logging winch

[wheelinguy]

Just bought a new tractor and i was looking into a logging winch for it.  Never used one before just wondering if anyone could give me the pros and cons?  We live in a hilly area so i was thinking that bringing the logs to me would be better than trying to go get them, plus the mud/clay never seems to dry up around here.  Any input would be great.

[thecfarm]

After using chains and going forward and than back to unhook and re-hook and really only able to take 2 logs at a time,IF things came right,I really can't think of any cons,besides the price of one now. I have one since '93. Really worked it hard and alot. Mine does not require much maintenance,just a little grease. The one I have will outlast any 4 wheeler or snow machine,I feel.Those winches are just great. I have 5 chokers on mine,I haul a lot of small trees at times.I'm kinda thinking about adding one more. I'm into some small dead fir. If things are right I can hook up all five to trees and I'm good to go. Most time I can only hook up 1-2 trees,winch them in,move and hook up the others to fill my chokers. Don't think that you are going to walk through the woods with 150 feet of cable in a straight line,if you have alot of trees on your land.Seems like when you winch in,a tree will get in the way. Just have to unhook and move the cable around the tree. But still easier than chains. Think of it as an investment. Yes they are pricey,but I've had my for 28 years and had hardly any trouble with it. It was in the woods with it making me money for 3 years,so it really saw some use.It would be a real nice tool to be on top of the hill and winching in to you.I've think I replaced the cable 4 times. What kind of tractor and hp?

[york]

Hi,
I have an old Farmi mod#456-new in 1976 and i can`t kill this thing-It came with 165 ft. 1/2in. cable-now shorter because of wear.only about 80ft.and that is OK,like it shorter...Bert

[RSteiner]

I have one of the smaller Farmi winches which I purchased new back around the mid-1980's.  The winch is on its second tractor.  This by far is one of the best accessories you can buy for your tractor. 

I added a trailer hitch ball to mine so I can pull a small trailer and have the winch on the tractor.  That way when cutting firewood I can pull the wood to me, block it up, and have the pile of chunk wood right next to the trailer so all I have to do is throw it in.

Randy

[logman81]

I also have a winch it's an older Fransguard v-2800. It is a very good and simple winch to operate very Little maintenance is required and it has been through three tractors and is still going strong! The only I have replace on it was the cable and a few sliders. It is currently on a 38hp 4x4 tractor and I run six chokers on mine just fine. They are very handy for extracting small diameter wood were you don't want to drive a tractor too allowing you to keep the tractor in the safe zone especially on hilly terrain.     

[Woodhog]

Winches are nice for a tractor...

I would buy a snatch block with it as every pull is not always coming straight in if you are doing selective cutting....

If you have chain chockers I would not buy the type with the closed loops, they are hard to get off if they become entangled under several logs after you set the load down at the landing...

The most aggravating thing I find is when pulling out the cable and a foul turn on the drum stops you abruptly after walking about 100 feet with the cable...you then have to clear the turn and continue all over again...

[wheelinguy]

Thanks for the input, any brands that you suggest?  Any brands you suggest I stay away from?  The tractor is a new Kioti dk35sehst, 38 hp, hydrostatic, pto, rear hydrualic remotes, quiktatch coupler on the loader.  I just picked up chains today from local dealer, they didn't have the $575 chains in stock, but they had some old tellefsdal chains still in the box that just happened to be the right size!  The guy charged me $350 and told me not to tell anyone the deal he gave me, yes he was the owner not an employee looking for cash.

[logman81]

I wood try and look at several brands each one has pros and cons. I have a fransguard and it is a very dependable unit. I here that farmi and uniforest are also a good brand but do your research before purchasing anything and you may also want to look into a grapple bucket for the loader as well very handy for moving brush and stacking logs. Good luck!

[LaserZX]

any pics of some of winch setups on tractors.

[Shotgun]

Lazer ZX,

I have a search feature on my FF top header.  If you have it, "Search" is your friend.  Try it out.     

Norm

[Woodhog]

This one will haul a good load... the tractor is larger than yours, but you should fit the winch accordingly.

A tractor is nice because when you go to sell it there are more buyers than just dedicated forestry equipment with limited other uses....

[JDeere]

Here is a photo of my John Deere 6115D with a Tajfun winch on it. I have had a Farmi, Fransgard and Tajfun and they are all good winches. Many folks on here will tell you the Farmis are bullet proof.

[g_man]

Any well know brand winch is good. Can't go wrong with Farmi.
I have a pretty small setup. But it does a good job for me. 30 hp tractor with a 6500 lb pull Farmi Winch and an API grapple on the bucket. Tractor weighs 5000 lbs including  loaded tires and chains. The heavier you can make your tractor the better. If you need to stay on your roads, like I do you, will find a couple snatch blocks to be very handy if not necessary. Working slow and easy is the fastest way to get it done. I run the tractor at about 1500 to 1800 rpm when winching (pto at around 300 rpm). Always be thinking a step ahead so you know where to stop the log if you need to re-rig the cable or drop a block to get the log to the tractor. Here are a few pictures

[LaserZX]

Thanks for the pics   now I want that loader grapple.     I think a grapple should be something that could be made
fairly cheap

[nas]

I have a Wallenstein 6500lb winch, and it has been great.  It worked ok on my 16hp Kubota B7100

 
But it works a lot better on my new 45hp Kioti.

 
This is the best picture I have.  It is pulling a half load there because we had to skid up a very steep bank.  That winch would be perfect on a 30-40hp tractor.  Just make sure you have enough weight on the front, and don't try to do to much.  Wear a seat belt and think safety first!!! :P

Nick

[thecfarm]

Woodhog,looks like you have a Norse 450 like I do.



 

Not the best picture. I guess I need a working picture of it.  ;D
If you do buy one get some short chains with it too. They all come with 8 foot chains and only 4 chokers now, I think. I really doubt anyone would use 4-8 foot chains on trees that big all at once. I made up 5 chains,3 1/2 feet long. They get more use than my long ones. So much easier to pull a few inches of chain through a chocker instead of 3-4 feet. 
Always try to pull kinda right directly behind the winch. Don't winch in on any sharp angles off to the left or to the right. I stopped on one of my trails to winch in a 4-6 inch tree. I did not bother to back the tractor up to get good direct pull. I thought it's only a small tree,nothing will happen.  :  I was winching in at a 90 degree angle. That small tree caught up on a rock or root and I kept on winching,watching the tree. The cable was moving but the tree was not. The tractor was up on 2 wheels sideways. I just release the rope and the tractor came back down on 2 wheels. I pay alot more attention to everything around me now.

[ahlkey]

I have a farmi winch on a 42HP tractor and I agree it is one of the best options to purchase for a tractor.  I also added an Amsteel rope extension of 75 feet so I can reach out well over 230 feet when necessary.   However, when winching that far out I recommend snatchblocks which help increase your pull capacity and the self-releasing ones really saves a lot of time.    I would buy used if you can find one as not a lot can go wrong with them.

[Stephen Alford]

   Hey wheelinguy, welcome to the forum, winches are great and there are quite a few choices. I went with a hydraulic one because of the spoolin/spoolout/freespool.  In time needed more stuff on the back of the tractor and the winch could then be mounted on the front with just longer hoses. Built a grapple then a log trailer and  scraper blade for the back. Friends have the pto winches and as others have mentioned they are very pleased.  What will you be doing with the winch and tractor ie part time/full time?

  

  

  

[thecfarm]

Nice set up you have there  Stephen.

[John Mc]

Wheelinguy -

A Farmi 351 would be a good match for your tractor. Farmi winches are well designed and just about bomb-proof.

The Uniforest 35E is also a good match size-wise. (You may also be able to handle a Uniforest model 40E.) I own a 35E, which I use behind my New Holland TC33D tractor. It's a good match, and a decently built winch. It was a bit cheaper than a Farmi. However, If I had it to do over again, I'd spend the extra to get the Farmi 351. There are a few design details that I feel are superior to the Uniforest 35E (The 40E and up are designed a bit differently, closer to how the Farmi winches are designed.)

Hud-Son in Barneveld, NY is Uniforest's US rep. Hud-son has dealers scattered around the US. One of them is not too far from you: Steve White in Dalton, NH (that's who I bought my 35E from). Hud-Son is also a Farmi Dealer, so you might be able to see both side-by-side.

[wheelinguy]

Thanks for all the responses.  Stephen I will be using the winch part time, pulling blow downs on our property, maybe a few small jobs.  We have an owb and go through a ton of wood, we burn hardwood/softwood whatever we can get for free!  I'm sure if i put a winch on my tractor that friends and family will find a use for it to.  John thanks for the info. just doing some preliminary research but all the input has been great, looking forward to posting more!

[Stephen Alford]

   Thanks cfarm, I am hesitant to repost pics as I don't want to be redundant but a pic has that "it is what it is"  quality.     Some of you folks seem to navigate these waters pretty good .
   Wheelinguy we  went to a split 42" with racks as the wood used is what nobody else wants.  :D   Keep your eye out for a good used log loader, they will put a smile on your face every time you climb in the perch. Added a wind cab , toolbox/vise , jackstand, and steaked it for 12' this week to improve this homemade unit. 

  

  

[thecfarm]

Stephen,nice double barrel stove set up. There are plenty of new people to see the pictures of forum past.  :D I like to see them again too. Really like that loader,trailer. I would have to do something with the pumpkin on that trailer rearend. Lots of rocks I go over on my land. I make many trips over some and than my middle starts to hit and have to haul in rocks to make my wheel tracks higher.

[pineywoods]

Mechanical pto winches...Yuuch.. Too much stuff to break or give trouble. Go hydraulic, better and cheaper...Go look at banjo pickers thread..

[thecfarm]

pineywoods,I don't want to say you are wrong,but I've had my pto winch since 1993. Twitched out many loads of white pine and some hard wood for 3 years. Good size one,the pine,some over 3 feet for a butt log. My Father and me was doing it. Now that he's gone,it lives a life of ease just fire wood,but used alot,just not hard. The real only trouble I had with it,and this was last year,the chain came off the sprocket. I checked the chain and sprocket for wear,they both looked good. Put it back on and has not happened since. I have caught the cable in the chain a few times,but I think the new ones the drum is all enclosed away from the chain. If buying a winch,a hyd one cost more. I would like to build one a hyd one like Banjo and billm,but my pto winch is working fine for now.

[pineywoods]

No doubt that mechanical winches can be made quite reliable. My outlook is this, with hydraulic power to a worm geared winch, don't need a clutch or brake, and the power out capability has saved my bacon more than once. If it ain't there it don't break or need adjustment...I like the KISS principle.
But then I build most of my stuff, can't justify the expense of "store bought" for what's mostly a hobby operation.. ;D

[thecfarm]

I don't have the smarts to build it. What I mean,build it once and it would be right.I would have to redo 2-3-4 times to get it right.  :( Building it yourself saves ALOT of money. I think those winches have doubled in price since we bought the one I have.

[RSteiner]

I have a Farmi PTO driven unit that was new back in 1983.  I have used it to gather logs for my Mobile Dimension saw and for the 8+ cords of firewood I burn each year.  I have done a number of house lot clearings, storm damage clean-up, and pulled a number of cars and trucks and a travel trailer out of the mud or snow over the years.  I have changed the cable twice. 

I did take the drum off and lubricated every thing once.  Other than putting grease in the one fitting on the winch and PTO shaft every now and then I have done nothing but use it for 28 years.   I think the mechanical winches are okay.

I don't know too much about the hydraulic powered winches, I was wondering if they run off the tractor hydraulics or do they have a 3PH mounted pump.  What RPM does the engine have to run at so that the winch operates effectively? 

With the mechanical winch I usually run the engine RPM around 1300 or so and get good results. 

Randy

[rogdan]

KRPAN the price seems right and only $150 to ship  ;D
http://unitedfarmimplements.ecrater.com/p/5524206/35-log-cable-winch-230-included-7700-pulling

product of Slovenia, anyone familiar with them ???
He was selling them EBAY

[mad murdock]

rodgan, 2 question for the post you put up on the slavic winch 1. Spare parts? and 2. Why is his feedback at 62%  I don't think I would buy from that seller, if it were my money.
FWIW.

[rogdan]

rodgan, 2 question for the post you put up on the slavic winch 1. Spare parts? and 2. Why is his feedback at 62%  I don't think I would buy from that seller, if it were my money.
FWIW.

Good points;
Aren't all the others winch's european (other than Wallenstein) how is the part supply in general?
I don't see how they get 62%, click the feedback and it and it shows one good, one bad and 10 no votes, seems like 50% to me  :-\
Not advocating one way or the other, just looking at options myself. Seems like his EBAY feedback was pretty good if I remember it right.

[mad murdock]

Igland, Norse, and Farmi all have good dealer support, I don't know about the east european equipment.  I do know that regionally, there are good dealers for Belarus tractors, and they seem to be a decent piece of machinery.  I am sure that the slavic winch is decent, just don't know about parts support.  A lot of the ex-soviet bloc built stuff is built over-stout and pretty easy to fix.

[shinnlinger]

That Ebay winch ain't that much cheaper than a name brand and it doesn't come with cable or the chokers that come standard with t the name brand s...and it is in Georgia

[JDeere]

Wheelinguy,  I just stumbled on this today and thought it might be of interest. Not sure how far it is from you but it looks like a fair price.

http://www.unclehenrys.com/init/classifieds/ad_detail/3941017/?_next=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.unclehenrys.com%2Finit%2Fsearch%2Fresults%2F1%233941017

[Brux]

I was thinking of buying a wallenstein fx 120 for my oliver 1755 it is 86 hp and 2wd whould be compareable to a john deere 4020. Am a crazy for putting this winch on a 2wd tractor? My other option is find a winch for the john deere 450 dozer. Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

[thecfarm]

Is the question are you crazy for working a 2wd tractor in the woods?  Depends on you and your land. Even with my 4wd tractor I have to take great pains to plan out a road due to my land and rocks and trees I want to keep. For your own use I would do it. But try to make a dollar would be hard at times. We use to work a 2wd tractor in the woods. Get the front wheel in front of a good size rock and the rear one behind a stump and there we was. Just have to back up and move over. Just takes more time. The 4wd drives makes a BIG difference.

[Peter Drouin]

 

  

I made it to hang my saw on too.



This works well for me. have not had a tree that it would not pull out :D :D and the 1/2" line is not to hard to pull to the tree

[thecfarm]

Nice winch and tractor. I would have the fenders and that saw broke if I was doing that. Good sized logs like that I do fine on,but always seem to get into a mess with the small one 6 inches and under.

[rogdan]

That Ebay winch ain't that much cheaper than a name brand and it doesn't come with cable or the chokers that come standard with t the name brand s...and it is in Georgia

Their smallest model is $1900, still under $2000 shipped.
Looked at an old Farmi this week that looked like this one but rusty   Link

Saw a decent Fransgard v4000 for $1800, maybe too big for a compact tractor?

[thecfarm]

Depends how big of a compact tractor.The V4000 weights 657 pounds and is suited for a 35-65 hp tractor.

[John Mc]

Looked at an old Farmi this week that looked like this one but rusty   Link

Are you sure you can even get parts for that?

Saw a decent Fransgard v4000 for $1800, maybe too big for a compact tractor?

As thecfarm mentioned, the v4000 should work fine on the larger compact tractors. I haven't seen a lot of Fransgard winches in my area. However, it's right between a Farmi 351 and a 501 for weight, and just a bit over the 351 for pulling power (351 = 7700#, V4000 = 8800#, Farmi 501= 11,000#). I've seen Farmi 351s on all sorts of compacts. The 501 I see on larger compacts (40 HP & up) and into the Utility farm tractor size range.

[thecfarm]

I would be more concerned about the 2 legs than the parts.That's why they all have a blade on the bottom now. Keeps the tractor from sliding backwards or with legs one catch on something and the other don't,I would think the tractor would try to come around sideways.

[chevytaHOE5674]

My farmi just has two legs like that and I've never had a problem with the tractor moving while winching, but I also have it on an 11-12k lbs tractor not a little compact. If both legs don't "bite" into the ground because the ground is uneven then you can adjust each legs height individually to match the terrain.

[John Mc]

I would be more concerned about the 2 legs than the parts.That's why they all have a blade on the bottom now. Keeps the tractor from sliding backwards or with legs one catch on something and the other don't,I would think the tractor would try to come around sideways.

I didn't realize Farmi had stopped making the 351 with the legs instead of the blade. Personally, I prefer the blade, since I have some uses for that (clearing snow from a trail/landing, minor grading work or cleaning out water bars, etc.) It also does do a good job of helping to anchor my smaller tractor.

The model with legs does have some advantages as well: the "toe" on the end of each leg is better at picking up an end of a log to maneuver it around than the blade is. The clear space underneath allows you to still use the tractor's draw bar for pulling heavy loads while the winch is attached.

[thecfarm]

I kinda was talking more about winter logging. Hard to tell what's you are on in a foot of snow. I still would prefer a blade. My blade folds up so I can use my drawbar too.  Probaly not many of us with a tractor that size under us too.

[John Mc]

Our local Farmi dealer doesn't stock or even attempt to sell the model with the legs. Everyone seems to want the blade.

I love that blade for the snow clearing, even though I usually have my loader on. I've got a Uniforest 35E winch (similar to a Farmi 351). The blade doesn't fold. I can raise it up enough to use a trailer in a pinch (if the tongue is long enough and if I stay on relatively smooth ground, so I don't crunch the tongue under the blade when going through a ditch). 

The larger Uniforest models come with an adapter that can be bolted on to a rib that runs up the middle of the blade. I noticed that my winch was drilled for this, so I bought one of the adapters from the distributor. I ended up replacing the bolts with pins and clips, so I can get it on and off without tools. It works pretty well. Probably not as good as the built in receiver hitch I've seen on some other winches. This does work fine for pulling a half cord of green firewood in my homebrew woods trailer (usually Beech, 1/2 cord = about 2500 to 3000 lbs.) I could pull more, but that's all that will fit in my trailer, at least until I get around to extending the sides up.

[rogdan]

As thecfarm mentioned, the v4000 should work fine on the larger compact tractors.

Thanks, I may make an offer once I see how useful the gas winch I picked up is (or isn't). 

[simonmeridew]

agree with poster about hitching the smaller logs being harder on the tractor, especially fenders and TAILLITES. They jump up and down as you drive out. Make sure they're on a short leash when you hitch to the winch slots, that is, chain within 8 inches or so of butt end, then hitch the butt close to the winch. The heavier 12" to 20" logs just seem to stay down where they belong once you start to yard 'em out.
Only thing I can say re mechanical vs hydraulic is that the only issue you have is the wire rope may get a bad overlay and won't pull out without hitching to a tree and driving forward a couple of feet. I can't see that hydraulic would help that any. Otherwise my Farmi 351 is foolproof on my Kubota L4400
simonmeridew

[Furu]

Farmi's are indeed bulletproof as others have said.  A snatch block is invaluable.  You do not want to winch other than from near directly aft of the tractor as things happen fast and can roll a tractor very quick. Use of the snatch block can keep the pull redirected to +/- 10 degrees of aft very easy.  Size the winch for the tractor that you have, winch slowly and don't rush a pull even if it is a small one.  If a log hangs up on a stump bad things happen if pulling too quickly.  My Farmi 501 is one of my best pieces of equipment for moving things in the woods.

[Tor Arne]

There are many good winches on the market like Farmi, Tajfun, Fransgård and Igeland. Igeland has a good selection of one and two Tumbled winches from 4,409 pounds to 19,800 pounds, the loss requires a tractor of 15-30HP and the largest 80hp and up.


Link
http://www.igland-as.com/

[rfm7fxfox]

FARMI!!!!