Chipper Wallenstein Chipper

[RPK]

I am looking at a BX960 6" Wallenstein manual feed chipper. I don't plan on chipping to much except maybe pine that wood be be 6". I burn everything else. I thought the 6" instead of 4" wood be better to feed branches into. I am wondering if my L3130 will be enough power for this chipper? Does anybody out there have one and if so, is it a lot of work to feed? I am debating wether to pay big bucks and get a hydraulic feed or not. Thanks for any help that anyone may have.

RPK

 

[mcruc]

Don't buy a manual feed.

I started with a 4-5" manual feed small trailer mount with
a 16hp engine. The vibration on your hands/arms is incredible.
I'd use it for twenty minutes and my hand and arm would be
numb. My wife watched one time for about 10 minutes and
insisted I get rid of it and buy a hydraulic feed. With only
8 hours on it, I sold it for a $1000 loss (1/3) and bought
a 25hp 7" Gravely hydraulic feed. Still a trailer mount but that was
before I had a tractor. Yes, the hydros are 2-3x the price but
your arm is worth something over the next few years. Research
high-vibration induced medical effects like whitefinger disease.

A 6" is really only good to about 4" without stopping/starting the
feed to keep the engine from bogging/stalling.

I'd debated last year whether to sell the Gravely and
replace it with a PTO hydro feed (likely Wallenstein) to eliminate
yet another engine but decided I'd about even out $$ wise.
Other reason is that chippers (maybe humans?) run for 45 minutes
to an hour straight during chipping sessions and over the long haul, I'd
rather replace a 25hp Kohler than my tractor's diesel.

If I had to start from scratch, I'd buy the Wallenstein. I think
it may come with only one feed roller but could be increased to
two? If so, get two. I started with one and two (upper/lower
vs. just an upper) eliminate most cases of the branch slipping.
We run all hardwood oak so softwoods may be a different story.

I'm like you, anything over 3-4" (depending on my mood)
goes for firewood. Still leaves a lot of branches. You'll
find hydraulic feed speeds up things doubly. First, it can
stick 'er in with more force than you can so that part is
quicker, but most importantly, you start a feed and then
walk to the pile to struggle to ready the next candidate
while the previous is being ingested. That part is HUGE!
Pulling the darn sticks out takes the most time and certainly
is the most frustrating part. They fight back!

When the Gravely dealer dropped ours off as a demo in 1998
I had a test pile of branches that would have taken me an
hour with the manual feed. Granted, the machines weren't
the same capacity but the 7" took about 9 minutes even
when it was still equipped with a single infeed roller.

Sorry for the long post, just a BTDT response to save you
the trouble.

My $0.03 -- Mark

 

[RPK]

Mark,

Thanks for all of that valuable experience. I didn't think about vibration in the system. I am going to get prices from the local dealers on hydraulic feed units.

RPK

 

[ChuckinNH]

There is a video at the Wallenstein EmB site showing the BX62 in use. There is also a thread in the Kubota section (I think) by a guy that has one on a Kubota B3030, and that seems to be working for him. I've heard that if the knives are kept sharp, they self feed quite well, and the video supports that. Hope this helps some. http://www.embmfg.com/images/videos/bx6224_blue.html

 

[RAS323]

I have a BX62 on my Mahindra 3510 and the big stuff will bog it down depending how long it is. Don't waste your money on a hydraulic feed-it doesn't need one. All I have to do is get the branch to the chipper and it sucks it through (it's self feeding). Do a search there's been quite a bit of threads about these chippers. Best of Luck!!

 

[mcruc]

I suspect how well a gravity feed works depends on what you're
putting in there. The video clearly shows good success with that
appears to be softwood.

Can tell you though that oak didn't take well to gravity feed though
I didn't have a Wallenstein. The branches bounce up and down
as they contact the knives. They do lose a little each trip
however

(editing to add one thing I forgot) hydraulic feed allows you to meter
the input speed to prevent engine bogging.

 

[gf5205]

I have a BX62 with the hydraulic feed. I think the hydraulic feed is a safety feature. The In - Off - Out switch for the hydraulic motors that turn the jaws is a bar that runs around both sides and over the top of the hopper. Pull and it feeds. Middle position is off. Push and it reverses. If a branch is pulling you into the hopper you can turn it off or reverse it with one hand. In fact, you will probably turn it off by bracing yourself before you think of turning it off.
It added $3k to the cost. Even my wife thinks I'm worth it, and I know she is.

Also I have heard that the manual feeds pull too fast when the blades are sharp, and when they are dull you have to push. If it feeds too fast you're going to get hit by branches. If it feeds to slowly you're going to work too hard.

By the way, I only have about 4 hours on the chipper so take my advice for what it's worth.
Greg

 

[JRobyn]

I have used (rented) smaller manual feed units and hated them. Didn't self feed worth a crap. Very frustrating, extreme hand/arm vibration, and lots of work to force feed them. But I'll acknowledge that the blades were probably in poor condition.

Bought a used commercial-grade Morbark PTO 6" unit with single hydraulic feed roller. Absolutely LOVE it, as have all others who have used it. Feed will pull in most branches so you don't need to trim at every crotch, so it's way less effort. Once in a while with very stiff branches that branch a lot at right angles (cedar mostly), we have to back one out (simply reverse the feed roller) and trim it.

Hydraulic feed is worth the substantial extra cost to me.

 

[wkpoor]

I have a unit that is almost an exact copy of the Wallenstein but I don't know who the Mfg is as its french candian built. However its manual feed and WOW! All you need to do is throw the branch in and in a second its gone. No hand pushing at all. Incredible feed rate. Can't see needing a power feed except to maybe slow it down a little. Take branches of all types really well.

 

[dbk123]

I have a BX62 manual feed chipper on my 27 HP (at the PTO) Kubota. I've been very happy with it. The manual feed does require looking behind you to make sure you don't get hit in the back of the head, but once you get used to it it's not a big deal. I chip a lot of maple and some pine and have not had any problems with vibrations. I do make it a point to push larger pieces and let go of them before they reach the blades.

I can chip 4" maple and 5" pine with my tractor.

Let me know if you have any more questions.

dbk123

 

[millpond]

dbk123 what what rpm's do you like running at with bx 62. I was running at 2200 and had no trouble with New Holland tc 55 da. Just kinda getting a feel if I can maybe back it down a bit.

 

[kurtfromct]

i was wondering if you have to order off line or if there are dealers that carry Wallenstein chippers? i looked around on Wallenstein's website but there is no dealer locator. i live in CT and was curious if there are any dealer nearby or atleast in a neighboring state.

 

[vicar]

Kurt,

Kahn's in Franklin CT (NE part of state) handles them, or did a few months ago.

John

 

[dbk123]

millpond,

I typically run the tractor at rated 540 rpm PTO speed. For small brush I could certainly slow down, but it seems like I always chip a few large limbs in every batch.

-dbk123

 

[landman]

Im wondering if anyone has heard of Kemp chippers, they are out of business now, but parts are still available. Its a 4 inch chipper, 2 blades, heavy flywheel, has different screens for the bottom discharge, it hammers/anvils out of the bottom, no chute. They are asking $800. I think its too much, but ?? Dr has one similar

 

[Tororider]

RPK,
I would say don't waste your money on a hydraulic feed. The manual feed self feeds very well. I have the bx62 on my JD 4310, 28hp at the pto, and it has worked great. I see no reason why you would have a problem running that on your machine and wouldn't spend the extra money on the hydro feed. Good luck, let us know what you decide.

 

[Rara Avis]

i was wondering if you have to order off line or if there are dealers that carry Wallenstein chippers? i looked around on Wallenstein's website but there is no dealer locator. i live in CT and was curious if there are any dealer nearby or atleast in a neighboring state.

These guys are a great operation to order from...
Contact Marlin or Karen

Phone: (814) 349-4484

mail@woodwardcrossings.com

Address:
Woodward Crossings
178 Jackson Hill Rd.
Aaronsburg PA, 16820


Wallenstein BX62 Wood Chipper

They delivered mine via FedEX...relatively cheap delivery fee...

 

[Big Daddy]

I, too, own the BX62 and have used it for over a year. I agree with all the other posters that say the hydraulic feed is a waste of money. This unit will pull a 5 inch limb 10 feet in length through in 6-7 seconds. I bought mine from a local dealer in Nichols, NY.

George

 

[Wesdor]

I own the BX42 (handles 4"). We used it Friday evening to chip some hickory, apple, and cherry. It self feeds really well.

I purchased mine from Iowa Farm Equipment in Moscow, IA. They do internet sales and will drop ship anywhere.

When I purchased my unit, I was stuck on the idea of a hydraulic feed and they talked me out of it. Their offer was for me to take the unit without hydraulic and try it. If after using it I really thought I needed the hydraulic they would sell it to me as if I had purchased it all at once.

Once I tried it I knew they were right. Besides, when have you ever heard of a dealer talking someone out of purchasing a big ticket item like that? To me it said a lot about the honesty of the people at Iowa Farm Equipment.

BTW - since then I've gone back and purchased other items and found them to be most reliable.

Bottom line - try a chipper without self feed and see if it fits your needs.

Good luck

 

[dooger54]

dbk123 - I'm surprised you are able to run the BX62 on your tractor. My conversations with both the people at Woodward Crossings and Wallenstein told me that the 62 requires a minimum of 50hp to run effectively. I have a New Holland TC35 and was told I need to stick with the BX42.

Anyone else have comments on this?