Sawyer Rob
Super Member
Just use a bungy cord to hold the remote valve lever open...
SR
SR
Oops - "Self-releasing", not self-relaxing. I'm guessing I dictated that one. For some reason, it won;t let me edit the post, even though it just went up yesterday.
Well, for that matter, I can't justify a $3000 logging winch on my tractor.
My biggest use of a self-releasing snatch block isn't to "pull trees sideways" at most 4' (for example to get it round a stump. It's when I need to pull a tree around a dogleg on it's path out of the forest. The areas in which I work are dense enough that I can't always get a straight-line pull. With a self-releasing snatch block, I don't have to clear a straight path to every tree, and I don't have to be constantly walking back and forth to release a block or slider. I have 230' of cable on my winch. Often when thinning in an area, I'll set the tractor and the cable stretches out 50-100 feet to the area where I'm thinning. it then takes a turn at the block , going another 50-100 feet in a variety of directions to reach the trees I'm pulling out of that area. It also makes it easier to protect nice sawlogs or veneer-quality logs which I am not ready to harvest when I'm pulling out firewood. It saves me a lot of time, increasing productivity and minimizing impact on the residual stand.
I have been known to take a bend around an old stump, but that requires going back to flip the cable off the stump once I've pulled the log to it. I prefer not to use sliders to redirect, unless it's a very small angle, since taking a significant bend around a slider is hard on the cable.
I'm not saying a snatch block is for everyone. We all have our own trade-offs for time, efficiency, and cost, and our own preferred ways of working.
If you are handy with metal-working, this old article about snatchblock winching tips includes information about making your own self-releasing snatch block. I almost made one myself, but when I machinist on another forum started selling nice ones for $180, I bought one of those for my second block instead. (He since has stopped selling them.)
I think your the only one who noticed that, now you pointed it out it sticks out like a sore thumb, I do a lot of self-relaxing, I'm doing that right now..... IMO I'm quite sure in 20 years at only 5 cord/year one could easily justify $4000.00 on a pto winch, not to mention it save's the cost of doing things the hard way which sometimes is the wrong way which could end up hurting one's back....... I'd rather save myself $300.00 and tell the dog to get the heck out of the way so I wont hit his leg......Where's the article you mention, sounds interesting and self-relaxing?