Forestry Winch and Power Trac

[MossRoad]

That PTO to hydraulic adapter is almost $1800.00. Add to that the cost of a PT quick attach plate and YIKES! Two grand just like that.

So, a few questions come to mind:

How big is the farmi winch?

What is it's capacity?

Is there a hydraulic winch out there that meets those same specs and if so, how much does it cost?

Is it worth trying to adapt the Farmi winch PTO power to hydraulic power VS purchasing a dedicated hydraulic winch?

If you go with a dedicated hydraulic winch, will the PT require something to dig into the ground to keep it stationary as was mentioned earlier?

Will you mount the winch on the rear or the front?

If you mount it in the rear, you have to add hydraulics.

If you mount it in the front, the hydraulics are already there.

How much will it cost to mount in either location?

Dropping the winch and picking up the grapple bucket takes 30 to 45 seconds. Is that too much of an inconvenience VS the cost of mounting it on the rear?

Can't think of anything else right now. Lot's to think about.

 

[ethr]

http://www.skidsteersolutions.com/Skid_Steer_Bale_Handler_s/81.htm

OOOOO Gimme!!!

I'm taking a welding class this fall at the local tech school - this will be one of the first projects!

 

[catvet]

So many questions, not so many answers.

First off for more info on the Farmi winch check out this link.
http://www.northeastimplement.com/newpage4.htm

The advantage to the Farmi winch is that you can be pulling from different angles without worrying about the cable not spooling correctly. And though I haven't actually used the feature you can in theory operate from the location of the log you are moving by attaching a longer rope.

Question about mounting in the rear would be if I get a PT-2460 which will accept a backhoe (something I'm interested in) wouldn't it have some sort of hydraulics already plumbed for the hoe?

I agree the Hydraulics to PTO attachment is expensive but it would, in theory, give me the option of other 3rd party attachments.

Another option of course is to get a hydraulic Farmi winch made for skidsteers. Again more money.

I wonder what the chances are of being able to carry the winch in a grapple bucket to get it to where I'm working.

 

[catvet]

Charlie_Iliff,

The mill is a TimberKing, manual mill. Can handle up to 29" diam. 18' long logs in it's current configuration. How I would get such a log on it is beyond me. Not to mention manually moving it around once I did.

Good idea about checking the range of motion.

 

[catvet]

Now that I look at prices for the various units I'm thinking the 1460 might serve my purposes. For the extra $5000 for the 2460 plus another $5000 for the backhoe I could rent a miniexcavator for quite awhile and get the minihoe for the 1460. Might make more sense. Still have to figure out the system for a winch.

 

[MossRoad]

First off for more info on the Farmi winch check out this link.
http://www.northeastimplement.com/newpage4.htm

The advantage to the Farmi winch is that you can be pulling from different angles without worrying about the cable not spooling correctly. And though I haven't actually used the feature you can in theory operate from the location of the log you are moving by attaching a longer rope.

Question about mounting in the rear would be if I get a PT-2460 which will accept a backhoe (something I'm interested in) wouldn't it have some sort of hydraulics already plumbed for the hoe?

I agree the Hydraulics to PTO attachment is expensive but it would, in theory, give me the option of other 3rd party attachments.

Another option of course is to get a hydraulic Farmi winch made for skidsteers. Again more money.

I wonder what the chances are of being able to carry the winch in a grapple bucket to get it to where I'm working.

Wow! I had never looked at the Farmi winches before. Very nice features. Now you have to decide if it is worth the $2000.00 to adapt it to hydraulic use on the PT.

As for carrying the winch in a grapple bucket, if it fits, you can carry it. On my little PT425, I carry my forks in my small grapple bucket and then carry that in my large light material bucket all the time. 3-in one tool! The quick attach feature is what really makes the PT such a great tool. Take a bunch of toys out to the worksite and switch back and forth with ease.

 

[BillCroasmun]

CatVet,
I don't think you need to worry about hauling the Farmi in a grapple since the Farmi is made to skid logs with the notched beam. My opinion (for what it's worth) would be to mount a quick attach plate directly to the back of the Farmi. This would give you lifting capabilities for skidding the logs out while attached to the notched bar on the Farmi and minimal work for attaching to the PTO.

This would mean you'd be driving backwards while skidding out the logs but if you read through some of the posts here (MossRoad has made some good comments about this) you find that doing so with a PT is real easy once you get a little seat time in.

Do you have the TimberKing 1220? If you set up the mill area so that you can back right past the loading area you could then drop the whole Farmi, attach forks and side load a log within a couple minutes. You'll find the PT, with it's articulated steering, lets you get real fine control for "adjusting" your position and angles. With the 1460's 2400# lift you'll be right on target for loading your size logs and if you have the stops set up on the TimberKing you should be able to use the fork tips to turn and reposition the log after it's up.

 

[browns40]

Hi catvet,

If you are sure about the hydraulics route for your PT: Tajfun is making hydraulic models of logging winches also... and yes, they (all hydraulic ones) are a lot more expensive, but save you modification costs.

Here is a picture of mine--a 40a (4 ton model). Mine is regular PTO one, and I liked the model & price (~3k) well enough to opt for it over Farmi & Fraansgaard.

 

[catvet]

Bill,
Thanks for the ideas. I'm thinking you are correct about mounting the winch to the front end. My thought is to get a logging arch to pull the logs out so I can minimize damage to the woods. I figured a hitch receiver on the back of the tractor would take care of that.

Yes it is the TimberKing 1220 mill.

Jerry

 

[BillCroasmun]

Jerry,
Are you thinking of a non-skidding single log logging arch? Lot's of different styles out there as well as many homebuilt units.

If you have the need to haul out multiple logs at a time a fairly inexpensive option, using the winches notched beam, is to get an old axle and have a towing bar welded on as well as some hooks near the hubs and on the arm. Using the FEL raise the Farmi high enough to position the axle under the logs and strap it tight. Then lower the arms to level the logs and off you go. Should be a bit cheaper than building a full arch system.

Many ways to tackle this one so I wish you the best of luck!