Wallenstein BX62 Comments

nopost · Aug 19, 2012

Stonehaller: Running out of power is one of the reasons I would like to have a hydraulic feed. Seems like I could dial back the speed for the big stuff. I would rather have mulch than firewood. Mix it with glass clippings and you get some quick compost if you keep it stirred up.

I'm going to have to get a magnetic base for the dial indicator I have. I miss a lot not having that option. I'm wondering how much variance there is in the flywheel. Broken bandsaw blade, now why didn't I think of that? I wondered why I was saving them. Can't wait to run in and tell the wife I found a use. Of course, I do that nearly every time so she is underwhelmed.

Originally I tried to adjust the farthest blade to 1/32, but the closest hit the anvil blade. So I tried adjusting out a little and saw little improvement in feed rate. Then I tried making shims out of two different thicknesses of sheet metal. It helped, but I need more sizes. I'll probably look for a shim pack or better yet, find out why there is so much variance and go from there. I think when all the blades are at 1/32 it will feed very well. As I stated in my previous post, the 62 feeds and chips small green limbs well. Even the 12" Vemeer would overload sometimes and have to be emergency stopped; the guy (in my opinion) had the feed rate set too high. Everything over 8" was kept for firewood and it was green wood.

If it isn't raining tomorrow I am going to take the anvil blade off and check it. And I'm going to call EMB. And I'm going shopping for a base for the dial indicator. And shims. There's my list and I'm sticking to it. Unless it rains, I'm made of sugar.

Stonehaller · Aug 19, 2012

I have never taken the blades out (I am impressed with the blade life) so I do not know if there is much slop in the holes that would allow you to individually adjust each blade. When I first put the indicator on, I checked the runout of the face of the flywheel just above the blades and it was 0.050. Made me wonder how I would get the blade gap at 0.031 for all four blades. When I saw the blades where within 0.010 I figured either they qualify the blade mounting surface or there is enough gap in the bolt holes for some adjustment. With yours being so far out makes you wonder if the previous owner somehow bent the flywheel.

If you do not have mag base, do you have something that allows you to mechanically clamp the indicator?

The other thing to keep in mind is that EMB does state that you need 60-70 HP for full capacity. We may be just expecting too much.

nopost · Aug 20, 2012

Stonehaller: I'll use the info you gave me when I check mine. I ordered a new dial indicator w/ mag base; they are cheap enough now that I got a set. I've seen need for a mag base since I got the dial indicator. Thank you for pointing out using one. Since I only had the indicator, I didn't think about it. That will tell me if the flywheel is bent though I saw no wobble (Don't tell anybody, but I opened it up and turned it on; couldn't see any wobble.)

I agree 35hp pto is on the low end; it isn't enough power imo. 50hp pto seems like a good minimum for 6". That's one of the things I wanted potential buyers to note. When I read old posts here, I saw some claim the heavy flywheel keeps the momentum; it doesn't. One person said he owned a 29hp tractor and asked how well a 62 would work. I think he was misinformed by people who gave an opinion (though they may not had actual experience) saying the flywheel would do the work for the underpowered tractor. It is true for small limbs, but I wanted people to realize they needed a larger tractor if they were going to try full capacity like I have. I can do 3" very easily when it is green. Larger and drier both progressively need more power.

I also read in old posts that it would help to have all the blades at 1/32. That appears correct; having uniform blade gap should allow each blade to chip a little rather than one whacking, kicking the wood out a little and then whacking again when the wood slides back down. I have seen some chips that are one inch thick. Part of this has to do with lack of hp to keep momentum but I may have loose bearings (I can't 'feel' any freeplay). After I get the dial indicator, I'll check and then I'll call EMB to see what they suggest.

There is no slop in the bolt holes in my 62. I tried to slide the blades forward or back and they don't move. I agree the blades seem to stay sharp; I turned them over to see how much better it would do with factory sharp edges and there is a noticeable improvement at first. Since the wood had been on the ground for three months, some wood had dirt on it and I'm sure that dulled the new edges.

I really like having the chipper and look forward to grinding small green stuff. The blue monster gobbles it up. But for larger stuff I wish I had hydraulic feed to slow the feed rate.

nopost · Aug 20, 2012

I've almost finished cleaning up what the tree climber cut for me. For those who are considering getting a chipper, here's what I've seen regarding how the BX62 does various wood. That which is noted as three month old had been healthy and in full leaf. It was cut by a man who climbed and topped the trees first because they were near the house. I had other work to do when he showed up and so the wood laid on the ground for about three months during which time we had a drought. Take note I bought this BX62 used; see the other topics discussed above because it all plays a part.

Today I chipped an Eastern White Pine which began dying prob three years ago. It ground and fed very well. I was able to split the top of the tree and grind it. That was the only thing that lugged the 31hp pto. I had to force the large end into the 6x10 opening (because it apparently was 6") so it lugged the tractor; by the time the trunk was at the smaller end (4") the flywheel was speeding back up. 3~4" limbs fed smoothly from big end to small end without breaking up.

I chipped limbs of an 80' Southern Yellow Pine (SYP). It had been cut due to it being alone/too near the house. (This was one of the 3 month old trees.) 5~6" limbs considerably lugged the tractor and sometimes killed it or broke shear bolts. It fed way too fast and caused enough vibration to break a lot of small limbs as it fed. They fell in front of the chute creating a nuisance/hazard. The tree had a lot of crooked limbs and 90 degree offshoots so I often I had to force feed. My 41bhp tractor w/ 35hp pto did not have enough power for the large stuff. Probably due to dried sap, this stuff was too hard to split by hand which prob explains why the 5~6" was so hard to chip. Surely this SYP would have chipped better if it had been chipped as soon as it was dropped.

I also chipped a SYP that I had done some excavation near - it died early last year. It (of course) chipped better than the SYP that had been alive. 5~6" was still too much for the 35hp pto. It fed too fast and vibration caused many twigs to break off the limbs. It was rotten enough that it broke up when we dropped it so it seems like the 5~6 should have chipped easier.

I chipped some 'pin oak' (that's what they call it here. I checked in a photo book of trees and it had a different name. It has narrow 3~4" leaves w/ no lobes). It was easier to chip than sweet gum. (It had been cut three months ago.) 4" stuff slowed the tractor, but not appreciably. I ran some 5~6 because it seemed to chip fair. I saved most of the large stuff. I had to force most of the twiggy limbs since they are so crooked. I've chipped these trees before with a 12" hydraulic feed Vemeer as soon as they were dropped and they may not have chipped any easier (of course we sent larger limbs into it).

The limbs from two sweet gum trees were the hardest to chip. (They were three month old.) They had very crooked limbs and many had to be forced into the chute due to stiffness and crooks. For these and the live SYP I kept a limb as a push stick because so much had to be forced in. Both these and the live SYP should have been chipped when they were green. Many of the twigs would break due to vibration and fall in front of the chute. 5~6" limbs were too large and bogged the tractor, killed it or broke shear bolts. Large limbs caused a lot of vibration.

Dead ornamental maples caused vibration and therefore dropped a lot of twigs. I threw 4~5" trunks aside because even 3~4" was hard to chip. Limbs of maples that were beginning to die fed perfectly (these still had green leaves). Did not try to chip the trunks. All these maples died because they were planted with burlap still on (root bound) and too high (1/2 the root ball out of the ground).

Dead and fallen willows often break up because they are weak and rotten, but the 62 will grind everything you can get through the opening. Generally deadwood pin oak chips well but breaks up and falls in front of the chute.

If you are considering getting a chipper, I hope this helps you make a better choice. As stated in the beginning of this thread, I've used a 12" Vemeer hydraulic feed chipper. It is very common and considered a small professional unit. I really considered buying a used one, but what I might buy costs $7000 and up and to me that would warrant doing this work for pay. I paid $2600 for this BX62 and got an extra set of knives. When I look for used stuff, it is never available. So when I found this one advertized, I committed to buy it based on a photo. When I got there it looked more worn than many photos of used ones that I've seen (and may have some abuse issues). I wouldn't have bought it for 2600 had I not asked the guy to hold it for me. From my experience with the variety of wood I chipped recently, I wish I had bought a hydraulic feed BX62. The quality and simplicity of these chippers is exceptional. But if you can afford it, you may want to get one with hydraulic feed so you can slow the feed rate for larger limbs. Part of that decision depends on how much you will be using it. For what I just did, I would like to have had hydraulic, but for infrequent cleanup of deadwood, that would not matter.