.

[trimguy]

I watched 3 or 4 episodes tonight. I like it, interesting.

[Raider Bill]

So I gotta ask..
I only watched the 1st esp. They made 2 claims I wonder about. First that big cedar, they said $30k and another was worth $10k. 
I know that's crap but really about how much would they be worth?

[Old Greenhorn]

Well, you know TV and all that. Some of those logs are 60' and 4' on the stump. That's a fair amount of clear cedar for sure. If they are making finished T&G or S4S that would have pretty good value. 30 Grand?, I wouldn't know without knowing the details of course.

[nybhh]

@Raider Bill
According to the log calculator in the tool box, a 48" x 20' log is 2208 bf international.  Accounting for some taper, I'd guess maybe 6000 bf per 60' log.  I'm seeing retail prices for clear cedar siding right now at around $11-$17 per sf so that would put a 48" x 60' log at around $66,000 retail finished goods assuming $11 per SF.  Since they run their own mill and sell direct to consumers, I could easily see them using retail numbers when estimating a log value.  

Of course all that all won't be clear but I'm seeing mill-select cedar siding at $5-8.40 per sf so even that is $30,000.  Crazy huh!!

[Hilltop366]

What about the taper in the siding, almost doubles the sf per bf wouldn't it?

[nybhh]

What about the taper in the siding, almost doubles the sf per bf wouldn't it?

Those sf numbers were for Dutch, Channel and Shiplap so I think 1SF per BF is probably pretty close.  I don't recall what profiles they milled on the show but one of the later episodes showed them running some siding through a molder (sp?)

[Mountaynman]

I have started watching as well in the little time i watch tv but looks like a real deal operation although looks to me like a partial windfall salvage sale have to see if any of the west coasters chime in lots of broken and rotten wood the fact that they r showing the real part of logging and milling is a real plus.

Having worked in all sides of the business from roadbuilding, falling skidding, bucking, piling, loading, hauling, unloading, debarking, splitting, milling, tailing,reloading for delivery i think so far it gives an accurate representation of a family mill from stump to finished product. Maybe people will watch and realize what it takes to make lumber.

[Hilltop366]

What about the taper in the siding, almost doubles the sf per bf wouldn't it?

Those sf numbers were for Dutch, Channel and Shiplap so I think 1SF per BF is probably pretty close.  I don't recall what profiles they milled on the show but one of the later episodes showed them running some siding through a molder (sp?)

That makes sense, when I think of wood siding I automatically think of tapered siding for some reason. It would be the most common siding around here.

[thecfarm]

Have not watched it yet, but I found it. Not inside much at this time of year, might take me a while.

[Nebraska]

The Mrs and I went up to the "cabin" this weekend to finish a shed roofing project we had started.   The cabin actually  has good internet so we have a Netflix account.I was curious  so we watched a few episodes.  I found his junk hoarding oddly familiar. Although he didn't have a Swedish sounding last name . I did talk to the TV a few times. Actually  so did my wife...If you keep busting chokers and dropping logs hitting a stump  why don't  you make the stump smaller with that big Husky saw? Still better than most reality tv... Too hot to golf, plenty to hot to fish. 

[thecfarm]

I watched the first one. Might get to the others when snow flies. I found it interesting. Don't see much logging, winching that way around here.

[Roxie]

I'm so glad you brought this subject up. My niece who is a city gal watched this and said, "we have to get you Netflix so you can see this!"
I told her "dah, I talk to real deals everyday, why do you think I love the Forestry Forum so much?"  She got real excited talking about them fixing equipment and mentioned the toilet seal incident and I told her we have members that would make McGyver look like an amateur (shout out to Mike Belben)!

Her opinion on the difference between this show and others she has watched mirrors exactly what you fellas have said about more realistic, less fake drama, and watching the process from start to finish on getting lumber. 

[HemlockKing]

Well there is all kinds of hype on it now. I'll half to boot the ol tv up some stormy day and watch a few episodes. 

[Old Greenhorn]

Well I have never been one to take part in something because there is a lot of hype, and I don't think you are either. :D But I did enjoy it more than those other shows I've seen most of which have too much drama, cursing, and other stuff that actually detracts from the story. 
 Yes, Nebraska, I was talking to the screen also here and there. Anybody who knows what they are looking at should naturally have an instinct to ask questions and wonder why they would do some things that seem to not make sense. I wonder how much of that was as a result of how things were edited and not really a reflection of what happened in the moment.

[aigheadish]

I wanted to get through the whole series before commenting. It is a pretty good show! The toilet seal trick was amazing!

I would have liked to see more of the actual milling but seeing the felling and retrieving was pretty cool. I had the same question as Nebraska. Why would you just leave those giant stumps sticking up to cause all kinds of problems?

Also, I'd absolutely want nothing to do with the part of the job climbing down the mountainside and hooking those big logs up. I could hang in the drag machine but that climbing and chaining part looks much too tough for me!

[Lostinmn]

So I gotta ask..
I only watched the 1st esp. They made 2 claims I wonder about. First that big cedar, they said $30k and another was worth $10k.
I know that's crap but really about how much would they be worth?

Reality TV shows in general have a habit of applying final retail values with no regard to costs included.
My background is real estate and commercial appraisal. I lot of shows in that field put up number from a purchase of a flip to the sale price and give the impression they made the difference.  A truer profit picture would of course account for materials, labor and consideration for entrepreneurial profit, but that would be a smaller number that doesn't look as good on TV.  

Could be a similar deal here?

I really did enjoy watching Big Timber though! Really makes our Minnesota trees and hills seem like toy sized models...

[Iwawoodwork]

After reading about the show here, I found and watched a couple episodes, some what Hokey, the highlead logging I worked on the hook tender would have skinned the rigging/log back when it came to a hang up rather than going ahead and busting the choker, also after the hangup  if there were more logs on that road, the hook would have gotten the saw and cut the offending stump off at ground level.  Also the first part of the show indicated that the site/setting was fresh felled, wrong,  that wood had been down for several seasons as there were no green or even  brown leaves on the down wood and the 
the bark was falling off some of it.
 I did like seeing the old junk reused and the show as a whole was easier to watch than previous logger shows due to less screaming and ranting.  When I worked in the woods if a boss or hook yelled and/or screamed at the men as shown on some of the shows, they would soon be looking for a new crew and he might even show up for work the next day with a few bruises.

[Nebraska]

I'm sure to folks who work directly in the logging industry, it's really easy to see better ways and even not want to watch....Just like I don't  watch the incredible Dr Pol for very long either. (Not that he does bad work). Just too close to home.

[JoshNZ]

We got it all the way over here in NZ on Netflix even, my partner put it on the other night thinking I'd like it and we binged our way through it in a few nights. Pretty entertaining show

I've taken great delight in narrating my sawmilling work to my partner since. Over dramatizing every hiccup causing me to lose one million dollars per second and stressing that if I don't fix it, we're gonna go broke and have to sell the mill  :D :D.

It's a shame these reality tv shows do over dramatise everything because it's got a great foundation anyway, it's pretty entertaining content on its own without the narrator chiming in at every flat tire saying they could go out of business if it's not fixed.

Will look forward to another season!

[terrifictimbersllc]

I enjoyed it, goes into a lot of detail and seemed to me to get most things right.

What I didnt understand was who clearcut the claim in the first place and what was the overall strategy of the govt in that?

[Roxie]

Josh  :D :D :D

[Old Greenhorn]

....Just like I don't  watch the incredible Dr Pol for very long either. (Not that he does bad work). Just too close to home.

I was catching up on this thread and just re-read this reply in a better light and whole heartedly agree. My wife would watch some of these shows that I couldn't stand to look at because of that. I recall some of the early 'fabrication' shows where they were working in shops similar to where I spent 50 years learning and working and had similar or identical tooling, and the show would make big drama over some 'incredibly difficult challenge' that I knew was easy as heck.... IF the guy knew his equipment and had the technique to execute it. Not his/her fault, they just didn't have the experience, but the show would make it clear that this was 'very difficult, out of the box, never been done before, fancy work' Which, of course, it was not. I could have taught the guy how to do it in a hour. A couple of those things and I was done. Some of the 'Homestead Recue' episodes do this for me also. A lot of drama there and a lot of the subject families should have never left the city life given the planning and prep work they did. I mean who puts their life savings into partially building an off grid home with no plan at all for getting water and no new or current source of income?!
 I just found Big Timber did a fair job of reducing this artificial drama to a point I could watch and enjoy it and ignore the narrator trying to build excitement.

[JoshNZ]

Suddenly Coleman has a realisation, that may just save the day.. They're still making new tires...

Neh I agree, it's tolerable!

[YellowHammer]

I watched some of the episodes.  I think that any company that uses worn out equipment will have plenty of drama.  Kind of like Swamp Loggers.  I loved that show, but old equipment breaks, production stops, stress is induced, people get mad, good TV.  

The barge thing was driving me crazy.  The barge sinks, it's been sunk for a year, because it's got some holes in it.  Raise the barge, pound in wedges and toilet bowl wax, into a steel hull, go to the expense to float the barge to a different site, put multiple pumps in the barge, constantly refill the too small pumps with gas, swing by and check on them constantly, then put big equipment on the barge, and guess what, the barge still has holes in the bottom so it will sink if not baby sat.  On no, the pumps are out of gas, the barge is gonna sink.  Lots of drama.  Hey, I've got an idea, fix the holes, no drama.  They finally did that.  End of barge scenes, no more drama.  

Cut off the stump, quit breaking $20,000 logs.  If they were really $20,000 dollar logs, I guarantee the stump would have been cut off, after the first one.  Or don't cut it and keep filming breaking logs.  Oh no, broke another log.  What should we do? I don't know, let's do nothing and see if the next one breaks...oops, it did it again.  Hey, let's try it again, maybe this one won't break... Hey the boss is mad, I wonder why?

Plan for the bridge to be closed, it's government, things don't happen overnight or suddenly.  The bridge wasn't closed, it was simply weight restricted, it still would accommodate a half truck load of logs.  So they stopped hauling altogether?  That's doubtful.  Let's see, they inspected the bridge, it won't carry a full load of loads.  So if we can't haul logs, we go out of business.  So how many logs can we haul? About half a load.  So let's not haul anything...and spend all our effort raising a sunken barge and not fixing the leaks.  

I think the most realistic part of the show was the other company owner/guy needing logs, not wanting to put up with these issues, and quickly canceling his contract.  That's real life.  

Anyways, I liked the show, it's better than most of the "reality TV."   To be honest, most TV is so bad, I'd watch a show of a bunch of guys paving a freeway....I mean, I've already watched three seasons of guys hooking up tow trucks on the "Mighty Coq."       

[Mooseherder]

I binge watched until episode 5 or 6 and fell asleep.  Have to find where I left off later for another binge.  :D

[Ljohnsaw]

I think we have 2 episodes to go.  I, to, found myself yelling at the TV - cut the stumps, fix the holes, haul half loads...  You'd think they could find the guys trying to sell a big air compressor.

[Iwawoodwork]

when/where I worked in the woods the logger would have got an ok to cut into the bank and bypass the bridge as it appeared to be a seasonal nonflowing stream bed, or even more likely the boss or someone with a radio/cb would be parked a ways down and the loads would come on across just as they had been up  to the day/ hour the bridge capacity was reduced. The bridge did not deteriorate that much in a day or two and was  handling loads up to then.

[Mooseherder]

I watched the rest of the season last night.   More people will want to get into the business of 30 thousand dollar logs after watching the series. :D

[Old Greenhorn]

Folks, it's entertainment, don't let the tricks the producers pull to get attention suck you in. It's pure theater and little more, intended to excite those who know little about the subject. I enjoyed the show and hope they do another season, but I don't get too worked up over the drama they induced back in the editing and voiceover studios. There is a lot more they don't show you in order to create the drama. For instance, they could have known of that bridge closure months in advance but that didn't make for a good show so they adjusted the reality a little and made it a crisis.
 (And yes, I admit, I was talking to the screen also, you can't help it.) :D

[Old Greenhorn]

Just a bump here to let folks know that season 2 is now available. Not for everyone as noted above, but I kind of enjoy it. They need a better writer for the narration still, too much dramatic talk in non-dramatic situations, but they are all like that.
This year (so far) they are beachcombing for drift logs until the snow melts on their claim.

[thecfarm]

I've been a watching it!!!! 

[terrifictimbersllc]

We're watching it too!

Kevin build a cedar table for $6000 supposedly in one evening from a cedar slab that was out in the yard that they beveled first with the LT70. Customer from LA. Wonder what the humidity difference is, and how that worked out?

My wife and I were cutting a whole pick up truck load of edgings to length. She would pull out three at a time and I would cut them off to kindling length  with my cordless Stihl saw. We got a system going where it didn't take too long. Sometimes I'd say "gotta get the BIG TIMBER!!! " :D

[Old Greenhorn]

Gee Dennis, thanks for the 'Spoiler Alert Warning' on the episode I am watching right now. I heard them say it was $8,000. Probably would have come out nicer and easier if he had a slabmizer in the stable. ;D

[aigheadish]

Thanks for the bump Tom. I rarely get on Netflix so I probably wouldn't have noticed for a few months.

[JoshNZ]

We just got done watching the second season, the whole lot is them pulling logs off the beach really. Hard to believe that was worth their time. Guy in the band sharpening shack must have been cursing them.

[sawguy21]

 :D I watched some of it having been involved in logging but tired of the drama, particularly his verbal abuse. Cutting his own road around the restricted bridge on Crown land was a bit much, that would get him shut down and a court date.

[terrifictimbersllc]

Can anyone tell me why he got the $1 million penalty that he his trying to pay off with the logs that are "worth their weight in gold" ?

[Old Greenhorn]

Although I enjoy this show as it is, the editing of the story is very inconsistent. Given the details we were, it would seem like this is something they could appeal so I am guessing there is a lot we don't know, because he plans on paying it.
 They also spent a lot of time on that "Seacrest" and we never found out why, out of the blue, he buys another boat with likely even more problems(and no keys). Stuff like that is annoying for the person watching and paying attention. That whole bucket full of drama on the cracking transom and then they launch right into another crazy heavy pull. Either it's a danger or not, pick one. ;D I also noticed that puppy grew up pretty dang quick!
 I guess you have to let stuff like that go or it will make you nuts.

[terrifictimbersllc]

In spite of all that I think there is a lot about it that is realistic, and some of it particular to us sawyers, which is why I enjoy watching it.

[thecfarm]

I am "watching" it. 
Kinda like a few times I "watched" them catch alligators. They mentioned the alligator weighted 500 pounds and 2 men picked it up easy and put it in the back of the truck.  ???
I wonder about the prices sometimes. But I can see them getting that much for one log too. At them prices. and the many that he got like that, he could be done logging in one year and be on the Forbes list of richest men.  :D 
I do walk out of the room and get something to drink or eat and just let it play. 

[aigheadish]

I'm only a few episodes into the 2nd season and here are my guesses... I think they likely knew that the penalty was there at the end of last season. A million bucks at $6000 worth of logs per day is 166+ days and he makes it sound like they'll pay it off no problem. They are on the same island as the TV show "Alone" and while they seem to be logging on the south end, where "Alone" appears to be on the north end, I can't imagine there are 166 good weather days up there in a year. 

I also don't understand why you wouldn't do driftwood logging a lot more often, the overhead looks substantially less than up in the mountains, not to mention the danger. I know there are only so many logs but how generally 'easy' it looks I'd be going after the big hemlock and other stuff too... No worries of million dollar fines!

The dramatization of these shows is rough. I understand you want some entertainment value but I'd be willing to bet there are some utubers out there eating Netflix's lunch on viewers, and they are out there doing real stuff. Problem there is you can't find a production company to float you a million dollar budget and camera operators and all that junk.

I'm with ttllc- there is enough interesting to watch, even though some of it seems like bunk.

[Old Greenhorn]

On that driftwood logging, I don't think the yield is nearly as good as the lead on. Looking at the logs as he was whipping out estimated values and seeing the holes and pockets and some of the logs might yield a 4x4 and some side wood. They show precious little usable good video on technical issues, but sometimes there is enough to see what the solution is if you are versed in the equipment. Yet the narrator makes it sound like the end of time is coming when I am thinking "that is going to take 2 hours to fix or work around". Sure enough, they come up with a 'miraculous save' to the problem and I roll my eyes. But we are not the average watcher and there is the disconnect. If you or I edited that, it would be an entirely different show, but likely boring for the general public.

[beenthere]

Best is to just turn the sound off (mute) and watch the scenery.
From the posts about this show, sounds similar to the Survivor shows and Ice Road trucking shows. But they have an audience that also enjoys them.

[kantuckid]

I watched the rest of the season last night.   More people will want to get into the business of 30 thousand dollar logs after watching the series. :D

I think that already happened? Take a hard look on FB groups what with lots of new mill owners and daily rash of slab questions and what tree is this? not to the level of here where the questions are more valid, etc.. 
I've been holding off the Big Timber show as much of reality TV isn't very "real" for me. This thread plus several Son's who watched now has caught my interest-but that's after we finish watching Longmire all over again... :D I'm a sucker for a realistic cowboy sheriff. 

[alco424]

Something to keep in mind about the pricing, is that they're in Canada, so the dollar is worth a different amount. No that doesn't explain all of it, but it helps to explain some of it.

[dougtrr2]

I watch it and overall enjoy it.  But I had hard time watching him abusing his equipment, and continuing to abuse it when it was failing.  Just doesn't make sense.

Doug in SW IA