Stomper
Member
Equipment
2017 L2501. Landpride Mower. Farm King Snow Blower. DIY Root Bucket grapple.
By now some of you are probably thinking "not this guy again with another grapple thread". I wouldn't blame you if you did, I've put a few of them on here. I will explain my situation in hopes that you will have some advice for me. Let me start off by saying that I have not used a grapple before so I have no practical experience with one, so I'm hoping with the many users on here you can give me some advise that will help me make the right decision. The tractor that it will be going on is a kubota L2501
I am looking for advice on which style of grapple would suit my needs based on the information provided below. I have been wanting a grapple since I got my tractor back in June of last year and have been beating around which type would best suit my needs. I live in the remote Canadian north country in a small town on a couple acres of land. The back edge of my property is the north boundary of the town, so the Canadian wilderness is literally my back yard. I don't have any land to clear so a brush type grapple or a root rake type doesn't seem much use because of their intended purposes. I do however heat my home with wood, and this is the main reason I am wanting a grapple. Presently I have been heating my home with a wood stove, but this summer I will be installing an outdoor wood boiler. The boiler takes up to 44" log lengths and will be heating my home, shop, another small building and my domestic hot water. I am told by other wood boiler users in my area that I will be burning at least 8+ cords of wood a year. I am hoping with my new tractor and a proper grapple that this chore will be much easier. I have already checked with the Department of Natural Resources to see if I can use my tractor for gathering my fire wood on crown land in this area. As long as I am not building trails or roads it is allowed. There is an abundance of old logging and exploration trails around here and with the large forest fire that went through this area last year, there is plenty of wood to get. The DNR want it cleaned up and with a large portion of the burn along the highway, roads and trails, it should be easy pickings. Most of the wood I will be getting will range around the 6"-12" diameter. I plan on building wooden frames onto pallets and storing the boiler length pieces on the pallets so I can move them from the storage area to the boiler with my forks.
Almost all the work that will be done with the grapple will be the gathering of fire wood. I am wanting one that will clamp down on the logs tightly so they can be cut into 44" length while in the grapple and they can fall right into the haul trailer, saving time and work. I know some like the bucket style because they can scoop up large amounts of firewood and clamp down and transport it. This would be good for boiler length pieces but wouldn't hold the logs tight for cutting to length. I have scoured the internet searching every type of grapple I can find to see which would best suit my needs. Several comments on some on the forestry forums, swear by pallet forks with grapples that clamp the logs tight against the back of the forks. This sounds appealing to me as I have a good set of pallet forks already. It would just be to purchase or build one similar to this. https://www.kellfri.co.uk/grapple-attachment-for-pallet-fork-with-low-frame This would be easily removed when not needed but adding this weight to the already heavy pallet forks gives me some issues of loosing lift capacity needed for the logs. Others like the clam style grapples that are similar to the EA wicked root grapple, this also appeal to me. Although this style of grapple might limit the amount of logs that can be clamped into it, it might be just right for my size of tractor.
I have also found a dedicated log grapple style which might suit my needs because it will be used mainly for logging type work. I also like the fact that it is slightly narrower than the others which would enable me to cut the clamped section of the log to the desired 44" length. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uf1EHKRdF-E&feature=youtu.be
I realize that the narrower width of a grapple might put added stress on the loader arms for unbalanced loads but the longest length logs I would haul around would be in the 8-12 foot range and smaller if needed.
As far a purchasing or building a grapple goes, it really doesn't matter. I have all the tools and skills to build one. Building one would most likely be best for me because I can build it how it best suits my needs. I just need some advice from those who have had experience with different types of grapples of what might work and might not work for my intended use. Any help will we greatly appreciated.
Thanks
I am looking for advice on which style of grapple would suit my needs based on the information provided below. I have been wanting a grapple since I got my tractor back in June of last year and have been beating around which type would best suit my needs. I live in the remote Canadian north country in a small town on a couple acres of land. The back edge of my property is the north boundary of the town, so the Canadian wilderness is literally my back yard. I don't have any land to clear so a brush type grapple or a root rake type doesn't seem much use because of their intended purposes. I do however heat my home with wood, and this is the main reason I am wanting a grapple. Presently I have been heating my home with a wood stove, but this summer I will be installing an outdoor wood boiler. The boiler takes up to 44" log lengths and will be heating my home, shop, another small building and my domestic hot water. I am told by other wood boiler users in my area that I will be burning at least 8+ cords of wood a year. I am hoping with my new tractor and a proper grapple that this chore will be much easier. I have already checked with the Department of Natural Resources to see if I can use my tractor for gathering my fire wood on crown land in this area. As long as I am not building trails or roads it is allowed. There is an abundance of old logging and exploration trails around here and with the large forest fire that went through this area last year, there is plenty of wood to get. The DNR want it cleaned up and with a large portion of the burn along the highway, roads and trails, it should be easy pickings. Most of the wood I will be getting will range around the 6"-12" diameter. I plan on building wooden frames onto pallets and storing the boiler length pieces on the pallets so I can move them from the storage area to the boiler with my forks.
Almost all the work that will be done with the grapple will be the gathering of fire wood. I am wanting one that will clamp down on the logs tightly so they can be cut into 44" length while in the grapple and they can fall right into the haul trailer, saving time and work. I know some like the bucket style because they can scoop up large amounts of firewood and clamp down and transport it. This would be good for boiler length pieces but wouldn't hold the logs tight for cutting to length. I have scoured the internet searching every type of grapple I can find to see which would best suit my needs. Several comments on some on the forestry forums, swear by pallet forks with grapples that clamp the logs tight against the back of the forks. This sounds appealing to me as I have a good set of pallet forks already. It would just be to purchase or build one similar to this. https://www.kellfri.co.uk/grapple-attachment-for-pallet-fork-with-low-frame This would be easily removed when not needed but adding this weight to the already heavy pallet forks gives me some issues of loosing lift capacity needed for the logs. Others like the clam style grapples that are similar to the EA wicked root grapple, this also appeal to me. Although this style of grapple might limit the amount of logs that can be clamped into it, it might be just right for my size of tractor.
I have also found a dedicated log grapple style which might suit my needs because it will be used mainly for logging type work. I also like the fact that it is slightly narrower than the others which would enable me to cut the clamped section of the log to the desired 44" length. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uf1EHKRdF-E&feature=youtu.be
I realize that the narrower width of a grapple might put added stress on the loader arms for unbalanced loads but the longest length logs I would haul around would be in the 8-12 foot range and smaller if needed.
As far a purchasing or building a grapple goes, it really doesn't matter. I have all the tools and skills to build one. Building one would most likely be best for me because I can build it how it best suits my needs. I just need some advice from those who have had experience with different types of grapples of what might work and might not work for my intended use. Any help will we greatly appreciated.
Thanks
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