the 420 in the woods

[NNAATZ]

i was down pulling out wind fall and storm damage out of the river bottoms for fire wood

not great pics,but somthing to look at....

[Paul Buhler]

Nice pics! It's the untold story associated with them that's fun to imagine. You got in, got the job done, and got out without getting stuck, throwing a track or breaking anything obvious - a good day! Thanks for sharing. Paul

[NNAATZ]

thanks, i got some more pics from last weekend. ill post em shortly. i had went back down after it froze some.

[NNAATZ]

here is some more pics, im no photographer by no means, im finding out... lol.



pic from the drivers seat heading to the road.



one of the large maples get drug up.



the seacond maple drug up, two people couldnt hug this one.



the tree as it fell.



hooking up to it



still pulling...

[Pammark]

It is fun to see action shots. Thanks for sharing.

Mark

[gus]

Nice looking machine and it's doing a job as it should!! I like to see them alive and well and working.
Gus

[Paul Buhler]

Looks like you're getting out more than just firewood. There could be some nice hardwood "shorts" in at least a few of those logs.

To make it easier on my machine when hauling big stuff without an arch, I've bound the log to an old truck hood to keep the log from digging in and snagging on things- it acts as a skid/boat and helps prevent those jarring sudden stops which are hard on a machine. Just torch a hole in the metal and run the choker through it and then around the log; not fancy, but cheap and pretty easy to use. Keeps the wood cleaner too. Just sharing a thought - it looks like you know how to take care of your tools.

[NNAATZ]

thanks!! i got plans for mounting a 8000# electric winch on the back and building a arch to fit in to the backhoe mounts... someday... like to make a scabbard for my saw tooooo... that'd be handy also.

yes these are good saw logs, ive talked to my cousin who owns a saw mill and said he'd do 'em up for little to nothing. may use it for flooring in my kitchen.

its hard work but been real fun doing this, the old crawler is wright at home. i cant think of tackling this job with out it.

may head out this weekend to do more but its supposed to warm up, see how soft it gets..

nick

[DBCSteve]

Great pics!

I know plenty of people drag with chains, but I'd suggest a cable choker. I have a stretched and "self-welded" chain that is now worthless. A simple drag should be ok with a chain, but any major resistance could damage the chain. Never had a problem with a choker.

[hydrogeo]

FWIW I would not bother with an electric winch. They are great for recovery but awful for logging. I tried to skid a few logs with the one on my offroading rig and it was a miserable waste of time as the duty cycle is too short. I dont have any experience with them but I have heard of a few people using the Milemarker hydraulic winches with good sucess.

[Tigerhaze]

Great pics!

I know plenty of people drag with chains, but I'd suggest a cable choker. I have a stretched and "self-welded" chain that is now worthless. A simple drag should be ok with a chain, but any major resistance could damage the chain. Never had a problem with a choker.

Chokers are helpful, but when logging I use 3/8" Grade 70 ("transport") chain and have never had any issues with stretched or broken links.

[Paul Buhler]

I've been using my "stone" boat more and more. It smooths out what the tractor tears up and floats over soggy ground making for less resistance. It bounces off stumps and rocks pretty well too. I picked up this 275 fuel oil tank for $10; it had a hole in it.
When I can, I prefer to cut clean wood, so this allows me to cut and haul blocks, bring them to the splitter, and offload into the truck or wood shed.

[Lu47Dan]

Nick, shorten up your chain as much as you can, I have two railroad crane choker chains that I use when I drag logs out to a landing. They are about 5 or 6' long and help to keep the tractor from spinning tires.
Keep the pictures coming.
Dan.