Tractors and wood! Show your pics

[VroomVroom]

Seemed like he just pulled the release on the brake only before he wanted to pull out some cable by hand. Otherwise the brake snaps back on when pulling the winch rope. It confused me earlier as why would the brake be on when your trying to winch in. I never sized it up much I was rushed to just set it up. The pto issue was bothering me too. I did winch a small birch top and it worked good. The other thing I forgot was to Oder few choker chains! I’m gonna have to make some up with an eyelet at the ends I guess. Can’t find those red open hooks on them around here as people don’t really use them here.

 

[VroomVroom]

I assumed a few choker chains would of come with it.

 

[Jstpssng]

I assumed a few choker chains would of come with it.

No, you pay extra for them. As you say though, you can make them up. My neighbor just uses chain he had around, and normal slip hooks.

 

[Gordon Gould]

I make mine. I use 5/16" Grade 70 chain and 5/16" choker hooks. I can get them at a local store or on line at Labonville.

Norse - Choker Hook Only - Pin Type G80 5/16" [200693], [OLD_6228I]

www.labonville.com

I also put a rod on the other end for sticking it under the log when it is tight to the ground.

gg

 

[VroomVroom]

I make mine. I use 5/16" Grade 70 chain and 5/16" choker hooks. I can get them at a local store or on line at Labonville.

Norse - Choker Hook Only - Pin Type G80 5/16" [200693], [OLD_6228I]

www.labonville.com

I also put a rod on the other end for sticking it under the log when it is tight to the ground.

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gg

How long you make them. I’d make mostly shorter lengths . Most trees your cutting for firewood are only 12” in diameter. And many smaller.

 

[Jstpssng]

Most of mine are 6 feet. I had one which was only 5, but it was too short. You want a bit of a tail after the chain's around the tree, to make it easier to hook up to the cable.

 

[Sawyer Rob]

Three choker chains came with my Wallenstein, I don't know if Wallenstein still sends them with their winches or not.

SR

 

[John_Mc]

How long you make them. I’d make mostly shorter lengths . Most trees your cutting for firewood are only 12” in diameter. And many smaller.

The chokers I bought ready-made are all about 6 feet. (If you want an exactl length, I can go out and measure one.) I do have one longer one I made up for larger logs.

As Jstpssng mentions, you do want some tail on the end. Not only is it easier to hook up, it's also handy when using a self releasing snatch block. The point where the choker attaches to the winch cable is what releases the snatch block. Sometimes you want it to release just a bit before the logs get all the way to the snatch block. You can always make the tail shorter if you want to delay the release simply by pulling more of the chain through the keyhole on the slider on the winch cable. But having that extra couple of feet comes in handy on some pulls (for instance, if my anchor for the snatch block is buried back in among some saplings or other obstacles, I want it to release BEFORE I pull the log all the way up to the anchor point.)

 

[John_Mc]

Well, I finally got a winch. 35m. But I must say the manual leaves a lot to be desired. I’m not sure how to work the brake when winching. If I pull on the brake cord, it sticks open allowing me to freespool. As soon as I engage the winch drum, the brake closes. It’s made that way. But just wonder what the brake is doing while I’m pulling.

Yes, the manual stinks. Mine reads as though it was originally written in Croation, the translated to Chinese by a non-native speaker, then translated into English by someone fluent in Swahili. I had hoped they would have improved it when they updated the model from the 35E to the 35M, but apparently not.

The brake mechanism on your 35M is a little different than on my older 35E. (Yours is an improvement: more reliable on the engage and release without as much need to tweak/fiddle and keep lubricated as mine is).

As you noticed: you can latch the brake off by pulling on the rope to release the brake, allowing you to freespool the cable out. A little "blip" on the winching rope undoes that latch and sets the brake. When winching, if you pull the winching rope far enough, it holds the brake off, but only for as long as you are pulling on the winching rope. It does not latch the brake open. This is so that as soon as you let go of the rope, the brake will be activated, holding the load in place.

Imagine winching a log up a hill. You see a problem, so let go of the winch rope to stop. If the brake did not automatically set upon winch release, the log would be rumpling back down the hill until you grabbed the brake line and set the brake. If that prblem you saw was a kid or your dog sniffing around the action, that delay could be a big problem. So the brake acts automatically. If you need slack, you can make that happen at your leisure.

When I first got my winch (14 years ago, if I recall correctly) something was misadjusted - or perhaps I screwed it up trying to adjust something. Until I figured it out, my brake was not releasing when winching, so I had to pull both ropes in order to winch. I was a pain in the butt to handle that way.

 

[Gordon Gould]

I use 6'8" of chain and have a couple with 8' of chain. One of my 6'8" chokers has a grab hook rather than a piece of rod on the end, that way I can make it as long as I want by hooking it to another choker or piece of chain. For small trees I put two or even three in one choker using figure 8 wraps like this. That way I don't need so many sliders to pull a lot of small trees.

gg