Front-End Loader Danuser Intimdator

[Smokeydog]

Used on Kubota B26 plucking trees and brush. Some trees removed along the wooded driveway 20’ tall. Privet and Russian olives clumps easily pulled up. Small tractor gives great maneuverability and sight near fences and buildings. Easily pulled trees growing in the blueberry patch with surgical precision. Long tines give good reach. Pull, pile then use to grapple the pile to carry off. Carrying piles long ways thru narrow wooded roads easier. 100+ pulls in a couple of hours. Used many different tools over 50 years to accomplish this routine task but none are as quick and easy.

The Intimdator usually not shown using on small tractors. Built to handle large tractors and skidsteers clearing large vegetation. Often overlooked on a smaller maintenance scale.

 

[Xfaxman]

For those not familiar with the Intimidator: https://www.danuser.com/attachments/intimidator

 

[orezok]

$4200…. Ouch!

 

[Smokeydog]

$4200…. Ouch!

Wow! That’s twice what I paid 5-6 years ago. Hard to keep up with the rising prices.

Maintaining our property particularly as we have gotten older a concern. Pulled thousands of trees and invasive plants with a chain and piece of pipe over decades. So a new tool has to pay for itself in time, labor and cost savings. The Intimdator did that the first year. Hopefully cost and labor savings for many years to come. Well made tool that has several advantages over a regular tree and post puller. Close maneuvering, pushing and pulling power is where HST really shine.

Only minor problem has been wood, gravel and mud getting packed in the slot of the jaws locking tab. Preventing jaws from closing completely. Effects gripping thin slippery stems. Pulling out the little stuff early important to our maintenance. Have had to chisel it out only a few times. Different design featured on new ones might help prevent this.

Just one of many tools to help maintain our pastures, fields, woods, roads, creeks and ponds.

 

[JohnnyMX]

I have the LandPride version (STP25 with push bar) and it also works great for what I can and should be trying to just rip from the ground. I saw the Intimidator when I was looking at options, but couldn't justify the extra cost as my machine wasn't going to be able to use some of the added features. I mostly pull invasives and the stuff that is just over what my rotary will do. Either way, they are very useful tools for the selective removal of trees, posts, etc.

I found that anything over 5" can be tough with my tractor combo even with ballast. When they start to get really tall, I like the push bar as added insurance against it pivoting and coming right back onto the tractor and my head. I have dug a few out to weaken the roots, but found that by using the push bar often they will snap a root or two without digging. Anything that needs very aggressive digging gets the tree spade to reduce the chance of me breaking the implement with moving parts. The Intimidator is better protected for digging though.

 

[2manyrocks]

Pulled thousands of trees and invasive plants with a chain and piece of pipe over decades.

I've pulled trees with chain and a wheel rim against the tree trunk for leverage. How do you pull a tree with chain and a piece of pipe?

 

[Smokeydog]

The pipe bites and allows the grab hook chains to slip. Grabs slippery and small stems. Also rocks.

 

[mike0000]

View attachment 749460

The pipe bites and allows the grab hook chains to slip. Grabs slippery and small stems. Also rocks.

That’s interesting, looks like it would be more effective than my way (wrap the chain around tree several times, and hope it doesn’t slip off) then up over a old wheel.

Mike

 

[2manyrocks]

It brings a question to mind. I wonder which method of pulling trees is actually less stressful to the tractor? Using the tractor hydraulics to pull a tree with a tree puller vs pulling a tree with a chain looped over a wheel rim connected to a tractor drawbar? Assume that it's the same tree and the same tractor in each situation. Part of me wants to argue that more force can be applied via the hydraulic system, but then using a chain looped over wheel exerts quite a bit of mechanical leverage.

 

[Smokeydog]

Both have their advantages and disadvantages. Operator stress? Same for effectiveness.

With an Intimdator, Piranha bar or chain, the high pulling force is generated with the wheels and traction going forward or back. Some stuff you can pluck out with just the hydraulics but most it helps to use some push or pull.

Have a permanent pressure gauge on the FEL hydraulic lift cylinders circuit when I installed a soft ride system. Max lift pressure from pump 2,900psi giving about 4,000# lift on the Kubota M59. If I curl and push forward with a grapple the lift pressure can double. 5,600psi is the highest I’ve witnessed. Nearly double the lift force. There are no pressure relief valves down stream of control valve from dynamic loading. Tractor loaders are generally robust enough to take this dynamic loading. Larger excavation equipment have more sophisticated hydraulic systems to protect from high dynamic loads.

Grapple lids and top-n-tilt 3pt cylinders are others that can generate high pressure from dynamic loading. Leaky control valves usually the first wear component. Designers and operators need to be aware of the consequences.