Thinking about buying a sawmill, would like some help.

[goose63]

Levi if you go with the hm126 get the extra 6 foot extension I did and am glad I did get it

[gimpy]

Just my personal opinion for my own story.

Buy what you need to produce what you want to use to build your own needs. That's where you justify the investment in your rig and gain the knowledge on how to operate and refine your skills. Along the way, you'll start getting a good idea of what you are capable of and what the possibilities are for your area. Then you just start talking to people. They will likely provide the leads on who might need what. Then you'll contact those people and start selling what you know you can produce and what the cost is to doing that.

If you cut and build a storage facility for your air drying lumber you start stacking, you'll probably start having people come around that need what you have a stock of or will start asking about specific needs and sizes. Customers coming to you.

I will easily pay for my rig through the savings on my own needs for my own building projects. Then if my rig sits there for years, it wouldn't have cost me anything. If I chose to sell it instead of using it, I'd be able to sell it for what I have in it. If I continued sawing because I enjoy it and am good at it, I'd be in a great position to make some money, after I've been through the learning curve.

I'll do all my learning on my own needs with the help of the great people on this site. Then when I know what I'm doing, then I'll have fun making some money with it.

My wife is much more forgiving than paying customers. I will learn on projects she is the supervisor on (smile). As she learns how to make me do what "we" need, she will be happy and feel the investment I made was worthwhile. This is my key to my happy home.

I personally won't (to old to) invest money I don''t have on the hopes of what others might need and hope I can be profitable. Keep the home front happy and learn and turn it into a money maker when you are able to counsel others.

PS: I've made far to many mistakes in my lifetime trying to re-invent the wheel. I am just starting to learn to make sawdust. I'm in that learning stage in this endeavor. If you want it, this is the place to get the help in making your learning curve easier.