New company started in Canada need advice!

Hey guys i know there is a bunch of new company start up forums on here but i have a couple questions that havent been fully answered. first off in the last 2 months ive finally found some used and new equipment to get the company off and running. 1) 2 ton Tessy i call her she's a 2003 gmc c5500 single axle dump truck in really good condition she can hold 4 yards in the dump box its a smaller box but she can get into really tight spots witch is nice (2wheeldrive) 2) i bought a 2021 double A triple axle dump trailer with a 10 ton scissor style ram 16'x7' box good for around 7 yards of soil 5 yards of gravel type thing 3) a 2019 Cat 305E2 with 239hrs on it came with a 42" 24" buckets and a post hole auger and ive just got a 14" bucket made for doing trenches for electrical cables and piping. ive managed to pay off the truck trailer and owe roughly $82,000 still i have a full time job thats shift work and been doing this on my days off with the idea that in a couple years to do it full time and leave my current job behind. Ive got now 295 hrs on my machine and im getting better with operating the Cat as i am new to heavy equipment but i am fairly mechanically inclined and i understand the maintenance and operations of the machines ive purchased. currently my biggest issue right now that i am facing is my rate that ive been charging out. For small hauls ive been charging 65-85$ per delivery if its under 5 yards ive been doing $65 and if i need my trailer 5-9 yards im charging 85$ witch i dont think i am too far off on pricing ? As for the Cat ive been all over the place started with 65$ and fuel per hour witch is way to cheap but with little experience i felt bad for charging more and then with hours of practice on my acreage ive bumped it up to 75$ per hour and fuel and now im getting fairly comfortable with the machine i put in an electrical pole and service in the other day and it went well (currently an Electrician ) maybe someone on here has some advice on fastening the pole to the bucket a little easier so it doesnt have potential to swing and hit any hydraulic lines on the stick ? i am pretty much just seeing what everyone thinks about a new guy on the block charging so cheap compared to a more experienced guy in the same machine im getting better and better every day i step in that machine so im wondering if i should move my rates up some more ? and what do guys charge their friends for smaller jobs that only take half a day in the machine and the rest is just hauling away brush or sod type thing whats a good hourly rate for the dump truck to be charging per hour ? thanks for your time i apologize for the drawn out message here. Also are tooth style auger bits good in medium rocky soil or does a guy need the rock style auger head ?

Depends where you are in Canada, i'm in Alberta and I charge $100/hr for my 6 ton, $125 if frost ripping, minimum $400. Honestly i'm not even a fan of hourly work like that because it's nothing great for money. When i'm bidding a job I am quoting it around $150/hr.

Thanks for your comment I’m in BC on Vancouver island frost isn’t much of an issue up here is that 400$ Minimum charge include losing and u loading your machine ? And do you charge form you leaving your house or yard where your machines at ?

IslandMini. I'm not too far from you. I have an F650 and I'm about $80/hr.; I got 4 different minies from 1.7 to 8 ton. rates range from $85 to $110/hr. I charge 4hr minimum with delivery $500.00 for the smaller stuff. My delivery rates range from $110 to $275. depending on size of machine and trailer I use. Most home owners cant' really tell the the difference between a new operator and and with a lot of hours, however, not the case on the contractor/developer end. Make sure all your insurances incl. liability, proper ICBC insurance/inspections etc. is all up to par. It's not a matter of if but when. From my experiences, 1 size machine make you 1 dimensional. Think you're better off have couple of diff. sizes and maybe slightly more use which will all you to diversify.

You're in the ballpark on the truck and trailer. You're low on the machine. That size should be around 95-100/hr. Although I've never bothered charging fuel, just complicates things

A baseline hourly rate should be 1% of the purchase price of new machines whether contracting or not. If the market won't sustain those prices then don't do it, you'll go broke. The only variation to this is speed.
I've seen plenty of times over 50 years where people have started contracting businesses and have to have all the bells and whistles, ie thousands of dollars worth of attachments bearley used, of a expensive truck sitting on the roadside while the machine is being used,they've all gone bust. All these items also need to be covered in any rates you charge.
Unfortunately there are many dumb people who work for below cost and many people who look for cheap which has the knock-on effect of driving prices down.

Anyone in your area install screw piles? Young fella here bought into a franchise, and goes non stop. You got the machine, all you need is the remote and the head.

Sounds too cheap. I paid $300 for 4 hour rental on something similar which included drop off, pick up, and sales tax. No operator included

Be careful with that triple axle trailer. Tight turns bend those axles easily.

islandmini said:

Thanks for your comment I’m in BC on Vancouver island frost isn’t much of an issue up here is that 400$ Minimum charge include losing and u loading your machine ? And do you charge form you leaving your house or yard where your machines at ?

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$400 gets 2.5 hours working time for in city jobs I can get to in 30 mins. Generally anything over about 7 hours I don't charge any travel just actual time worked, for the bit shorter ones 0.5-1h travel depending on location.

Tones said:

A baseline hourly rate should be 1% of the purchase price of new machines whether contracting or not. If the market won't sustain those prices then don't do it, you'll go broke. The only variation to this is speed.
I've seen plenty of times over 50 years where people have started contracting businesses and have to have all the bells and whistles, ie thousands of dollars worth of attachments bearley used, of a expensive truck sitting on the roadside while the machine is being used,they've all gone bust. All these items also need to be covered in any rates you charge.
Unfortunately there are many dumb people who work for below cost and many people who look for cheap which has the knock-on effect of driving prices down.

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That's a interesting formula. For a mini that number seems right as I believe a 6 ton here is about $110k new, but I think a 200 with a thumb etc is nearly $250k-300k, and there is no way anyone around here is charging close to that. If i'm hourly i'm charging $170 for my 210, contract jobs i'm pricing it out $200-$250 depending on the job. However it would be low for a CTL, I think a 75hp machine is about $70k here and I charge mine at $95/hr. The crazy part is dump trucks, tandems here at $85/hr a new truck depending what it is is $150k-$225k, not much money in that. I can't speak for anyone running brand new equipment with payments, but i'm making good money with my equipment, however it is all paid for.

suladas said:

That's a interesting formula. For a mini that number seems right as I believe a 6 ton here is about $110k new, but I think a 200 with a thumb etc is nearly $250k-300k, and there is no way anyone around here is charging close to that. If i'm hourly i'm charging $170 for my 210, contract jobs i'm pricing it out $200-$250 depending on the job. However it would be low for a CTL, I think a 75hp machine is about $70k here and I charge mine at $95/hr. The crazy part is dump trucks, tandems here at $85/hr a new truck depending what it is is $150k-$225k, not much money in that. I can't speak for anyone running brand new equipment with payments, but i'm making good money with my equipment, however it is all paid for.

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Re dump trucks. I remember a bloke who had a new Western Star and dog trailer carting aggregate from a quarry, about 35000 bucks allup. He thought he was in clover earning $58 per hour, I kid you not. He did come to his senses. Realizing what he had done to his family hung himself.