I'm hoping logs come much cheaper than this?

[rreidnauer]

Ok, thanks. Red pine is not generally used for firewood around here on account of chimney fires. It works in outdoor burners though I had quite a few red pine that blew over on my lot, they rotted very fast, have to get the bark off of those quick.

....and yet, I've seen red pine with bark on racks for three years and no issues with rot.

Really. Take the class.

[etd66ss]

....and yet, I've seen red pine with bark on racks for three years and no issues with rot.

Really. Take the class.

Maybe those were in a dryer climate??? I guess I'll stop asking questions if the only answer I get is to take the class.

[edkemper]

I think one of the hardest things to understand is the value of a log to the mill, or the lumber harvester. The lumber company bids far less than you think. Add all the labor to get it into lumber is when the prices go sky high.

I bought local Western Red Cedar. I paid an average of $100 per minimum 14" top, no less than 32' length. 5 self loader logging truck deliveries (approximately 100-110 logs) included. My logger neighbor who did not supply the deliveries, still made a profit.

$100 per 32'x14" tops. That includes the bid by the lumber company to get the contract, the labor to fell the tree, to limb the log, to buck the log to length, to haul it to the landing and to load the trucks. Don't forget the cost for the truck to haul it to my place. Everyone along the journey made a profit on each one of my logs.

I'm betting they did better off me than they would have if they had sent the same logs to the mill.

[rreidnauer]

I would definitely not call Northeast Pennsylvania dry climate.

Not trying to be snooty. There really is a reason for stressing to take the class. It fills in all the details you may never think to ask, and prevent you from potentially costly mistakes. Those who have taken the class, and suggest to others to go, is because they strongly believe it is that important and of value. No members are compensated by having others go. There is nothing in it for them other than helping someone get steered down the right path.

Perhaps you come from an environment where people can't be trusted, and hearing such talk of people helping other people just for the sake of doing it, is too much to believe, and if that's the case, I truly feel for you. I really hope you will come to see that, when something is being suggested, it is for genuine and sincere reasons.

[etd66ss]

I would definitely not call Northeast Pennsylvania dry climate.

I guess I wouldn't either.

Perhaps you come from an environment where people can't be trusted, and hearing such talk of people helping other people just for the sake of doing it, is too much to believe, and if that's the case, I truly feel for you.

Condescending much?

But I guess that's my point, "go take the class", in my view isn't all that helpful atm, it smacks of when you take the class they ask you not to divulge what you have learned so they can have better attendance in the future. But yes, maybe I'm just too skeptical.

I'm trying to do research/due diligence, that likely will culminate with taking the class. I definitely would like to take the class, maybe in Sept if they have one. However, in the meantime I still have questions. I guess I can understand you guys get sick of newbies asking the same questions over and over. When I come across that on the internet and I get annoyed, I just don't respond. I have been an admin of forums before, so I do get how annoying newbie questions can be. So yeah, I am probably a pretty annoying newbie.

[rreidnauer]

It was not meant to be condescending. I am quite sincere. You yourself have posted, ". . . and I am getting an uneasy feeling of secrecy about the whole deal..." which is primarily why you received that statement from me.

I've explained the situation as best possible. I have no obligation to win over your heart. There is nothing more I can do for you.

[edkemper]

Well, look at it this way, member's don't divulge everything about building our way. Partially because if we did that with the public, we wouldn't have time to get our work done. Really, that is part of the problem.

Secondly, the class is just a taste of the details. It is also the golden key. The golden key is like the secret handshake. It gat's you to the Member's side of this site. That is where every single one of us find the details and the more than the normal access to the people with the details and advice on the exactly how to's on every detail.

I hope you understand you will not get every detail during the class. There just isn't enough time to answer every question from every attendee and still be able to teach the class. Also, there are people on the members side that are (meant as no insult) possible more expert on some details than the teachers of the class. Plus, on the members side, you get access to those in the beginning, middle or toward the end of their own build.

Also, don't worry. Every one of us probably wondered, before the class, whether we were wasting our time and money on a scam. Everyone on the other side has gone through the class and have gone far beyond by gaining access to the members side.

[allen84]

Quote Originally Posted by panderson03 View Post

we paid $2 per foot. each of our 40 ft logs was $80. you can do better!

How did you manage that?

The mill is a great place to sell logs but not to buy them. Talk to people. I've found loggers are hard to reach, or the right ones are anyways (they shouldn't be able to hear their phone). Farmers and oldtimers are great people to get to know and can often lead you in the right direction. Also when negotiating price on anything I almost try to take on the slimy used car salesman gimmicks. You walk in their door, nevermind your budget... how much can you pay per month? There is many ways to look at price, some look more optimistic than others.

As far as building and the class... LHBA seems secretive because it is kind of like a club, almost a secret society. It's an association but not a sham. I was a little skeptical at first too. If you do your homework, there is at least one book out there that goes into a little detail on the method. But I don't think any book out there could offer the wealth of info and support that comes from being an LHBA member. For me, I thought it was money well spent.

[BigD]

Hi etd66ss,
Honestly, I don't know if the 'free' log thing exists or not. In class we are taught about some avenues to get cheap logs. Some of that information a person could get from just doing their own research and being a smart little boy (condescending....couldn't help it, hehe). I think it is possible to get very cheap logs, and some members have been able to take advantage of that. Other members have paid through the nose for logs....I think the majority of members try and find the best deal they can on logs and roll with it.

If the sole reason for taking the class is to find out how to get free logs....probably not a good use of money. If you are REALLY interested in building a log home, then taking the class makes sense because the wealth of information you will get far outweighs the the class fee.
Having said that, I haven't build my log home yet so I am still naive and energetic. Talk to me in a couple of years when my will is broken and I have turned to the bottle for strength.

Hope that helps....hope you take the class and have the same type of experience that I had.

[Mosseyme]

I guess I am the exception to the rule here because I was looking for some kind of on DIY log home building. We were already logging our place due to our Hemlocks dying y. We had thousand of them and we would have had to just pack up and walk away for 10-20 years while they died and fell or fell them ourselves. I found only 2 sites online of people doing it themselves. Then I came across the LHBA. It took me about 1 hour of reading to realize this was what I was looking for. I guess I am too trusting or naive but I was right this is what we needed. We would have built a log cabin one way or another but lots and lots of mistakes. I gave up my long awaited trip to Ireland for our 40th anniversary for this class and it was a bargain.
For me the main reason to not give to much detail is the 22 hours of info we were given. Think about it. We chose a certain way of doing our foundation so I focus on that but there are several other ways. We chose a certain way of stacking our logs but there are others. I don't remember all the details of the different ways of doing everything and I would not want to give enough to make someone think they had all they needed to go build one of these. Most of it is not rocket science but details are important, and reasons are important. Repeat there are 22 hours of details.
BTW: We are in or mid 60's and are doing this with a little help from family and friends. Logs are stacked and roof is on. Lots to do but it will get done.