Tractors and wood! Show your pics

[Sawyer Rob]

Sounds like some good upgrades...

Thanks,

SR

 

[arrow]

Dave i have a question about the 3 pt grapple. When i was logging, we never had access to grapple type skidders. they were out but my boss was just not going to expend the money. My only experience was with cable skidders. Of course, one of the advantages of cables was that you could drop a load if the skidder met with a slick spot and "reel" it back in once the skidder was on firmer ground. The 3 pt smaller grapples are intriguing for a utility or c.u.t. size tractor. I've included pics of the examples I presently skid in with my cut and was wondering if these smaller grapples would handle this type of multiple stem hitch.

 

[Woolfie]

I have a dumb question...I see skidders are really common in Nth America, and can see they would be great for getting the log to where you want it. But wouldn't it pick up a lot of dirt as you drag it along the ground, and therefore blunt your saw really quickly when you came to cutting the rounds?

 

[Green Acres Homestead]

I have a dumb question...I see skidders are really common in Nth America, and can see they would be great for getting the log to where you want it. But wouldn't it pick up a lot of dirt as you drag it along the ground, and therefore blunt your saw really quickly when you came to cutting the rounds?

it sure does but I find f you are not going to process the wood for a year, a lot of the mud will wash or dry and break of. Still there is grit embedded into the bark. That is why I like the trailer approach or cut the rounds and load them in a carry all. Doesn't take long for a chain to get dull cutting through grit.

 

[Rustyiron]

I've included pics of the examples I presently skid in with my cut and was wondering if these smaller grapples would handle this type of multiple stem hitch.

Arrow, my grapple opens to about 46" and is what's called a bypass grapple and it closes down to about 5". One side of the grapple passes through the other allowing for a wide gripping range, but I do have troubles with multiple stems. Those 2 in your pic would proly work fine, they are straight, limbed and will "gather" nicely. I do have problems some times with multiple stems because I take the (trimmed down to about 4") whole tree out for firewood and this can keep the logs from bunching up tight in the grapple and it seems to add additional dragging resistance. One real nice benefit is the log is mostly off the ground and stays clean and is not nearly as hard on your skid trails or roads, and depending on the size of your log, it can be completly off the ground with the butt end of the log under the grapple at the hitch. This is similar to the "heel" on a log loader.

 

[arrow]

Arrow, my grapple opens to about 46" and is what's called a bypass grapple and it closes down to about 5". One side of the grapple passes through the other allowing for a wide gripping range, but I do have troubles with multiple stems. Those 2 in your pic would proly work fine, they are straight, limbed and will "gather" nicely. I do have problems some times with multiple stems because I take the (trimmed down to about 4") whole tree out for firewood and this can keep the logs from bunching up tight in the grapple and it seems to add additional dragging resistance. One real nice benefit is the log is mostly off the ground and stays clean and is not nearly as hard on your skid trails or roads, and depending on the size of your log, it can be completly off the ground with the butt end of the log under the grapple at the hitch. This is similar to the "heel" on a log loader.

Thanks Rusty. I guess it is a matter of how far they can open. Yours is of good enough size to take a large bite if necessary. Don't know about the smaller ones Wallenstein sells. The "grasp" factor can be related to how many stems one is dealing with along with differentiated dimensions with the smaller stuff slipping out. I rarely come out of the woods with less than two stems (unless I hitch up a large canopy with spreading branches all over the place) so having something that can consistently take up two or more stems is important. None the less, it must save time I'm thinking, not having to get off the tractor to mess with a chain or choker.

I can appreciate the size of your machine to be able to "manhandle" a stem to keep it clean. I seem to have become immune to dirty wood because we did not have the luxury of complaining about what it was doing to our chains when working as a production logger. In actuality, we rarely cut up anything once it came to the landing unless it was firewood days (which I abhorred) We all had multiple chainsaws and about a dozen chains as we didn't even stop to sharpen. We did that at home in the evening to prep for the next day.

 

[94BULLITT]

I have a dumb question...I see skidders are really common in Nth America, and can see they would be great for getting the log to where you want it. But wouldn't it pick up a lot of dirt as you drag it along the ground, and therefore blunt your saw really quickly when you came to cutting the rounds?

They pick up one end of the log with the skidder so for the most part just a portion of the back is dragging in the dirt.

 

[94BULLITT]

I have a dumb question...I see skidders are really common in Nth America, and can see they would be great for getting the log to where you want it. But wouldn't it pick up a lot of dirt as you drag it along the ground, and therefore blunt your saw really quickly when you came to cutting the rounds?

They pick up one end of the log with the skidder so for the most part just a portion of the back is dragging in the dirt.

 

[4570Man]

The sawmills debark the logs. I carry my firewood in the grapple to avoid dragging it.

 

[Gordon Gould]

Yes - and if you work when it is dry and don't skid the logs thru the mud they stay pretty clean by having one end up off the ground and just dragging the tail as Bullet said. These were winched out of the woods and then skidded 300 yds to the landing tree length where I bucked them into 8's, 10's, and 12's



For clean wood though, winter is the best time to work with snow or frozen ground.

gg