Logic timber trailer

Bothy_Loon · October 27, 2011, 01:14:59 PM

Another load of Larch into the mill on the small Logic timber trailer.

Coon · October 27, 2011, 10:33:47 PM

Looks good, but looks like you need a hydraulic log loader though judging by the size of your logs. ;D

SwampDonkey · October 28, 2011, 05:52:54 AM

That's a similar setup I will be looking at in 10 years. Small trailer and tracked ATV for winter. But the trailer will have a winch assisted grapple arm.

thecfarm · October 28, 2011, 06:47:59 AM

I like that. I'm real fussy with my land. I bet that hardly leaves a mark. How are you getting the logs on and off the trailer? Does the ATV handle that up and down hills good,rough spots,or you you have any?

mad murdock · October 28, 2011, 02:05:31 PM

Nice looking load. How much weight would you venture to guess you are towing? How is the braking? Does the trailer have surge hydraulic brakes on it? I would be scared to go too much downgrade without some serious brakes on a load that was heavier than I was. Not much protection if things get out of hand.

Bothy_Loon · October 28, 2011, 03:00:33 PM

Quote from: mad murdock on October 28, 2011, 02:05:31 PM
Nice looking load. How much weight would you venture to guess you are towing? How is the braking? Does the trailer have surge hydraulic brakes on it? I would be scared to go too much downgrade without some serious brakes on a load that was heavier than I was. Not much protection if things get out of hand.

I would think that some loads get up to about threequarters of a ton, though I prefer to load lighter & make sure I get out of the wood.
No brakes on the trailer, which is a bit of a pain as I have one long downhill section (about 3hundred yards) on a grass slope. My two wheeled drive tractor has set off more than once down it. Last time I gathered enough speed to blow my hat off. :D
That is one reason I decided to go down the quad bike route for extraction. That & the fact I want very little ground damage.
Since then I have taken the front board off the trailer so that I can get 12ft logs on to the trailer. You have to becareful with them though,if you turn too quickly coming down the hill, it can lift the back of the quad & jack knife the thing. I have learned to chose as easy a route oa possible though. ;D
I estimate I have taken something like 120 ton off the hill with, so far, no serious mishaps.
The tractor was just too risky coming down off that hill!
As to loading. I just roll the logs up to skids into the trailer as Logic in their wisdom did not make a trailer with removable pins.
If you look closely, you will see I have a 4x2 in top of the bolster. This allows me to 'tickle' in the toes of the forklift which makes the unloading the easy part! From there it is straight into the sawmill.

Ironwood · October 29, 2011, 11:38:04 AM

I have some hill here too, and I would like SURGE brakes for piece of mind. If you have bigger equipment you can drag out and use friction as braking, for those of us with smaller equipment who need it off the ground SURGE units are the cats meow. You could even use chains on the trialer wheels to insure good bite. I like small R-4 industrial tires with chains and SURGE system. Really a good system.

"Slip sliding away" as the song goes, NOT.

Ironwood

SwampDonkey · October 29, 2011, 12:09:51 PM

In my instance, my ground is all flat like the floor, just a small dip and rise that isn't even significant.

zopi · October 29, 2011, 12:18:56 PM

The pins aren't removable? Brilliant.
Ought to be an easy fix though...

Piston · November 06, 2011, 04:20:03 AM

That is a great looking, low impact setup you have. Sure seems handy and I bet saves a ton of work, literally ;D

Not sure how to word my question, but:
Do the two axles rotate independently of each other? As in, if you were to drive over a log for example, would the front two tires climb up the log while the rear tires stay on the ground?

Hope that makes sense. :D

Bothy_Loon · November 06, 2011, 09:26:34 AM

Quote from: Piston on November 06, 2011, 04:20:03 AM
That is a great looking, low impact setup you have. Sure seems handy and I bet saves a ton of work, literally ;D

Not sure how to word my question, but:
Do the two axles rotate independently of each other? As in, if you were to drive over a log for example, would the front two tires climb up the log while the rear tires stay on the ground?

Hope that makes sense. :D

Hi There. I know exactly what you mean. ;D
The axels are mounted on a short section of 4x2 box section which is in turn fitted to the main frame on a pivot pin, so yes the the wheels roll over rough ground just great & leave virtually no damage to the ground.
I am thinning twenty acres of mixed Pine & Larch & as it is being done to help the local wildlife & also to make it a nicer area just to be in, we did not want big machines in making rutts.
Job is a slow one but the wildlife like it that way! ;)
If you would like some closer pictures of the trailer without a load just ask & I will do it for you.

Piston · November 06, 2011, 09:47:05 AM

Sounds a lot like what I will be doing in a couple of years (although, it seems like I keep saying "a couple of years" year after year >:()
I will be thinning around 30 acres of mixed hardwoods and a smaller section of pines, once we move to the land permanently. I want a forester to help me come up with a plan for better wildlife habitat and nice piece of forest to walk around in.

I think a trailer like yours would be invaluable to getting work done, having fun doing it, and not disturbing the ground too much. I like low impact ;D

I would love to see some more pictures of your setup. ;) I was just google imaging atv log trailer about 7 seconds after I posted in this thread :D

Do you have any plans to add a small grapple or is it working out just fine the way it is?

Bothy_Loon · November 06, 2011, 10:05:20 AM

Quote from: Piston on November 06, 2011, 09:47:05 AM
Sounds a lot like what I will be doing in a couple of years (although, it seems like I keep saying "a couple of years" year after year >:()
I will be thinning around 30 acres of mixed hardwoods and a smaller section of pines, once we move to the land permanently. I want a forester to help me come up with a plan for better wildlife habitat and nice piece of forest to walk around in.

I think a trailer like yours would be invaluable to getting work done, having fun doing it, and not disturbing the ground too much. I like low impact ;D

I would love to see some more pictures of your setup. ;) I was just google imaging atv log trailer about 7 seconds after I posted in this thread :D

Do you have any plans to add a small grapple or is it working out just fine the way it is?

Sounds like a very interesting project you are lining up for yourself. I would get started as soon as possible. Nothing like the satisfaction of looking back over a woodland that you have improved.
As to the trailer, I will do you some pictures tomorrow. Might even put on the headboard for the look of the thing. :D
Somebody that is good at welding & working metal could make one like this very easily I would have thought. I did suggest a few small improvements that could be made to it to the Logic rep. He did not seem interested as 'they only sell a small amout each year'.
I do not think I will ever fit a loader to mine & if I did it would be a simple wire loader as Hyd. ones are way to expensive over here.
I always found it was harder to unload it by hand than it is to load it. Now though the forklift works just great. Lift off load in one go & straight into the saw. ;D

Bothy_Loon · November 07, 2011, 01:49:38 PM

Here is a closer look at how the trailer is made up. Main frame is 3inch square box.

HuZzEy · November 07, 2011, 06:05:27 PM

how thick is the tuabing for the frame and weight capasity of that trailer

Piston · November 08, 2011, 02:10:07 AM

Your really making me want one of these trailers Bothy! ;D

I think I could build a more basic version of this if I could find some scrap steel somewhere. Do you happen to have any pictures of how the wheels/axles are attached to the frame underneath?

Thanks for posting that last picture ;D
-Matt

Bothy_Loon · November 08, 2011, 01:05:34 PM

Glad to be of help. I have no pictures of the rocking beam assembly........... but I will have tomorrow! ;D I think it will be easier if I turn the trailer upside down, then you will get a better idea of the way it is put together.
As to the thickness of the box section, I am sorry but I have no idea. It is strong though so must be fairly hefty stuff.

mad murdock · November 09, 2011, 12:58:05 PM

that is a pretty nifty little setup. You can see from the pic the "stops" above the pivot point front and aft of the pivot center of rotation. It would be not too difficult to fab one, if a guy had the scrap steel and the time. Very cool. I would put brakes on it though, if I were going to pull one with a vehicle that would weigh less than the trailer with its intended load. That way you would really have some good control on uneven ground, but prolly alot of you guys don't have hilly terrain to deal with. Thanks Bothy Loon for posting the pics of yer trailer.

Bothy_Loon · November 09, 2011, 02:08:53 PM

There was another maker in the UK that made a timber trailer for the back of a quad. His had brakes & pins that folded out to the horizontal so you could pivot logs on to the trailer. It was more expensive & as a result did not sell.
I do have some steep rough & very wet areas to work & today was asked to work some Norway Spruce. That is heavy stuff so I am now thinking, as it is near the mill, of getting myself a timber arch. Even thinking of using a double axle set up like the logic. That may be overkill though!

I did turn the Logic upside down today to give you a better view of the way it is put together.

Piston · November 10, 2011, 02:45:20 AM

Thanks Bothy that is really helpful. I'm gonna keep my eyes peeled on craigslist and around town for some scrap steel. I'll start collecting it and see where I end up. I have 4 tires and rims from my f350 that I have no use for and could use for the trailer. I would need to get some hubs though and rig up the axle somehow. Your pics will come in really handy.

I built my log arch a couple years ago and it works great for the large heavy logs. The reason I want to build a trailer is because a lot of the logs I will be moving are smaller and I will have to move them greater distances, so a log arch would take me a lot longer to do, however for the super heavy logs, it works great.

I just hope the tires I have (37's) won't bring the trailer height up too far as to make it unstable. I plan to pull mine behind my tractor and will make it the same width of the tractor.

Thanks again for the pics 8) 8) 8)
;D

-Matt

Bothy_Loon · November 13, 2011, 11:50:20 AM

Quote from: Piston on November 10, 2011, 02:45:20 AM
Thanks Bothy that is really helpful. I'm gonna keep my eyes peeled on craigslist and around town for some scrap steel. I'll start collecting it and see where I end up. I have 4 tires and rims from my f350 that I have no use for and could use for the trailer. I would need to get some hubs though and rig up the axle somehow. Your pics will come in really handy.

I built my log arch a couple years ago and it works great for the large heavy logs. The reason I want to build a trailer is because a lot of the logs I will be moving are smaller and I will have to move them greater distances, so a log arch would take me a lot longer to do, however for the super heavy logs, it works great.

I just hope the tires I have (37's) won't bring the trailer height up too far as to make it unstable. I plan to pull mine behind my tractor and will make it the same width of the tractor.

Thanks again for the pics 8) 8) 8)
;D

-Matt

You are very welcome. ;D
I now have a log arch on the drawing board!
Sometime soon I will hit an awkward steep wet area in the wood I am thinning. The plan is to use the log arch to carry the logs to an area where it will be easy to load them onto the trailer for the 20min trip to the mill.

Taylortractornut · November 13, 2011, 02:41:24 PM

Im gonna built a trailer like that if I get my mill in january. I want to build a loader in mine like an old style pulp loader.

Piston · November 15, 2011, 08:59:27 AM

I found an old log loader that would be perfect for a small trailer. Only problem is nothing works on it and all hoses would need replacing, which I don't mind doing, but they want an arm and a leg for it. Trying to work out a trade though. ;D

Taylortractornut · November 15, 2011, 06:53:08 PM

THeres an old man junking alot of his 100 acres of stuff. He scrapped 7 of the little tiny stick wood Prentisses. Just right for a small trailer grapples and all. He was getting 400 each for them scrap but wanted 1000 each to the individual. I told my buddy they were made from that valuable metal called unobtainium.