Homemade Logging Winch project finally started

[easygo]

After a long time waiting I finally got around to starting my logging winch project. I have been looking for a used logging winch for several years but they are very expensive if ever come up for sale. So. After seeing some PTO powered winches on Craig''s list I finally bought an old wrecker winch last winter. It has gear driven "in" and "out" and a freewheel option that is engaged or disengaged with a "forked dog" on the main shaft.


I decided to build it starting from a piece of steel plate as it will give me a large surface to mount the winch, drive shaft and eventually the mechanism for the control. I will put bracing on the bottom of the plate as well to prevent it from warping during welding as well as during use.

Here is the first picture with the winch positioned on the 3/8" steel plate. I made the mounting ears (or whatever they are called) out of 3/8" flat bar and the 3 point lower link connection is also 3/8" flat bar. Other then the large plate I had all the steel leftover from other projects. As you can tell some of it has been around the block a few times. But I love not having to pay for something if I can reuse old stuff. The frame that is above the winch just vaguely represents what it will look like, but it is not set in stone. I cut out a couple of pieces and then put it together like that and look at it to figure out the best way I can make the next thing happen. The two ugly looking pieces will probably be welded on the bottom of the plate to serve as bracing.

 

[easygo]

This picture is of the lower link connection and the mounting thingies for the winch.
I guess I better give the numbers on the winch as I would want to know if reading such post.

It was mounted on the old Holmes 440 wrecker bodies back in the 60's and early 70's. It is a 4ton (8000lbs) winch winch used to be a PTO drive (as mine) and later was sold with a hydraulic motor. I must say that it always makes me happy to read on the side of the winch Ernest Holmes Co. Chattanooga, Tn. It is OLD IRON and very heavy and I hope it works as I didn't have a way to test it under load.

 

[Rustyiron]

Hey Easy, I too would like to build one and have thought about using a pto winch. My concern was allways that it would be very slow (most of this type truck winches are) and I thought about running the power (pto) first through a small manual transmission (installed backwards) to speed up the winch and slow down your tractor rpm's. That then makes me wonder about how much speed the input of the winch can take, this would give you a very slow powered reverse, if I'm thinking right? It might just be easyier to use a chain and sprocket combination instead. Keep us posted!

 

[easygo]

Rustyiron, You are right that SLOW is the word to describe these because after all they were built to be very strong and very slow as to not to break vehicles into pieces. I found that most PTO winches have a 1000rpm max input speed and depending on their gearing their speed greatly varies. I hope to get about 30ft/min cable speed out of this one. That is about half of what the real logging winches' speed.

However it is a LOT FASTER then my current method:
walk out to the log with a rope, tie it and go back, tie to tractor, drive away, run out of room, untie from tractor, back up, tie to tractor again, drive forward .... and so on until the log is at the road. There can be snatch-blocks involved as well to spice things up and to have more thing to reposition.

Here are some more pix from the progress:
I cut out the plate that will hold the pillow blocks and the drive shaft. The old angle grinder worked well with a cutting disc.

I have a question about this. Do you guys think that 1/4 plate is enough to hold up those pillow blocks? It will be about 5" high and I will weld a piece of angle iron to the base plate and bolt the 1/4pillow block holders to that. Are these pillow blocks sturdy enough? The shaft is 1" diameter and will run #60 chain and sprockets.
I was given one 18tooth sprocket with the winch so I will use that for testing out actual pulling speed. I will have a 18t driver 12t driven for the first tests.

 

[Rio_Grande]

I will be watching this, I am wanting to do the same thing but i havent found a Winch yet.

 

[Rustyiron]

I'm guessing that the blue plate towards the camera will have the drive shaft attached to the shaft driving the sprocket behind it to drive the winch? I would "beef up" the plate closest to the drive shaft, even if it's something like the little bar that you have holding the plate up to stage the photo. The tractor driveshaft is not balanced but not a problem with a little "heft" there to absorb it and the other forces that will be on it.
You better get going on that winch, it might be handy after this storm on Sunday, it could be real nasty!

 

[easygo]

I'm shooting to finish the winch by late September or mid October. I usually cut my firewood around November so that gives me time for testing. I can't make up my mind if I want to bolt the blue plates to the base or just weld them. Welding would be far more simple and I could weld any bracing I wish. Any suggestions on which one I should do?

Rustyiron,
That storm does scare me and I sure hope it blows most of it's fury out before coming to far North. The western side of Maine is forecast to get about double the rain as the eastern side.

 

[MarkV]

Do you plan on a slip clutch or at least a shear bolt to protect the tractors PTO for when a log get snagged while pulling?

MarkV

 

[easygo]

Do you plan on a slip clutch or at least a shear bolt to protect the tractors PTO for when a log get snagged while pulling?

MarkV

Valid question, but I will not have either one. The winch has three positions. Power in / neutral / power out. There are return springs from both power in and power out positions to neutral. So my plan is that if the log gets hung up I just let go of the rope and it will stop pulling. I do not have first hand confirmation of the winch operating in such way but that is what the previous owner told me. I guess I will have to find out. The plan is that when I have all necessary pieces cut I will tack the minimum number of parts together to see if the winch is in fact operating as it supposed to. I have a couple of #40 sprockets and a piece of #40 chain I can hook up just to test it out. If it works properly then I will start welding things up and will buy the proper #60 sprockets, idler and chain. Those things alone will cost me another $120 or so.

 

[Rustyiron]

I bet ya that a good (big) 1/2" drill would operate the winch good enough for testing. Might save you some expermentation and give you some ideas or save some bucks?