Hey guys I havent been on too much lately. The twins are wearing me slick but were having fun!
My logging business partner went on to other things and I am going to log by myself now. I was wondering from those of you who work alone how is the best way to go about it. I am thinking of cutting around a load of logs, and then skidding, or do I want to cut a hitch and then go ahead and skid them out right then?
Thanks fellas
when logging by myself i cut a tank of gas then i skid them in,i continue this until i think i enough skid in for a couple of loads then i buck them up and load out
i"m working by myself its selectivly marked timber a little scattered I cut thirty trees a day n go home its to hot to work all day i"m going to cut one more day then i"ll have 150 trees down then i will skid them all out before i cut anymore unless it rains or gets muddy then i"ll cut but doing it this way you cant cut everything all at once you have to leave some till you get them out then go back and get them later, also before i start a job i take the dozer and build all the roads and open everything up this job is 80acres i spent three days opening it up an it looked like a park then when i finish i"ll spend a couple days wrapping it back up
I like a break in cutting trees. I cut a tree or two than I twitch them out.
i usually liked to get out and hack and whack for awhile. use your head and dont make a mess, creating more work when its time to start yarding. typically it was a around a tank of saw gas burned before i started skidding.
I drive the skidder to the first tree and cut it if theres one close by I will get it also then pull each tree out till about eleven then buck and load the truck get it all chained down then I eat my dinner. Rest about a hour and then cut and pull till Ive had enough then I will jump in the truck and head for home. By the time I get tired out Ive aready have my truck loaded and chained down this works real good for me.
i use a little different method. since i cut and buck logs where the tree falls and load it on the truck with a tractor front loader, it changes things up some. i usually cut till i get my saw stuck, dull it , run out of gas(the saw or me) or get all i can cut in a spot without covering up some logs then i load some. the loading in my case is a lot easier than the cutting. i would just say that it can be a lot more dangerous cutting by yourself if you arent a careful operator. i worry more about falling a tree on an helper so i generally dont have one.
my dad loves to get to load some for me, but i need the break so i am usually alone as well.
be careful out there. pc
I cut and buck for my forwarder until I think I have enough to finish the day forwarding. That way I get the harder work of cutting done in the morning when it's cooler, and I have more energy. Also, in the winter, the machine starts easier in early afternoon, and you're running it continuously, not shutting off between loads, heating up and cooling down, etc. I usually cut for six to seven hours, then forward three and a half or four. Move around some so you don't brush up your cut logs. When I had a pole skidder, I used about the same schedule.
When it's hot or deep snow,I cut a hitch,twitch out,buck and stack.On day's where it's easy cutting,I cut 3-4 days then clean up.My trucker cleans the landing on sat-sun.Then start over and pray for better prices ;D .
Thanks for the replies. I am going to try to cut about a tank out of the 460 and that should put an easy 800-1000 feet on the ground. Skid it out and do that about 3 times and I should have a nice load. I appreciate the opinions they all sound like they work pretty good.
my helper fells a load, then i drag out with the skidder, and buck and load :)
i use my 1010 crawler. cut one tree, delimb and skid two or three logs at a time.
I cut about 12 trees ( one twitch for my skidder), then i skid them out and buck them. Then repeat. At the end of the day there is a load of wood on the yard. I try not to get too much down ahead of me in case something goes wrong like weather or mechanical failure
I cut, skid and buck each hitch as I go. Easier to buck behind the skidder because I don't have a landing loader. I call my wife three times a day to let her no I'm still kicking. Job I'm on now I'm staying in my camper to save on fuel because of the distance from home.
I was loading with a side loader until this summer. My saw hand would fell the tree and top it in the woods. I would skid with my tractor and let the side loader down on the truck and load with the front grapple on the tractor. If it was really big logs I would use the side loader on the truck. Now I am felling with a super t and bunching piles no bigger than my tractor will skid. My saw hand limbs and tops in the woods and I skid to the ramp and load with an old knuckle boom. It's so much faster. It's a one or two man operation. Works for me.
I work alone, I usually cut 3-4 hitches then skid them out, i dont like to leave wood on the ground because where i am working is very swampy and with just a little bit of rain i could be shut down for a good couple of days
Mark K has the best advice yet, call someone several times a day to let someone know your fine and things are going ok, the way to go about cutting and working alone is different for everyone and every job, the single most important thing is to go home to loved ones safely every night and inform someone or several people where your at and when you'll be back and if they don't see you by then come looking for you or pick up the phone and try to call you, accidents do and can happen to anyone. Logging is dangerous enough but doing it alone can be deadly since there is nobody there to help you out if things go wrong, everyone knows of someone who has gotten injured or killed while working alone, I've had friends who worked alone and one had a cell phone that he left in his pickup because he was worried about it getting broken, I gave him hell for not carrying it on him at all times so he did and a few months later he needed it to call help, saved his life and today he'll grab his phone before he puts on his glass's in the morning and its the last thing he puts down at night beside his bed before going to sleep and never works alone in an area where there is no cell coverage.
i was working by myself one winter, dad would stop by once a day to get a load and i would call the wife when i left the woods. this was working out fine.
i had one of those old brick phones and riding in my pocket somehow it unlocked the keys and dialed the first number in my contact list. that contact was my old boss who never heard my voice, but he could hear the saw and skidder running, and the chokers clanking. he was worried somone was hurt, but it was his house phone number, so he couldnt see the incoming number. he called everyone of his contract handcrews and couldnt find anyone in trouble. apparently this happened several times and i had cost him hours of worry and phone calls.
my first contact is now a non existent number. sorry for the rabbit trail.
anywho when i work alone i lay out several hitches and hack and whack. get in a rythem dropping and limbing laying out how the wood is gunna pull out. being as i use a smaller tractor i even measure out the logs from my big trees and buck them off so i can pull within the limits of the machine. then i start yardin. by the time i get that hauled it its usually time for a snack. refill the saws and repeat. usually get 2 to three patterns like that in a normal day.
When i worked alone, i ran 6 chockers, i fell drag for drag, my goal was 20 twitch's a day before i could go home, on less it got dark.
I always found as previously noted. I cut a tank. Skid and buck. Cut a tank. Etc... Til there is a 5000 ft load. If i am not to tired i may cut and skid some more. This is what has worked best for me.