Need chipping advice

[coreshot]

Back story, last summer my 6.23 acres of cabin property went up in a 40k acre wildfire. I now have thousands of charred dead trees that need to come down. My plan is to methodically drop the trees and harvest the bigger stuff for firewood, and chip the smaller stuff. What is going to be a good unit for the size and scope of this job? I figure I'll chip anything under 3 inches in diameter, but I want a unit that will run efficiently and not work too hard. Would a PTO type setup be better than a self powered machine? I have a BX24, so 17-18 HP at the PTO. Trees are pinion and juniper. Thanks

 

[deezler]

I've always dreamed of having a proper PTO chipper myself, but the price is holding me back until it becomes more of a necessity. Even with just 17 or 18 HP at your PTO, you should be able to hog through 3" limbs no problem. A big big branch could slow your engine speed down some, but I wouldn't expect any issues, from what I've read. I would look at a Wallenstien bx32 or bx42, they seem to really be the best value (not cheap though!).

BX42r/BX62r Wood Chippers - Wallenstein

 

[econometrics]

First of all, really sorry to hear that you were subject to the damage of those wildfires.

I have about 50 acres of woods, so you can imagine how often I'm cleaning up the fallen / dead stuff. With the HP range for your PTO, and the smaller size of your property, I would suggest just renting a bigger tow-behind chipper from a local rental company.

I just rented one this past weekend for $140 from Sat. morning until Monday morning. I chipped about 8-10 yards in that time! (See pics below). To get into a QUALITY 3-point chipper for purchase, you're going to spend 10x that at the very least. My only regret is that I should have rented a bigger chipper. The one I rented could handle up to 4" limbs, but since it was gas-powered, the chipping went a little slower than I was hoping.

My other option was a monster diesel chipper from United Rentals for $400 for the weekend that could chip up to a 12" limb (!!!). Looking back, I probably would rent the bigger one next time.

Good luck with your project!

 

[bcjmmac]

I would keep my eye out for a used PTO chipper as it sounds like you might be at this for a while. I tend to do some clearing ~twice a year so bought a used Bearcat chipper that I found on Kijiji.

 

[coreshot]

I thought about renting a big one, but my job isn't going to allow me to do it all in one weekend. I guess I could cut all the wood and pile the branches to be chipped and do it all at once. But then, burning it would be just as easy at that point. Prior to the fire, I planned on purchasing an 11 hp Bearcat to use as I progressively trimmed the trees on my property, now I really just need a one time deal. Maybe a rental is the way to go...

 

[econometrics]

I thought about renting a big one, but my job isn't going to allow me to do it all in one weekend. I guess I could cut all the wood and pile the branches to be chipped and do it all at once. But then, burning it would be just as easy at that point. Prior to the fire, I planned on purchasing an 11 hp Bearcat to use as I progressively trimmed the trees on my property, now I really just need a one time deal. Maybe a rental is the way to go...

Well, I just stopped myself and thought of it like this...

Ideally, I want to buy a Wallenstein BX62 for my 50hp tractor. That's $3500 new, and they are dang hard to find used. It sure would be convenient to have it on my property, with trees falling all the time from storms, and constant sapling clean up. However, I could rent that bigger chipper ($400) 8 times before I got to $3500. And I could rent that smaller chipper ($140) 25 times before I paid as much as the BX62. And I get to "use and abuse" those units and just tow them back and drop them off. No worries about breaking anything to fix, or sharpening anything, etc.

That's what helped me to make my decision. YMMV, however.

But I would think that with 6 acres, you could do a couple weekend rentals and get it all knocked out in a month or so. Then, you would have a ton of wood chips to spread and compost the soil, too! :thumbsup:

I like chipping vs. burning most of the time because you are left with a very useful by product, and are not exposed to the risk of spreading a fire. And you don't have to wait for mother nature to rain so it's safe to burn, ha!

Anyway, this is just how I have calculated what works for me. I really want to buy a BX62 someday, and I will, but if you can pile up the brush and just feed it through a chipper for 4-6hours, that works really well.

 

[coreshot]

Good points....I think that's the route I'll probably go. Not much worry about fire spreading though, theres nothing left to burn. :laughing:

 

[MAN IN BLACK]

With the size tractor you have...a Wallenstein Bx32 is the best you can handle...the chipper can take 3"...but your tractor will be working at it's max.They're very good well built machine.I have 42 on a 50 hp MF...very happy with it.

 

[lumberjack1986]

Why not pile and burn? It's far easier, cheaper, and faster.

 

[pinetree10]

I run a Wallenstein bx42 chipper on my JD 2720 with 23.5 pto hp and it's a great match. You could easily run their bx32 with no problem. I have around 2 1/2 acres packed with 80-foot pine, cherry and maple trees and every year there are more branches to clean up. I used to rent a 25 hp commercial grade chipper each spring but at $200/day it was adding up and I didn't like having to rush to get it back to the store by the end of the day. Now I can take it out when I need it and work at my own pace. It'll do a 4-inch branch easily but anything over 3 inches is firewood to me so I never work it to its max and I don't have to rev the tractor way up to get the job done. It also has a large rectangular opening to accept odd shaped branches or crotched branches. It feeds great and is worth every penny, but if you don't intend to use it regularly then maybe rental is your best option. I just happen to like having it available when I need it. Good luck.