Forestry excavator?

[taff]

Hi all,

Looking to pick your brains! We are a small hand cutting team, felling and extracting hardwood(the bigger the better!). Skidding out the butts leaving the less glamorous job of clearing up the tops. Here lies the problem, I cant justify or afford a large purpose built forwarder.

Anybody out there using or know of any alternatives? I ve spent twelve months chewing over the idea of a 13ton excavator with a rotator and timber grab on the end of it. Perhaps pulling the tops together with it then cutting them up and loading a drag trailer which can be pulled with the mb trac. I d then have to track to roadside to unload trailer, not perfect but a possible solution?

Any ideas? Cheers

[timtree81]

you could fit a hiab to your mb track

[luftwaffe]

H Taff

 

I can't that system working efficiently because the tractor will be travelling faster than the excavator to the unloading point, plus the tractor driver will be wasting time waiting for the excavator to arrive, which makes a one man job into a two man job, not cost effective over the long term. also take into effect the track motors will heat up on the excavator and will wear out much quicker, (track motors £3k each for a recon) not to mention the tracks themselves, and if you want to forward down a tarmac road well the road will be all chewed up.

 

Your idea works in theory, but not in reality, especially over the long term.

[taff]

Hi Luftwaffe,

You re right, the issues you ve highlighted are hurdles that have stopped me going ahead with it! But what s the alternative, a tractor/crane trailer will not handle the size of timber we are often in or travel the heavy clay ground in wet weather.

[taff]

Anyone still using a volvo bm loading shovel? If so how do you rate it and what are the pro's and con's?

[Rich2484]

What about a simple dozen? Extra big pleated in the tracks allow for better traction in clay, got the power to pull anything you want it to, adapt the dozer front for picking up timber?

[Chris Sheppard]

Hi Luftwaffe,

You re right, the issues you ve highlighted are hurdles that have stopped me going ahead with it! But what s the alternative, a tractor/crane trailer will not handle the size of timber we are often in or travel the heavy clay ground in wet weather.

 

Must be big stuff if something like a botex 560 won't pick it up.

 

What about building/buying a big trailer and looking at something like a wagon crane like a log lift or Epsilon etc?

[luftwaffe]

Hi Luftwaffe,

You re right, the issues you ve highlighted are hurdles that have stopped me going ahead with it! But what s the alternative, a tractor/crane trailer will not handle the size of timber we are often in or travel the heavy clay ground in wet weather.

 

Hi taff

 

I know what you mean,.......... there is a couple of forwarders on Ebay right now, about the 15k figure, they will travel the clay ground far beter than a drag trailer will, what about a purpose built grapple skidder? fast moving strong machines (I can'praise them enough) they are, but will get the timber all dirty through skidding. all depends how far is your average hall route?

[Big Bolt]

Iv'e just helped out on a big clear fell and we had these 2 machines on site the big loading shovel with a good operator was awsome. 2 cutters and he was stacking and clearing at a good pace

[kernowstu]

would it be viable to contract the work out