mark02tj
Platinum Member
Apologies in advance for the length of this! 
I need some advice from the more experienced and super-smart TBNer's! In southwest Ohio we are cursed with an invasive shrub called honeysuckle. My woods (as well as most of the woods around here) are infested with this stuff. It encroaches into the yard and also chokes out everything else including the trees. If you mow it down, it just comes back so the preferred method of removal is to get the roots as well. The stuff in my woods ranges from pencil thin up to trunks that are 8+ inches in diameter. Here is a picture of some of the woods. You can see the honeysuckle brush as well as a lot of downed trees.
I originally started attacking this stuff by hand using an Extractigator. It works well for the smaller stuff, but anything bigger than 1.5" really takes some effort to pull out. So, I moved on up to a Brushgrubber HD using a strap and pulling it out with my Jeep (before I bought my tractor). This also works well but it is a pretty slow process as you're pulling these out one at a time and getting in and out of the Jeep (or on and off the tractor).
As I was looking for a tractor to buy I came across a couple of other options: 1) the Brushgrubber Tree/Post Puller and 2) the BucketSolutions Post Puller. Downside of the Brushgrubber model is that it requires the use of a set of forks in place of the FEL so that would be an added cost. Downside of the BucketSolutions model is that mounts out kind of far so I'd be worried about damage to bucket if I was really torquing it to pull something out as well as a limit to the amount of pulling/lifting force I could get mounted that far out. That led me to finding someone in the implement fabrication business that quoted me $900 to build me something similar that would mount in place of the bucket on the FEL. I didn't think that was a bad deal and was planning on going that direction.
Then I made the mistake of starting to read stuff on TBN and I learned about root rakes with grapples! :laughing: Obviously I'm second guessing my original plan on what to buy. Fortunately I haven't pulled the trigger on anything yet - except my tractor. I came across this thread on TBN where txdon started looking for a root grapple to buy. He eventually ended up settling on one from TheRakeShop.com. See posts 108 and 109 in the thread for his pics. I had seen those even before reading that thread and really liked the fact that the teeth on their rakes go all the way back and don't have a support brace that runs through them like so many other rakes.
So, here is a list of questions:
1) In general, is it easier to pull stuff like honeysuckle from above or from below? Honeysuckle is a relatively shallow rooted plant but the roots do tend to spread.
2) Has anyone used either the Brushgrubber Tree/Post Puller or the BucketSolutions Post Puller or anything similar? If so, can you share your thoughts?
3) If a root rake grapple is the way to go, am I better off to go with a more narrow tool with teeth spaced more closely or go the same width as my FEL bucket (60" on a Deere 300CX loader)?
4) If I go narrower, is it better to have one grapple jaw or two?
5) If I go narrower, am I going to regret that decision when it comes to picking up the fallen trees in the woods?
6) Is anyone familiar with other root rake builders that use the "no brace" design that The Rake Shop uses?
7) Does anyone have any other advice or input that I haven't considered?
THANKS in advance for any advice that you can share!! Again, my apologies for getting long winded on this post. But, I'm trying to make the best purchasing decision that I can. Obviously I can't buy one of everything to try it out - well, at least not until I start playing the lottery! :laughing:
I need some advice from the more experienced and super-smart TBNer's! In southwest Ohio we are cursed with an invasive shrub called honeysuckle. My woods (as well as most of the woods around here) are infested with this stuff. It encroaches into the yard and also chokes out everything else including the trees. If you mow it down, it just comes back so the preferred method of removal is to get the roots as well. The stuff in my woods ranges from pencil thin up to trunks that are 8+ inches in diameter. Here is a picture of some of the woods. You can see the honeysuckle brush as well as a lot of downed trees.
I originally started attacking this stuff by hand using an Extractigator. It works well for the smaller stuff, but anything bigger than 1.5" really takes some effort to pull out. So, I moved on up to a Brushgrubber HD using a strap and pulling it out with my Jeep (before I bought my tractor). This also works well but it is a pretty slow process as you're pulling these out one at a time and getting in and out of the Jeep (or on and off the tractor).
As I was looking for a tractor to buy I came across a couple of other options: 1) the Brushgrubber Tree/Post Puller and 2) the BucketSolutions Post Puller. Downside of the Brushgrubber model is that it requires the use of a set of forks in place of the FEL so that would be an added cost. Downside of the BucketSolutions model is that mounts out kind of far so I'd be worried about damage to bucket if I was really torquing it to pull something out as well as a limit to the amount of pulling/lifting force I could get mounted that far out. That led me to finding someone in the implement fabrication business that quoted me $900 to build me something similar that would mount in place of the bucket on the FEL. I didn't think that was a bad deal and was planning on going that direction.
Then I made the mistake of starting to read stuff on TBN and I learned about root rakes with grapples! :laughing: Obviously I'm second guessing my original plan on what to buy. Fortunately I haven't pulled the trigger on anything yet - except my tractor. I came across this thread on TBN where txdon started looking for a root grapple to buy. He eventually ended up settling on one from TheRakeShop.com. See posts 108 and 109 in the thread for his pics. I had seen those even before reading that thread and really liked the fact that the teeth on their rakes go all the way back and don't have a support brace that runs through them like so many other rakes.
So, here is a list of questions:
1) In general, is it easier to pull stuff like honeysuckle from above or from below? Honeysuckle is a relatively shallow rooted plant but the roots do tend to spread.
2) Has anyone used either the Brushgrubber Tree/Post Puller or the BucketSolutions Post Puller or anything similar? If so, can you share your thoughts?
3) If a root rake grapple is the way to go, am I better off to go with a more narrow tool with teeth spaced more closely or go the same width as my FEL bucket (60" on a Deere 300CX loader)?
4) If I go narrower, is it better to have one grapple jaw or two?
5) If I go narrower, am I going to regret that decision when it comes to picking up the fallen trees in the woods?
6) Is anyone familiar with other root rake builders that use the "no brace" design that The Rake Shop uses?
7) Does anyone have any other advice or input that I haven't considered?
THANKS in advance for any advice that you can share!! Again, my apologies for getting long winded on this post. But, I'm trying to make the best purchasing decision that I can. Obviously I can't buy one of everything to try it out - well, at least not until I start playing the lottery! :laughing:
