Forestry Winch and Power Trac

[catvet]

I'm exploring possible machines to replace (upgrade) my Kubota B7800 (30hp). My primary jobs are cutting and skidding trees out of my land parcel and then getting the logs onto my portable mill. Some of the logs are 25-30" in diameter so are in the 2000-2500 range at 12 feet lengths. I'm also involved in developing the parcel so putting in some roads as well as a planned house site. I have a Farmi PTO winch which I consider essential to the operation. I'd never get some of the trees to the roads without it. Can I easily use the winch on a Power Trac? Also I would like to start using a logging arch to minimize damage to the property. Does a Power Trac have a hitch setup for pulling things?

From my limited exploring it appears that everything is attached to the front of the Power Trac (except the backhoe). Any way to set up a 3-point hitch with PTO power off the back so I could have forks, or whatever, on the front?

Does a Power Trac use Skid Steer Attachments? Appears to have a Skid Steer Like Plate on the Front.

I would gather it would be pretty good in the woods and on slopes (we have a lot of them here in Vermont).

Any help appreciated. I'm exploring at this point.

 

[Piedmont3]

CatVet,
I think the PT 1460 would probably handle the weight of the logs you mentioned... and I think the PT would be great on the hilly terrain...BUT I don't think any of the PT's can have a PTO because of the articulated design. I don't know this for a fact.
Here is the products page on th PT website that can give you more information http://www.power-trac.com/productclasses.htm

 

[Charlie_Iliff]

I have an 1845 Power Trac. It does not have rear 3-point, but I modified it to put a 2" receiver, and can therefore use an electric winch either front or back. (I have a 2" receiver on an attach plate in front, when needed.)
The Power Tracs are all hydraulic. To use your PTO winch on the front or back, you'd need a 640 RPM hydraulic motor, which is available.
The quick attach on the Power Tracs is their own design. If you run through some of the posts on this board, you'll find a lot of rave reviews. I have an adapter that I had cobbled up which goes from the PT to Bobcat type implements, but most of my attachments are PT.
For road preparation, I have a 4 n 1 bucket, but I'm not very skilled with it. Those who have box blades for their PTs should chime in.
If at all possible, take a vacation trip to Tazewell, Va. It is a pretty area in SW Va. They will turn you loose on a machine or two to try for yourself. A 1460 sounds like what you'd need. You'll find you get used to the articulated machine quickly, and in rough and steep terrain you'll never want to go back to a conventional tractor.

 

[catvet]

Piedmont3 and Charlie_Iliff,

Thanks for the replies. Do you know if you could use one of the attachments they use for Skid Steers to allow 3 point hitch and PTO?
Check out this link: http://www.skidsteersolutions.com/EZ_3_POINT_PTO_125_ADAPTOR_CAT_1_or_Cat_2_p/ez-3pt-125-s3.htm

I see there are also adaptors to make machines skidsteer compliant.
http://www.skidsteersolutions.com/Skid_Steer_Universal_Quick_Attach_Adaptor_s/64.htm
I suppose you could weld something like that onto one of Power Tracs custom attachment plates.
Do you know what sort of attachment Power Trac uses for their backhoe setup? If you could attach the PTO adaptor onto their connector it could be interesting.

 

[MossRoad]

I'd have to think that in logging operations, a PT1460 would run absolute circles around a tractor similar in size to a Kubota B7800. A 60HP articulated loader is a very different machine from a 30HP CUT.

I would get a hydraulic winch like this Ramsey at Surplus Center and mount it on the rear and get a grapple bucket for the front. That would make a very good logger, in my opinion.

 

[browns40]

Hi catvet,

How's the PT for ground clearance/soft parts on the underbelly? They look a little low...

Also, looking over a winch in the front seems like it would be a visibilty problem...

 

[catvet]

MossRoad,

The winch looks interesting. Though what I like about mine is that it digs down into the ground to enable more pulling power. Keeps the tractor from being dragged along the ground. Any ideas to add that cabability to the Ramsey winch?

 

[catvet]

browns40,

Yes I've thought about the clearance. I think the Power Trac is about 10" which could be a problem in some cases.

My winch is about 4 feet high which I think you could see over from the tractor seat. You actually operate the winch from the ground so you are out of the way.

 

[MossRoad]

MossRoad,

The winch looks interesting. Though what I like about mine is that it digs down into the ground to enable more pulling power. Keeps the tractor from being dragged along the ground. Any ideas to add that cabability to the Ramsey winch?

I suppose you could add a hydraulic ram to the rear of the unit with a large foot that could dig into the ground if the rig tends to move. I would try down pressure on the FEL bucket first. That might be enough to hold it.

As for ground clearance and a soft underbelly, there is nothing under the PT but plate steel. The entire unit is a virtual skid plate. And don't let the low ground clearance fool you. Not only does the unit articulate left and right, but it oscillates(twists on the horizontal plane) between the front and rear halves. That keeps four wheels on the ground way more often than a conventional tractor.

One more thing to consider is just using the winch on the front. Mount is to a plate of steel and a quick attach plate. When you want to winch something, just jam the plate in the ground. That will keep the unit from moving. Then winch a few logs up to your level and go drop the winch off and switch to the grapple. It only takes 30 seconds to drop an attachment on a PT and mount a new one. That way, you wouldn't have to mess with mounting anything on the rear of the tractor.

 

[Charlie_Iliff]

Piedmont3 and Charlie_Iliff,

Thanks for the replies. Do you know if you could use one of the attachments they use for Skid Steers to allow 3 point hitch and PTO?
Check out this link: http://www.skidsteersolutions.com/EZ_3_POINT_PTO_125_ADAPTOR_CAT_1_or_Cat_2_p/ez-3pt-125-s3.htm

I see there are also adaptors to make machines skidsteer compliant.
http://www.skidsteersolutions.com/Skid_Steer_Universal_Quick_Attach_Adaptor_s/64.htm
I suppose you could weld something like that onto one of Power Tracs custom attachment plates.
Do you know what sort of attachment Power Trac uses for their backhoe setup? If you could attach the PTO adaptor onto their connector it could be interesting.

Just from the picture, it looks as if the only things needed to make the 3-point PTO adapter work would be to weld a Power Trac adapter plate to it, and match hydraulic fittings. You could also weld a PT adapter plate to the universal adapter, so as to be able to use other skid-steer attachments. That is what I did.
One caution: When mounting the PT adapter to the universal skid steer adapter, take the time to clamp it together on the PT and run it through its range of motion. Had we not done that, and adjusted a little, there might have been some interference.

There is plenty of heavy metal on a PT. I agree with Moss Road that for skidding and placing logs on a mill (Wood Miser?), welding a mount for the winch on the back, and putting a grapple on the fromt would make it hard to beat. You'd probably do fine, however, with the winch on an adapter in front. You could then plant it where you wanted, control from the seat and watch. I'd recommend expanded metal across the ROPS just in case, but maybe my fear of winch cables borders on paranoia. You could skid with the winch cable, backing up, or turn and pull from the rear. My 1845 came with a pin hitch that I replaced with a 2" receiver.
Switch from the winch to forks or grapple is a one-minute operation with the PT quick attach.
My 1845 pulls fine, and works well to put logs on the Wood Miser, but it's my brother's mill, and I don't let him or his crew use the PT. Selfish