I have a JD3520 with a 300CX loader, and a 5' BB as well as a 4' tiller. I bought it last summer for use on our recently purchased 35 acres. I also mow with it and a 5' finish mower. I love the tractor but dont get enough use out of it. I intend to try and generate a little side income this spring by tilling gardens and spreading gravel etc... I was wanting to hear some ideas for other oppurtunities as far as small jobs. I am hoping to find jobs doing stuff too small for the full time guys. I am in the process of talking to my agent about insurance, as I am sure that will be brought up in this thread.
Lighter duty side work for a CUT>>?
- Thread starter jmt1271
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schmism
Super Member
i would think you could.... perhaps add a 60" brush hog as that seems to be a common task to hire out (brushogging small plots... 1-2 acers hear and there)
those seem abundant in my area. (not that ive done any) i dont have a trailer and tow rig yet....
but you got to ask yourself if its worth it... to till a good size garden might take what? 30 min? but an hr to pack and unpack the tractor from the trailer (not including drive time to the job site) all for what? 40-$60
those seem abundant in my area. (not that ive done any) i dont have a trailer and tow rig yet....
but you got to ask yourself if its worth it... to till a good size garden might take what? 30 min? but an hr to pack and unpack the tractor from the trailer (not including drive time to the job site) all for what? 40-$60
schmism said:
Good point on that. Most folks charge a setup fee to bring equipment. Generally equal to an hour of labor. Can be more depending on the size of the equipment and its cost. A well driller charged me $250 setup fee to bring his $150,000 drill rig. A buddy charges $35 to bring a portable saw mill to cut logs into lumber.
I do have a trailer and move my tractor around a lot between home and two wooded properties we own. I made an permanent earth ramp to make load/unload at home easy. It takes about 15 minutes from opening the back door to driving off with about 1/2 that time moving the truck around and getting it lined up and on the hitch. It's a little more than 1/2 that time if I have a skilled helper guide me to the hitch and help chain down the tractor. But still, loading, driving over, unloading, reloading, driving home and unloading is worth something and charging for an hour is probably on the light side!
Probably best to have a 2 to 4 hour minimum charge + setup fee. It depends on how little you want to be paid!
JMT, if you do get into this, when you get a job try knocking on doors around the neighborhood. You may be able to get a full days work or more and be able to spread the setup fee out over more people. 3 jobs of 2 hours each and charge each one only 1/2 the setup fee. Just a thought.
jb
Sully2
Veteran Member
jmt1271 said:
LAWN PREPARATION!
Getting the "base" right is about 1/2 the battle. Along with a "seeder/spreader" to seed and then later fertilize.
Any new home construction going on anywhere close could get a few $$ in your pocket!!
jimmy1
Silver Member
jmt, the usual things that come to my mind are tilling, mowing, lawn sweeping, bushhoging and general yard maintanence. Depending on the type of area you are in ther may be a demand for chipping downed tree branches and home owners clippings and things??
How are you going to get word out? It you ran a small add offering your services you could then pick and choose the ones that are feasable to what you are wanting to accomplish or schedule jobs to fit you time table and area that you will be working in on any given day.
My thoughts
Jim
How are you going to get word out? It you ran a small add offering your services you could then pick and choose the ones that are feasable to what you are wanting to accomplish or schedule jobs to fit you time table and area that you will be working in on any given day.
My thoughts
Jim
I am going to run an ad in the local papers. Am going to charge $50/hr with 2.5 hr minimum for most tasks. I am not trying to make a killing, just get a little more use out of the machine to help justify the purchase. I am the type that wants the job done right, so hopefully I will get some word of mouth adverising. Thanks for the tips.
I've been doing this to some extent for 2 yrs now. I advertise in a church paper, where almost all my jobs have come from. I advertised in the local weekly paper for four weeks, and got not ONE call--and this was in the fall, when there should have been jobs.
For a lot of reasons, I figure I need to charge a minimum of $50 per hour to give me any wages/profit. Rather than tell the customer "I charge $50 an hour" and then have them look at their watch every time I stop to take a drink of water, I bid the jobs for a fixed price. I use $50/hour and try to figure how long it will take me, including load and travel time. Then I add an hour or two for bad estimating and added little things the customer wants. The customer hears one price for the job, take it or leave it. I don't need practice putting hours on my tractor.
The exception is neighbors, I just do it to be neighborly. Most of those jobs are an hour or less, and I chalk that up to goodwill.
If you think you are charging too much, bring a plumber or electrician to your house--or a tractor mechanic! Then your $50-75 per hour looks like a bargain--especially when you consider that most of us have $10-30K worth of equipment we're trying to pay for!
At first, I was reluctant to bid a high number, but I got over that really quickly.
Hope this helps.
Ron
For a lot of reasons, I figure I need to charge a minimum of $50 per hour to give me any wages/profit. Rather than tell the customer "I charge $50 an hour" and then have them look at their watch every time I stop to take a drink of water, I bid the jobs for a fixed price. I use $50/hour and try to figure how long it will take me, including load and travel time. Then I add an hour or two for bad estimating and added little things the customer wants. The customer hears one price for the job, take it or leave it. I don't need practice putting hours on my tractor.
The exception is neighbors, I just do it to be neighborly. Most of those jobs are an hour or less, and I chalk that up to goodwill.
If you think you are charging too much, bring a plumber or electrician to your house--or a tractor mechanic! Then your $50-75 per hour looks like a bargain--especially when you consider that most of us have $10-30K worth of equipment we're trying to pay for!
At first, I was reluctant to bid a high number, but I got over that really quickly.
Hope this helps.
Ron
