first time using a Bradco mulcher..... help.

[excav8ter]

Hey all. So I took on a clearing job of about 5 acres to start with and more coming at a later time. Most of it is 4"-8" Oaks, cherry, some Walnut and other junk trees. There is also a LOT of scrubby, bushy undergrowth. I am going to try a Bradco mulcher on a Taki TL140 tomorrow. I have never tried a mulcher head before, as most of my clearing jobs are strictly with my Kobelco SR135 and my thumb. I am excited about trying it, but nervous as well...... anyone have any tips for me? I am only expecting to chop up the under brush, which is actually a large part of the job.

Thanks.

 

[nwterex]

Picture of your machine?

 

[yellowdogsvc]

I couldn't tell from the way you worded it if you are avoiding the oaks, cherry's etc,. or mulching them with the underbrush.. my bad. I think the harder woods will do well if the teeth are in good condition but 5 acres of 6"+ trees is maxing that out. It will probably go slow if it's dense and slower if they want it to look good. I think the underbrush will go pretty quick and it should look pretty good with the bradco.
Make sure you have the lexan door. The bradco is low profile and debris can be kicked back. I liked it when I had an extended demo but thought it had too many teeth and felt like it got wrapped up a lot in stringy brush.

Since it's your first time, make sure your compartments are cleaned out/sealed up and keep your radiator clean. Take a fire extinguisher in the cab or motor compartment as a precaution.

Take your time and don't use the mulcher like a bulldozer and you should do fine. I had fun the first few times I mulched... now it's too much like work unless I'm mulching building debris. That's still fun!

 

[mulcherguy]

I would say first and foremost to have an experienced operator run through the safety considerations with you. Make sure you do not allow anyone to stand or walk directly behind the machine when you are working. If the head slows down too much it will grab and accelerate rails straight under the machine and out the back. Hopefully the dealer or seller will have someone that can give you a demonstration of technique before you start. Perhaps you could find a similar machine to yours working on Youtube?
Enjoy but be safe!

 

[excav8ter]

Well I just got back from my first mulcher experience. I avoided he trees and strictly too out the under brush, which is what I planned to do. It worked amazing! We buzzed through about 2 acres in a pretty short amount of time. Took out all the bushy underbrush and some 4" trees, mostly dead. Everything went as i had hoped. Kept the head just off the ground on the final pass to keep it out of the dirt and it did great. Only one problem..... when i started the mulcher, I heard a small ticking noise, not loud, but it was there. I was about 85% done, and taking done a 4" dead tree and all of a sudden it started banging. So i shut the machine down and checked it out. A tooth had torn loose! I didn't put it in the dirt, hit no rocks and there is no metal posts or pipe on the site. Looking at it closer, the tooth had been, apparently, broken and re-welded. Where the tooth sheared off, the metal was rusty. I called the company I demo ed it from, and he said no big deal....that happens. I still feel bad. But it did such a nice job that they want to add a lot more mulching to my list of things to do there.

The machine is a Takeuchi TL 240 with a Bradco mm60.

 

[excav8ter]

Also, I wasn't clear on how much I was going to mulch. I only wanted to mulch the under brush to make it easier to get at the bigger trees so I could get them cut down and put on the burn pile.....two acre or so is all I needed to mulch. Sorry if I wasn't clear.

 

[QwikDraw]

If looking to purchase go for a TL250..the TL240 is a little light on power for mulching. Decent for small material but if you're making a purchase you can never have enough horse power.

 

[excav8ter]

If looking to purchase go for a TL250..the TL240 is a little light on power for mulching. Decent for small material but if you're making a purchase you can never have enough horse power.

The dealer I work with said the same thing. The problem for me is that my Taki TL130 is the perfect size machine for me. I do mostly residential and small commercial excavation jobs. I do get into clearing occasionally too.

The TL140 is the biggest machine that I could get away with using. I don't want to own 2 machines, as i have no employees.

I think I will just rent as needed when a mulching opportunity comes my way.

The TL140 did do a good job running the Bradco MM 60 through the thick bushy under bush. I also took out some 4"-6" trees too. I believe they were cherry, oak and walnut. I only took down about 8 trees, but it did it quite well.