Help me manage my expectations for this tree puller, please

[teg]

...I've never ran across this problem you speak of...

Trust me, if it's Tree of Heaven... it's unlike any other tree in term of surviving (and being invasive). Here's your state and where the tree has been found:

View attachment 542910


More about it here: tree-of-heaven: Ailanthus altissima (Sapindales: Simaroubaceae): Invasive Plant Atlas of the United States

I've seen roots grow and sprout 100 yards away from the main area.

 

[Oldoak]

If you want to kill a any tree and it's entire root system, use a 1/2" spade drill bit or similar and drill several holes on a diagonal around the base of the tree. Drill the holes several inches deep. Then using a funnel, fill the holes with undiluted Round-Up (Glyphosate) concentrate. This only needs to be done one time and the tree will show signs of dying within a week or two. Only 4 holes around a 12" - 14" diameter tree is all that is necessary. A few more holes around larger diameter trees will do the trick.

I never found that method to harm any other trees or vegetation in the immediate area of the ones I wanted to kill.

 

[Tompet]

Tree of Heaven is a nasty tree for sure and grips the ground pretty tight. With it's rhizomes I would agree with teg and Oldoak. Kill it first. The best luck I have had is similar to their experience. When encountered I saw (or lop off if small) and any surrounding suckers and immediately cover fresh cuts by painting it with undiluted Roundup (depending on concentration, maybe a half and half mix of water and RU).

Once dead and dry it can be ripped or chopped out with much less effort if needed. Hitting a large green stump with an ax is more bounce than chop. It does seem to like to grow near buildings around here. Dealt with it at other locations, luckily never seen it on my property.

 

[Stupit]

Please help me understand how big a tree this tree puller will pull out of the ground. Yes, I know that will depend on a great many factors, including but not limited to: tractor size and power, tree species and age, wet or dry soil, etc. etc. etc. I have a ton of that crap Tree of Heaven (Alanthus Altisima) that I need to get rid of. Most of them are in the 2"-8" in size or so.

This tree puller implement is up for local sale. It appears to be a Titan Attachments tree/post puller, see pics and web site:

Titan site: Tree Fence Post Puller Skid Steer Attachment Quick Attach Bobcat Kubota Case

From TractorData. com, here are the specs for my FEL fo my Kubota L4330 tractor:

Loader type: Kubota LA853
Height (to pin): 113.6 inches [288 cm]
Clearance, dumped bucket: 89.8 inches [228 cm]
Dump reach: 20.1 inches [51 cm]
Dump angle: 45
Rollback angle: 40
Breakout force (lift): 3,125 lbs [1417 kg]
Lift to full height (at pin): 2,374 lbs [1076 kg]
Lift to full height (at 500mm): 1,764 lbs [800 kg]
Bucket capacity: 0.5 cu yd [0.4 cu m]
Bucket width: 72 inches [182 cm]


Thanks for your help!

I just bought this exact setup last week. I have mostly sandy and rocky soil in New Hampshire. I bought it specifically to thin out my woods. I have hundreds and hundreds of evergreen saplings that need to be moved. My Mahindra 2538 pulls everything up to 5" out like butter. I've found that if a tree is stubborn, just clamping the jaws on it and rocking it will loosen it up enough to at least be able to drag it out if you can't lift it directly up. Regardless, it beats the heck out of getting on and of the tractor with a chain. I'd recommend it. Look at post #185 here. http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/mahindra-owning-operating/377997-what-did-you-do-your-19.html

 

[FTG-05]

l have a very similar tractor/loader combination(L4240/854).I have spent ten years clearing our over-grown property;manual cutting,hiring large Ag Tractors with big bush-hogs,building a tree shear ect.
Best thing I did was to hire a Skid Steer with a forestry head;he did more in four days than I did in ten years;plus no brush piles.Expensive but finally done.
On the post puller;I would be very concerned with pulling larger trees and them being top heavy and flopping your tractor over(if you were able to pull them at all).

I did that last summer. Was supposed to be for 8 hours of work, but he only got 4 hours due to maintenance and equipment breakdown issues.

Total bust on getting rid of it all, especially the stumps/pungi stakes due to all the rocks we have around here. His forestry head was slinging and throwing rocks like you wouldn't believe. That limited how deep he could go (i.e. none) and that left me with a bunch of pungi stakes. So now everything I go over the area to bushhog it down I risk cutting a tire.

 

[FTG-05]

Depending on how close the trees are, you could cut each tree with a saw at about 3' dropping it on the ground. Then use the 'puller' to remove the short stalk and root ball. This way you don't risk the bigger trees falling back toward the tractor and you can use the puller to bring the tree to a place to burn or cut into smaller pieces, safely..
I have a Titan tree shear, and it is a powerful tool. It has a 5" diameter cylinder to close it's jaw and cut up to 12" trees, but it needs to be carefully positioned, and wind has to be taken into account, as well as topography to make sure nothing comes back at the operator/tractor. Having a canopy and tilting the shear away from the tractor helps protect the OP, but things can get away from one quickly...

What is the seller asking for the puller and why is he selling it?

Also, if you buy it, put any tree you're pulling as close to the back of the jaw/upright, (fence) as possible to give the most control over the tree you're pulling, and give a downward tilt to the front of the jaw - away from the tractor to provide control over which way the tree leans. Test out the open/close time so you know in advance the recovery time- in case you need to let a tree fall away from you/your tractor as needed.

Uh, how about a big fat "NO!" on that. I'm +62, broken back with shot knees, walking around trying to cut down hundreds of trees ain't gonna be happening! If it was, I'd already done it.

The seller was asking $675 for it and I believe he is a regular farm equipment seller on Craigslist. I called him and he's already sold it but he may have another in a couple weeks or so. That's OK, I'm not in any hurry.

 

[FTG-05]

I built a puller. Next to the Grapple, it's most used FEL tool. Wouldn't be without one. A new one locally built here can be bought for $1200.

Here's an example on my old L4400 Kubota.

View attachment 542877

I built it to also be used on 3pt. Would be very easy to add that modification to the one you pictured.

View attachment 542878

Ok, good to know. It appears your L4400 FEL is very similar to my L4330 FEL.

And you're right, I can always modify it to work off the 3ph.

Thanks!

 

[FTG-05]

Ok, Been here and done it (...and learned a thing or two) If I were to do it again, I would KILL the tree first, paint a 50/50 mix of Garlon4 and diesel on the trunk of the trees. Do it a few times during the year for the first year. Kill what comes up the next year and hopefully you might control them.

What happen to me is that I had a 6 ton trackhoe (friend rented for the week and he had some extra time on it). Took care of the job of ripping out the trees in no time. Pulled the tree up by the roots... no problem. WRONG, Tree of Heaven (From Hell) sprouted all over the place. Each rootlet decided to become a new tree... you would be hard pressed to win this battle. I had to spray a bunch for the next 6 years before I decided, they were all gone. Kill them before the tree knows that you are at war with them!!!

Believe me when I say that... Ripping them out of the ground will just pizz them off...

See my previous post. If walking around and drilling/spraying worked, I would've laready done it. It does work, don't get me wrong: I'm simply not physically capable of wakling around and killing hundreds of trees.

I can however, operate a tractor and puller (coupled with bushhogging them later to keep them down).

 

[FTG-05]

With such a variety of locations and tree species this might not be correct guidance. I've pulled thousands of trees. I've never ran across this problem you speak of. Generally the machinery running the puller is limited on what size tree it can pull. In the 6" and down category there won't be enough roots left to allow regrowth. Speaking strictly in Missouri.

teg is exactly right about ToH: It grows and expands by both seedlings and rootings. And it also reacts very aggressively against being attacked or killed.

The plan here is to uproot as many as I can, then bushhog the now cleared area to keep them from coming back up. After a couple cuttings, they will finally die out due to exhaustion.

 

[FTG-05]

I just bought this exact setup last week. I have mostly sandy and rocky soil in New Hampshire. I bought it specifically to thin out my woods. I have hundreds and hundreds of evergreen saplings that need to be moved. My Mahindra 2538 pulls everything up to 5" out like butter. I've found that if a tree is stubborn, just clamping the jaws on it and rocking it will loosen it up enough to at least be able to drag it out if you can't lift it directly up. Regardless, it beats the heck out of getting on and of the tractor with a chain. I'd recommend it. Look at post #185 here. http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/mahindra-owning-operating/377997-what-did-you-do-your-19.html

Another outstanding post! Your 2538 is just slightly smaller than my L4330. The 2"-6" trees are what I'm targeting since they are too big for my bushhog and too many of them for me to walk around cutting/drilling/spraying them.

Thanks!

 

[Dave M7040]

This style of tree puller does not depend upon the lifting power of your FEL or 3 pt.

Tree Grapple / Post Puller - TJ12UN-TRK-BF

My tractor is a M7040 and in my area experimenting, using a helper and chain with no bucket so as to increase lifting power, the trees win.

This type of puller is on my wish list. Either by a new purchase or by modifying the type you are looking at with an additional cylinder.

Dave M7040

 

[teg]

...too many of them for me to walk around cutting/drilling/spraying them...

It's pretty simple, using a paint brush, coating the trunk is too much to do?

I would try and find a kid who wants to earn some spending cash! (Wait... that would take WAY too long...)

 

[Oldoak]

It's pretty simple, using a paint brush, coating the trunk is too much to do?

I would try and find a kid who wants to earn some spending cash! (Wait... that would take WAY too long...)

Isn't that the truth! :thumbsup:

On top of that, all I hear today is "how hard they have it". :laughing:

 

[ovrszd]

Trust me, if it's Tree of Heaven... it's unlike any other tree in term of surviving (and being invasive). Here's your state and where the tree has been found:

View attachment 542910


More about it here: tree-of-heaven: Ailanthus altissima (Sapindales: Simaroubaceae): Invasive Plant Atlas of the United States

I've seen roots grow and sprout 100 yards away from the main area.

Here Honey Locust are similar. But they won't go 100yds. 100ft frequently. But again, it's dependent on how they are removed.

 

[dsb5610]

I built a tree puller for my Toolcat with the intension of clearing trees from 30+ acres. I pulled a number of them and initially thought it would be a good solution however some broke off and nearly all left the area tore up making it rough to mow. I ended up cutting them flush with a chainsaw or cordless reciprocating saw and treated the stumps. Took me 3 or 4 years working on it when I could.

If I had to do it again I would look into one of the 3 point PTO powered saws. Cut them down with the saw on the back and carry them away with the grapple on the front.

I added a 2" receiver to my puller so it still gets used for moving stuff around and it is the go to attachment for removing posts from a fence line.

dsb

 

[4570Man]

Tap root trees usually pull out pretty clean in my experience. The trees that don't have a tap root make a way bigger mess. My puller will cut trees 3/4" diameter and smaller if you're not careful. Trees bigger than that hardly ever break.

 

[Grandad4]

Can't add much to what others say and I have no experience with such a tree puller, but I had very close to the same tractor and loader for many years and handled many trees of various sizes with it. If you just grab a tree with that thing, expect you'd have to work it back and forth to get it loose enough to pull out. You'll be exposed to whatever might fall out of the tree while doing that (dead limbs, etc.). For that reason and particularly with the larger ones, I would just push over the tree first before grabbing hold of it with the puller.

In your situation, that might be a pretty effective way to deal with your trees with the equipment you have at hand and without being on the ground and up/down off the tractor all the time. I would sure give it a try.

I would also recommend all the rear ballast you can lay your hands on to maximize your prying and pushing power.

 

[FTG-05]

Can't add much to what others say and I have no experience with such a tree puller, but I had very close to the same tractor and loader for many years and handled many trees of various sizes with it. If you just grab a tree with that thing, expect you'd have to work it back and forth to get it loose enough to pull out. You'll be exposed to whatever might fall out of the tree while doing that (dead limbs, etc.). For that reason and particularly with the larger ones, I would just push over the tree first before grabbing hold of it with the puller.

In your situation, that might be a pretty effective way to deal with your trees with the equipment you have at hand and without being on the ground and up/down off the tractor all the time. I would sure give it a try.

I would also recommend all the rear ballast you can lay your hands on to maximize your prying and pushing power.

Good stuff! Glad you mentioned that last statement. I'll make sure to do that.

Thanks!

 

[CobyRupert]

If I had to do it again I would look into one of the 3 point PTO powered saws. Cut them down with the saw on the back and carry them away with the grapple on the front.

dsb

A what?
I had to look this up. Like one of these? Iowa Farm Equipment -- Dougherty TR32 Tractor 3 Point Turbo Tree Saw

Interesting device. Maybe limited on what shrubs (versus trees) one can use it on?

Edit: Maybe not, some of their other videos show it, or front mounted skid steer version, taking out more sizable trees. A few of the trees fall back on the skid steer. That's not good. You know eventually you're going to take on a tree that's too big, either drop it on yourself, or hang up the blade 1/2 way through it.

 

[mark02tj]

I have one of these mounted on the front of my Deere 3520. It's a bit much for it, but it does a pretty decent job. The limitations are due to the size of the tractor and FEL, not due to the device itself. Your Kubota is a bit bigger than my Deere, so you'll experience less of the limiting factors. I use mine primarily for pulling up honeysuckle and dead ash trees.

As others have mentioned.... Expect to rock back and forth to break the trees loose. Even a "small" tree can get a bit stubborn. Also, be VERY AWARE of what my come down out of that tree when you're shaking it. It's pretty scary to have stuff come down on you!! I now wear a forestry helmet with a face guard when I'm using my puller. I also keep the ROPS raised. Also, with my dead ash trees, I generally try to cut them down to 3' or 4' now as that minimizes the amount of stuff coming down on me.

Also mentioned was the use of copious amounts of ballast. I'll second this suggestion. Without ballast expect to have your rear end come up on a regular basis.

One of the reasons I went with the Notch Tree Puller was the fact that the pulling point is centered on the puller rather than being offset to one side. I wanted to minimize the chances of tweaking my FEL frame.