Removing saplings up to 2" in diameter

[PILOON]

I once made a last minute device that worked just great.

It is basically one long tooth that clamps onto my FEL.
Very much like clamp on trailer pulls.

Th 'tooth' is about 12 inches long and the 'clamp' 5" or so wide and I used 2 ea 1/2" tapered bolts to provide the clamping action.

The work method was to have the bucket at an angle and drive/push the oversized tooth under the root ball and then curl back the bucket with the heel resting on the ground.
That dang contraption popped all kinds of cedars. pine and spruce as easy as anything and they were growing in a compacted unused drive.
The beauty was the roots came out clean and free of soil.
We must have pulled 60-70 or so in about 2 hrs.
I'm talking of 5-8 ft saplings.
Smaller hard wood saplings were a bit more difficult to pull but with persistance we won.

 

[ericm979]

Heavy-Duty Post And Tree Puller For Skid Steers, Universal Landscape Tool

sell it for a few $hundred less when you're done with it.

 

[shooterdon]

I did the same AS Pine I went to Harbour Freight got some 1/4鋳 and 5/16 cable with ferrals and made up 8 or 10 chokers so they would choke down tight AS u pull them tighter , one trip off the tractor and you can pop 8or 10 out on one pull but dont CUT the saplings first pop them out whole roots and all , takes a little trial and error but very cheap once you Get the hang of IT ,I think I maybe spent 50 bucks . I didnt have 900 extra $ ,Nor Cal Dan

That is an inexpensive solution that greatly minimizes trips on and off the tractor. Using the draw bar utilizes the pulling strength of a tractor too. And for tight areas, I can use a long main chain and add the chokers at the links near the end. The downside is still needing to bend over a few hundred times but I see using this method in a few places I cannot easily get the tractor to.

 

[shooterdon]

Heavy-Duty Post And Tree Puller For Skid Steers, Universal Landscape Tool

sell it for a few $hundred less when you're done with it.

I am leaning towards making the investment in the puller. The Dunn grapple is nice but was shocked when GRTkub shared the price of his a few years ago.

Both the puller and grapple have the advantages of being able to do the work without leaving the tractor, as well as carrying and stacking trees.

The multiple choker idea will work in spots I cannot easily get to with the tractor. It seems cheap and effective.

Love the experience and knowledge shared on this site.

 

[Fuddy1952]

$850+(I assume) shipping.
Once trees are all out would you still need it? If you had a helper, using chain or cable you could remove one every 5 minutes or so.
Just food for thought. Here with gloves I can pull trees by hand , ones less than an inch. Once you get it clear it's not hard keeping it nice.

 

[newbury]

I had moderate success with saplings, and great success with brambles using clamp on pallet forks on my M4700 in clay and loam. I'd angle the forks down slightly, drive the forks under the plant, roll the bucket back, rip the plant out by the roots. Main force was with the bucket roll.
DID NOT WORK WITH BAMBOO!!
Probably wouldn't work as well in rocky soil.
And best done when the soil is soft, like after a rain.

 

[HawkinsHollow]

I am in the exact same situation as you. I have 14 acres of small trees, brush and privet mixed into a hardwood bottomland forest. I rented a bobcat with a Xtreme duty brush cutter a few weeks ago and it did a pretty great although messy job clearing 4 or 5 of those acres. By messy I mean, chunks of trees and stubs sticking up. But overall it is a great start to my clearing endeavor. I can at least get in there and assess what to do next. I am mostly concerned about getting out the 2-6 inch garbage trees intermixed with my nice hardwoods. I am leaning towards a stump bucket. Push the 2 and 3 inchers straight over, I think my 4000+ pound Branson can handle that. The bigger ones that won't push over straight away I think will with a couple quick cuts with the stump bucket. Once those trees are gone I can come back with the bush hog and clear the little stuff. I think it will be WAY easier than getting on and off the tractor hooking up chains. MTL has a pretty nice stump bucket for $469. It is a couple hours from me so I will save the $149 delivery by going to pick it up. Here is a look at the stump bucket.

Same price and considerably more heavy duty than the Titan one. At ~350# I don't think it is too heavy for my FEL rated at 2200# That is the route I am going, think it is the right one for me. And maybe it will prompt me to get a grapple to clean the mess I make.

 

[civilian]

MTL has a pretty nice stump bucket for $469.
View attachment 600612
...

Do ypou have a link to the MTL stump bucket? Thanks, Jon

 

[HawkinsHollow]

Do ypou have a link to the MTL stump bucket? Thanks, Jon

I found that one on Ebay by searching "stump bucket". The $469 DOES NOT include shipping. Shipping is $149 extra. Might not be a great deal if you have to pay shipping. I live 2 hours north of their headquarters, so I am going to go pick it up and save $100. You can look at all of their attachments on Ebay of their website.

 

[HawkinsHollow]

I once made a last minute device that worked just great.

It is basically one long tooth that clamps onto my FEL.
Very much like clamp on trailer pulls.

Th 'tooth' is about 12 inches long and the 'clamp' 5" or so wide and I used 2 ea 1/2" tapered bolts to provide the clamping action.

The work method was to have the bucket at an angle and drive/push the oversized tooth under the root ball and then curl back the bucket with the heel resting on the ground.
That dang contraption popped all kinds of cedars. pine and spruce as easy as anything and they were growing in a compacted unused drive.
The beauty was the roots came out clean and free of soil.
We must have pulled 60-70 or so in about 2 hrs.
I'm talking of 5-8 ft saplings.
Smaller hard wood saplings were a bit more difficult to pull but with persistance we won.

I almost thought about making something like this with a piece of 1/2 plate I have laying around. But I have a few more projects that a stump bucket will be handy for so I think I will spend the money and go that route. Also, I was planning on clamping to the pre drilled tooth holes on my bucket, but I was worried about bending my bucket.