what kind of chickens?

As my 9 hens are all going on 2-3 years old and I haven't had an egg for over a month ( quit as soon as temps started to drop). We are going to start a new flock this spring. I know a couple of people who hatch chicks to sell breeds and prices are:

Guy #1
Light brahma- $1.00 ea
Buff orpingtons- $1.00 ea
Silver laced wyandotts- $1.00 ea
All st run

Guy #2
Black australorps-$1.00 ea
Barred rocks- $1.00 ea
Americana- $2.00 ea
All st run

Lady #3
Bantam cochins- splash and buff- $2.00 ea
St run

Guy #4
Has 2 flocks set up one all white leghorn and one of buff orpingtons. He said if I set up my incubator he will give me hatching eggs.

And the local farm store gets the regular breeds in but they are usually close to $3.00 ea for pullits. I had large cochins to hatch eggs for me in the past, but haven't seen any for a long time. Has anyone ordred form a hatchery? If so how did it go?
Also does anyone know how well the above lay, temperment, ect...

I am no expert but would say..

guy one..buff would be the better layer..
and the wyandotts beautifull but smaller egg..

guy 2
think barred rock is a good choice for eggs...My personal experience with my austrolps..is large good tasting egg...
though no nearly as many as my research led me to believe...

guy 3..so cute...
but...I have a bantum buffed cochin..she molts lovely feathers. and is sweet to have around....but...rarely lays and her eggs are very small...

guy 4...white leghorns are suposed to be good layers...and love orpingtons...if I could have one more want a splash orpington...

can't help you with the hatchery eggs...I have gotten mine from familys...and all (except one sweet mut) are all good natured and friendly to be held...

We have 8 with one rooster...would love 2 get more...but...better probably to be in a situation..like yours of adding when there is a need...

chicks 2 look forward 2 sounds like sweet fun..

I had 2 blue large cochin hens when we first moved out here. They were soooo broody! But at the time I had no need for the chicks and gave them away. Wish I still had them. (No need for incubator). Do you know if the bantam cochins are as broody and will they hatch full size eggs? I don't plan to have to buy chics ever again. Will let a broody hen hatch or incubate from now on, and replace my roo every year or two. I love an assortment of colors and breeds. Would love to have a few of the "pritty" breeds that the hatcherys have, and would like to have a few marans love the dark color of their eggs. But that means having to order and have them shipped.

Orpingtons, Barred Rocks, and Australorps are good layers in my personal experince. Though you can get some of every breed who aren't on par with their reputation. I had a Buff who wouldn't hardly lay. Ask about the stock when you talk to folks who are selling, and see if they lay well for them.

When we decided to get chickens, I did as much research as I could and decided on mostly Buff Orpingtons with a few Columbian Wyandotte's because they looked so cool (people love my 'chickens with the tux on' ) We got 6 Buff pullets from the farm store, and ordered 3 Dotte's and a Buff roo from a hatchery. The hatchery day old chicks grew faster and seemed to adjust quicker to their 'new pen'. I got them from Meyer Hatchery out of Ohio. If I were to do it again, I would stick with just Buffs. From all I've read on this board and others, Buffs are hit or miss birds - people seem to love them or hate them. I fall into the love them category! My girls lay fairly consistently, when I don't make huge changes to their routine/environment; I have one that is very broody but still a sweetie, and egg size is large/consistent (5/6 per day from 6 ladies). The Dottes lay smaller eggs, less frequently (1 a day from 3 ladies has been the usual), are skittish and not broody. My rooster is very docile, but he is a bully! We have to keep him separate until 'needed'. We plan to let our broody hen set come Spring and see how she does. Plans are to only put Buff eggs under her, and cull the Dottes (and the roo) once their replacements have matured. We sell eggs to pay for feed, so a consistent large egg layer works best for us.

How did ordering from the hatchery work for you? I have heard some bad things about dead and dieing chicks, have also heard that they arrive fine.

My chicks arrived fine. I scheduled them for warmer temps (it can get very cold here) and my local post office was fantastic about delivery- my carrier called and, when she found out I couldn't catch a ride to the post office until later, she drove them over to my house for me! They arrived healthy, plus I put them right under a heat lamp in case they were chilled. Overall I was very pleased, and I was especially happy because Meyer's was willing to ship in smaller quantities. I only wanted a few birds, and their minimum was four, so it worked out perfectly for me. I had heard the stories of dead birds too, but didn't have issues.

Guy #2...skip the Americanas. Out of all the breeds listed in the OP, the Black Aussies and the Barred Rocks are your best layers and best for a sustainable flock.

I have three groups:
(1) eggers and miscellaneous like leghorns (mostly for eggs)
(2) black australorps (for eggs, broodiness, and for their chicks, we keep the girls for the next generation and eat the boys)
(3) bantam eggers and silkies (love the tiny blue and cream-colored eggs and broodiness of the silkies)

We plan to never buy chickens again, at least for 3-4 years, then we'll get some new boys!

I apologize in advance if I'm hijacking FF6's post, but can ya'll recommend a good layer that's also a sex-link?