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He Makes Money Selling Wood Processor Plans On eBay
High school ag teacher Daniel Miller built a firewood processor that loads, cuts and splits firewood and then started selling do-it-yourself plans for the machine on eBay. So far he's sent plans to people in 37 states and five countries.
"The idea was to build it out of basic parts that can be purchased anywhere
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He Makes Money Selling Wood Processor Plans On eBay 32-3-8 High school ag teacher Daniel Miller built a firewood processor that loads, cuts and splits firewood and then started selling do-it-yourself plans for the machine on eBay. So far he's sent plans to people in 37 states and five countries.
"The idea was to build it out of basic parts that can be purchased anywhere," Miller explains. He kept notes and took photos to record the building process and even incorporated it into a lesson for his students.
Since then he's made revisions, modifying and improving his plans, while still keeping it flexible. For example, Miller upgraded from a spring-loaded arm to hydraulics to hold the log down as it's being cut. But he left the less expensive spring-loaded arm option in the plan.
He sells his plans, which include 70 photos, for $24.95 for a downloadable PDF file or $32 for a CD. A sample of the plans is on Miller's website. In the future he plans to offer plans for other woodcutting tools such as a firewood-bundle wrapping machine, wood conveyor to attach to the processor for quick loading, a log splitter to attach to a tractor's 3-pt. hitch and a log cart for an ATV to skid logs.
People who buy his plans often have their own ideas, Miller notes, and use his plans as a base or comparison. He doubts that any two machines built from the plan are alike.
"It's not a complicated machine at all," he says, and he includes a "this is a homemade machine" disclaimer so people understand it won't work like an expensive factory-made unit. The plans come with digital photos and step-by-step instructions.
Miller says his processor is not fast enough for some and admits he needs to upgrade his 10 hp engine to 16 hp to reduce up to half the time. It could also be converted to run off a pto. The small engine cuts and splits a cord every three hours, which is about the same as cutting with a chainsaw. "But it's a lot less labor," he says.
Using some scrap parts, he spent $1,600 for his splitter, but estimates it costs $2,500 to make with all new parts.
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Daniel Miller, P.O. Box 349, Joliet, Montana 59041 (ph 406 962-9893; info@millerswoodcutting.com; www.millerswoodcutting.com).
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