Skidding

[melvyn]

Which is the best option for skidding on small scale thinning operations alpine tractor , quad bike or other and what spec should you be looking for ?

[Charlieh]

depends on the terrain, ATV+arch on flat sites only and limited tow capacity. Alpine and winch open up a lot more possibilities for working steeper parts of sites whilst being considerably safer. The ATV and arch can be very efficent on flat sites with good rides and longer hauls as you will pull less but chances are you can carry a bit more speed once on the rides. Its very much site dependant and there is no one tool to fit all jobs with small kit. The alpine is the best compromise as it has the option for lots of other implements to be attahced to it.

[slack ma girdle]

The amount of money you have to spend will determin what you get

 

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[agrimog]

depends on your site, flat, steep,wet,marshy, dry, trees close together, open forest, no skidder is perfect for everything, plus your budget will play a big part

[NI Tree]

the most versitile is about 1hp, and has four legs, and can be a horse mule or steer alpine tractors would find it diffical to compete with our 4 leged friends in terain handeling:thumbup:

[Tom D]

Been working alongside a horse logger recently, impressive but nowhere near as productive as an alpine..

[NI Tree]

Been working alongside a horse logger recently, impressive but nowhere near as productive as an alpine..

who was it and

ptichures please

[nooie]

I was using a Scottrac witha 5 tonne winch and could haul quite big trees over soft ground no problem.

[Chris Sheppard]

An alpine is great if the terrain requires it but there are cheaper options if you work less sloping sites generally.

 

I used to run a 50hp alpine with a 3.5t winch and it was great for getting closer to the timber and had plenty of power to use the winch but lacked a bit in ground clearance and linkage lift height.

 

Work alongside a more conventional compact tractor with winch (30hp 4wd Landini) and the only thing that sometimes lacks a bit is power on big uphill pulls (with the winch to the tractor, not once the trees are to the winch). Good ground clearance and surprisingly stable.

 

On one estate we used to do all the thinning with a 2wd Ford 3000 and little fransguard winch - it was surprising where it would go and what it would pull.

 

If you've decent back tyres, don't be too put off by 2wd - if you're pulling to max capacity the front wheels won't hardly be doing anything anyway

[Tom at Heartwood]

Re. skidding with an ATV. Assuming that the terrain is level or gently sloping down hill what is a typical weight or volume of pole that can be pulled by, say, a 450/500cc ATV such as a Honda Foreman? It will depend on whether or not an arch, cone or just chains are used but I would be interested to hear of experiences.

 

Chris' point about smaller load but quicker travel is a good one. My Alpine tractor pulls a good load but it is at walking speed or less. Also, sometimes the Alpine is tied up and it would be handy to have the means of moving a few poles.