Chop Chop Inc Production Checklist

Use this checklist during Chop Chop Inc sessions when you feel busy but unprofitable. NullRef Entertainment’s loop rewards doing steps in order: harvest timber before upgrading saws you do not feed, craft before accepting city orders you cannot ship, automate only after manual bottlenecks are visible. Copy mentally or keep this page open beside the game — markdown checkboxes mark stages, not in-game quest flags.

Before you chop

• Confirm Controls bindings for axe, interact, sprint, and inventory feel comfortable
• Cook or buy one meal if cooking is unlocked — stamina failures look like bad tools
• Mark a felling zone near your planned processing pile (minimum walking distance)
• Clear inventory of finished goods so new planks have bench space
• Read the next city contract material list — do not accept until planks are feasible

Stage 1 — Chop

• Target common trees first; rare stone, metal, and electric timber waits until tools upgrade (How to Find Rare Trees)
• Fell in batches so return trips carry full stacks
• Deposit logs at one dedicated infeed pile, not scattered around the map
• Upgrade axe edge before expanding to distant forest zones
• Replant or note respawn timing if the demo zone supports it — empty lanes waste travel

Stop chopping when: your infeed pile exceeds one saw cycle — switch to processing or you are hoarding, not producing.

Stage 2 — Process

• Run logs through saw or splitter into planks and beams before opening workbenches
• Keep processing one tree type per queue when recipes demand uniform material
• Upgrade saw throughput before adding a second workbench
• Place processing output within two steps of bench cluster
• Split stone, metal, or electric logs only when matching machines are unlocked

Stop processing when: plank stacks match your active contract list plus one buffer recipe — excess wood ties cash in idle inventory.

Stage 3 — Craft

• Prioritize items on accepted city orders over experimental furniture
• Use blueprint unlocks from town NPCs before guessing random combinations (Crafting hub)
• Craft matching set pieces together when bonuses apply (How to Craft Sets)
• Leave one bench slot free for emergency single-item fixes
• Move finished goods immediately to outbound pallet or shipping zone

Stop crafting when: outbound zone holds every promised order piece — switch to selling or delivery.

Stage 4 — Sell

• Deliver or ship completed orders before accepting replacements
• Decline contracts that need materials you cannot process within one in-game day
• Reinvest first profits into log cart or capacity before cosmetic upgrades
• Track which furniture types paid best last trip — repeat margin, not variety for its own sake
• Talk to town NPCs after deliveries; some unlock discounts or blueprints

Stop selling when: cash covers the next planned upgrade on this checklist — spending without a target recreates Furnox-style waste.

Stage 5 — Automate

• Automate the step you repeat most — usually hauling or saw feeding (How to Automate)
• Add one conveyor segment at a time and verify flow before extending
• Assign NPC helpers only after input piles stay consistently full
• Never automate a stage that still stalls manually — machines amplify bottlenecks
• Leave manual override paths for rare tree batches that need special handling

Stop automating when: you can accept a new contract and walk away for five minutes without jam — then expand forest or city reach.

Daily reset (full game and long demo sessions)

• Restock meals and repair worn tools
• Scan job board for set-bonus opportunities worth retooling
• Check Updates if patches changed machine speeds or demo limits
• Compare yard layout against Getting Started workshop triangle

Common failure patterns

Symptom	Likely skipped stage	Fix
Giant log pile, empty benches	Process	Feed saws before more chopping
Planks everywhere, no cash	Sell	Finish and ship orders
Accepted too many jobs	Craft planning	Decline until queue clears
Fancy conveyors, idle NPCs	Automate timing	Fill manual piles first
Rare tree scraps	Chop	Upgrade tools per rare tree guide

Related pages

Deep dives live in Guides. Hardware issues? See System Requirements. Launch timing and demo access: Demo info and Release date. Honest buying context: Review.