How does the beginner know what to charge for his services? Portable sawmill rates are generally higher than those of a stationary sawmill. The customer is paying you to transport your mill to the logs, rather than paying a trucker to haul the logs toa mill. Also, there is a premium attached to working with smaller volumes, as is the case with most portable mill jobs. In my area (Rhode Island), base rates for portable sawmill work are 0.20 dollar per board foot for softwoods and 0.22 dollar per board foot for hardwoods. Be sure to investigate the going rates in your area. In one of my first jobs, I unknowingly underbid a sawyer who depended on his portable sawmill business for his livelihood. When I became aware of it, I withdrew that bid and lostthe job. I'm not apologetic about landing work as a part-timer, but I won't underbid regional rates to do it.
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