PTO Chipper Advice -- maneuverability and center of gravity concerns

[2stroker]

To be honest I wouldn’t go with a PTO driven chipper on that size tractor and if the chute won’t rotate I wouldn’t even consider it.
I purchased a used Vermeer 625 for $2000 and it’s been a great machine for my homeowner use. The variable infeed speed and the reverse feed have made a huge difference.
I’ve owned it for 5 years and could it more money for it now,
Win, win, win!
2stroker

 

[ericm979]

I've driven my Branson with the woodmaxx 8H mounted up a road that's at least 35%. The Branson is pretty heavy for its HP but other than needing to be in 4wd it's no problem.

The 8H works well but it's got some small issues. The hydraulic control valve that came with mine did not allow feed settings between full speed and really slow. With some reading and help from this forum I figured out that the valve was a 20gpm model and Woodmaxx told me the hydraulic system is 3 gpm. That's a recipe for poor valve performance. I put a 5 gpm valve on and its much more controllable. Woodmaxx told me the hydrostatic drive on the MX models does not have this issue.

There is a gap in the housing for the top roller to travel up and down. Every once in a while (3x in 90 hours) I get a branch stuck in there and have to detach the tension springs so I can get it out. The MX 8800/9900 has a different design here that looks like it would not have the same problem.

I had a hard time deciding between the 8H and the Woodland Mills 8". What swayed me was the videos of them running the Woodland Mills.. It looked like the operator really had to jam the pieces in to get the single roller to ride up and grab them. The 8H has a lift arm so you can pick the roller up with one hand while shoving materiel in with the other. If you time it right you can toss in short stubs that are otherwise not safe to put in.

The Woodland Mills has a nice clamshell for the rotor housing which makes it easy to get to the knoves. The 8H has small trap doors that you have to work through. If you drop a bolt it's going to the bottom of the rotor chamber where it's hard to get to.

Whichever one you buy, get a spare set of knives so you can swap them out and have something to use while a set is getting sharpened. So far I have done ok by carefully sharpening them with an angle grinder but after a few of those I'll want to have them ground to maintain the proper angle. I rotate or swap knives after 20 hours. The time you get will depend on what you're chipping. I'd rather swap early when they are still cutting good than wear them down so they're a lot of work to sharpen.

 

[NYlumberman]

I spent my working life in hardwood sawmills and I am pretty familiar with the nomenclature, care,

and feeding of chippers. In 1993 I used a 6” capacity Valby with a horizontal hydraulic feed, to clear an overgrown softwood plantation the was also populated with hardwoods to build my pond. It took all my spare time that summer to clear the 4 acre site. I mounted the chipper on a tired 1965 Minneapolis Moline Jet Star 3. The Valby did fine with as long as there some wood going through, but it didn’t like to feed when there were just softwood boughs. I kept the knives sharp and anvils set close. The horsepower required is directly proportional to the number of knives and the feed rated. A sharp chipper will self feed once it is engaged wood, so the hydraulic feed helps prevent over feeding. When I used the same chipper on a 27HP JD 4200 (green Yanmar) I flipped one knife and only used 1knife to chip. I dressed the knives with file and added a slight counter bevel to strengthen the cutting edge for touch ups and changed knives every 15-20 hours of operation. In the mills we never ran anything to dead dull, in my back 40 they got pretty beat up from time to time. Cleanliness is next to godliness. I had some 6” Maple trees that I had to notch the big limbs so feed could pull them into the chipper. That Valby chipper is still running with the same arbor bearings thanks to grease and a little TLC periodically.
I felt so bad about abusing my old Minnie Mo that I put it in the mills truck shop that winters and did total engine tear down and a bare metal restoration. The result was pretty parade ready tractor that had way more power than i needed to man my place. When I tried to mow with it every time I started up hill the governor would kick in and the Ag Tires would peel to sod right down to bare dirt. So the Minnie Mo had to go and the green Yanmar replaced it. I learned a lot, and I like to say “all education is expensive“.

 

[JNavar]

Hi All --

Longtime lurker here finally making my first post! I have a Kubota L2550 tractor with 24hp at the PTO. I'm hoping to find a PTO chipper that fits my somewhat unusual needs. Help, please!

My Kubota is quite tippy on our steep piece of property -- a mish-mash of little twisting roads, gullies, slopes and a few flat sections. I've learned over the years where I can and cannot safely go, almost always with a brush hog on the back. I would very much like to have buy a PTO chipper that I can take to the material instead of hauling the material to the few flat spots that are big enough to pile it up and hit it with the brush hog. Bottom line: center of gravity and size are both big concerns.

Material: a lot is straight, soft and easily chipped. A ton of California pepper which is more bush like, but soft. Some acacia, which is a hard wood. I would like to easily chip to 4" if possible.

Looking solely online (no dealers in our area), potential candidates:

1. The Best PTO Wood Chipper on the Market. 20-80 PTO HP
Splitfire 4003. This one has a unique horizontal flywheel and looks like it would have a very lower center of gravity. It looks like the smallest for tight spaces. But, 100% gravity with no feed at all. $5,000 is very expensive compared to the other two (uncomfortably over budget, but I could swing it). Can't rotate the output chute (which would be really nice!). Very simple design and easy to maintain. Rated to 4". Minimum 20hp.

2. WoodMaxx MX-8500G+ - WoodMaxx
Woodmax MX-8500G+. Looks pretty small as well, but has a vertical flywheel, so a higher center of gravity I would assume...? Looks fairly small for tight spaces. Gravity feed, claims a unique flywheel that really pulls in the material. Way cheaper at $2,275.00 minus 10% on sale. Can't rotate chute. Very simple design and easy to maintain. Rated to 5" max. 15 HP minimum for 4" soft wood at a very low 15hp.

3. 6" PTO Wood Chipper Shredder | Made in the USA | 3pt. Wood Chipper Attachment -WoodMaxx? | Chipper for small tractor - WoodMaxx
Woodmax MX-8600. Vertical flywheel. About the same size as the 8500. Hydrostatic feed. Middle price at $3,645.00 minus 10%. Fully rotatable chute (bonus!). More complicated design looks like more maintenance. 15hp minimum. Claims it can chip up to 6" at higher horsepower.

So, balancing size, simplicity, ease of use and center of gravity, does anyone have feedback on these? Or suggestions for others? Thank you!

-Ben

I have owned a Woodland Mills WC46 for about 2 years and power it with a small Kubota B7500 that has about 22 PTO HP. It has worked flawlessly on my 23 acres. I clear Pine and Oak. Usually limit the diameter of trunks to about 3-3.5 inches and use anything bigger to line trails. It has plenty of power to do this.
The discharge chute is handy and easy to use but will clog easily when chipping freshly cut Youpon. I solved this by removing the chute and replacing it with a 12 inch aluminum chute/ deflector. It does rain chips all over my head and tractor but that is much less annoying than stopping every 30 minutes to clear the chute.

 

[Engine 3]

Just jumping in here, I have a Woods 8100 chipper I would like to find a source to replace the blades. It seems no one is really excited about sharpening the blades I have. (Oklahoma City)

 

[jrt750]

Hi All --

Longtime lurker here finally making my first post! I have a Kubota L2550 tractor with 24hp at the PTO. I'm hoping to find a PTO chipper that fits my somewhat unusual needs. Help, please!

My Kubota is quite tippy on our steep piece of property -- a mish-mash of little twisting roads, gullies, slopes and a few flat sections. I've learned over the years where I can and cannot safely go, almost always with a brush hog on the back. I would very much like to have buy a PTO chipper that I can take to the material instead of hauling the material to the few flat spots that are big enough to pile it up and hit it with the brush hog. Bottom line: center of gravity and size are both big concerns.

Material: a lot is straight, soft and easily chipped. A ton of California pepper which is more bush like, but soft. Some acacia, which is a hard wood. I would like to easily chip to 4" if possible.

Looking solely online (no dealers in our area), potential candidates:

1. The Best PTO Wood Chipper on the Market. 20-80 PTO HP
Splitfire 4003. This one has a unique horizontal flywheel and looks like it would have a very lower center of gravity. It looks like the smallest for tight spaces. But, 100% gravity with no feed at all. $5,000 is very expensive compared to the other two (uncomfortably over budget, but I could swing it). Can't rotate the output chute (which would be really nice!). Very simple design and easy to maintain. Rated to 4". Minimum 20hp.

2. WoodMaxx MX-8500G+ - WoodMaxx
Woodmax MX-8500G+. Looks pretty small as well, but has a vertical flywheel, so a higher center of gravity I would assume...? Looks fairly small for tight spaces. Gravity feed, claims a unique flywheel that really pulls in the material. Way cheaper at $2,275.00 minus 10% on sale. Can't rotate chute. Very simple design and easy to maintain. Rated to 5" max. 15 HP minimum for 4" soft wood at a very low 15hp.

3. 6" PTO Wood Chipper Shredder | Made in the USA | 3pt. Wood Chipper Attachment -WoodMaxx? | Chipper for small tractor - WoodMaxx
Woodmax MX-8600. Vertical flywheel. About the same size as the 8500. Hydrostatic feed. Middle price at $3,645.00 minus 10%. Fully rotatable chute (bonus!). More complicated design looks like more maintenance. 15hp minimum. Claims it can chip up to 6" at higher horsepower.

So, balancing size, simplicity, ease of use and center of gravity, does anyone have feedback on these? Or suggestions for others? Thank you!

-Ben

I have woodland mills 4 inch chipper powered by a BX23s. Eats up 4 inch ash no problem but it has to be fed in slowly. Smaller stuff you can feed it as fast as you can handle it. If shipping is not to costly it is a better buy than the American brands. I would have purchased a larger one but my tractor is the limiting factor. As far as tipping I dont think having this thing on the back would have much effect since you only have to just lift it off the ground to travel . It has a very low center of gravity.Get sone hearing protection too, these thing are load.

 

[outdoorben]

Has anyone chipped California Pepper in their chippers? If so, any issues?

 

[AnotherBueller]

I have woodland mills 4 inch chipper powered by a BX23s. Eats up 4 inch ash no problem but it has to be fed in slowly. Smaller stuff you can feed it as fast as you can handle it. If shipping is not to costly it is a better buy than the American brands. I would have purchased a larger one but my tractor is the limiting factor. As far as tipping I dont think having this thing on the back would have much effect since you only have to just lift it off the ground to travel . It has a very low center of gravity.Get sone hearing protection too, these thing are load.

I have a Nova Tractor BX23 chipper. Bought it because of low price. I got what I paid for. Only throws chips 3 - 4 feet, if there's much small stuff <1/2" the chute jams. It has a ~4X8" cutter and when a 3" round limb got down to 5 or 6" it turned sideways and jammed.
I believe that the housing is out of round because while there is only a 1/4" on both sides, it has no wind to blow the chips and since there's no wind the chute jams as the small stuff turns sideways, then more piles up and the chute jams.
I can not figure out any way to adjust the knifes with out removing the rotor.
DO NOT BUY.

 

[hosspuller]

...

I had a hard time deciding between the 8H and the Woodland Mills 8". What swayed me was the videos of them running the Woodland Mills.. It looked like the operator really had to jam the pieces in to get the single roller to ride up and grab them. The 8H has a lift arm so you can pick the roller up with one hand while shoving materiel in with the other. If you time it right you can toss in short stubs that are otherwise not safe to put in.
...

Quite right... the WM feed roller has a hard time climbing large diameter pieces. I solve this by feeding a smaller piece first then follow it with the large piece. This technique also works well with short stubs. Throw the short stubs and brush in chute then follow with a longer piece. The long piece sucks the rest in. Much safer than using a hand.

 

[outdoorben]

A HUGE thank you to everyone who responded with helpful comments.

After all the comments and my other research, I changed my list and narrowed down my choices to the Woodmaxx MX-8800, the Woodmax MX-8600 and the Woodland Mills WC68.

I ended up buying the WC68. A few of many reasons:

1. It folds up for transport and storage and will be more maneuverable on my funky land.

2. Price point, including shipping and included lift gate service. While not promised, they said it was pretty common to get box truck delivery instead of a tractor trailer if requested. In my experience, no one has ever gotten a delivery in our neighborhood via tractor trailer, so I'm assuming box truck. That makes delivery $199 instead of $480 with Woodmaxx. The only way I could request a box truck with Woodmaxx was to pay extra for it. So, dice rolled with a solid backup plan.

3. A huge and happy-with-their-choice user base on forums and YouTube. A ridiculous number of positive reviews and videos of it in use. I posted a question on their FB page and was inundated with helpful info.

4. The two salespeople I talked to impressed me and seemed engaged and knowledgeable.

5. Lower angle of intake than the MX-8600. The flat intake of the MX-8800 would have been the best, but at a much higher cost and size.

6. Largest outside chute size at 27" X 23". I'm going to be stuffing a lot of brush and brushy trees through it and this seemed like a good feature.

7. Heavier flywheel than the MX-8600 (closest in price) at 200lbs instead of 120lbs.
[ EDIT: This is wrong! It appears to be only 100lbs. Not sure how I screwed up on that one. Not happy... ]

There are a ton of good reasons to buy the other two as well. They seem like great machines. Thanks, again!