Part of RB Global, Inc. (Ritchie Bros. acquired J.M. Wood in July 2025)Shipping equipment bought at J.M. Wood Auction overseas
Also searched as J.M. Wood, JM Wood Auction, JM Wood Auction Company, jmwood.com, Montgomery auction
J.M. Wood sells construction, truck and forestry equipment at its own site at 3475 Ashley Road, Montgomery, Alabama, and has been part of Ritchie Bros. since July 2025. Every lot is paid on sale day in U.S. funds, and nothing leaves without the yellow haul ticket from the front office.
How J.M. Wood Auction works for export buyers
J.M. Wood Auction Company has run auctions from Montgomery since 1973. Ritchie Bros., part of RB Global, bought the company in July 2025; its sales and terms still run under the J.M. Wood name at jmwood.com.
Payment is strict: cash, cashier's check or certified check on sale day, a company or personal check only with a current bank letter, and wires only with a 20% cash or cashier's check deposit. The site is open Monday to Friday, 8 am to 5 pm.
J.M. Wood Auction buyer terms
- Buyer's fee
- 10% on items selling for $5,000 or less; 3.5% from $5,001, with a $500 minimum and $1,350 maximum per lot. Source
- Payment
- Sale day, in U.S. funds, by cash, cashier's check or certified check. Checks need a current bank letter guaranteeing payment; wires need a 20% cash or cashier's check deposit. Source
- Release
- Items may only be removed with a yellow haul ticket issued at check-out in the front office. Source
- Storage
- $25 per item per day after the removal time in the sale terms; items not collected go back into the next auction and are sold absolute. Source
- Titles
- Mailed within 10 banking days. Source
- Online and proxy bids
- Send a photo ID and a bank letter of guarantee up to 48 hours before the auction; proxy bids also need a 10% deposit. Source
Checked October 2026. Terms vary by sale, so confirm them on your invoice.
After you win at J.M. Wood Auction
- 1Pay on sale day. If you wire, the 20% deposit must already be in cash or cashier's check.
- 2Collect the yellow haul ticket at the front office check-out, or have it issued to our driver.
- 3Send us the invoice and lot numbers. We collect Monday to Friday between 8 am and 5 pm, before the removal time in the sale terms.
- 4We collect the machine, load it with our own carrier and take it to the port, or first to our facility if it needs partial disassembly to fit a container.
- 5We file the export declaration (EEI) in the Automated Export System. It is required when any Schedule B line is worth more than $2,500 or needs an export license, and its ITN confirmation goes to the carrier at least 24 hours before the vessel loads.
- 6For titled machines and vehicles, the original title and the EEI go to U.S. Customs at the port at least 72 hours before export. Without them the unit cannot sail.
- 7We send you the bill of lading and the documents your customs broker needs to clear the machine at destination.
How we work with J.M. Wood Auction
- Our driver brings the yellow haul ticket to the gate; nothing is loaded without it.
- From Montgomery, Mobile is the closest container and flat rack port and Savannah is within a day for more sailings; RoRo usually goes from Brunswick or Jacksonville.
- We collect before the removal time so the lot is not charged $25 a day or put back into the next sale.
J.M. Wood Auction locations and their best export ports
1 yard, each with the closest port that takes containers and flat racks, and the closest RoRo port, by road miles.
| Yard | Container and flat rack | RoRo |
|---|---|---|
| JM WoodMontgomery, Alabama | Port of Mobile170 mi, about 3.5 h | Port of Brunswick (Colonel's Island)343 mi, about 7 h |
Road miles from OSRM (OpenStreetMap), calculated October 2026. Truck hours assume a 50 mph average for a loaded lowboy, including stops.
Container is usually the cheapest option, and we do the partial disassembly needed to make the machine fit. How we containerize heavy equipment
Container, flat rack, RoRo or breakbulk?
We quote in this order because it is usually cheapest first. Most machines that look too big for a box fit once our crew takes off the bucket, boom, cab or wheels; larger ones are taken further apart across several containers, and pieces too big or heavy for a flat rack or roll trailer go breakbulk.
01Container
Best fit- Work needed
- We partially disassemble when needed (bucket, boom, cab, wheels), or take larger machines further apart across several high-cubes and open-tops, then crate, block and lash every part.
- Destinations
- Widest: almost every port worldwide, plus inland delivery by rail.
- Typical cost
- Usually the lowest, with no out-of-gauge surcharges.
- Protection
- Sealed steel box; loose parts and attachments travel locked inside.
- Best for
- Most machines: compact ones as they are, others after partial disassembly, and large ones split across several containers.
02Flat rack
- Work needed
- Ships assembled, blocked and lashed. Surcharges apply when wider than 2.4 m or taller than about 1.95 m.
- Destinations
- Most container ports, on the same vessels as containers.
- Typical cost
- Moderate; rises with every centimetre out of gauge.
- Protection
- Open to the weather; we protect cabs, electronics and hydraulics.
- Best for
- Excavators, dozers and loaders too wide for a container door.
03RoRo
- Work needed
- Drives on assembled; non-runners go on a roll trailer.
- Destinations
- Fewer destinations: regular lanes to Europe, West Africa, the Middle East, Oceania and parts of Latin America.
- Typical cost
- Often competitive for large self-propelled machines where a lane exists.
- Protection
- Below deck, but loose items and attachments cannot ride inside the cab.
- Best for
- Running machines going to a port with regular RoRo sailings.
04Breakbulk
- Work needed
- Lifted aboard piece by piece by ship’s or shore cranes, on its own skids or cradle, then stowed and lashed in the hold or on deck.
- Destinations
- Ports with breakbulk berths and heavy-lift cranes; sailings are booked voyage by voyage.
- Typical cost
- Usually the highest for a single small machine; often the only option for the largest pieces.
- Protection
- In the hold or lashed on deck; we crate, wrap and protect exposed parts.
- Best for
- Pieces too large or heavy for a flat rack or roll trailer: transformers, process modules, mining trucks, crane sections.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Wiring the full amount without the 20% deposit on sale day, which holds the release.
- Leaving a machine past the removal time. J.M. Wood resells uncollected items in the next auction, sold absolute.
- Arriving at the weekend. The site is open Monday to Friday only.
J.M. Wood Auction export questions
What is the J.M. Wood buyer's fee?
10% on lots selling for $5,000 or less, and 3.5% on lots from $5,001, with at least $500 and at most $1,350 per lot.
Is J.M. Wood part of Ritchie Bros.?
Yes. Ritchie Bros., part of RB Global, acquired J.M. Wood in July 2025. Its auctions still run under the J.M. Wood name and terms at the Montgomery site.
What happens if a J.M. Wood lot is not picked up?
Storage is $25 per item per day after the removal time, and items that are still not collected go back into the next auction and are sold absolute.