Something to lift logs to cut into fire wood

[GreensvilleJay]

re:

Think I understand, but don't know how much of a log you can hang without lifting the front end of the tractor.

I can lift 3300# before front end gets 'free power steering'.....

 

[FTG-05]

Good ideas all, Im just trying to keep from bending over as much,, this old body dont bend as well as it once did

At 69, I'm right there with you.

With my tractor and grapple, I've cut up whole trees and hardly ever actually touch the tree.

the first time I might actually have to touch the tree is to maybe put some brush into the grapple vs picking it up with the grapple.

The first time I usually have to touch the tree is to load the bucked rounds into either the grapple or bucket to take to the log splitter to split them. The tractor and bucket do all the work of actual lifting the rounds.

 

[FTG-05]

I've used my grapple and BH thumb. If you are impatient like I am and try cutting up close to the grapple you will also need new chainsaw chains after you accidentally knick the grapple with the saw. Grapple always comes out better off than the saw chain.

This is entirely avoidable. I've been bucking logs like this since I bought my grapple over 7 years ago and have never touched the grapple with the chainsaw (knock on wood).

Once you'd down to 5-6 feet of log, it's easy to manipulate the log so only a foot or so is grabbed by the grapple, giving you plenty of room for the last bucking cut.

Take the log vertical, rest the end down on the ground; gently loosen the grapple and raise it slowly; reset the grapple when you have ~1' of log to grab; move to horizontal for the last cuts. Easey peasey, plenty of room for the last cut, no mangled chains.

Of course, it helps if you purposely modified your grapple to better grab logs in line with the tractor (vs. at right angle to the direction of travel), like I did.

This is 1/4"x2" flat bars welded to the grapple "uppers". Note the round bars that do not grab logs well at all. The flat stock grabs very well.

 

[Flintknapper]

This is 1/4"x2" flat bars welded to the grapple "uppers". Note the round bars that do not grab logs well at all. The flat stock grabs very well.

View attachment 130962

View attachment 130963

^^^^^^

Smart. Nice modification.

 

[Poohbear]

How much in your area is a cord of wood delivered vs all the equipment & body wear & tear ?

 

[GreensvilleJay]

yeah 'cord'..... one of the most misused words in the english language.......
guys here will drop off a 'cord' for $120 BUT you only get 1/3" of what a 'cord' actually is.

 

[Lil Foot]

yeah 'cord'..... one of the most misused words in the english language.......
guys here will drop off a 'cord' for $120 BUT you only get 1/3" of what a 'cord' actually is.

I hear that!
Plus if you order oak around here, MOST of it is oak. A neighbor called me over to see the "cord" of "oak" that he had dropped off (while he wasn't there) and there was pine, juniper, & even some 16" long 2x4s mixed in.
Maybe a little over 1/2 a cord.

 

[SAR Tracker]

Cord of Lodgepole (jack) pine or Ponderosa Pine = $200. Pine trees is all we gots!

 

[WFM]

I had see this a few years ago at a Mahindra dealer.
I would of loved to buy it for my tractor.
Is that cool or what !!!!

 

[Dustball]

I had see this a few years ago at a Mahindra dealer.
I would of loved to buy it for my tractor.
Is that cool or what !!!!

$5680 from the manufacturer, a bit cheaper elsewhere.

Wallenstein Equipment

All Wallenstein products are backed with a 5-year Warranty

www.wallensteinequipment.com

 

[old and tired]

I had see this a few years ago at a Mahindra dealer.
I would of loved to buy it for my tractor.
Is that cool or what !!!!

Wallenstein Equipment

All Wallenstein products are backed with a 5-year Warranty

www.wallensteinequipment.com

 

[i7win7]

If you have any way to lift logs to waist height, you can build a bucking table. Mine has gaps at 16" intervals, so rounds are all the same size.

Processing Firewood the Professional Redneck Way

This will be a long assembly post with many photos, you may want to bookmark it and read on a rainy day. You will need a root grapple to lift logs, A miter saw to cut multiple 4x4's and 2x8's to size, plus other wood working tools most home owners all ready have. Let's start...

www.orangetractortalks.com

 

[FTG-05]

If you have any way to lift logs to waist height, you can build a bucking table. Mine has gaps at 16" intervals, so rounds are all the same size.
View attachment 131279

Processing Firewood the Professional Redneck Way

This will be a long assembly post with many photos, you may want to bookmark it and read on a rainy day. You will need a root grapple to lift logs, A miter saw to cut multiple 4x4's and 2x8's to size, plus other wood working tools most home owners all ready have. Let's start...

www.orangetractortalks.com

For all the wood he used he could have got a grapple and saved a ton of time and probably money.

 

[GreensvilleJay]

Even 'entry level' wood processors are a LOT easier to use and faster. yes, some coins up front but...nobody I know is getting younger, the older they get !

 

[DeepWoods]

Here’s my log deck for cutting firewood. No more bending over during the entire process. I use the grapple to lift the log on the deck, cut every 16”, roll the round to the splitter and push the split wood into a hydraulic dump trailer, then haul to the woodshed. Cut the time involved, and no bad back at the end of the day.

 

[fried1765]

Think I understand, but don't know how much of a log you can hang without lifting the front end of the tractor.

With a bucket full of dirt, and the stabilizers down, I can lift quite a big log, with my BH and thumb.
I don't have any logs that big!

 

[fried1765]

yeah 'cord'..... one of the most misused words in the english language.......
guys here will drop off a 'cord' for $120 BUT you only get 1/3" of what a 'cord' actually is.

Properly described as a "face cord"!

 

[rc51stierhoff]

Here’s my log deck for cutting firewood. No more bending over during the entire process. I use the grapple to lift the log on the deck, cut every 16”, roll the round to the splitter and push the split wood into a hydraulic dump trailer, then haul to the woodshed. Cut the time involved, and no bad back at the end of the day.


View attachment 131522 View attachment 131523 View attachment 131524 View attachment 131525

That’s an awesome setup.

How do you do handle larger logs with that setup and the B? (Do you have it milled for lumber, sell, winch em up, or simply don’t use?).

when it is time for me to move a large log and I’m at home using the B it doesn’t take long for me to miss the MX.

I have a cutting rack but I hope to build something like you have before long when we move to the other place we have up North. What’s the length of your deck? What make is your trailer?

 

[WI_Hedgehog]

Are you getting logs delivered? Then maybe:

Since I do mostly cleanup I put in a heavy-duty bar oiler and longer bar so the saw reaches...and I use different saws for different jobs (basically the lightest saw that'll work).

The ground in Wisconsin is rarely flat, so on higher logs I cut a round to use as a jackstand and put it in a low spot so as I cut the tree it stays off the ground. I also carry a boy's axe instead of a hatchet and wedges, so when needed I cut about 2/3 of the log with the bar parallel with the ground and then wedge the top open on windfalls as to not pinch the bar (they're generally under twisty tension and go squirrley anyway). The boy's axe works instead of a full-size axe since I'm not usually wedging trees over.

If the tree isn't under windfall tension a trigger cut works great (though I still put a jack under and stay high):

If the log is low I cut with the bar vertical instead of horizontal so the saw can't pinch in many cases--that's quite handy.

 

[DeepWoods]

That’s an awesome setup.

How do you do handle larger logs with that setup and the B? (Do you have it milled for lumber, sell, winch em up, or simply don’t use?).

when it is time for me to move a large log and I’m at home using the B it doesn’t take long for me to miss the MX.

I have a cutting rack but I hope to build something like you have before long when we move to the other place we have up North. What’s the length of your deck? What make is your trailer?

I have my own sawmill, so any larger logs go to the mill for lumber, the tops get used for firewood. The firewood deck is 10 feet, and the trailer is a King Kutter hydraulic dump, with a 3000 pound capacity.

The largest log that I have lifted on my sawmill with my tractor was an 18 foot red pine that averaged 17 inches in diameter. Based on a log weight calculator it was over the lifting capacity of the tractor, but I lifted as much as I could with the loader, then curled the grapple back and drove up on some 2x8 boards to get it on my mill.