hill climbing ability

[MikeOConnor]

Howdy Bob,

I'm a hill-climbing nut case who just got an 1850 a couple months ago. I'm not sure how comparable it is to the model you're looking at, but it's darn nifty.

I have been progressing into ever more ludicrous locations, doing a lot of brush-cutting and tree-clearing. So far I haven't been able to make the PT break a sweat.

Here's a link to Marcie's latest blog entry that features the PT. It's a little hard to see how steep those hills are, but my guess is that they're in the 30-35 degree range. I mowed the areas on the right with the brush-mower, and carried all the birch trees out with the grapple bucket.

Hope that gives you a feel for the possibilities...

 

[Rip]

Mike,

Glad to hear the 1850 is working well for you.... I figured it would when you described your application. I noted that Marcie mentioned a bit of trouble handling logs with the PT grapple bucket.

I had mentioned that I have (and really like) an AnBo 5' Light Weight Grapple Rake on my 1845. The standard version however will grab a bigger "fist full" of brush/slash with each load. There are other brands made in this style which should work well also. These will also grab and carry a number of most any size/length logs without manual intervention.

If you buy direct from the manufacturer you can have PT send the correct mounting plate (and hydraulic fittings) directly to them and they will weld it on and paint it so it is ready to work when you get it.

You have a real nice piece of land there, and I can see you enjoy working with it. Hope you have lined up good local recources for the inevitable engine, hydraulic, and welding issues down the line.

Good luck with everything!

 

[MikeOConnor]

Hi Rip,

Yep, I remember your post about the grapple rake. It's darn nifty looking -- I just went back out to their site again -- here's a link to AnBo's page for those of you riding along.

The problem that Marcie was describing is the "sheesh, Mike just nudged another pile of logs and they all rolled down the dang hill" problem. <grin>

We solved that by deciding that since we have to pick up every log (either to put it in a pile, or load it in the bucket) we'll just load 'em in the bucket. These hills are fragile enough that if I use the PT to make log piles *AND* forward the stuff down the hill I'll dig up the ground too much. So this "pile the logs in the bucket" solution's working pretty well.

We view it as back-limbering-up exercise.

Regarding the need for hydraulic/welding help -- I had my mechanically-smart neighbor take a look at the PT a few weeks ago. He's entranced and has offered to teach me how hydraulics work when something breaks. And he's got a welding shop too. Good thing -- I've already used his shop to weld rings around the air stems on a couple of the tires after ripping them off whilst brushing. I figure I'll have a complete set in a few more months. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

 

[Rip]

Mike,

Glad to hear you have some good resources lined up for modification/repairs. I know what you mean about keeping the number of trips across any given area to a minimum, that's why you want to maximize the efficiency of each operation.

Before I got the PT, I made a small set of bucket forks for my NH out of scrap 3" C channel and bolted them to the underside of the HD bucket. They only extended about 16" but almost trippled the number of logs I could carry per load with the bucket curled to max.

I also bolted two 2 x 3/8" flat bars to the upper outside edges of the bucket (like drift cutters on a snowblower) to prevent any logs from rolling back down the loader arms into my lap if I did not pay attention or traversing bumpy areas. As it was, they never "saved the day", but did provide peace of mind.

In any event, sounds like you have a system going so enjoy all you can before the snow shuts you down for a while.