minimum HP for skidding, etc.

[yough]

Greetings,

I'm still reading this forum and trying to figure out what the best system is going to be for me. I'm going to be working in the woods (there is an earlier post from me somewhere here) and I've learned a lot from all of your posts. I think I'm getting it under control but the number of choices is still overwhelming. At this point I'm trying to figure out the minimum HP I can go with. I won't be earning my living with this tractor, and given the nature of the work slow is almost certainly better that fast, but I still want to be reasonably efficient.

At this point I've come around to:
--Farmi winch, probably a 351
--roll over box-blade (Landpride 25xx)
--Kubota FEL
--keeping my eyes open for a used Danuser Hyd. Auger (in this soil it will get stuck.) & used chipper
--top and tilt (or tip and tilt, or whatever)
--rotary cutter, whatever fits the HP I end up with, this is secondary, not primary
--eventually a rototiller & seeder
--chains
--grubbing tongs
--backhoe is on hold as Bradco seems to be the answer and it's a little steep
So gorden, richh, the rest (& wen I have looked at the M6800... all I need is a chinook to position it Is this realistic with a 3010HST??

Also, is the Farmi worth it? It looks cheap at twice the price but it is more expensive that Norse and others. Is the 351 durable, or do you need to jump to the 5xx to ge ta tool that will last a lifetime. I'll be moving some rocks with it too.

As you can guess I have a lot more questions, but this will do for now. & I thought this was going to be easy...

Dan Jones
Mill Run, Pennsylvania

 

[glennmac]

Dan,

I'll let the others comment on the 3010 and immediately go off topic, as is one of our most cherished customs, to say that I have paddled your namesake many times and camped in or near Mill Run. Gee, I wonder if I can put a canoe rack on my Bota.

Glenn

 

[richh]

Dan- i had a 1910 ford that i used for 6 yrs. thats about 25 or so hp. at the pto. and a farmi winch but i don't remeber what the modle is, however it has held up well and would drag the 1910 right up a tree. All i have done to it is grease it. Haven't used it with the kubota yet. My hope is to be able to haul out bigger loads ie. more logs at one time and keep the front end on the ground. A 3010 is rated at 24 hp. so it should do fine. What kind of tires do you plan on running? Im glad you got the HST part right/w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif
Rich

 

[gordon]

Good post Dan you spelled just about every out except one thing---size of the logs your going to be skidding. Alot of that has to do with winch choice. Another thing how often are you going to be skidding? Might be able to get by with just a winch of sorts and leave more money for other things right off the bat.

A Farmi 351 is a nice winch but I would go with the 351p it has the buttplate-dozer blade rather than those lame legs. Any Farmi is tough as nails and a very good match for a Kubota. If your going to invest that much money in a winch no matter if it's a Farmi or a Norse a butt plate is very handy both when skidding the logs ride on it or pulling helps to set the tractor. Another thing as well some of the winches are priced out without the pto shaft and also with no wirerope as well this adds to cost.

My skidding winch is the Norse 400 and overall it's been a great winch--I think that they have replaced it with the 410 but I'm not 100% sure on that. Reason I went for the Norse over the Farmi is price I bought mine used in great shape. Now if I were to buy a new one now---tough question.I would have to research that before I could give you an answer.

For the tractor I believe you could get by with that but alot also has to do with the size of logs and how hilly your area is. Hp wise a 351 and the 3010 are good. Remember the winch will pull the tractor alot of times even with the brake set and the blade set. So at times a heavier tractor is sometimes better. still on some pulls you will have to tie off the front end to a tree. You would be happier in the long run with a larger tractor with a few more hp but could get by with the 3010. More hp=more pulling power

Also other things to think about if your going to be running in the woods--skid plate, heavyduty brush guard for the front end, tire chains for the rears, valve stem protection if your rims don't come with them. As well as tree chokers and kickers. Oh yea can't forget a chainsaw./w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

Your right about the take it slow approach. Be safe and good luck in your quest.
Hope this gives you alittle food for thought.
Gordon

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Thanks for the replies.

In something like the order of the messages.

Off Topic: Yep, the Youghiogheny is a great river, boating, fishing, watching the river roll by. Our place is about 1/4 mile from the edge of the valley but about 600' above the river. "Good" logging roads for access though. We're on the land between Indian Creek & the Yough if you've ever gone that far down. It's a couple of miles past the normal takeout at Brunner Run.

Tires: I was planning on R4's for toughness w/ ballast and chains for traction. The other tires that have been discussed here sound good but I'm afraid to ask about the price...

Trees: Mixed hardwoods, primarily for home use. I plan to leave most of the big ones in place. I've got a forester (arborist type, not lumber co.) coming out to take a look. If any of them are in decline or need to be harvested for safety I'll deal with that then. I've got some big cherry trees and it's tempting to sell with the price as high as it is but I'll never grow anything like them in whats left of my lifetime, so I plan to let them be. The soil is pretty rocky and thin in places, and this coupled with the root rot that is native to this area there are a lot of blowdowns to deal with. First task is a bunch of standing dead oaks from a heavy gypsy moth infestation about 10-12 years ago. Still a lot of good wood standing out there and I have a need for new run in sheds, etc. Plus lots of medium sized beech, maple & yellow poplar that needs to be thinned out. Since they are mainly for my use, if it's too big to drag and not something I can sell to pay for the winch, I can cut it shorter and still find a use for the lumber.

Chainsaw: Stihl 046 with 20 & 24 inch bars. Agonized over this purchase too. This saw replaced a collection of saws that I spent more time fixing than using (& that is fixing, not maintaining). One of the best purchases I have made. The effort involved went down at least 50% with a corresponding increase in saftey.The Stihl is one of the reasons I'm getting a Kubota, sometimes you do get what you pay for. I'm looking at a couple of chainsaw mills, and if I go that route I can justify a Stihl 066, but I don't think I'm tough enough to use that on a standing tree.

Skid plate, brush guard, etc.: I may be making a mistake here, I'm converting some of the forest to wooded pasture for sheep, and I'm hoping to clear as I go and not just go charging into the brush. I'm tempted to put some of this off unless/until I do jobs for others & that is unlikely as I like to take my time in the woods (probably spend as much time in the seat with the tractor off just looking around as working.) I have enough stress in my life with out worrying about other folks time constraints. I don't want a dozer out there, and I know the tractor is not one, but I do have an old 8HP Gravely walkbehind with a HD rotary cutter that I'll take on just about anything with. Again, I'm in no hurry.

Thought this was going to be a short response...

Thanks again

Dan Jones
dgj@pitt.edu
Mill Run, PA

 

[ejb]

>>I've got some big cherry trees and it's tempting to sell with the price as high as it is

Any idea what a cherry tree is worth? I have a bunch in my woods that I didn't plan on taking down, but I also have a few that need to go for various reason...some of them are big. I was just going to chop them into cordwood...

 

[gerard]

ejb,
Talk to someone who used a forester and was happy with the results. I don't have a price for you but the straighter and taller a tree is without knots/branches, the more it's worth, that's why it's kind of hard to give a price without seeing the trees. There's actually formula's used to determine board feet based on diamter/height etc. Be a shame to chop up some good cherry for firewood. (A guy I just met at auction got $46K for some tree's he also didn't plan on cutting or using, nice found money!) I'd get a few estimates from different foresters, check some references of some places they cut, would be there when they cut, and would get the money before they ever start a saw. If they can't front the money I wouldn't want to deal with them unless I knew them personally and trusted them. Bottom line is you have a commodity and should put it out to bid like any other commodity. You may be very pleasantly surprised and taking care of the slash will give you something to do with your tractor!! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

 

[ejb]

Thanks for the tip..figured it would be tough w/out seeing a tree, but thought I'd give it a try. I had a forestor (from a lumber company) looking over parts of my property a few months back...should have asked him, but he was only looking at the pine and hemlock....I was surprised to find out that a really, really big pine/hemlock is only worth about $50 bucks each (I have a lot of those, average quality). Almost didn't make it worth it to have my woods mangled....though I would like the place opened up a bit.

...as far as things to do with my tractor...thats not a problem around here...problem is finding the time to do things with my tractor!

 

[gordon]

You were joking about cutting up large cherry into cordwood right? Just in case you weren't and you are planning on cutting them down then cut them into lenghs and pull them out of the woods hire a truck and bring them to mill. You will end up with enough money to buy alot of cordwood and some to spare.

Pine is very low in price and the price is going down not up for the time being. A major cause is bug infestations killing off the pines and the mills are full in some areas.
Gordon

 

[gordon]

Sounds like you have a good attitude for your land. You should do very well with it. I'm glad to hear someone looking for the future of the forest instead of the quick big bucks logging it out with no long term plans for the property. Good luck
Gordon