A Sudden Change in the Lumber Market

Riding Sawdust Mountain on a snowboard.
• A New Creative Use for...
I recently noticed a sudden change in the local lumber market. Last summer I stopped milling lumber on my Woodmizer LT15 sawmill. This was partly because people stopped buying the lumber I was milling. I mostly mill Douglas fir lumber. Lumber was easy to sell when prices were high. After softwood lumber prices fell in 2023, it became difficult. Recently in the beginning of 2024, I am noticing a big change and people buying lumber.
If you are wondering where the reference for the hobbyist jingle came from, it’s from The Wood Hounds podcast. I don’t know them, but want to give credit where credit is due. You can check them out on your favorite podcast platform. 
You can support the channel through Patreon at / wilsonforestlands
Items I Use
USA Made Smart Wool Socks
www.camelcitymill.com/WILSONF...
TopTes Moisture Meter
amzn.to/3QHnURv
You can apply the discount code 59ORXNSE to get 10% off.
Chainsaw Files for Square Filing
amzn.to/3uMjeSg
Spencer Log Tape
amzn.to/431roD2
RODE Wireless Go II Microphone
amzn.to/3OZ8HKb
RODE Lavalier Mic
amzn.to/3OTBeRC
If you buy anything through these links, I will receive a small commission.

[@WilsonForestLands]

Riding Sawdust Mountain on a snowboard. kzbin.info/www/bejne/eoS3hmdopZ6fo68si=yLS2zB1HZ8UpqhcS

[@barkebaat]

I'm a woodworker an I appreciate clean and dry lumber. If it's dirty I have to go over it with a wire brush to get rid of sand and grit before I push it over my planer. I liked your video and the funny subtitles. I relax in the evening by watching sawmill videos on KZbin, everything from small operations like yours, via historical, old-school mills to modern industrial plants ... that's how strange I've grown. Oh, well -- no harm.

[@kmilton1593]

That log produced really nice lumber. Congrats.

[@statesidechippie]

Central KY - White Oak has gone up by 50% very limited supply. As a carpenter - I appreciate clean material, some people care.

[@KPVFarmer]

Woodworkers and carpenters that care about their blades appreciate clean lumber.

[@WilsonForestLands]

That’s what I always thought.

[@Wohlfe]

Can't trust any wood that comes in my shop anymore, even the partially surfaced lumber from my local hardwood dealers has the occasional staples in it. A $40 metal detector has easily saved me hundreds in damaged tools.

[@buckbenelli8]

That’s some beautiful wood. God I love making saw dust, it’s a primal feeling.

[@michaelmackey754]

Great video… I have a small concrete crushing business and just like you sometimes I’m slow and then sometimes I am busy and the one thing I’ve learned is keep a good supply of material on hand, so you never run out!

[@joewoodchuck3824]

I can smell the wood from here!

[@southernadirondackoutdoors]

I saw a week or so ago that a mill was being shut down somewhere out your way due to logging restrictions on state land, perhaps lack of local supply is changing the market. Oh, and calling kale edible is questionable! 🤣

[@dongkhamet1351]

Kale becomes edible when fried to crispy in lard or boiled for minimum three hours in a stew. Or if you happen to become ovine.

[@marcsimard2723]

Well, i guess that’s a joke, but kale is really pretty good

[@dongkhamet1351]

@@marcsimard2723 not at coming back out it ain't ;D

[@troytreeguy]

My wife makes a kale chip that sounds good from across the room 😂

[@dongkhamet1351]

@@troytreeguy do visitors duck for cover? Sounds like your wife knows her business: if the kale is sufficiently tempered thus it can pass through the GI tract like sand, so that none of the myriad phytotoxins will be absorbed by the muncher. Hat's off!

[@charlesreid2141]

I really enjoy your content, even when you run out of it.

[@brucekiefer2209]

love your sense of humor, keep it up !

[@red58impala]

I'm really disappointed you never found that stick. 😞

[@Snap10aa]

One local internet account fluctuating sales is not a market indicator.

[@BuildwithMooney]

Thanks for sharing your experiences, as a builder I can definitely appreciate the work you put into your lumber.

[@robs.4146]

I appreciate the content and the folksy delivery. I'm trying my hand at reselling cedar in the city that I buy from a mill in northern Michigan. Not much more than pocket money in it but I really enjoy interacting with others who appreciate fine white cedar as I do. Keep the videos coming!

[@goldrusher7554]

Great work with your production! I love watching you mill the wood and also listen to relevant information about lumber costs and demand.

[@davidboatman925]

Thanks for sharing. Interesting and fun to watch.

[@eaton55r]

Thanx for good video, even funny at times, and especially your willingness to help others learn.

[@norm5785]

Thank you for sharing this with us. Just came across your channel. Nice looking wood. Everyone stay safe,wai, happy 😊 and healthy. From Henrico County Virginia.

[@ssprofirewood]

It is great to hear the market is getting better. Those are some nice boards you milled. Nicely done!

[@timmyfields6159]

Always glad to get your post. You really entertain me with them.

[@keenansutherland2776]

~9:50, loved every second past (and b4 good stuff) and this is my first video of yours. lovely stuff keep on keeping on

[@Cosmic__Radiation]

I clicked on the video because of an odd curiosity and I'm glad I did. It was interesting to watch! Just a suggestion tho... You could probably take that saw dust and some old shredded mail/cardboard and mix it up with that saw dust in some water. Then you could drain the water and put the mixture in log shaped molds and set aside to dry-out for fire starter logs in a wood burning stove or to sell to a local store for resale. Just a thought to make an extra buck or two!

[@kevinajjenkins]

Those are beautiful pieces. The small knots looks awesome.

[@KenKenTheZombie420]

Appreciate your work man thanks for sharing

[@ltcajh]

I'm 63, and I've always loved wood and woodworking so much! I'd love to have the wood you produce. A fella can get hurt in a big hurry moving logs. Guess that's why the feminists don't complain about a glass ceiling in the logging world!

[@ndill1597]

My new favorite channel!!!

[@CliffsideStables]

First time visiting your channel and yes, I did come for the title, but I did enjoy the second half filled with “dad jokes“ 😇 Tim from northern TN

[@novampires223]

I also enjoy your humor, and the lumber and timber bit of course.😊

[@mynext30years41]

The content about the stick was the most exciting!

[@PineInTheAshMilling]

Great video real nice looking lumber

[@bluedodgeram74]

"It's just food."----Love it!! Great content, great humor.

[@Pawpaw4president]

Love your honesty!👍

[@mikearchangel]

Man, I've gotta fix up my greenhouse for next year! I remember those green green days. Awesome!

[@garyjohnson6640]

Around the 8 minute mark, it looks like a firefighting trailer in the background. I’d love to see video on how you have it set up. I’m in an area very similar to your’s where the threat of fire seems to have increased over the last few years.

[@WilsonForestLands]

I just happened to have made a video about that fire trailer last year. kzbin.info/www/bejne/h6WQZH6jpdOho8U

[@toivotorvinen]

Wow... Sold our lt40 g last October after 23 years, my body about worn out. Love this KZbin. Memories, Thanks much.

[@RiverRidge27]

I'm about to start. 5 years of saving and I'm buying a mill today

[@codybroken]

love the sound of that engine

[@GabrielCarusetta]

Great video, love how you made it

[@HunterMatthew]

first time viewer, nice video, property, and truck. subbed

[@forestrussell-yount1355]

your good you made the point

[@SWheatleyOutdoors]

Been enjoying your stuff! Making me want to get back out to Oregon....

[@jeffwolinski2659]

Nice looking lumber! Great vid as always!

[@garyvandenboss9148]

I've enjoyed your looking for the stick show.👍

[@pjseiber2774]

Enjoyed the video ❤

[@ogearbox6132]

Back from 1999 to 2008 I was an exterior cladding materials sales mgr. We had huge sales numbers because the winters were milder allowing masons specifically to work throughout the year. I have noticed a similar pattern this year which may herald similar sales growth despite interest rates. At any rate go and make hay while ya can.😎

[@davescott5582]

When you’re not sawing lumber, cause people aren’t buyin’ any, I would have also planted Chervil. I liked to grow that and put it on hot ham and cheese sandwiches. But I quit growing anything after the critters kept eating it all. Enjoyed the video! Best wishes!

[@grantdavis5992]

About 10 years ago I was helping run a Woodmiser and we were milling beetle killed Ponderosa pine here in the Sierras south of Yosemite. The biggest one I dropped was about 35" at the butt and I counted 192 growth rings. There is a blue discoloration in the wood, but it doesn't affect strength. There seems to be some demand for the blue colored wood. The Creek Fire destroyed everything.

[@WilsonForestLands]

I have a few videos milling blue pine. There is some demand for it, I have sold some.

[@johnburcaw8670]

Just found your channel and like your dry sense of humor 😅. Heard you talking about a "green house" but never seen a "Green House"😅 . Did see a clear house though with some greens for carpet😂

[@williammcconnell8141]

You make milling look easy. Its just time consuming for a little operator. Nice video and channel

[@brucea550]

It IS easy. Just hard work!

[@lucasdog1]

Good content, as usual. You make it, I'll watch it....even the Harbor Freight greenhouse.

[@vidalnunez4507]

going in for a stick and finding another... *chef's kiss*

[@joey8567]

I own 8 tracts in East Texas for selling. Then I was offered the normal deal with the same companies. Well screw them. I'm blessed and old so I decided to help the local small mills out. Slower returns but with 3 extra years of growing, 😎, the little guys are busy and putting these younger kids in rural areas to work. I like to drive buy and wave seeing folks working. Deer hunters are happy, then as trees are harvested they plant in nice rows like the big companies but no incidentals 😊, watching this video just made my night! Show the process. I sold 2k acres to a person who turned out to be a developer!🤬. They piled and burned for weeks. Wouldn't even let folks pick it up for them. The payback, every piece of property around it, we put huge signs, I won't post, but they maybe sold to set ups in a 5 yr period! Hahahahahaha 😂

[@joegrochowski669]

change you can believe in i suppose, thanks for video

[@Frontireadventures]

Lol.i love this channel.

[@geezerindawoods]

Awesome!! Well Dun!

[@MsdMakingSawDust]

In the beginning when you was rolling that first logs down to the mill, I thought it was going to go over the mill bunk and into the saw dust pile, because I noticed your back stops wasn’t in the up position . Play the lumber market around here is like playing the lottery .. good luck . I always remind myself do not try to understand the public…

[@WilsonForestLands]

And you didn’t even holler or anything to warn me my log stop was down. It wouldn’t have been the first time a log went over and went into the sawdust pile. 😁 Your last sentence about not trying to understand the public, sounds like words of pure wisdom right there.

[@jasonkohler-zz7mw]

Lots of construction upcoming here in northern Oregon!! I've spent the last 13 days pulling trees off of smashed buildings. Many millions of dollars of damage. Of the 24 years I've spent in the tree service industry, this is the craziest two weeks of work ever!

[@WilsonForestLands]

Oh yeah that’s a good point. Smashed buildings, probably fences too as well as other things.

[@MrBoo1963]

It's all about the cost. I have a small hobby size mill that only cuts up to 12'. When the increase first started, it came to be known that it was all a made up shortage excuse. Canada was sitting acers of ready to ship lumber so the prices would go up some more. Then just last year, it started to go down some. You have done fine and you should hold prices low. Thanks for sharing.

[@eem8039]

This is so good quality high density lumber

[@phoneuser3569]

We stopped buying it because it's too expensive.

[@LegendOfMithras]

7:06 That sir is way too satisfying. hats off to you!

[@WilsonForestLands]

I think a lot of us find it satisfying watching gravity do its thing. 😁

[@user-ib9lx5cd3i]

I would like to use the bark slabs to make siding

[@Wheelloader__]

Cool video Wilson. Your lumber looks so nice. Hard to find nice lumber around here.

[@xugefu]

Thanks!

[@WilsonForestLands]

Going through the comments, I just noticed your super chat. Thank you!

[@BenBen31BPD7]

I absolutely loved the trying to find a stick for content because of comments saying the vids aren't long enough lol. That made my morning. Like, come the F-on people, the video is as long as it needs to be to pass on the information be it, 5, 10, 15 or so many minutes.

[@banjobenson9348]

great boards.

[@markmeidra7759]

I would love to hangout with ya and log some lumber!!!!! I could learn alot from ya.

[@clayburn3750]

facts some good wood there..

[@bosse641]

Lovely planks.

[@jexl1059]

hahaha, so honest on yt click bait. love it

[@dandeleona4760]

I only just recently bought plywood when the weather broke b/c I didn't have anywhere to store it out of the weather until Spring. It's still outdoors under a tarp. But this might be why people are holding off on buying planks right now ... to avoid overwintering it. It's still bought early b/c there's a real threat of running out of affordable lumber and by the time the weather matches time for project, all the good boards are gone. It's a balance between getting them early .. .but not TOO early. ;)

[@Geisecurity]

Awesome😅😅

[@donniebelk4799]

The prices on lumber got to high

[@Mikkel584]

Real good channel, more forest managment like in Europe. Not just harvest harvest harvest and making a mess😅

[@WilsonForestLands]

Thank you. Maybe when we Americans get tired of cleaning up our big messes, we will learn something from Europe.

[@randywilson6869]

Go up on it

[@HardRockVermont]

Great content! What else do you grow in that greenhouse? LOL In any region of the USA, the housing market, season, and supply and demand are all factors that influence lumber sales. Example, when huge coastal storms hit Washington and Oregon, the market gets flooded with blow down timber from the Loggers being shipped to the mills, because of the time factor of the blow downs on the forest ground.

[@Dwayne-mb2uj]

I like the way you think.

[@edhansen8531]

I am in agreement with the You Tuber that said ' Kale tastes like I would rather be fat'. @😅

[@GreatFalls18u]

Interest rates down 100bp (1 percent) since November helping housing.

[@noneofyourbusiness3553]

Regardless the size of a mill, the type of mill or, the species you focus on; there is always an ebb and flow in market demand. Those ebb times are great for storing cash in stock that has a better chance of not depreciating.

[@Putzing]

Interesting ground-level take. Do you tune into Uneducated Economist? He's seeing a major decrease in residential foot traffic to the lumber yard.

[@jacksonscofield7809]

Private equity is buying up real estate all over, the “let them eat bugs” type of folks. Sheer greed while hard working folks shoulder the debt.

[@GoodBaleada]

20 years of free money is gone.

[@nspro931]

He's been seeing doom and gloom for years.

[@InsatiableMonkey]

If you spread Kale on a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with garlic salt and grated parmesan, and cook at 300 degrees for about 15-16 minutes, you end up with a salty/savory/crunchy snack. It's one of my faves and I generally hate kale.

[@TheGuruStud]

Fake news

[@JEEDUHCHRI]

Add a little anchovy paste… 💋🤌

[@justsittinhere72]

Cherry is a specialty lumber. Around here in upstate New York you could sell every stick of white pine or hemlock you could saw out. If you store it inside, stickered up, that would help,too. EDIT: I commented before the end of the video. I see you store it quite well!

[@WilsonForestLands]

If it wasn’t so expensive to ship, I’m sure I could sell plenty of Douglas fir in New York too.

[@justsittinhere72]

@@WilsonForestLands You must be in the northwest. A few years ago I had to really hunt to find some good Douglas Fir to construct some sliding garage doors. It's sold out here as framing lumber and not as a specialty wood.

[@Darfur64]

You sir are winning at that content creator stuff 😅😅 wish I was on your coast cause I could use those six footers to build a new rudder for my sailboat

[@WilsonForestLands]

Thank you. If shipping wasn’t so high and a pain to deal with I would be happy to sell and ship them to you.😁

[@jaredf5828]

Let us know if you find that stick you were looking for! Thanks, I enjoy your videos.

[@WilsonForestLands]

I don’t think I’m going to find the stick. Someone in the comments below said his dog came and took it.

[@Carrpocalypse]

Watching this mill run is extremely cathartic.

[@thatarkansan]

I think I saw a stick over here 😂

[@digger0429]

We like your videos good selling your lumber ,means wife and I

[@ericrener8177]

Right now spring break up is killing us! Because the winter was so mild and rainy, everything is wet and muddy. We are facing a shortage of logs because of the situation. But at the same time we're sitting on a lot of finished lumber that is unsold. If the man does not pick up very soon, there's going to be a lot of people laid off!

[@Dog.soldier1950]

Interest rate increases have really hurt the residential market. Projects all over the PNW have stopped. It dipped a bit but is above 7 again

[@JosephEaorle]

still at 6.64%

[@utpharmboy2006]

​@@JosephEaorle you can get that rate but the average is well over 7% since the cpi report today

[@utpharmboy2006]

cpi looks like its going to hover at 3% until something breaks since the fed won't be able to justify cuts.....but that could still take quite awhile, 6 months up to 2 years maybe?....but then its too late. i doubt it will be a soft landing....especially when wall street starts to capitualte when they realize getting to 2% might not happen this year or even next and all those cre loans start to sink lots of regional banks and at least do some damage to the bigger ones....then layoffs....defaults of all kinds... who knows. maybe it won't be that bad but it feels like something big is gonna happen in the next year or 2 and it doesnt feel good. hope I'm wrong. glta

[@Dog.soldier1950]

@@JosephEaorle that is for a 15yr fixed. 30yr fixed is 8.05%

[@JosephWeinerE]

Not for me. Right now I can get an interest rate for a 30 year fixed rate mortgage for 6.7%

[@cabinman]

Earlier this month lumber futures went up about 8% but have since settled back down. Maybe people are just needing some projects to work on. That's how I roll too...but I have my own mill as well and enjoy making my own lumber.

[@WilsonForestLands]

Futures just popped up again the last couple days.

[@hksurefire9306]

Spring is coming and DIYers and contractors are ordering material for projects is my guess.

[@WilsonForestLands]

I think you are probably right about that.

[@pakarussiapinto6718]

Building a patio and would need 6 by 6 into 10 feet , quantity 32 let me know how to get it from u cedar or Douglas fir , need it in Houston

[@grahamgeiger3206]

Looks like some good salad making fixings there

[@MichaelScootpowerMilstead]

Have to buy just have to get right one…

[@jimdavison4077]

Where are you located? Here in PEI Canada the local mill shut down cutting for the winter but had a large stock pile to sell and every day you see loads of it headed by and they are taking spring booking for house orders. That was some beautiful wood. I keep wanting to get a mill but health issues make it unpractical. But owing two wood lots and with the increase in hurricanes every fall so many trees are being knocked down and going to waste. Over the last 5 years it's estimates as much as 30% of wood lots suffered major damage. Nice clean interesting video with no distractions political or religious. Thankyou for that. PS, the honesty is very refreshing.

[@antondalemma5484]

Looks like west coast Douglas he's milling. I'd guess Pacific NW.

[@jimdavison4077]

@@antondalemma5484 i was thinking some where around there. Lots of other parts of the country under snow now. Thanks for your time. Have a good week.

[@antondalemma5484]

I drop, mill. cure, shape, finish, assemble and install Van Island timber for specialty projects. Just educated guess on his location. @@jimdavison4077

[@terichampion1165]

He said southern Oregon but I would like to know too. I am from Medford, OR and was curious.

[@gjensen500]

If you use some of that lumber you can build some shelving for your green house. That would make a good video for you.

[@cindyhayslette306]

I only clicked on your video because of the title. And as I watched you, it was interesting. Then you piqued my interest even more with that greenhouse bit. I’m trying to figure out how to use a greenhouse. What’s the temperature where you live the low’s at night?

[@csehszlovakze]

jokes about clickbait aside, this was an informative video.

[@charlesspringer4709]

Have you always had that much lichen on the trees? In my area of Puget Sound there is a major increase, and a lot of dying trees from "root rot" plus restrictions of some sort on what can be used for building, kiln drying before transport, etc. I get a different story from everyone I ask, business or government.