I'm looking at buying a new PTO chipper. One dealer tells me my L3800 has 30 HP at the PTO so I can only use a 3" chipper. Another dealer which I bought the tractor from recommends up to a 6" chipper.
What the hell....I sent Wallenstein chipper a email asking and waiting for a reply. If you look at the different sizes it says rated for PTO size 15 hp to 45 hp depending on the size chipper. That just seems like a really really wide range there. Any input from the experts here is welcomed....
Your L3800 does have 30HP at the chipper - and it will run a 6" stick through it .......under the right conditions!
I was all into buying a nice 3 point chipper -looked at all the top names, hell I wanted one that I could run behind my B7100! (good luck with that !) - I ran across a pull behind self contained that I could not pass up however. It says it will handle a 4" diameter branch.......mmmm......not if it is 8' long
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when you are dealing with chippers on a 3 point, you have to run the rpms at the rear at the correct setting, you have to get that flywheel up and spinning or you'll be sad that you bought the machine. Also - the feed rate, sure - you can shove a 1" right down the throat of the machine and it will never cough..... but if you do the same thing with a 3" branch it will get a little pisssy with you !!! AND it is simple math - the 3" branch is 9 TIMES bigger in circular area than the 1".....thats right - 9 times bigger! A 6" diameter branch, is a mere 27+ times larger than the ol' 1" branch!
Are the limbs freshly cut? Are these pine? OR maple? Take a dried limb of maple and place in in a chipper.........mmmmmm, or hickory......something that is "green" will chip up a little easier than something that is very dry.
Sharpness of blades, huge factor, how MANY blades are spinning is another huge factor. Size and weight of the flywheel is another huge factor.
I would not want to run something like a 6" branch through a chipper, I would cut it to length and burn it! (assuming it is a hard wood)
Most of us use chippers to clean up the mess after the trees are fell and the logs pulled away, unless a commercial outfit - chipping up branches past a 4" would be asking a lot of any machine.
Any chipper that will fit YOUR budget and needs will run behind your 30 HP at the pto....... I just would not throw the whole tree in the chipper! It all boils down to knowing the limitations of the machine and correct way to use it.