Operating a forwarding trailer/crane on a conventional tractor...

[Melodeon]

Is it, quite literally, a pain in the neck?

 

Further to my previous thread about kitting up to do my own thinning work (http://arbtalk.co.uk/forum/large-equipment/67823-economics-running-older-harvester-forwarder-farm-forest.html), I'm investigating my forwarding options.

 

I have a small 'fleet' of tractors here, the residue of my farming operations, but the biggest (and the only 4x4) is a 1988 MF 3080.

It's a perfectly functional tractor and has plenty of life left in it, but it obviously has no 'Reverse Drive' function, as seen on forestry-spec Valtras and a few others.

 

The 3080 world pull and operate a suitably sized forwarding trailer/crane outfit just fine, but I'm wondering would the lack of a rotating seat be a deal breaker?

I did a LOT of mowing on that tractor with a trailed mower, and I well remember the sore neck and back I suffered from the constant twisting and turning to watch the mower.

 

Does anyone operate a crane from the cab of a conventional tractor, or are they all operated from the ground or the drawbar of the trailer?

[openspaceman]

Is it, quite literally, a pain in the neck?

 

 

Yes but how significant it is depends on what you are forwarding. I wouldn't advise it for softwood thinnings but managed for years on hardwood and softwood sawlogs and cordwood. 6 lever controls beside the seat and occasionally kneeling on the seat.

[woody paul]

I run a Fendt 304ls on a forwarding trailer the crane is demountabe. Valve block is mounted on lower back window ledge. Not that bad to use on trailer loading as not twisted round for long. But if crane is 3pl mounted and used to sort brash from timber then it can be painfully find it easyer to kneel on seat not a lot of head room then unless you tractor you can lower seat height.

[fergusonforestry]

is there room to fit a simple rotating seat? or the ones that flip over?

[Brushcutter]

a 90ish hp tractor will pull a 10t trailer fairly easily. As kneeling on the seat it is a right pain especially with tractors with a step in the cab rather than a flat floor. As already said if you can get a spinning seat in then it will be well worth the money.

 

If fact if its a old massy seat just do your back a favour and get a fancy air suspended seat that comes up to supports the back.

[mendiplogs]

a 90ish hp tractor will pull a 10t trailer fairly easily. As kneeling on the seat it is a right pain especially with tractors with a step in the cab rather than a flat floor. As already said if you can get a spinning seat in then it will be well worth the money.

 

If fact if its a old massy seat just do your back a favour and get a fancy air suspended seat that comes up to supports the back.

 

HI BRUSH will 90hp pull 10ton ok in MUD i see it will pull in on the road BUT DOWN HERE there was loads of mud thanks jon

[Brushcutter]

HI BRUSH will 90hp pull 10ton ok in MUD i see it will pull in on the road BUT DOWN HERE there was loads of mud thanks jon

 

All depends on how much mud:001_tt2:

 

I've got stuck on a slope in the snow loaded before.

[Rich2484]

Sod fitting an expensive seat. Just use a bit of boarding across the low links, use some rope or cable ties to hold it in place and have the valve block on the crane. Surprisingly the valve block is at a perfect hieght. If not just raise the links a bit.

 

Why bother changing the seat. Plus I'm sure there is not enough room behind the seat to actually spin it round. Your feet may be squashed.

[Chris Sheppard]

I've never been a huge fan of spinning seats, but usually because the tractors I've used have had small cabs and it meant pretty much climbing out of the cab to spin the seat round and back again.

 

On my old County, the levers were in one corner of the back of the cab, so were easy enough to use sat of the edge of the seat (not as uncomfortable as it sounds).

 

The JD we had on one estate had a spinny seat but I found for loading up I'd kneel on the seat and then spin it round to unload.

 

The kubota always meant kneeling on the seat too but there was little other option.

 

Trailer mounted levers to use from the floor or the drawbar are a pain in the arse for when loading, partly because of having to jump on and of the tractor all the time (only good thing is when you're crosscutting and loading as you go from a pile of skidded poles), but also it's hard to see what's going on on the trailer once you get so far up the pins, and maybe more importantly it puts you in a fairly vulnerable position if anything slips off the trailer/stack.

 

IMO, getting the levers in a comfortable position is half the battle won - I'd rather kneel but be able to reach the levers well than be sat on a spinny seat but have to stretch to reach the levers.

[Melodeon]

Thanks for all the feedback folks, it's certainly giving me food for thought!

 

I tried kneeling on the seat, and while it's broadly okay, I think I'd probably be positioned a bit too far back and too high up to really comfortably use levers mounted behind the seat, and the view upwards is pretty restricted by the big overhang of the roof at the rear.

It could certainly be made to work though.

 

The fuel tank of the 3080 is mounted on top of the rear axle behind/under the cab, so converting the cab to a proper full flat floor would entail fitting another fuel tank somewhere. Not simple by any means.

 

There's certainly scope for fitting a rotating seat, but even with the seat slid all the way forward, and because the steering wheel doesn't tilt up out of the way, and the awkward fuel tank location mentioned previously (and me not being Oscar Pist..., erm, Douglas Bader), there's really nowhere for my feet to go except to stick them straight out the back window.

 

 

 

Of course, I could always go for full radio control on the crane and then I could operate it from pretty much anywhere convenient...