skidding logs

[Bobrown14]

I use chain and sometimes back up with the chain attached to hooks on my bucket. Never pull anything attached to a tow ball on a draw bar. I have a very large shackle attached to my tow bar.

Backing up with a chain attached to the bucket can probably move 2-3 logs at a time. The bucket keeps the end of the logs off the ground for easier pull. Slow and steady gets the job done. Dont lift too high off the ground only enough to tow the logs easily.

I do this method a lot. We have a ton of dead ash trees that are full grown + 60' tall they very similar to red oak we have some of them down too but I'm not pulling them until the winter.

 

[Bob64]

For anyone interested just out of curiosity about how much a given log weighs I would refer you to this website - Wood Species - Moisture Content and Weight Several years ago I put a spreadsheet together when I was curios as to why I couldn't manhandle 16 inch long piece of an old sugar maple I had cut down. It was about 50"'s in diameter. Once I saw the results I got out my sledge hammer and wedges so I could make the pieces small enough to get them to my vertical splitter. Nothing like good old exercise and fresh air on the side of a Vermont mountain in the frosty days of November. That wood kept me warm more than once. I have attached a couple of screen shots of my spread sheet. Any questions feel free to message me however. Oh, by the way I now have a winch on the back of my tractor and have pulled out a good many logs. Bought it 2nd hand since I have been retired for over 17 years. Now wood I used to manhandle when I was young I now have to try to work smart even if this old brain doesn't want to.

 

[Mallard1]

We went out today and got quite a few. We ended up with 17 logs 9’6” and 7 logs 19’. Putting a short log in the forks or grapple and skidding another worked well. We just hooked the long tongs to the top hook on the quick hitch. The jd quick hitch top hook is welded on, the kubota quick hitch is adjustable and ended up breaking the bolts that hold in the top hook and bent that part of the attachment so that will have to be replaced with thicker metal.

We hauled all the logs out to a road and loaded onto a gooseneck trailer then drove down the road where we are having some pice cut and set them off with the loader. We will have them hauled off to the mill Monday. Looking forward to seeing how much it weighs. The largest log was 38” at the butt end.

 

[beenthere]

We had several oak trees blow over this year and block trails so now I need to move them out. I was thinking of building something but then I saw this picture using a quick hitch and tongs. I have tongs so I could do this for free. any reason why I should build/buy something rather than just do this?

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This setup works like a dream and is about as low cost as one can get without fabricating something.
For extra long hauls, throw a log chain around the log using the tongs to lift the log to get the chain underneath.

 

[beenthere]

Can someone explain to me how you use this style choker, I understand about the chain hook wrapping around log but fail to see how you attach choker to tractor to pull....

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Weld grab hooks onto your quick hitch to secure and pull on the chain.

 

[JONNY BOYYY]

We had several oak trees blow over this year and block trails so now I need to move them out. I was thinking of building something but then I saw this picture using a quick hitch and tongs. I have tongs so I could do this for free. any reason why I should build/buy something rather than just do this?

View attachment 821680

BECAUSE YOU OBVIOUSLY DONT KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING, HIRE IT DONE...BETTER THAT THAN TEARING UP YOUR TRACTOR...CHEAPER IN THE LONG RUN...

 

[Doz]

Sounds like a good way to go I tried pulling some out with my grapple it didn’t turn out very good bent the upper arms and had to straighten and beef up lots of wasted time and money

 

[jswann1975]

I skidded several dozen logs out of my woodlot this year with a pair of skidding tongs chained to a round bale hay spear on a MF165... Worked like a charm. Even just a log chain on a hay spear frame will work and you don't even need to buy the tongs... They just make it easier.

 

[nyone]

BECAUSE YOU OBVIOUSLY DONT KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING, HIRE IT DONE...BETTER THAT THAN TEARING UP YOUR TRACTOR...CHEAPER IN THE LONG RUN...

hire everything out so you can wash and wax your tractor that sits in its garage?

 

[WranglerX]

BECAUSE YOU OBVIOUSLY DONT KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING, HIRE IT DONE...BETTER THAT THAN TEARING UP YOUR TRACTOR...CHEAPER IN THE LONG RUN...

Hmmm..... Might be candidate for dumbest statement of the year.....