Anyone build a grapple like this

[Stomper]

To be honest with you I'm not sure how he would get that size of log in there, I never asked him that. Unless he cuts them shorter before he tosses them in. Also the species would have a big part in the weight of the wood. A 12" diameter chunk of spruce is quite different that a 12" chunk of birch. 8" and below would be the main diameter I would get around here. I've burned wood in my wood stove for 17 years now and I can count on one hand the number of times I have harvested a log bigger than 12".
There are some 20" trees around here also but they are limited, especialy in the areas that I harvest wood. I would only harvest the ones that are down already and would obviously cut and split them into size that I could handle.

 

[4570Man]

Oak is nearly all we have so that’s what I was figuring the weight on. Water weighs 62 pounds per cubic foot so I figure 50 pounds is pretty accurate for greenish oak.

 

[Stomper]

That grapple is styled after the huge ones they use on wheel loaders to unload logging trucks in a single pick. The bottom forks are spaced pretty far apart is clearly designed to allow smaller materials to fall through. Awesome if you're trying to pick logs up. Might work if you have enough brush to bridge the bottom teeth, but you should anticipate dropping some material. I personally use a small grapply and I really like it. It's a very versatile tool and I find that I can do more things with this grapple than I could with a larger one. The only drawback is moving brush. This is the one task that a larger grapple would excel at. Here's a mfr link to mine: Home

Couple videos with me using it: Moving log with Faver grapple - YouTube Boulder - YouTube Moving culvert with Faver grapple - YouTube Moving concrete block with Faver grapple - YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aUsXppAMD8M

To be honest, I am starting to favor (no pun intended)the one that Cord has in the above post. It has the "L" style shape but because of the design of the tines, can close up quite tightly. And looks like it would be quite easy to build and with a bit of tweeking it could be made to close even tighter if needed. Being able to build what "works" for me is also a concern of mine because there just isn't the selection or variety of grapples and other impliments/attachments in Canada that there is in the US. At least not that I have found. Don't get me wrong, there are lots of places that specialize in skid steer attachments that are quality built but they would most certainly be too heavy for a compact tractor. And ordering from the US with the currency exchange, shipping cost, import charges.............puts something like this way out of reach for me. I have yet to find a Canadian venue even remotely close to something like Everything Attachments.

 

[Stomper]

Oak is nearly all we have so that’s what I was figuring the weight on. Water weighs 62 pounds per cubic foot so I figure 50 pounds is pretty accurate for greenish oak.

Spruce, jack pine and poplar are the most common species around here with some birch.