logger as a second job?

[motif]

Is it possible to earn additional money doing logging job? I really like working in woods
and since my current job requires sitting on my butt all day long I'd be happy to change from time to time.
Do I need any qualification to do it, like some training etc?
I imagine woodcutter as a tough, strong and healthy man so instead of going to GYM I could do some logging right?
Fresh air, nice views and wood smell, physical activity etc

[beenthere]

I'd suggest finding a Game of Logging class near you, and start there. From your new introduction to chainsaws, that GOL will give you a lot of great pointers that are good to know for the basics.
Becoming more knowledgable about equipment and the movement of logs might mean taking some small steps to get experience. I think it is more than just "enjoying being in the woods". There are voc. schools discussed in previous threads on FF that expose some of the training for those with logging interests.

What experience and equipment do you have now, that would be a benefit to you in logging?

[Ron Scott]

Ditto! Yes you need to develop some knowledge, skills, and abilities related to logging to work as a logger. Logging has specific tasks shuch as felling, bucking, skidding, forwarding, trucking etc. Some tasks are more mechanized than others depending upon the type logging being done.

Determine your area of interest and find an experienced logger to work with and mentor you. If it's physical fitness and fresh air that you are looking for, then running the chain saw in a felling or bucking operation would fit the bill, but definitely take the Game of Logging course first as stated by beenthere.

[motif]

What experience and equipment do you have now, that would be a benefit to you in logging?

what experience? when I was a kid I helped my grandma with bucking firewood
I have now macculloch mac 738 chainsaw and an axe.  ;D
plus I am very physically fit, been practicing lot's of different sports.

[Meadows Miller]

Gday

And welcome to the Forum motif  ;) ;D ;D 8) 8)  as the boys have said there are some good courses out there for people without experience wanting to learn how to do falling and logging properly its something that takes alot of skill to do chainsaw maint is another important thing hat also gets covered in these courses ive never attended one myself as i have been falling since i was 14yo and was born into it and was in training since i could walk n talk Mate  ;) :D ;D 8) 8)

How old are you atm anyway ???


Regards Chris 

[DanG]

Logging would be a hard business to get into with half the experienced loggers in the Country out of work.  It might be more realistic to start a little firewood business on the side.  If it is exercise you want, do your splitting by hand.

[motif]

How old are you atm anyway ???

Regards Chris 

Hi Chris,
I'm still young at 47  ;D
seriously I run and play soccer with 20 years old without a problems. As a matter of fact they sometimes have problems  8)

[motif]

Logging would be a hard business to get into with half the experienced loggers in the Country out of work.  It might be more realistic to start a little firewood business on the side.  If it is exercise you want, do your splitting by hand.

how about remote areas like Alaska, South Pole or Amazon that nobody wanna go?

LINK TO OFFSITE PHOTOS ARE STRICTLY PROHIBITED

[mad murdock]

DanG has a mighty fine idea if you are looking to get into the woods for recreation/excercise/make a little dough, get an area to cut firewood, either by going to Nat'l Forest land in your area (with wood cutting permit in hand of course), or talk to your local county or state forester, unless you have some acres of your own to trim up some firewood on.  That way you can start small, with a chainsaw splitting maul and a good pick up/trailer, and sell your firewood on craigslist or in the local paper.

[Meadows Miller]

Gday

Motif the Issue with remote places like South America and the Islands take PNG for exaple which is a place i have looked at seriously to go to over the years to set up a small scale logging and sawmilling operation   ;) due to the fact that there is usually a ready supply of willing locals ready to work for well below min wages in our countries being an employed faller or logger is something that's offered to people at the top of their game or the other option in those situations  is if your cased up to purchase a looging lease and set up your own show Mate  ;) ;D 8) 8)

Im with Dang Firewood would be the simplest way to get your fix and keep fit and would only require low capital imput such as a couple of larger 55 to 75cc saws a block splitter and a good ute or a trailer and a permit and your in business and its also a way that afew have gotten onto bigger things  Mate  ;) ;D 8)

Regards Chris

[Buck]

Firewood = $$$$$$$

[thecfarm]

There's ALOT to it. Here where I live a person needs to be certified and you need to keep up on it. $$$ Need machinery to get the wood out.Remember time is money.I have logged with a farm tractor on my own land.So I get all the money.Hard way to get in fit.Not a big money maker either.Had my Father show me alot of things.Need contacts to get rid of the wood too.I know of a older man that gets his wood in 4 foot lengths and uses a bucksaw to cut it up instead of paying dues to go to a gym.Had trouble with his heart and doctor told him to go to a gym.

[deutz4]

Start backwards from what you know. You are familiar with firewood. Figure out where your markets are, how much you can charge and how much you can supply. If you enjoy what you are doing and the profit margin allows, increase your operation as you learn. Always keep in mind that it is a very capital intensive area so in these modern times you either have to be independently wealthy or in my case family committed and overly stubborn.

[JHBC]

Hey Motif,

I'm a newbie to this site, and don't have decades of full time forestry expertise.  But here goes.  The firewood business is tough work, which doesn't sound like the issue, but it can also be very tough to make decent money, for the time and effort.  Equipment:  truck, saws, etc. can add up.  But also availability of wood, and storage space.  Do you have space to season the logs in a pre bucked and split state, or will you have to cut, split, load, stack, wait and wait, and then double handle the whole works.  Plus if the wood is easy to get to, free or inexpensive to cut, then the supply/demand end of things means that you won't be able to ask much for it.  I have sold firewood as a part time job in my late teens and early twenties, and after all the number crunching I wasn't making much more than minimum wage for some fairly heavy labor.

I don't know anything about the forestry market out your way, N.J., if I'm not mistaken.  But applying for work as a green laborer with a logging company might be challenging anywhere.  Here the work is mostly done by small-medium size contractors hired by very large companies that operate on (mostly) government land, tens of thousands of acres in size, for the average tree farm license.  And the better jobs are almost always filled.  Lots of training and certification is required,  but less experience might land you a job setting chokers.  If you are into very hard, and very dangerous work, you'll have it.

One more thought, sorry, I'm not trying to discourage, so this might help.
If there is an equivalent to what we have here, what is known as a woodlot permit, it is a great part time business.  I have been a partner in three, over the last fifteen years.  They have ranged in size from 500-1000 acres.  The land is yours to manage, for next to nothing, under a very strict set of regulations, but as long as you follow all the rules, OHS, pay the stumpage, build the roads correctly, reforest properly, etc. etc., it can turn a decent profit for your time.  The lot I  work on did bring me a decent net income, and I only spent about 200 hrs on the land last year, plus all the clerical/admin work that is required.  But all in all, a good way to get involved in the industry.  I couldn't do it without the guys who partnered on it though.  There's no replacement for experience.  So network in your area and find like minded people, and contact your government forest reps.  It might work out for you.

Good luck and have fun

[JHBC]

Just out of curiosity, what type of work were you looking for specifically.  I have a lot of info about some parts of the industry, and almost none in others.

[barbender]

I've heard ogging in the vicinity of the south pole is tough business for even experienced hands  ;D

[motif]

Just out of curiosity, what type of work were you looking for specifically. 

actually any work in the woods using either axe or chainsaw. The more unfriendly and wild areas the better.
I should be pretty soon in Quebec, any wildness there?  ;)

[mad murdock]

You can hire on with the USDA forest service, and work on trails maintenance in wilderness areas, if remote and rugged is what you want.  What little management they do in wilderness areas is done with axe and misery whip.  No power anything, or wheeled anything allowed in a wilderness area, only horse/mule power and human power allowed.

[Splinter]

Logger as a second job?

That's a little funny, I have yet to meet a logger who didn't have at least one other job.......


D