extracting 150 cube plus hardwoods

[steve collins]

looking for opinions on machinery to extract 150 plus cube hardwoods? are the crane type skidders like hsm, noe, wf trac and  kotschenruther up to task ?? reason being you can haul out the tops after with a trailer attached or is it excavator and forwarder ?

 

any thoughts welcome

[ESS]

2 minutes ago, steve collins said:

looking for opinions on machinery to extract 150 plus cube hardwoods? are the crane type skidders like hsm, noe, wf trac and  kotschenruther up to task ?? reason being you can haul out the tops after with a trailer attached or is it excavator and forwarder ?

 

any thoughts welcome

I have worked alongside HSM , crane with d/d winches rated @around 17t from memory. Very capable machine on the winches and crane, 150 might be a bit savage to skid with crane alone, although they do have a grip on the butt plate, pricey though. When you say tops do you mean in shortwood ?

I would have thought it simple enough to plumb a trailer to a grapple skidder.

[steve collins]

thanks for the response, yes basically using crane to lift butt end on to toothed butt plate and a winch cable wrapped round for safe measure then drive out, yes i mean shortwood 

Ive seen a cat 525 grapple skid out timber but then a forwarder go in to collect the shortwood

 

Ive looked at the specs on the crane types and not sure if some are up to task, just seeing if there is one piece of kit to do the job really

[ESS]

16 minutes ago, steve collins said:

thanks for the response, yes basically using crane to lift butt end on to toothed butt plate and a winch cable wrapped round for safe measure then drive out, yes i mean shortwood 

Ive seen a cat 525 grapple skid out timber but then a forwarder go in to collect the shortwood

 

Ive looked at the specs on the crane types and not sure if some are up to task, just seeing if there is one piece of kit to do the job really

That particular machine would be skidding 150 + but not in one lump. A county with mounted igland 8000s would, then crane trailer to go on butt plate.I have run several, and they will handle 150 comfortably. Finding one would be a different matter.

We ran cat 955 with fork on , had a big crane trailer built for that that would carry 300 cube., with 4 sets of bolsters on. Hyster winch on cat.

The HSM was sold to Essex and replaced with new. They would let you have a look at it. That one had a head to go with it too.

Grapple skidder with trailer was a shit suggestion, grapple would snag headboard etc.

[openspaceman]

55 minutes ago, ESS said:

A county with mounted igland 8000s would, then crane trailer to go on butt plate.I have run several, and they will handle 150 comfortably.

My 1124 with 4510 grapple loader and Igland 4000/2 would/will skid 120Hft up a slight incline on good ground, it will pull more than it can winch. The problem with hardwood butts is getting the big end off the ground.. I used it for years and hauled the pulpwood out too. The Valtra T190 will pull more but I only used it with a Ahwi mulcher.

 

My Farmi 8tonne single drum 3 PLinkage  would be better as long as you have enough front weight.

[ESS]

3 minutes ago, openspaceman said:

My 1124 with 4510 grapple loader and Igland 4000/2 would/will skid 120Hft up a slight incline on good ground, it will pull more than it can winch. The problem with hardwood butts is getting the big end off the ground.. I used it for years and hauled the pulpwood out too. The Valtra T190 will pull more but I only used it with a Ahwi mulcher.

 

My Farmi 8tonne single drum 3 PLinkage  would be better as long as you have enough front weight.

I had an 1124 for a number of years, pull like a train. We actually field tested the first boughton double drum, hell of a winch. Took it off that and fit it to a 1454 that got stolen.

Last county I had was 1184 with 8000 mounted remote, she could pull. We got a 300 + lump of chestnut out with it.

Tbh purpose built skidders are more affordable now aren't they ?

[openspaceman]

1 minute ago, ESS said:

Tbh purpose built skidders are more affordable now aren't they ?

Pass, I got out of serious contracting in 1997 but kept the kit.

 

Being a jack of all types of woodland management specialised kit weren't justified. I did once try a Timberjack with a view to buying it but those no slip diffs churned the ground so badly...

 

As I said in the other thread I often stood the machines up and went felling until drier weather and you can't afford that if you owe repayments.

[ESS]

2 minutes ago, openspaceman said:

Pass, I got out of serious contracting in 1997 but kept the kit.

 

Being a jack of all types of woodland management specialised kit weren't justified. I did once try a Timberjack with a view to buying it but those no slip diffs churned the ground so badly...

 

As I said in the other thread I often stood the machines up and went felling until drier weather and you can't afford that if you owe repayments.

Oh ok, well Counties have become collectable now . They stood us well down the years, You still have your kit?

[openspaceman]

1 minute ago, ESS said:

Oh ok, well Counties have become collectable now . They stood us well down the years, You still have your kit?

Yes still have 3 counties rusting away round the countryside, offered one to Osborns but they weren't interested. They are a bit beat up.

[ESS]

2 minutes ago, openspaceman said:

Yes still have 3 counties rusting away round the countryside, offered one to Osborns but they weren't interested. They are a bit beat up.

What models ?