Skidding logs

[EddieWalker]

I found that keeping it simple works the best. Attach a chain to your draw bar and wrap it around the log works as well as anything, and better then most ideas. Tongs really created more work for me and I hated them except the few times that they did a good job, but that was rare.

Sometimes I have to cut the log in half to get it light enough to drag, but other then that, it's a fool proof, always works, method.

Get a good chain and you will never regret what you paid for it.

Eddie

 

[s219]

I found that keeping it simple works the best. Attach a chain to your draw bar and wrap it around the log works as well as anything, and better then most ideas.

I agree, that is the simplest and best, but it has two downsides -- one being that the front butt of the log will tear up the ground and hang up on stuff, and the second being that you'll get dirt on the bark. So that's where elevating the front butt with the 3-point is helpful. It's not an issue if you're just skidding a log here and there, but for many logs, it becomes real important.

I'll be skidding 40-60 logs soon, and it will be important to keep them off the ground so that I don't tear up the trail any more than I have to. And then later on, when bucking up rounds, having clean logs will make a big difference. It doesn't take but one contact with dirt to dull a chain, and when we're talking hundreds of cuts, sharpening becomes a big factor.

 

[Arky217]

Get or make a log arch.

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[studor]

What are you using the logs for? If it is firewood I just buck them into lengths I can pick up with the loader and a set of tongs -- no dirt, no worries about catching them on stumps etc and no dirt on the pieces I have to cut up to dull chains. If they are going to be used for lumber and I want to leave them as long as possible then I chain them to a curved piece of 1/4 plate and skid them out on the hooks I have by the drawbar mount. While I would love a log arch or skidding winch I can't justify it for the amount I do. When I have a lot or they are really in deep I ask my neighbour to do it with his horses -- much gentler on the woodlot. JMHO

 

[Short Game]

I'll use the FEL to work a log out of a position where I can't drag the log into the open. I will use the FEL lift to gain a few feet, set the end of the log back down, back out the slack, and reset for the next lift. This keeps the log more off the ground and gets it clear of stumps and such. I do not use the tractor drive to move logs backwards, as this puts the strain on the front axle which is not made for such work and can break if the real wheels lose traction. It is essential to keep all lifting force in line with, and in front of, the tractor, as only a small force can tip you if you get sideways to the lift.

I prefer to get my trees from the edge of the woods, but I can't get them all there. Lot's of issues with felling and skidding come up when in the woods. Between hanging trees up and flying branches, extreme caution is a good idea. Sometimes I will just leave a piece of log when it's not worth dealing with the complications.

 

[Tollster]

I broke down and got this on ebay for 99.00. Hope it was a good choice,if not I may be able to build off it.
I thought I could lower either a chain or tongs right down on the log as the open area may give me some room for the stump, then tie off to the chassis for pulling.

NEW 3 POINT QUICK HITCH CATEGORY 1 FARM TRACTOR | eBay

 

[schweizer]

I think my earlier posts about skidding logs with the FEL was misinterpreted. See attached crude quick sketch:

 

[Baby Grand]

I think my earlier posts about skidding logs with the FEL was misinterpreted. See attached crude quick sketch:

Well, that's a horse of a different color. Using a snatch block to get a straight pull takes the side force tweekage risk on the FEL way down.

Still not my Plan A for reason Short Game describes. May work fine with a big, heavy tractor, but I won't do it with mine. Also, FEL wasn't designed for pulling, it was designed for pushing and lifting. As a designer, this throws up red flags whenever I think about doing it. Basically, I don't consider my tractor to be big enough to get away with it.

 

[s219]

I think my earlier posts about skidding logs with the FEL was misinterpreted. See attached crude quick sketch:

OK, as someone with pathetic art skills myself, I need to take this opportunity to make fun of your crude sketch. I've never seen a tractor made out of ink splotches before!

All kidding aside, this is a good example of how you can get creative to move logs out, and should not be overlooked. There are many many advantages to using pulley blocks, including redirecting the pull direction for safety and gaining a mechanical advantage. The latter is helpful on tractors where sometimes the limiting factor is traction.

I use this approach all the time to pull down hazard trees, in fact you can see a video here:

Hazard Tree Takedown with Tractor - YouTube

In the coming weeks, I need to buck up a big 16" Beech that fell over in Irene, and get the logs across a stream that is about 12' wide with banks that are 6' deep. There is no safe way to get the tractor anywhere near the site, so I know I will need to rig up some sort of cable/pulley arrangement for that, perhaps even going overhead like a yarder.

 

[Reg]

I wouldn't use the FEL that way. Pulling at any kind of angle and hanging up on a root could tweek it. May work fine with your machine, but not for everybody.

I don't know WHY, but your tag line ONLY JUST figured itself out in my feeble little mind.
Perhaps your username has always distracted me, I am of the ebony and ivory 88 key persuasion - but as an engineer the moment/couple relationship SHOULD HAVE been obvious earlier (-:

 

[Baby Grand]

I don't know WHY, but your tag line ONLY JUST figured itself out in my feeble little mind.
Perhaps your username has always distracted me, I am of the ebony and ivory 88 key persuasion - but as an engineer the moment/couple relationship SHOULD HAVE been obvious earlier (-:

My dad had a baby grand that he would plink away at whenever life got the better of him. He could hammer out some nice boogy-woogy, but it would drive my mom out of the house in a matter of minutes. After about a half hour, my sister and I would usually find something to do over at the neighbor's.

My L3240 is the smallest of the Grand Ls, so it's the baby Grand. And if life gets the better of me, there's no better cure than to go plink around the field on it.

The couple-moment quote is from a statics lecture. The prof was as dry as a box of hard tack and he said it without any meaning other than the physics meaning. I was dating a sweet gal and was kind of daydreaming about her during the lesson when he said it. I couldn't stop laughing, so he threw me out of class.

 

[Reg]

Why not just use chain hooks on the FEL and drive backwards? You can't do a wheelie then and you can lift the log easy enough. Has to be pretty big log to max out the FEL.

Just a few days ago I was pulling out logs from the hillside onto the road by using a choker on a 75' x 1/4" cable. I pulled at 90 deg to the log via a pulley attached to a tree on the opposite side of the road from the log. You don't want to pull in-line w/ a cable. If the cable breaks you could be sliced pretty good. Once the logs were on the road, it was easy to buck and split. (Actually, I did break the cable eventually, but we were hauling up a big tree that got caught on a stump. The 7500 lb tractor was no match for a 1/4" cable.)

Marcus

One could too do a (backwards front end) wheelie (-:
4WD required, with brain disengaged.

Speaking of disengaged brains;
Why would ANYONE pull on a chain or cable that could be broken ?

ALWAYS use cable or chain with WAY more strength than the available pulling force, or risk serious injury/death.
"Safety factor"

 

[pjbci]

I have been reading this thread along with some others and I am amazed at the complicated ways people can come up with to do the most simple and basic tasks. Ha.

 

[arrow]

I have been reading this thread along with some others and I am amazed at the complicated ways people can come up with to do the most simple and basic tasks. Ha.

Agreed but they are my most favorite kind of pictures and I can look at skidding and firewood making pictures all day long. I especially like yours Ken. This is the method I've used for almost 30 years and it has proven to be a safe, effective use for tractor stem skidding.

 

[jpm1]

I too have been reading this thread and agree totally with pjbci!
I don't want to sound like a 'mister know-it-all" but . . .skidding logs is not a rocket science. It is a common sense, manual labor job requiring a little thought first. #1 where are my chains , cable or may be rope? #2. Where is the tractor, and finally where do i want it? Yea i'm fortunate to have equipment to do this kinda work, i was basically raised this way so may be i have an advantage. Tractors are made for pullimg basically one way . . .Forward, thats why they mount the seat that way. If you go pulling with your front end loader dragging logs it will become an expensive ordeal. They are not made for this type of work.They are made for pushing, lifting and carrying.
I skidded with a farmall H for years, no 3pth, no fwd, no diff lock, just a chain, the tractor was never damaged, never broke anything and always got out a lot of wood each day. Dad always said, "don't make it more of a job than it is" Keep it simple, keep your self safe, keep it cheap! . . . John :thumbsup:

 

[woodlandfarms]

What about this?

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=...0oG4Bg&usg=AFQjCNGrPjwk3nPzPEd3LfMmbf2LMGPW9w

I personally use steel cable for skidding. I find cable much easier to work with but I also bundle 10 to 20 alders in a drag. Steel cable is easier to feed easier to handle and a lot lighter. But I work on slopes so.....

 

[schweizer]

re: sketch: Rorshach tractor blot?

We were using a Toyota Tacoma to pull at first, but that was just spinning its tires even in 4wd. The cable strength was much stronger than what the truck was able to pull. Using the tractor was much better. Cable is so much easier to use than chain for long lengths. Sure, if I was pulling right behind the tractor I'd use a chain. I'm also using a 7500 lb 45 hp tractor (incl backhoe & filled tires): it would be pretty hard to do a front wheelie if you keep the loader low, and the FEL on a tractor this size is big enough to handle a 12"-16" diameter log. OTOH, the cable now becomes the weak link, but the snatch-block takes away some of the danger factor. An advantage is that I have my eyes directed toward the work, unfortunately my partner didn't see the snag either. Just showing everyone another method...

That Montana Jack link was great! I'm going to look at those a little more. Thanks!

 

[Short Game]

I have been reading this thread along with some others and I am amazed at the complicated ways people can come up with to do the most simple and basic tasks. Ha.

Flat-landers!

 

[Short Game]

I was waiting for ol' Montana Jack to get spun around and dragged backwards down the hill. Downhill skidding on a little vehicle like a quad could be asking for trouble.


Here in the soaking wet hills of sunny SW Washington, stuff happens. Getting the tree on the ground where you want it, and getting it out of there, can frequently be quite challenging. Safe techniques for many situations have to be found. Expect the unexpected. Fifteen cords a year lets me get into a lot of learning experiences.

 

[Egon]

I was waiting for ol' Montana Jack to get spun around and dragged backwards down the hill. Downhill skidding on a little vehicle like a quad could be asking for trouble.


Here in the soaking wet hills of sunny SW Washington, stuff happens. Getting the tree on the ground where you want it, and getting it out of there, can frequently be quite challenging. Safe techniques for many situations have to be found. Expect the unexpected. Fifteen cords a year lets me get into a lot of learning experiences.

Gets kinda interesting when a towed log gets sideways, turns a too light tractor sideways and all wants to go downhill in a direction not chosen by the fellow sitting on the tractor!