Chipper Wallenstein chipper..

[DaryleD]

I just bought a wallenstein 4" chipper for my New Holland TC30. It has hydraulic feed and it is awesome! I didn't run the max size material through it but it took my locust tree branches at 2" or better without any trouble. My locust is extremely hard and dulls a chainsaw very quickly. I am just posting this incase anyone is wondering about them and thinking of getting one. There is a thread or two about these but it isn't a very long, so I thought I would help out anyone who cares, about how they actually work. Oh, my two sons were very excited to see it suck in long branches that weren't limbed out at all. I couldn't be happier with it! Hope this helps someone!
Daryle.

 

[crd]

I'm curious if you looked at any other choices when you decided on the Wallenstein?

I've been trying to decide between the BX40 and the Bearcat 70554 as the best match for a Kubota BX2350. Don't think I need the hydraulic feed, but the Bearcat's shredder seems like it would be useful and it appears to have a bit more chipping capacity. Then again, the BX40 includes the high discharge, so it's a tradeoff between two fine machines.

Also, mind sharing where you picked up your Wallenstein and price paid? Thanks for helping out a newbie.

 

[Coville]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( I'm curious if you looked at any other choices when you decided on the Wallenstein?

I've been trying to decide between the BX40 and the Bearcat 70554 as the best match for a Kubota BX2350. Don't think I need the hydraulic feed, but the Bearcat's shredder seems like it would be useful and it appears to have a bit more chipping capacity. Then again, the BX40 includes the high discharge, so it's a tradeoff between two fine machines.

Also, mind sharing where you picked up your Wallenstein and price paid? Thanks for helping out a newbie. )</font>

I went with the 70554. The dealer were I bought my MF 1540 sold me the 70544 for under $2600. Didn't look into the BX40 and the Kubota dealer was asking ~$3200 for the 6" Wallenstein.

The 70554 will grab a piece of wood and pull it in and chew up, no feeding required. You can't stop it when it starts on a piece. Had a fresh cut tree 20 ft plus in length and ~5 inches around at the base. Fed it in and it would chip 5 to 6 foot then stall out the tractor. Happened about 3 times before the green wood was narrow enough for it to continue to the end.

The shredder hopper has very stiff bristles. When I throw a handful of twigs on top they need to be pushed through the bristles. When I use a small stick to push anything built up through the brushes the stick gets pulled out of my hand so quick it hurts more then when the chipper grabs onto a limb. Dealer said the bristles would loosen up with time.

Over all I'm very happy with the 70554's chipper, less then thrilled with the shredder portion. I would suggest, if at all possible, you try the machine yourself before purchase.

 

[Doug_Norman]

I'm glad to see this thread. I just bought a chipper and wanted to share what I have learned. I was first interested in the Bearcat 70554. A neighbor up the road has one and gave me a demo. I think it's a great machine - he ran a 6 foot long 4 inch diameter cedar post through it. He has a 35 HP Mihindra tractor. What I liked is that it looks to be a very well built machine. The only thing that made me hesitate was that it dumps the chips on the ground sort of below the unit. That means as the pile builds, you have to move the tractor. They make an add-on blower for this machine, but it runs about $1000 and no dealer had one.

I was also intrigued by the self-feed models I read about on other threads. However, it sounded like the lesser priced models have their share of issues.

I finally ended up buying a Bearcat 73554. I saw this one on the Bearcat web site - no dealer had one in stock. I think it is based on the 70554, but it looks completely different and has a built-in blower with a snout that pivots 360 degrees. It also has a lever to adjust the chip size (the 70554 requires installing a different screen for each chip size). Their list price for this is about $1000 more than the 70554. We gave the 73554 its first run last night (after a little adjustment of the pulley guard). It's a solid machine. We ran about 50 cedar trees through it. They range from 5" on down. Most were in the 3 to 4 inch range. I have a Kubota L3130 HST and a 5" trunk was pushing it. I had to run the PTO at 500, and learned that it was best to do 4 or 5 foot sections if the logs were 5". Luckily most of my big trees will become fence posts. I did have to trim trees down to fit in the chute - it's not like you could shove a Christmas tree through it. But if you can shove it in the chute, it can chew it up. We also put some brush through the brush hopper. The manual said to put nothing larger than 3/4", but we probably exceeded that. It does a good job, but it is actually a little scarier than the chipper. It also uses different blades that basically thrash everything, so the chips aren't as clean and small. Enough rambling - here's the bottom line:

70554
5" chipper
brush hopper

73554
5" chipper
brush hopper
360 degree blower
adjustable chip size

I paid $3650 for the 73554. Luckily my dealer got one in stock just so I could look at it. I think Bearcat does a good job servicing their dealers, and they are responsive on their web site. I even had a rep call me. I told him to talk my dealer into buying one. A week later the dealer had it. My dealer also delivered it to me 35 miles away. Time will tell how this machine lasts, but my neighbor has been happy with his for over a year.

 

[DaryleD]

I actually have been looking at chippers for a year or so now. I actually liked the salsco and valby chippers the best; due to the very large feed chute. The bearcat that you mentioned has a very small feed chute, and it makes for more work of limbing out the branches to get them in. I have taken this long looking at them because of the cost of the salsco and valby. I finally was persuaded by my dealer, to try the the Wallenstein due to it having double feed rollers that really help it haul in the stuff with lots of branches on them. He said that it does a better job of drawing in material than the salsco because the salsco only has one feed roller.The things that were the most important to me was that the chipper be direct drive ( no belts ), a good feed chute, a high discharge chute so I wouldn't have to move the tractor as much and of course, due to my budget, price was a very big issue. I will say that it isn't as industrial as a salsco, vermere, morbark etc. but it fit my needs well. I would recomend the hydraulic feed, especially if you have rear remotes on your tractor, due to the fact that you can set the feed rate, so there isn't as much rpm fluctuation on your tractor as there would be without it. I also don't like having to try to jam the branches in when I haven't limbed it enough. With this one, I did no limbing at all. I paid $4200.00 for it with shipping included. I would HIGHLY recomend this chipper. I hope this helps!
Daryle.

 

[MA1920]

Daryle, I'm currently running a Valby without hydraulic feed, and although it's built like a tank, it's time to step up to auto feed. I'm tired of constant pruning and pushing. The knives are sharp which helps, but not enough. I could add hydraulic feed to the Valby which was $3700 last time I checked.

I have it narrowed down to:
Salsco 4" or 6" both hydraulic feed
Bearcat 74554 5" hydraulic feed
Bailey's/GME 6" hydraulic feed
the above all have self contained hydraulics.

Patu 4" or 6" hydraulic feed
let's throw the Wallenstein in the mix
the Patu and Wallenstein require tractor remotes which I don't have.

Daryle, what's the advantage of direct drive? All the rest
have belts. If a chip gets stuck, can something break? On my Valby the belts will slip if something gets stuck between the knives and the disc, or the disc and the drum. Is the Wallenstein the only one with a double feed roller? Also, what dealer did you go to? I see the Wallensteins on Ebay, I think it's Iowa Farm Equipment. They're asking $4800 for the 4" They also sell the GME for $5300. Any idea what rear remotes cost for a Ford 1920? Thanks for answering my questions.
Bob

 

[DaryleD]

Bob,
I think that there is an advantage to direct drive due to not having as much to maintain, and less parts to buy. If something gets stuck in the chipper there should be no harm to your tractor because they have a shear pin that will snap before anything gets hurt as long as the recomended shear pin is used if and when you ever break one and have to replace it. I think that the Wallenstein is the only one with a double feed roller. I bought mine through LW Greenwood and sons in East Randolph, VT. They are about 1-1 1/4hrs or so from where I live but they are most definately worth the trip. They are where I bought my tractor and have great service too. They have been cheaper on everything that I have checked on when calling around and pricing things. I live just a few minutes away form a Kubota dealer, but he doesn't seem to need my business bad enough to come down on prices on anything. I'm not sure what remotes would cost you, but I'll take a guess at $400 or so. I know that prices have gone up since I had mine installed a couple years ago, so it may be higher. I think that I paid $350 or so. If you plan on using anything else that needs rear remotes than I would have some installed asap just due to price increases. If money is tight, than maybe if you can sell the valby, that would help with the extra money for them. I would recomend the purchase of the Wallenstein if you put on the remotes. The only thing is that even though it looks alot better in real life vs. a picture on the internet, the Wallenstein is not as nice as the Valby as far as fit, finish etc. I have never used a Valby, but I would at this point, put the Wallenstein up against anything that is rated at the same size for chipping wood up. Whatever that you decide, let us know how it works for you. Good luck!
Daryle.

 

[MA1920]

Daryle, I checked on MapQuest where East Randolph VT is. From where I live, 3 hrs. 166 miles. If gas wasn't so high, it would be a nice trip. My wife and I could plan a family vacation in the area and just "happen to drive by," or may be time to find a closer Wallenstein dealer.
Bob

 

[kwahl]

Thanks for the info everyone. I am on the cusp of purchasing the Wallenstein BX62 with Hydraulic feed. DaryleD, did you pay $4500 for the chipper w/hydraulic feed? Sorry for my confusion.

Thanks,
Keith

 

[kwahl]

Thanks for the info everyone. I am on the cusp of purchasing the Wallenstein BX62 with Hydraulic feed. DaryleD, did you pay $4500 for the chipper w/hydraulic feed? Sorry for my confusion.

Thanks,
Keith