Tree Clearing w/KX121-3

[kco]

Perhaps it would be easiest just to fell the dozen or so larger trees with a chain saw and remove the stumps with the excavator.

[Boondox]

While I second all the cautionary words, I think this is doable with the equipment and the timeframe you've mentioned. I harvest firewood with my B3030 and KX-121S. The largest trees are rock maple about 18" across. While too heavy for the mini-ex to pick up and move, I have been able to lift portions and use the chainsaw to cut off 8-12' sections which are then easily carried away. Or I slice them into stove length and use the RTV to haul them down to the splitter.

The largest tree I harvested was a massive black cherry with a diameter at the base of 42". With that tree I sawed it into six foot sections and used the blade to roll it across the meadow; the girth was simply too large for my thumb to get a grip on it. If you have an angled blade you can make mid-course corrections as it rolls.

Pete

[lumberjack1986]

Cut the bigger trees and dig out the stumps if you don't feel comfortable pushing them over whole. I would suggest leaving the stumps taller than I did, however it still works.

That's a "24 inch" bucket in the picture; I haven't measured its outside dimension. Kubota 121-3.

[mike69440]

I have to agree here. Things can, and do, go very wrong quickly. A simple move of the wrist in the wrong direction can make for a bad day. Pushing a pile of trees, things can roll over the top or side and come right into the operators station. Stuff you never expect can get brought up by the tracks and into the operators area (cable, vines, roots, etc.). Every day, I'm thankful for making it through safe. I posted this awhile back, but it's still fresh in our minds when we're working.
http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/c...-accident.html

Yuck, I missed that thread back in 2011. Very sad. Guess I have angels looking after me. A KX121 has no business clearing anything but small trees & brush. Yes it can slowly work at the roots of a large tree, but that tree can get revenge real fast.

[lumberjack1986]

There's no reason a 121 couldn't clear a large tree, provided it's fairly neutral in weight/lean and you can install a high line/rope to pull with another piece of suitable equipment to pull it into the lay.

The 121 has no business pushing any "large" tree over by itself. Cut the tree then dig out the stump!

This is a 30" stump, 20 minutes between the pictures, another 10 minutes to roll the stump out and fill the hole back in.




This stump took a while longer, it's my biggest to date with a machine this small. Guessing it's near 40" if it was ALAPed. (Cut as low as practical).