I'm attempting to learn as much as I can about PTO driven stump grinders and could use some advice. I have a BX24 with the backhoe and last year I bought a Wallenstein BX52 wood chipper that is a beast but it works quite well with my BX. Now I have near 30 ash stumps that I need ground out but rather than mortgaging the house to pay someone else I'd rather do it at my own pace and resell the grinder. Seems the most economical way to go is a Woodland Mills model WG24. The specs are right at the minimum for my BX. I'm curious what others think or have experienced. The higher end articulating models such as the Woods TSG50 get a little pricey. and I'd rather stay in the range of $2500 and less. Appreciate any thoughts.
Advice for stump grinders
- Thread starter BensBX
- Start date
read my thread on the WG24 here on the site....
will tell ya all ya need to know. im doing dozens of Ash stumps at my place.. from 10" all the way up to over 3'.
if you got a bx24.... you are right at the minimum required that they will even sell you one from WM..
can you do it with it? YES. you will have to nibble away at it with very small bites on that tractor. i mean small bites.. say 1/2" to 1" at the max.. many passes.
& if you get too heavy on it? it will either stall the BX out or you will feel like you are riding a bull at the rodeo because thats what happened to me on my B2601.
it just felt like i was abusing my lil B2601 & i moved up to a bigger tractor since ive literally got hundreds of Ash tree's dying off & just trying to do a few dozen a year.
its well worth the money & is a nice machine. you just have to decide if you can be that patient to take the small passes it will require.
will tell ya all ya need to know. im doing dozens of Ash stumps at my place.. from 10" all the way up to over 3'.
if you got a bx24.... you are right at the minimum required that they will even sell you one from WM..
can you do it with it? YES. you will have to nibble away at it with very small bites on that tractor. i mean small bites.. say 1/2" to 1" at the max.. many passes.
& if you get too heavy on it? it will either stall the BX out or you will feel like you are riding a bull at the rodeo because thats what happened to me on my B2601.
it just felt like i was abusing my lil B2601 & i moved up to a bigger tractor since ive literally got hundreds of Ash tree's dying off & just trying to do a few dozen a year.
its well worth the money & is a nice machine. you just have to decide if you can be that patient to take the small passes it will require.
Thank you sdk! The ash epidemic is truly sad and costly. I have probably another 50 standing dead ash in an adjacent woods I own but just waiting for them to fall as they're not a safety issue unless you want to wander the woods. I'm glad to get your advice and may have to consider a lot of different options as I don't want to unnecessarily abuse my BX. I've got a lot of time and patience but I want to also make a wise choice. I thought the WG24 looked like a quality machine and glad it's working for you. Thanks again.
hey just noticed you are a Buckeye also! You are only about 1.5hrs from me!
YES. been mainly trying to get the ones back away from the house & shop & letting the ones in the woods break & fall over then cutting them up..
trying to save as many as possible....
seriously though: if you are really patient & arent trying to hurry.. it will do the job on your BX.
im just too impatient & tried to go too fast & didnt like the feeling of taking 30-45mins at each mid size stump or how it does my tractor.
consider this: you can rent a bigger tractor at most places in our area for $200 a day & if you have the WG24 on hand?
you can take a day on a 35+hp tractor & do 2 dozen pretty easy. the bigger tractor really allows you to take a LOT bigger passes.
thats what i decided to do with mine......... THEN that bigger tractor called my name & i couldnt say no. LMAO
Rent a Vermeer SC30TX stump cutter for $250-$300 for an entire weekend and do them all. I rented one a year ago and sawed through 18 gallons of gas in the thing...pretty much ran it from 8am till dark Saturday and Sunday. The thing was an impressive beast!!
that would be a bargain! Its way cheaper where you are!
maybe its different where he is? (1.5hrs north of me)
here where im at? the big vermeer's are $475 for every 8hrs on the meter.
running from day to dark for sat & sunday would cost you $1,425! or more!
you buy the WG24 & have it forever with unlimited use/time for another 1K
when you have HUNDREDS to do over the long term? renting gets pretty pricey
going stump rate in our part of the country is $90-125 each, IF you stay under 30".
sdk, yep fellow Buckeye! Your advice is much appreciated. I've not ruled the WG24 out yet as I know if you use common sense and lots of time the BX will handle heavy jobs. With that little backhoe I have dug out huge stumps close to our house for some major landscaping projects. Taking time and I actually used a pressure washer to expose the lower roots giving access to cut tap roots and the backhoe would easily tip the stump over to drag them out of the hole. So I'm confident in using the grinder for several 8-10 inch stumps but I do have several big boys that renting a tractor for a day would make a lot more sense. I'm a believer also if you can buy something for 2500, use it sensibly for a couple of seasons you have something you can resell to recover some of the costs rather than shelling twice the price and have nothing in return plus you miss all the fun and challenge......lol......anyway, glad to share stories and appreciate your views!
awesome!
been asked several times to make video's of this in action.. but man they are huge & im on snail net here in the stix....
8 or 10" stumps? dude you would have no trouble nibbling those off... cut them close to the ground & have at it..
im doing stuff up in that 2-3' range... You will be too later.
You are more than welcome to come down & see it in action sometime if you want a live demo vs youtube video.
you will see really quickly why the camera set up makes it way better for your neck.
been asked several times to make video's of this in action.. but man they are huge & im on snail net here in the stix....
8 or 10" stumps? dude you would have no trouble nibbling those off... cut them close to the ground & have at it..
im doing stuff up in that 2-3' range... You will be too later.
You are more than welcome to come down & see it in action sometime if you want a live demo vs youtube video.
you will see really quickly why the camera set up makes it way better for your neck.
The Vermeer SC30TX is about the size of a Toro Dingo walk-behind skid steer and can handle massive stumps. Not trying to sway your decision as I can see your side of the argument with the outrageous rental prices in your area!
I thought the $250-$300 for unlimited hours over a 2 day weekend was a pretty good deal especially because I like to get up at sunrise.
I thought the $250-$300 for unlimited hours over a 2 day weekend was a pretty good deal especially because I like to get up at sunrise.
While I haven't done extensive searches I haven't found anyone who rents them around here either. And in my situation I have a few hard to access stumps as well as some that are on a hillside. Not extreme as I've done a lot of work cautiously with my BX but would be difficult trying to tow a rental unit. Good idea though and not a bad price for the weekend! I'm currently investigating the Woods TSG50 a dealer has a couple hours away but not sure if I can haggle a good price. It's suggested retail is more than I want to pay. Great to have experts on here to give advice and share experiences. I'm pretty good at doing stuff but far from an expert on these subjects.
sdk, thanks for the demo offer and may take you up on that! I'm going to investigate all what's out there and take some time as I'm semi retired and not in a rush. I like to see something in action over just going on a sales pitch.....haha.....although you tube is a great tool to actually see things work and listen to the comments of the user. Did you check into the Woods TSG50 very much and if so what are your thoughts. It appears like electric operated cylinders?.....but I'm wondering with the proper valving since my BX has the backhoe attach, if I could rig the whole deal up where I could swivel my seat and operate that unit like my hoe?? Wish I were smarter about these things. Sure would save the neck brace.
I just took delivery of a wg24 yesterday. I have not hooked it up, but first impressions are good so far. The packaging was very sturdy, and the machine looks to have a nice fit and finish. I have a L2501, and I felt as though that was the least amount of PTO HP that would run this. It does look like a fly wheel weight, so i am hoping if you get it going, the inertia will help for the lack of HP. One thing I can say is that the L2501 is a torque monster. I’ll report back once I run it through some stumps with an unfiltered review. I ran into the same issues. It was cheaper for me to buy and own this, than pay someone to grind 25 stumps.
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If I was in the marker the WG24 is the one I’d get, very simple design and no extra hydraulics needed.
https://woodlandmills.com/product/w...MIxOPen9br2gIVBiSGCh2mCg2bEAQYASABEgKnxPD_BwE
https://woodlandmills.com/product/w...MIxOPen9br2gIVBiSGCh2mCg2bEAQYASABEgKnxPD_BwE
yeah as mentioned up there earlier....
i didnt have rear hydros' so the WG24 was perfect.
as to the neck & not turning around? look at how i mounted my rear view camera on the leg & then the monitor on my hood... no turning around needed & no neck strain.
why they dont just sell this set up with these? i have no clue, but they should!
look for an update to my monitor mount later this week as im going magnetic on it.
PS: & you are more than welcome to come down & see it in action. looks like late MAY early june after the rains are done ive got a couple DOZEN ready to do. :-0
i didnt have rear hydros' so the WG24 was perfect.
as to the neck & not turning around? look at how i mounted my rear view camera on the leg & then the monitor on my hood... no turning around needed & no neck strain.
why they dont just sell this set up with these? i have no clue, but they should!
look for an update to my monitor mount later this week as im going magnetic on it.
PS: & you are more than welcome to come down & see it in action. looks like late MAY early june after the rains are done ive got a couple DOZEN ready to do. :-0
Thanks all for your experiences and helpful advice. I'm still not certain where I'm going. Recent medical probs with mom has me delayed. The WG24 seems the easiest and most reasonable solution. Just worrisome about my BX partly because while i have a bunch of small stumps I'm confident it would work on ok I also have a bunch of monsters. Maybe just renting a larger tractor for those. Just a hassle I'd rather not have to do.
I'm really confused why I am having so much prob with finding a dealer for info and prices for the Woods TSG50? No one around here stocks anything like that and almost seem uninterested in giving a quote or be of much help with details? It begins to make me wonder if Woods sells very many. Anyway, if I buy a WG24 i'll be posting.....lol
I'm really confused why I am having so much prob with finding a dealer for info and prices for the Woods TSG50? No one around here stocks anything like that and almost seem uninterested in giving a quote or be of much help with details? It begins to make me wonder if Woods sells very many. Anyway, if I buy a WG24 i'll be posting.....lol
I have used my WG24 on a few stumps now, and it seems solid. It does a great job at getting below grade, and has shown no signs that is was too much for my little L2501. The worst part is trying to see the grinding wheel to gauge the depth of cut. I am looking at putting a mirror on, and if that does not work, I’ll look into a camera. It does start to bounce in the cut if you go too fast, or take too much. This is totally avoidable once you find the outer limits of your set up.
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^^^ yeah what he said..
dirt doesnt bother them at all.
WM says "hundreds" of stumps for the life span of the teeth...
that of course will vary if you do 12" stumps vs 36" stumps.
im now 35 stumps in.. all Ash. from 16-42" across & the teeth are still perfect.
its more about learning speed of cutting & amount of bite for your tractor.
but the back up camera is the stuff. not only is it better for you neck/back... its safer for everything in front/beside you too! it greatly increased my overall speed by efficiency of movement/travel.
dirt doesnt bother them at all.
WM says "hundreds" of stumps for the life span of the teeth...
that of course will vary if you do 12" stumps vs 36" stumps.
im now 35 stumps in.. all Ash. from 16-42" across & the teeth are still perfect.
its more about learning speed of cutting & amount of bite for your tractor.
but the back up camera is the stuff. not only is it better for you neck/back... its safer for everything in front/beside you too! it greatly increased my overall speed by efficiency of movement/travel.
I've been delayed with my stump grinding investigating but finally back at it. I've tried my best to track down a woods TSG50 having no luck whatsoever. I realize dealers seldom stock this stuff but I can't even find anyone who knows much about them or do they seem all that interested. I like the idea of the woods articulation and since I have a BX24 the logic of flipping my seat around to operate it seems preferable even though I'm sure I'd have to do some mods to make it work. I only hesitate with the WG24 to avoid overworking my BX. With the woods I can park in place and perhaps have a little more control. If only I could find one or a dealer willing to work with me.