The right tractor for towing/forestry work

[4570Man]

Guys….I think the objective here is to not get stuck in the first place. A metal track bulldozer is unmatched. Well, maybe a dual quad articulating tractor could come close. They work nice with a pull pan, but the OP wants something under 100HP, not 500HP

A quad track couldn’t beat the dozer. They don’t don’t have the bite on the tracks a dozer does. And the dozer can come in any size you want.

 

[fruitcakesa]

Wow, thanks for all the responses!

@4570Man @oosik @Hay Dude Thanks! It appears the trailer doesn't have the hydraulic break assist feature but that is an option I can get on the next one. I will look and see if air breaks are possible as well.

@DieselBound thanks for added break information. I've never heard of surge breaks but do know the trailer has optional hydraulic break assists. It just appears the one I got might not have that option installed. It doesn't have a PTO shaft or added hydraulic cable aside from those to control the grapple.

@tradosaurus Great point about underbody protection! I've added skid plates on my off road vehicles and those saved me from some damages. I never considered it for a tractor but it makes sense.

@LD1 You are correct. I apologize for the lack of clarity on what I referenced as hills. The contour of the property is moderately steep to steep going from 600ft above sea level to 550ft on one side and from 550ft to 700ft (some 15% slopes) on the other side, essentially in the middle of 3 mountains. 5.6 acres of the parcel is greater than 25% steep slope. I don't plan on taking the tractor close to that 25% slope - and have service trails I am rebuilding to allow some access. I am worried about the tractor sitting on the 8% or 10% slopes while I load. My off road vehicles don't have much of a problem.

I am considering just a bare tractor since I don't have a need for the loader "just now". I would get the loader if it would improve weight or reduce pushing the tractor as you mentioned.

@MossRoad Thanks for the lookup link, Mahindra didn't provide that to me when I called and it seemed as if they really just didn't want to help. Their advice was "contact a dealer"...

@ddbackhoe I missed that, thank you! It looks like I need a much bigger machine.

@ptsg Thanks! I was worried about getting something too small... I wouldn't want to attempt pulling a log trailer with a lawn mower. Those photos were awesome.

@dodge man My current objective is clean up, pulling felled trees out of the forest and salvaging whatever they can be used for. The property hasn't been maintained in atleast 7 years. I would likely do more work with the tractor but primarily the need would be in towing out the trailer. The trailer has a winch to skid up logs next to the trailer and a loader to lift them.

@fruitcakesa Thanks! I think getting a grapple fork loader would be ideal, I just hadn't considered it as an primary need. It appears I need to consider that option. I like the M6040. Do you haul on rough terrain?

I have nothing but rough, steep, hilly wet terrain on my Vermont hillside.
I have learned the limits of my tractor and operate it accordingly when in these conditions,
Low and slow is usually the best course most of the time.

 

[Bavarian]

Whatever you decide to buy, be careful when using winches on tractors with a park position on the gear leaver. It is a mechanical stopper in the transmission that can and does break if the pulling forces are too high.
By the way, there are hydro tractors available up to 500 hp. They might be outside your budget.

 

[Egon]

Kinda getting carried away here?

 

[Ortimber]

I can’t stress enough how much better a dozer is over a tractor for forestry work. Even in the best working conditions, sticks, stumps, rocks, limbs, etc are hard on tractors. I live on and selectively cut timber on my property. My tractors see very limited use in forested areas. The safety factor on a dozer has to be worth something as well.

 

[Farmer495]

Many small forestry operators here use a small fwa tractor and grapple wagon. My opinion is that are NOT an issue in the woods, at least in the woods I cut out of, normally you are going very slow and simply pushing the clutch in stops you in the woods. Most grapple trailers here are not used in highway haulage situations of any distance, that's the job for the truck hauling.

You don't have to load it full either....

The guys in harder going usually used an old truck frame for the grapple and bunks and set up PTO shaft to drive the truck rear axle, 4x4 tractor and powered trailer pretty handy.

 

[bkibler]

I regularly use my L5740 - with chained and loaded tires - to pull a 10K dump trailer up and down logging roads. The chains make a huge difference: I wouldn't think of going in the woods without a full set of logging chains. Heck, in a pinch, it can pull 80k lbs uphill, through a foot of fresh snow

 

[FERLING]

Is there a way to tell if the tractor I am considering would have enough towing capacity?

Three Point Hitch tractors are designed to PULL. I speculate that almost all 4-WD compact tractors with R1/ag tires filled with liquid can pull a trailer at least 3 X their bare tractor weight specification.

Consider (hard) foam filled tires if you will be in the woods 200 engine hours per year or more. Punctures and rolling tires off the rims are real possibilities in woods work. I have experienced both misfortunes.

I do a lot of woods work in terms of property maintenance involving transportation of fallen mature Oaks and Pines to a community burn pile. I pull timber with chains. I have no experience with specialized logging equipment nor logging.

Have you researched log skidding winches, which I think would be almost mandatory for your applications?

VIDEO:

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=tractor+skidding+winch+attachment

Mahindra 4530 Dimensions​

2005 - 2020 Model year 2005-20082010-2020 30 Series Utility tractor

Dimensions Length:134 inches
340 cm
Width: 72.5 inches
184 cm
Weight: 5567 lbs
2525 kg



Are there alternative vehicles (tractors) that I should consider - eg, a skid loader vs compact?

A skid loader or compact track loader are designed to push and lift, not pull. Both variants are likely to be much more costly than a tractor of equivalent towing capacity. Tracked equipment is very stable and has low ground pressure but tracks are maintenance intensive relative to wheels.

VIDEO:

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=tractor+vs+skid+steer

Valtra (brand) tractors from Finland and Brazil are used as much in forestry work as ag work. Note the bulbous tires, probably radials, for float in bogs. Florida uses some Valtra tractors for highway right-of-way mowing.

VIDEOS: valtra forestry tractors

Own a 45M attached to Workmaster 50 New Holland. This is the way to go for pulling logs. Expensive but you can put tractor in safe place, pull cable to log and bring log to tractor. Keeps tractor out of woods and tires off of hidden stumps. Works really great pulling logs up hills instead of trying to get tractor down hill to log and then pulling up hill to top.

 

[mk2133]

My father in law DIED using a tractor for logging. He was 56. He would grab a log with the 3pt hitch and pull it thru the woods to de-limb it. His son watched the whole thing happen in a flash. Tractor flipped over on him when the tree must have got snagged on something. I don't believe the inventors of the tractor had logging in mind when they put it together. Right tools for the right job?

 

[tradosaurus]

My father in law DIED using a tractor for logging. He was 56. He would grab a log with the 3pt hitch and pull it thru the woods to de-limb it. His son watched the whole thing happen in a flash. Tractor flipped over on him when the tree must have got snagged on something. I don't believe the inventors of the tractor had logging in mind when they put it together. Right tools for the right job?

So I assume he didn't have the ROPs up?