# Advice for someone new to sawmilling



## rg05 (Jan 6, 2009)

The last few months I have been looking into getting a sawmill and starting to saw as a hobby and for my own personal interest but also as a side job to make some extra money. I just thought it'd be neat to get some advice and hear what you guys have to say that have been doing it a while. Maybe things you guys learned along the way or would differently or knowledge you think would help someone who's just starting off. Thanks alot


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## Daren (Oct 14, 2006)

Well...that is a deep (and general) subject. Generally don't pay too much for logs and have a market for the lumber or you get in over your head pretty quick, lumber collecting is an expensive hobby. There are many types of sawmilling. You can just be milling RR ties, or framing, or furniture grade. I chose furniture grade because the end product brings more money...but that does take higher quality raw material. Niche markets are the best, if you can find/fill them. I could type an essay here...but I will just say stick around and ask specific questions as they arise would be the best advice.


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## greg4269ub (Sep 1, 2009)

hello and welcome aboard. I am also new to milling. I started looking into sawmills in July or August of this year and purchased one near the end of Sept. The guys and gals here are awesome!! i have learned lots just reviewing all of the treads. some times learning by doing is best. For myself buying my mill was a big extension of my woodworking hobby. I too view it as an extra source of income (not a big one but getting there). so i would say make a decision whether or not you want to make an investment of that proportion. If you decide yes go for it and start cutting logs. get some books and participate here in the forum. I have cut about 3000-4000 bf of lumber so far and have found it to be a great deal of fun. when a challenge comes up i pause and read up on it a bit sometimes i will ask some questions here. one thing i was surprised about was the difficulty in handling the logs they are heavy. i thought i had this covered when i started but found that the small tractor we had wasn't going to cut it. i ended up purchasing an old petty bones straight mast forklift to do my heavy work. since then it has been much easier handling the logs. good luck! just an FYI pics are a fun way for every one to share in each others adventures. i got a little bit of raspberries when i first started here for not posting pics (it was all in jest). so if you do get a mill remember to have your camera handy (i still forget sometimes:wallbash


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## rg05 (Jan 6, 2009)

Thanks for the input. I'm looking into a wood-mizer.. probably either a new manual lt40 or a used hydraulic lt40


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## Kirk Allen (Nov 7, 2006)

Get the hydraulic, you wont regret it!


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