RidgeHiker
Gold Member
- Joined
- Mar 23, 2011
- Messages
- 390
- Location
- Upper California Mountains
- Tractor
- Kioti DK5010 with KL5510 Loader & 72" Bucket. Kawasaki Mule Pro MX SE with 66" snow plow.
Review of MacKissic Mighty Mac TPH185 PTO Shredder/Chipper. I am doing a fairly extensive review since there is not a lot out there on PTO shredder/chippers, particularly the MacKissic.
I purchased it new this summer. It is rated to shred up to 1.5” diameter through the shredder and chip up to 4.5” diameter through the chipper. I sold my newer Woodmaxx WM-8M chipper because I wanted the PTO shredder capacity. The Woodmaxx was a very good chipper. I also had a 338cc Champion self-powered chipper shredder but wanted substantially more shredding capacity which the MacKissic provided. Shredding is now so much faster! The Champion was also heavy and awkward to move around the property.
My land is predominantly forested with large conifers and some oaks. Each year they drop substantial amounts of needles, twigs, and branches. For a number of years I hauled large loads to the dump or burned which robbed the ground of the natural duff which acts as mulch as well as replenishing the soil. More recently I have been spreading the chips and shreds. They also provide a nice ground cover.
I am very pleased with the MacKissic. It is solidly built without excess complexity. After many hours use there has been no problems. The shredding capacity is way beyond the Champion. I have chipped over 3” trees without a problem though it is slower than the Woodmaxx and the infeed opening is not as large. This works fine since I generally use over 3” for firewood.
The MacKissic is not set up to use a full 3 point quick hitch but does work fine with Pat’s Easy Change system though the included shaft ended up being too short which I solved with a Double HH 23556 Extension Adapter . MacKissic normally stocks a longer PTO shaft but was unable to get them with the Covid supply issues.
The MacKissic does not have an upper discharge chute and discharges the chips onto the ground. I capture the debris with Shappell ice fishing type sleds. A JS1 on the side and a JSR Jet Sled Junior underneath. These slide fairly easily on the ground and makes it easy to distribute the chips. I use them a fair amount to haul debris and materials around as well. You can just discharge onto the ground but I found it inconvenient to have to stop and clear the buildup. If you want it to go directly into your trailer or pickup this is not for you.
The MacKissic comes with a 1.5” screen which the output exits through. There are two rows of openings, perhaps 4” wide by 1.5” tall. It did not mulch pine needles very much and frequently threw out elongated branch pieces. I replaced it with a ¾” round holes from MacKissic which worked much better. Perhaps even shredded finer than needed. The smaller holes did not slow the output much though my PTO HP is about 46. Not sure what it would be like with lower HP. They also had a 1.25” diameter round hole screen which I would like to try as well but the screens are expensive. If I were buying the shredder/chipper again I would probably see if I could get it with the 1.25” screen. Am not sure why they sell it with the 1.5” since I would think most people ordering a shredder/chipper would want the output to be more mulchy.
I also considered a Wallenstein BXM32 shredder chipper but it was about $1500 more expensive and had smaller chipping and shredding capacities. It did have a standard upper discharge chute.
It is useful to note that the MacKissic site dealer locater does not list many of their dealers. I found mine by contacting their west coast distributor.
Overall, I am very satisfied with the MacKissic and certainly recommend it.
I purchased it new this summer. It is rated to shred up to 1.5” diameter through the shredder and chip up to 4.5” diameter through the chipper. I sold my newer Woodmaxx WM-8M chipper because I wanted the PTO shredder capacity. The Woodmaxx was a very good chipper. I also had a 338cc Champion self-powered chipper shredder but wanted substantially more shredding capacity which the MacKissic provided. Shredding is now so much faster! The Champion was also heavy and awkward to move around the property.
My land is predominantly forested with large conifers and some oaks. Each year they drop substantial amounts of needles, twigs, and branches. For a number of years I hauled large loads to the dump or burned which robbed the ground of the natural duff which acts as mulch as well as replenishing the soil. More recently I have been spreading the chips and shreds. They also provide a nice ground cover.
I am very pleased with the MacKissic. It is solidly built without excess complexity. After many hours use there has been no problems. The shredding capacity is way beyond the Champion. I have chipped over 3” trees without a problem though it is slower than the Woodmaxx and the infeed opening is not as large. This works fine since I generally use over 3” for firewood.
The MacKissic is not set up to use a full 3 point quick hitch but does work fine with Pat’s Easy Change system though the included shaft ended up being too short which I solved with a Double HH 23556 Extension Adapter . MacKissic normally stocks a longer PTO shaft but was unable to get them with the Covid supply issues.
The MacKissic does not have an upper discharge chute and discharges the chips onto the ground. I capture the debris with Shappell ice fishing type sleds. A JS1 on the side and a JSR Jet Sled Junior underneath. These slide fairly easily on the ground and makes it easy to distribute the chips. I use them a fair amount to haul debris and materials around as well. You can just discharge onto the ground but I found it inconvenient to have to stop and clear the buildup. If you want it to go directly into your trailer or pickup this is not for you.
The MacKissic comes with a 1.5” screen which the output exits through. There are two rows of openings, perhaps 4” wide by 1.5” tall. It did not mulch pine needles very much and frequently threw out elongated branch pieces. I replaced it with a ¾” round holes from MacKissic which worked much better. Perhaps even shredded finer than needed. The smaller holes did not slow the output much though my PTO HP is about 46. Not sure what it would be like with lower HP. They also had a 1.25” diameter round hole screen which I would like to try as well but the screens are expensive. If I were buying the shredder/chipper again I would probably see if I could get it with the 1.25” screen. Am not sure why they sell it with the 1.5” since I would think most people ordering a shredder/chipper would want the output to be more mulchy.
I also considered a Wallenstein BXM32 shredder chipper but it was about $1500 more expensive and had smaller chipping and shredding capacities. It did have a standard upper discharge chute.
It is useful to note that the MacKissic site dealer locater does not list many of their dealers. I found mine by contacting their west coast distributor.
Overall, I am very satisfied with the MacKissic and certainly recommend it.
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