Am I missing something here?
Yes, the rest of the story is that the machine was paid for in cash (no debt service), I'm renting the haul truck from my father on a per/mile basis (however, I cover all the commercial insurance on the vehicles and the business liability) and I already owned the trailer (it's my big hay trailer). I also have accesss to some really cheap, but good, health insurance through my Bride's retirment plan. I already do all my own maintenance on every other piece of machinery I own, and this dozer won't be any different.
So, technically, you could say that the operation is subsidized.
OTOH, I gave Dad a couple of acres at the farm so they could put up a little house and get away from the Texas coast. I did all the prep and utilities for his place and have built all the porches and stairs for his house so there's some sweat equity I've invested too.
The details:
It's a 9000# machine and from what I can tell, the rate here for a small dozer is anywhere from $50-$75hr. I charge $65/hr with a 4 hr minimum but, that's an old number (last summer), and I'll probably have to go up soon because of fuel. There are a couple of outfits doing dozer work here but all they have are huge machines and their fees are high because of the cost of transporation. My bread and butter will be the 2-3 day job that the big guys can't or won't do.
I'm sure not worried taking any food off their table because, in the beginning when I called them about doing some work for me, it took over 4 weeks to return my call and another 6 to give me a bid. Sounds like they're busy enough to me.
ointhead
