Tractors and wood! Show your pics

   / Tractors and wood! Show your pics #19,381  
gg: do you skid the hitch back to the landing hanging directly from from cable or do you hook it to fixed points on the winch?

I should have added that I also have a smaller JP290 winch on my 30 hp tractor. It does not have a lower pulley. On that one I do transfer the chokers off the cable and onto the slotted bar. The manual on this one says to do that as it is a safety issue skidding from the top pulley.

That is how I learned that if you chain the log up without enough slack trying to get it higher off the ground you might not be able to unhook it at the landing if things shift during the skid or the terrain changes or you might canterlever the log somewhere along the skid and bend the slotted bar or the bottom edge of the dozer blade. In my case both are bent.

gg
 
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   / Tractors and wood! Show your pics #19,382  
I should have added that I also have a smaller JP290 winch on my 30 hp tractor. It does not have a lower pulley. On that one I do transfer the chokers off the cable and onto the slotted bar. The manual on this one says to do that as it is a safety issue skidding from the top pulley.

That is how I learned that if you chain the log up without enough slack trying to get it higher off the ground you might not be able to unhook it at the landing if things shift during the skid or the terrain changes or you might canterlever the log somewhere along the skid and bend the slotted bar or the bottom edge of the dozer blade. In my case both are bent.

gg

I've experienced the same thing on my Uniforest 35E winch (similar capacity to a Farmi 351). I had to lift up high and throw a pole unde the ends of the logs, then lower back down in order to get enough slack to unhook the logs.

I typically just winch the logs trailside, then deal with them there (either cut to firewood rounds or load long logs on my forwarding trailer). However long logs were an issue before I got the forwarding trailer: I bent one of the slots once, and cantilevered an entire log off the ground when going over humps several times. I did not like skidding from the cable, since if things did not get wrapped tightly enough on the spool, it would pull the cable down into the lower wraps, making it tough to unwind again, and in bad cases, kinking the cable. (I try to make sure I'm always winding tightly, but things don't always work out the way I plan.)
 
   / Tractors and wood! Show your pics #19,383  
I've experienced the same thing on my Uniforest 35E winch (similar capacity to a Farmi 351). I had to lift up high and throw a pole unde the ends of the logs, then lower back down in order to get enough slack to unhook the logs.

I typically just winch the logs trailside, then deal with them there (either cut to firewood rounds or load long logs on my forwarding trailer). However long logs were an issue before I got the forwarding trailer: I bent one of the slots once, and cantilevered an entire log off the ground when going over humps several times. I did not like skidding from the cable, since if things did not get wrapped tightly enough on the spool, it would pull the cable down into the lower wraps, making it tough to unwind again, and in bad cases, kinking the cable. (I try to make sure I'm always winding tightly, but things don't always work out the way I plan.)
I know that feeling; I put a new cable on the winch after kinking the old one badly and had to hammer and lever it free.
First hitch with the new cable and I slightly kinked it. :(
 
   / Tractors and wood! Show your pics #19,384  
I did not like skidding from the cable, since if things did not get wrapped tightly enough on the spool, it would pull the cable down into the lower wraps, making it tough to unwind again, and in bad cases, kinking the cable. (I try to make sure I'm always winding tightly, but things don't always work out the way I plan.)

I don't have that problem. Maybe it is because with the very high top pulley on my Farmi there is more distance between the top pulley and the drum allowing the cable to wind in full even layers better instead of bunching up on one one end of the drum and then collapsing into loose coils which I have seen on some winches. The other thing I do is when I get to the landing with the hitch on the cable I release the break and let the hitch drop. I engage the pto and give a quick pull on the rope from the seat before I lower the winch and then pull forward 10 feet or so before lowering the winch. That way I have a long drop to the ground to release any cable bind that might have occurred at the point where the cable leaves the drum during the skid and the extra ten feet is insurance plus gives me room to work unhooking the hitch. And room to clear the chokers from the hitch when pulling the cable back in.

I think of cables as a maintenance item. They live a life of abuse.

gg
 
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   / Tractors and wood! Show your pics #19,385  
When my Uniforest was nearly new I kinked the cable in the middle so badly that I had to go home and get my torches to cut it. I didn't realize how quickly I had gotten used to having 230 feet on.
 
   / Tractors and wood! Show your pics #19,386  
Just I quick question why do you guys use choker chains instead of cable chokers?
 
   / Tractors and wood! Show your pics #19,387  
Just I quick question why do you guys use choker chains instead of cable chokers?
I prefer chains because they are so much easier to haul/store, and I can use them for other uses too.

It didn't hurt that my winch came with (3) choker chains for FREE either... lol

I do have some cables, but for the small amount of logging I do, I don't take them to the woods.

SR
 
   / Tractors and wood! Show your pics #19,388  
Just I quick question why do you guys use choker chains instead of cable chokers?

I prefer chains because they are so much easier to haul/store, and I can use them for other uses too.

It didn't hurt that my winch came with (3) choker chains for FREE either... lol

I do have some cables, but for the small amount of logging I do, I don't take them to the woods.

SR
I agree with Rob. I just find them easier to deal with. I've tired cable chokers and didn't really like them - ended up giving them away.

I also like the fact that with the chain, I can choose exactly how far from the mainline the logs are attached. On a straight pull, this is generally not a consideration, but when I'm using a self-releasing snatch block, the better control over when the block releases is appreciated. Since I'm generally working in crowded conditions and a straight pull isn;t always possible, I use the self releasing snatch block often.
 
   / Tractors and wood! Show your pics #19,389  
SR and JohnMc gave some of the reasons. Chains seem to be more common with the 3pth winch and take up less space when not in use. The newer Uniforest winches even have a nice little storage compartment for them. I am cutting mostly smaller trees even by east coast standards, which tend to slide out of cables even more than from chains.
 
   / Tractors and wood! Show your pics #19,390  
When my Uniforest was nearly new I kinked the cable in the middle so badly that I had to go home and get my torches to cut it. I didn't realize how quickly I had gotten used to having 230 feet on.
I badly kinked my first winch cable when something went wrong on my self releasing snatch block and the cable wedged between the pulley and the back plate. It made a nasty kink so bad that it was tough to get a nice wind on the spool and it would trip the release on the snatch block every time it passed (I've since modified the back plate to prevent that from happening again.) I had thought to just cut it out, but it was almost exactly in the middle of the 230' length. I don't often need more than 125' or so, but when you need more, you really need it. That cable got cut up and part of it made into a 100' extension (which has been used to pull a few vehicles out of the mud). The other part is now hlding up a rope swing over a stream on the obstacle course in our woods.

My replacement cable has a few slight waves in it here and there from getting pulled down into the windings on the spool, but they aren't bad, and seem to be getting better with use.

I do like that swaged cable a lot on the winch: easier handling and doesn't pick up as much dirt and debris as a standard cable. However, replacing 230' of that is not cheap.
 
 
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