I am about to go back through an area I am clearing from forest back into field and take out the hemlock logs. I always wait to the end on that because hemlock limbs are so darn, stinking longgggg. Anyway I have a few options; I can go with random length logs (8', 10', 12', 14' or 16') and get paid $210 per thousand board feet, or go with long logs (any length over 16 feet) at $250 per thousand board feet. I have some nice stuff; large in diameter, no rot and no shake, so long logs woul first appear to be a better way to market my wood, but I am not so sure. Hemlock tends to be rather short and stubby so with taper factored in, I am not sure which would be best? Let me explain. The longest log I can put on the trucks I use is 26 feet. So I can either go with (1) 26 foot log, (2) 12 foot logs, or (3) 8 foot logs. Lets assume the tree is 18" in diameter on the butt end, and 15 inches in diameter at the 26 foot mark. IF the tree tapered evenly, I would thus get: (1) 26 foot log=280 board feet ($70) (2) 12 foot logs=255 board feet ($53.55) (3) 8 foot logs=255 board feet ($53.55) So under a evenly tapered hemlock tree, you would make $16.45 more per log with long lengths. BUT not ever tree is evenly tapered. Obviously I can mix random length logs with long logs, but my question is this: what is the tree taper ratio where I make my hemlock into the higher paying long logs, and instead go for random logs (since my diameter per log will be higher and thus net me more money)? I looked online and cannot find a taper index for Eastern Hemlock logs. (Note: all figures are based on International Log Scale because that is what the log Yard uses where I sell my wood).
Not a logger, so I'm clueless, but it seems you could make up a couple bucks by taking two 8' logs and one 10'. Or something that makes the logs add up to 26' to maximize them. Again I'm not in the business.
Hemlock typically tapers faster on the top logs. I'd be inclined to make butt logs long and top logs short.
Make sure that there's not an additional length that is required for the logs.. You can't get an 8 foot 2x4 out of an 8 foot log. Once it's cut and put through the kiln, it would end up shorter than 8 feet.. Might need to make 'em 4-6 inches longer than the 8, 10, 12 foot lengths that are used.. If the logs are exactly 8,10,12 etc feet, they could get graded at the next shorter length..
With a price differential of $40/1K board', buck, load and haul what is the most efficient use of time and manpower. You can burn through 40 per thousand trying to make it come out, if you're not careful. If there was ever a way to LOSE money, I've found it.
Normally you would be right, but so is Stuckinthemuck which requires a 6" trim allowance on all logs. I did not mention this because I thought it would mess people up and to keep math simple, but it still did, so it was my fault. He is right though, there is no 8 foot log, for a logger, an 8 foot log is 8'-6", a 12 foot log is 12'-6", a 16 fot log is 16'-6" etc. My truckers get mad when I cut trees longer than 26 feet on their trucks! For awhile they were not putting on full loads and only bringing me in 8.3 cord loads of hardwood from the paper mill... so I got them. I started cutting the trees at 32 feet (6 feet of overhang) and instantly my loads were running at 10 cords. After a few loads of that, they complained (because they were overloaded for road weight limits), but I made my point, and now at 26 feet they haul 9.3 cord loads every time.
You and me both! I know what you mean though. Thankfully, due to retirement I have a lot of time now, something I never used to have, and as such it is just me alone in the great Maine woods just doing my thing with chainsaw and bulldozer. My wife...we work well together, but she is forever thinking of ways for her as a stay-at-home wife to make money when I am like, "just drive the bulldozer so I can get more wood cut in a day". She won't have none of it though. She will drive the Kubota but not the bulldozer...scares her she says.
Dang, we used to have sort of a formula for figuring these things but it's been too long since I did any logging, so sorry, I can't help much except that I intended to post about the taper but JustWood beat me to it.
Longer log pays better but the diameter gets measure at the top. i.e. a longer log has more waste. Butt end doesn't matter. I'd just sample a few logs at the various cut points and figure it out. Does clear sides come into play? Sometimes a log can pay more at a shorter length if the blemishes are removed. Even though the longer log pays more per at the same quality you might do better by shortening it. i.e. a defective 16' log vs. the first 12' of the log.
I know on Spruce taper is figured as 2 feet per inch. In other words, cut back 2 feet for every inch in diameter you lose. So if you measure a spruce log at 16 feet and it is 12 inches in diameter, but at 14 feet it is 13" in diameter, you make more money by cutting back to a 14 foot log (14'-6") instead of a 16 foot log (16'-6"). Here is the math... 14 foot log at 13" in diameter=100 board feet International Log Rule 16 foot log at 12" in diameter=95 board feet International Log Rule At $365 per thousand board feet, you are only talking 18 cents more, BUT with 100 logs to a load, that is 18 more dollars. Every 20 loads you made an additional $350 dollars for doing nothing more than maximizing your wood. This is my own land, but when I logged for other landowners I tried to glean every penny I could from their woodlot as they paid taxes for a lot of years; they deserve it.
No with softwood it does not matter. It is just gets flat scale since its all going into framing lumber. This shows how old I am getting though; I remember when the white pine sawmills used to scale for selects, #1,#2, #3's etc...but that just shows how old I am getting to be. Now they just pay a flat fee per board foot, but they are also sawing 130,000 board feet per day, and that is just a local sawmill by my house. That is enough lumber for 38 houses a day!
