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Wheel Harvesters

Started by Skeans1, November 29, 2017, 09:28:05 AM

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Skeans1

Quote from: chevytaHOE5674 on December 01, 2017, 09:12:56 AM
If you worried about compaction the harvester isn't a real concern the forwarder is. An 8 wheel harvester with tracks all around will float more than any comparably sized tracked carrier I've seen, but no matter what the forwarder is the same and heavier than anything.

Benefit of a rubber tired machine in a thinning is the boom reach. The ponsse I ran had a reach of close to 30 feet so in a row type thinning you could thin multiple rows from one spot.
A buddy has a 415 with 34 like a ex10 but the longest I know of is a Rottne H14 with 39 which would be nice as well as a good way to break something.

barbender

Yep, the width of your harvester doesn't matter much, if your forwarder is wider. It's always longer, our processors can cut narrower strips and tighter corners, I tell them don't bother. What's the point if I can't get in there to pick it up?
Too many irons in the fire

Skeans1

Quote from: barbender on December 01, 2017, 02:37:05 PM
Yep, the width of your harvester doesn't matter much, if your forwarder is wider. It's always longer, our processors can cut narrower strips and tighter corners, I tell them don't bother. What's the point if I can't get in there to pick it up?
We'll go in and cut a yarding row then either walk in to thin the area more shooting out to each yarding row. The ghost thinning is you have two yarding rows on each side of your cutting row well shooting the wood to either yarding row.

Riwaka

Be interesting to see if the 'Eltec' company grows market share. Stayed with Cummins and plenty of power for the machine.  Eltec 220 series - zero tail swing.
Light thinning or heavy thinning? 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e3RFON8omFI&feature=youtu.be

Ken

I've been following this thread gathering any info I can store in my noggin.  If all goes as planned I will have my tracked harvester paid off very soon and am considering another machine as there seems to be lots of wood available locally.  The wood basket however is going to be largely managed stands with lots of smaller diameter wood.  I'm thinking a wheeled harvester may be my next purchase. 
Skeans1 good luck with whatever you decide
Lots of toys for working in the bush

wannaergo

We traded in our cat 501 on a Ponsse ergo, and in my opinion, the operator comfort alone makes up for the difference in price. I feel so much better at the end of the day now, it's almost unbelievable. I hope I never sit on tracks again
2016 Ponsse ergo 8w
2014 Cat 564
Husky 385

Skeans1

Quote from: wannaergo on December 02, 2017, 08:05:15 AM
We traded in our cat 501 on a Ponsse ergo, and in my opinion, the operator comfort alone makes up for the difference in price. I feel so much better at the end of the day now, it's almost unbelievable. I hope I never sit on tracks again
If I wasn't probably going to need a leveler of some sort I'd probably go with a barko 240 and with an ergo that'd be an issue in the northwest with the new rules coming out. One big reason we're thinking wheel is weight, width, and easy of tethering if I have to go that route.

Skeans1

Quote from: Riwaka on December 02, 2017, 05:27:09 AM
Be interesting to see if the 'Eltec' company grows market share. Stayed with Cummins and plenty of power for the machine.  Eltec 220 series - zero tail swing.
Light thinning or heavy thinning? 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e3RFON8omFI&feature=youtu.be
Out here where I am they won't take hold with the weight and being non leveling plus it's almost 11 feet wide not good for thinning.

1270d

There's always write ups in the different magazines loggers world, timberwest etc about wheeled machines thinning out there.   Is it just a publicity push or are some of the guys noticing benefits over tracked carriers.    My harvester measures 10'2" wide

Skeans1

Quote from: 1270d on December 02, 2017, 10:40:22 AM
There's always write ups in the different magazines loggers world, timberwest etc about wheeled machines thinning out there.   Is it just a publicity push or are some of the guys noticing benefits over tracked carriers.    My harvester measures 10'2" wide
It's a more of a push since out here by the manufacturers like Deere ECT to get rid of the smaller track carriers, the 415, 608, & 653 were super popular out here for thinning even when the 1270's and valmets were out here. One reason a lot of us ran that stuff is our ground and how wet it gets where a wheel machine you can slip till this assist came out. At one time the tree farm I'm on had 5 sets of fabteks heads all of us cutting long wood in thinning 3 of which were 653's, one was a 490, and a 425 leveler other machines were one 1270 and a 608 all they did was cut short wood.

Skeans1

I've got a question for the guys running scorpions and komatsu harvesters how are the rotex bearings holding up under the cab? My only thought is that's a big long leveler with weight on a small bearing for the mass from looking at it.

1270d

I only have 5500 hours on mine so not surprising there hasn't been any issues.   

I also run an auto greaser so it's greased constantly instead of once a day.


Skeans1

Quote from: Riwaka on December 04, 2017, 01:36:11 PM
Ponsse tethered harvester Oregon.
http://troutmountain.com/forestry-blog/2017/9/26/tethered-logging-steep-slope-options
Tethered Ponsse
https://youtu.be/zSkJydXO4x4
That's Miller timber service, one of the foresters for trout mountain use to work for them they mainly do government type work. I don't have an issue with ponsse but the price doesn't show the difference for an ergo vs say a H14 or a 1270G. Here locally they're talking about setting up rentals of another system.

mike_belben

I think forests would benefit a lot from harvester and forwarder rentals.  Would take a lot of pressure off the mechanized crew to cut cut cut no matter what what what.
Praise The Lord

Skeans1

Quote from: mike_belben on December 04, 2017, 08:28:19 PM
I think forests would benefit a lot from harvester and forwarder rentals.  Would take a lot of pressure off the mechanized crew to cut cut cut no matter what what what.
Problem is out here would be the stuff is mainly used for thinning which honestly isn't something everyone can do or make it profitable. The winch systems is what I was told they were going to rent, could you imagine what a 500k+ machine would look like if you let just any crew rent it?

mike_belben

Oh i didnt say the lease corporation would survive long.  Im sayin the forest might

:D
Praise The Lord

1270d

That would be slick to rent/lease the tether system.  Better than shelling out a couple hundred grand for a setup if you don't use it much

Skeans1

Quote from: 1270d on December 04, 2017, 10:21:15 PM
That would be slick to rent/lease the tether system.  Better than shelling out a couple hundred grand for a setup if you don't use it much
We were looking at some of our personal thinning ground that's due we could use the system there's no way to get to the bottom otherwise, plus it's only one machine for both yarding and cutting which makes more sense to me.

Riwaka

John Deere g series smaller wheel harvester 1070G (4 and 6 wheel ) 1170G 6 and 8 wheel.
https://youtu.be/wVnTqCoJIRI

Skeans1

Quote from: Riwaka on December 06, 2017, 07:28:33 PM
John Deere g series smaller wheel harvester 1070G (4 and 6 wheel ) 1170G 6 and 8 wheel.
https://youtu.be/wVnTqCoJIRI
Thank you, if we go Deere it would most likely be a 1270 one reason is the capacity of the head they can handle for the wood we see here in some of the thinning we do. The 1170 far as I know hasn't been sold out here before one reason could be the crane not being strong enough on the slopes we see or for the wood we see out here for weight.

Riwaka


Logset from Finland, heads look fairly robust, power to weight ratio could be better than John Deere. Logset standard with Mesera crane.
https://www.logset.com/harvesters/logset-8h-gt

log set  8h gt  (300hp Agco engine?)
https://youtu.be/VkOPL6fsiVQ 

john deere 1470e h290 haas winch(mesera 280 crane)
https://youtu.be/MpMWpV0IbYM




Skeans1

Had this H14C show up today it's interesting having leveling after so long of a non tilting machine, I will say I wouldn't do a machine without a turning cab just for backing up as well as having it follow the crane is worth it.


 

 

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