rgeparker

Ty, did I read in another thread, that your cs100 helped in buying your bigger chipper? If you were to do it all again, would you have bought a micro chipper first, and built the business up from there? Daniel, I'd love a larger 6" diesel machine, but even a half decent second hand machine is gonna cost around the £8k mark? Whereas the micro chippers go for around £5k new? I know they're two different machines, and obviously the type of work it's intended for should primarily dictate what you choose, but unfortunately for me, budget is a major factor. I've only been going for about 2 years, doing mostly subbing work, but I'm getting more and more of my own work coming in, and I've recently purchased my first ARB truck (ford ranger tipper), which I thought would make a tidy little set up for smaller jobs. For bigger jobs, I tend to get help from another, larger firm with 3.5 tonne tippers, and larger chippers. This is at least until my little business grows into a more substantial outfit, but like I said, it's early days, and I want to start small, and build up from there. I can hire a tw150 for a reasonable day rate, as and when necessary, but the only small chipper I can find locally for hire, is a tw 13/75, which isn't ideal from my experience with the machine so far. Sorry for ranting on, and going slightly off topic, I'm just blurting out all that's on my mind, and hoping that I'm not boring everyone! Haha. Cheers. Rob.

Thanks nepia, I had missed that thread before. Very helpful. Cheers. Rob.

Thanks guys. All of your replies are very helpful. I'm thinking the micro chipper route is definitely the way to go. I've not long set up on my own, but the majority of the jobs I've looked at already have been narrow access, chip on the spot type affairs. Most people want to keep the logs nowadays anyway so it's predominantly just smaller brushwood I'd be chipping (in the foreseeable future anyway). As already mentioned, as and when the business grows, and I get busier, I guess I can supplement with larger equipment, but just hire in a larger machine for the time being (if a job is asking too much of a cs100 or jo beau). One more question, which I have asked before in a different thread, but as we're discussing these machines, didn't think it would hurt to ask again- how do you guys carry your micro chippers around? Small trailers? Cheers. Rob

Thanks for the feedback guys. Like I said previously, this will be my first chipper, and I will have very limited funds for it... Infact, it will most probably be a finance job whichever machine I opt for. I certainly won't be able to afford both!! Buying a cs100, and hiring in a larger one as needed sounds like the way to go. If it will process most material ok (4inch plus will be kept for logs anyway), then I reckon it would be a sound investment? Does anyone have any videos they can put up of the cs100 chipping please? YouTube doesn't really have that many, at least not that show off the machines full potential. On paper, it looks pretty useful. Cheers. Rob.

Hey guys. I know this subject has been flogged to death, and believe me, I have trawled through the relevant threads ('wee chipper club', 'self propelled chipper' etc), but I was wondering, how many of you out there rely on these little machines as your sole means of chipping, and how do they fair? I'm guessing most of you that use machines such as a jo beau, or cs100, have larger chippers aswell? I only ask, as I'm looking to invest in my first chipper later in the year, and up till now, I'd had my heart set on a cs100 (budget is tight, and I can see the many, many advantages of using a wee chipper). However, my only real experience of using such machines, was a 4 day chipping marathon on a Timberwolf 13/75g, which is a good machine for narrow access, but not one I'd want to have as a primary chipper (infeed capacity, chute height etc). Other than that, I've been used to 6'' plus, hydraulic feed machines. I know this is a long winded message, but what I'd really like feedback on is- will a cs100 (or similar) cope as an 'all round' chipper? Perhaps with the bespoke trailer option to use it as a tow-behind, when necessary? Obviously I don't expect it process material as quickly as a 6'' plus diesel, but this isn't a high priority for me at the moment anyway. Cheers. Rob

Hi Daniel. Thanks for the input. That looks like a tidy little set-up. So, are you able to load/offload that machine by yourself? Do you use small ramps? Also, how well does the trailer tow? Is it not 'top heavy' and thus want to roll when cornering etc. So many questions!! Haha! Thanks. Rob.

Hello all. Fairly new to posting on the forum, but I've been following this thread (and other similar threads) with great interest for some time now. I'm sure this has been covered at some point, but can I just ask, how easy is it to transport these little beauties? Do most of you load them onto trailers? I've seen some pics/vids of the CS100/ M300 etc being transported in smallish panel vans (such as a SWB transit). Can one man easily load/offload such a machine into a panel van using ramps etc, or does it ideally need two to lift it in/out? Cheers. Rob.

Thanks for the feedback guys, much appreciated. Does anyone have any ideas of how much fuel these machines will typically use per hour/day etc? Just trying to get a rough idea of what to allow for fuel costs...

Hi Guys This is my first post on the site Been lingering in the background for sometime, reading, and learning, but now have a question I'd like to ask about the Timberwolf 13/75g. I am thinking of hiring one soon for some back garden work (leaving woodchip on site), and was wondering if anyone has any experience using one? I've tried searching old posts, and have seen a few videos on youtube of one working, but it would be great to hear some opinions from those who've used one, about how well they perform etc. The majority of the brash will be 2-3" birch, most of which is fairly straight, and well sned-out. Obviously, I'm not expecting the machine to compare to a 6" hydraulic chipper, but will it be productive enough to be a viable option? Thanks. Rob.