More chipper questions - mostly about feed type

[oosik]

Hmmm - - I understand and now I can see why I have never needed a hydraulic feed model. ALL pine tree with a butt diameter between 1" and 6" are straight as an arrow. Feed the pines in - butt first - and all the limbs are soft and gracefully arched upwards. They feed in easily also.

 

[Aquamoose]

Hmmm - - I understand and now I can see why I have never needed a hydraulic feed model. ALL pine tree with a butt diameter between 1" and 6" are straight as an arrow. Feed the pines in - butt first - and all the limbs are soft and gracefully arched upwards. They feed in easily also.

THIS is why I went for the mechanical feed. I roll my eyes when folks tout why one system is better than the other and most make declarations without knowing what the OP has on his/her property. Mechanical feeds for pine/fir saplings is plentiful all day long and hydraulic feeds would be overkill. The only downside about 3ph chippers is that I can’t have my boys feeding it while I pull trees to it so I pull them for a full day then hook up the chipper for the next two days.

 

[Industrial Toys]

I bought a 15" PTO Brush Bandit Last Year, with wheels. I never realized what a logistical issue getting dead pines to the chipper would be, especially in hilly terrain. So, high capacity machine and not much to stuff in it!

I do love the hydraulic feed that can crush a lot of stuff without feed stopages.

I almost considered buying another tractor just to pull a chip trailer, but had the brain storm of putting a hitch on the chipper, and I think that will work providing I never have to back up!

 

[oosik]

Well - my spring thinning project takes me about a month to six weeks. The toughest part - by far - dragging out all the cut pines and stacking them. I'm almost guaranteed to fall DOWN at least once or twice per day during the "dragging out" phase.

Aquamoose - I got to find some inducement to get my son and a couple of his friends out here this coming spring - just to drag out and pile all the cut trees. I can do the felling and chipping. This 'ol bod gets darn tired of falling.

I've chipped into my farm wagon - ten ton Horst running gear. I just stand up a sheet of plywood and clamp it to the end board. Gotta be heads up with this farm wagon - backing it up is just like trying to push hot spaghetti backwards. I know a few on TBN have experience and can do it. If I only have to back up 10 to 15 feet MAX - then I can do it also. Otherwise - its, GO forward young man.


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[ericm979]

Power feed pulls the material in at a fixed rate. My old self feeding chipper would grab material and pull it in very fast. Except when it would not feed at all or would only feed a little and then stop. That happened a lot especially with brush or species that don't grow straight. It takes a lot more fussing with the material to get it to feed, and then you have to be ready to pull your hands out quick as it'll suck it in fast when it catches. With power feed that doesn't happen, and material feeds much more reliably.

The advantages of hydraulic feed over mechanical are being able to change the feed speed and being able to reverse the feed if something gets stuck. I chip all kinds of stuff from brush to firs to various deciduous species, and I chip a range of sizes from 1/2" to 8". Being able to change the feed speed is mandatory for that.

 

[Industrial Toys]

Nothing seems to humble a man, as much as falling! You watch something in free fall and it doesn't seem that fast, but it never ceases to amaze me how fast old man gravity will suck you down onto the deck.

 

[Aquamoose]

Well - my spring thinning project takes me about a month to six weeks. The toughest part - by far - dragging out all the cut pines and stacking them. I'm almost guaranteed to fall DOWN at least once or twice per day during the "dragging out" phase.

Aquamoose - I got to find some inducement to get my son and a couple of his friends out here this coming spring - just to drag out and pile all the cut trees. I can do the felling and chipping. This 'ol bod gets darn tired of falling.

I've chipped into my farm wagon - ten ton Horst running gear. I just stand up a sheet of plywood and clamp it to the end board. Gotta be heads up with this farm wagon - backing it up is just like trying to push hot spaghetti backwards. I know a few on TBN have experience and can do it. If I only have to back up 10 to 15 feet MAX - then I can do it also. Otherwise - its, GO forward young man.

I think we’re both doing the same thing. I have a 53’ military utility 3 ton trailer (4’x10’) but I use a small, fabricated trailer to blow chips in and my boys drive it out using an old riding mower to spread ‘em out on the trails.

I pluck the saplings and make piles here & there then I come back to cut the stumps off before feeding it to the chipper. You should get a tree puller. It’s a whopper of a time saver and I don’t have to deal with the stubs. Pluck, move, stack! I ought to make a video if you’d like.

Wish we were neighbors, we’d make a good team with our Bransons

 

[mark02tj]

I think we’re both doing the same thing. I have a 53’ military utility 3 ton trailer (4’x10’) but I use a small, fabricated trailer to blow chips in and my boys drive it out using an old riding mower to spread ‘em out on the trails.

I pluck the saplings and make piles here & there then I come back to cut the stumps off before feeding it to the chipper. You should get a tree puller. It’s a whopper of a time saver and I don’t have to deal with the stubs. Pluck, move, stack! I ought to make a video if you’d like.

Wish we were neighbors, we’d make a good team with our Bransons

Interesting! I do just the opposite - I go in and cut the saplings down and leave about 12-18". Then I go back in with my tree puller and yank the stumps. I would think that I'd get tangled up trying to cut a bunch of root balls off the trees laying in a pile. Plus, it's easier to handle the stumps with the puller when I don't have a bunch of "length" of tree hanging out there.

Just curious - what kind of puller do you have?


Sorry - didn't mean to derail the thread....

 

[Piston]

The only disadvantage to a hydraulic feed over mechanical is the price. There is literally no other reason to ever buy a mechanical feed chipper over hydraulic. Ever.

 

[Aquamoose]

Interesting! I do just the opposite - I go in and cut the saplings down and leave about 12-18". Then I go back in with my tree puller and yank the stumps. I would think that I'd get tangled up trying to cut a bunch of root balls off the trees laying in a pile. Plus, it's easier to handle the stumps with the puller when I don't have a bunch of "length" of tree hanging out there.

Just curious - what kind of puller do you have?


Sorry - didn't mean to derail the thread....

I’ve thought about, and tried that approach what you go but quickly found that it isn’t feasible because now I have 18” stumps blocking my tractor from moving around AND making removal of the saplings by hand quite difficult to pull out. Don’t forget that they make “head knockers” (infant widow makers) when they hang up on other trees if you’re cutting a bunch at a time. At least mine are because I have dense stands. I pluck & pile them in manageable groups with the roots facing the same way towards ample clearing where I can chip comfortably. I cut the stumps most at once and toss them in a pile for later pick up then have at it. No widow makers and I don’t have to collect the stumps.

The tree puller is what I built myself.