Chipper Which woodchipper would you buy if you had +/- $2,500 to spend?

[Mr Super Hunky]

My tractor is a 48 hp Massey Ferguson 30e super shuttle (industrial yellow skip loader with front loader and 3 pt gannon) and it DOES have a rear PTO.

I will be using this chipper on my 10 acre property to chip only Ponderossa pine tree branches. (That's all we have, nothing else).

My limited knowledge and research comes up with the following brands and model #'s that fit my budget.

. Jinma chipper
. Wallenstein bx42 (possibly used BX62)
. Tomcat tc-8 (Affordable tractors own private label)
. Tytan King Chipper

I've read all the reviews on the Jinma and understand it is a good chipper with some mods and frequent adjustments required.

The Wallenstein seems bulletproof but the lack of auto feed worries me (in my price range as all the others mentioned have it) and the much smaller opening (4 inches) may also be a limitation; I don't know.

The Tomcat TC-8 (Affordable tractors private label) Seems to be a good basic unit but I can't find any reviews on it. Not a single one. Does anyone have this unit and if so how do you like it?. Any limitations or feedback you can give me/ us?

I think (but not sure) that the Tytan is very similar to the Tomcat. I can't find any reviews on that one either but it looks nice and has similar specs to the tomcat.

Any info you can provide me would be greatly appreciated as I don't want to make a poor choice.


Thanks in advance.

 

[beenthere]

:welcome:

I came close to buying one for that price, but steered away from it because it was direct drive off the PTO. Apparently not enough rpm on the chipper head to keep the output chute clean.

Are the models you are looking at all belted?

 

[jbarker855]

I have bx 42 with my little 19 pto hp JD 855. It works excellent. Can't clog it even with lots of pine needles, or lots of leafy twigs. Can't stall it, even when near max capacity logs being chucked in it. The finish is excellent. After producing yards and yards of chips, the thing looks like it has never been used. The finish appears to be almost bullet proof. With that big old tractor you have, I'd be looking one size up at the bx 62. Now I have never had a chipper with an auto feed, but I feel like I am getting by just fine without it. Chipper sucks stuff in pretty good. Sometimes I have to give material a little push, but I don't find it to be a problem.
-Jay

 

[texas42]

I have a BX 42 - It's a great machine
I chip mostly pecan branches which grow very crooked.
The 4x10 inch opening works very good for this.
The Wallenstein is well made, easy to maintain, the hood opens up with just one bolt. No belts to adjust and the chute rotates.
It self feeds pretty well, just get out of the way most of the time.
Just keep the blades reasonabily sharp and the anvil adjusted properly.

 

[dangerdoc]

My tractor is a 48 hp Massey Ferguson 30e super shuttle (industrial yellow skip loader with front loader and 3 pt gannon) and it DOES have a rear PTO.

I will be using this chipper on my 10 acre property to chip only Ponderossa pine tree branches. (That's all we have, nothing else).

My limited knowledge and research comes up with the following brands and model #'s that fit my budget.

. Jinma chipper
. Wallenstein bx42 (possibly used BX62)
. Tomcat tc-8 (Affordable tractors own private label)
. Tytan King Chipper

I've read all the reviews on the Jinma and understand it is a good chipper with some mods and frequent adjustments required.

The Wallenstein seems bulletproof but the lack of auto feed worries me (in my price range as all the others mentioned have it) and the much smaller opening (4 inches) may also be a limitation; I don't know.

The Tomcat TC-8 (Affordable tractors private label) Seems to be a good basic unit but I can't find any reviews on it. Not a single one. Does anyone have this unit and if so how do you like it?. Any limitations or feedback you can give me/ us?

I think (but not sure) that the Tytan is very similar to the Tomcat. I can't find any reviews on that one either but it looks nice and has similar specs to the tomcat.

Any info you can provide me would be greatly appreciated as I don't want to make a poor choice.


Thanks in advance.

I have a chipper in my barn that my FIL gave me about 8 years ago. I used it twice the first year then parked it.

I can't recommend a chipper without hydraulic intake. Branches get hung up in the loading chute and when you push them in, they get whipped around when the chipper blades bite. For regular brush it is a nuisance, for hedge and locust, it is a real health hazard. With a heavy jacket, goggles and leather gloves, I still came out looking like the loser in a cat fight.

 

[Mr Super Hunky]

Well I believe all the units mentioned are belted other than the Wallenstein. I think they have some type of geared intake or something. "Semi"-automatic-ish??

I was using a friends old school chippern today that only uses one large blade. While the chipper worked, I now have a torn ear from the branches being whipped around so violently. At times I could barely hold onto the rocking branches as they were being battered in the machine.

I am pretty much looking for something that does the exact opposite of what was happening today.

I don't mind modding a less than stellar machine as long as the mods work and the entire unit holds up. I want it to easily chip branches on its own without me having to wrangle each branch thru the chute forcefully. I certainly won't mind just placing the branches in with just a normal push.

 

[roman]

I am sure if you purchase a Wallenstein model you won't be dissapointed. We bought the BX42 June first and have used it for many hours. The unit self feeds as advertised. The only problem I can see is if you feed too much green leafy/needles it will clog. I found if you follow the green stuff with a single stout branch the unit doesn't clog. The best remedy is too allow the greens to dry, then they blow through easily.
My lady was sceptical about the purchase until we spent one hour chipping. Now it was a wise investment!:thumbsup:
Ours cost us $2550 and I uncrated and set it up myself.
I looked at others-this was the best bang for my money and it requires very little maintanence. In my opinoin, Jinma can't touch it. I don't work for a dealer, I am not afilliated with Wallenstein (I work retail grocery), so take this at face value. I also have a Wallenstein 3 pth wood splitter with a four way wedge. Love it!

Mark

 

[Dead Horse]

New is nice, but you can get a lot of chipper for yout money buying used.

There are a couple of things to look at when doing this to be sure you are getting a servicable unit.

I have a valby CH 170 HF and it is a great machine. They are priced stupid high for new, but I bought mine used with but a few hours on it along with a heavy 30" throw, American wood splitter.

I run them both on the back of my L 3710 HST and they match with the tractor perfectly.

In the last 10 years those two pieces have done an enormous amount of work on my orchard.

I serviced the chipper the other day and checked/dressed the knives. After all these years of chipping hard wood and fruit wood trees they looked nearly new.

I am so impressed with this unite, I would recommend a used one in a heart beat.

re a PPI; I would check the input shaft for twisting, the belts for wear and alignment, the rotor bearings and anvil mounts for tightness and the knives for any sign of abuse. A quick half hour of inspection will confirm the unit is solid.

Half price for a valby 140 size chipper would fit your budget and you will have a REAL chipper.

Here is the pile I chipped just last week.
the right most picture is some of last years work........ That thing is a crazy limb eating gobblin!:confused2:

 

[clarksvilleal]

Wallenstein BX42. I have the Wallenstein BXM32, which is a 3" chipper plus shredder. If I didn't have a need for the shredder I would have gotten the BX42, which was #1 on my wish list until the BXM32 was introduced about 2 years ago.

Wallenstein makes a rugged, quality product and sells it at a fair price (check out Woodward Crossings for excellent pricing & service). I'm really pleased with the performance and quality of the BXM32. Easily chips up to 3" hardwood branches.

Keep in mind that the opening on the BX42 is 4" x 10". And it has a very large hopper, which means you can feed many if not most 4" limbs/branches without first having to cut off the side branches. Also, the self-feed (i.e. gravity feed) works pretty well on the BXM32 as long as the chipper blades are sharp. I assume the same would be true of theBX42.

BTW, I saw the BX42 in John Deere green at a Deere dealer a couple of months ago. They apparently sell a fair number of them with their mid-size JD tractors. I have a Kubota B2910, but FYI I am using the John Deere Imatch quick hitch with the BXM32 and it works great. Wouldn't give it up for anything after having wrestled with getting the BXM32 hooked up without it a couple of times. Didn't require any mods except the usual lower link and top link adapter sleeves.

 

[RoyJackson]

One thing Mr. Hunky will have to watch (assuming he still frequents TBN) is the maximum PTO rating on a $2500 chipper. His Massey is (per his post) 48 HP. Assuming that's engine HP, he's probably got 40-44 PTO HP.
That is probably more PTO HP then most of the chippers described here can handle (except for Dead Horse's Valby).

My Woods 5000 was about $2500 new and is rated at 30 PTO HP maximum. Bearcat makes this this chipper/shredder for Woods and I believe they rate it a bit higher. BTW, I bought this chipper/shredder used for $1000. Dead Horse is right...there are some great deals on used chippers, but they are few and far between for PTO driven units.