Chipper Wood chipper information wanted

[topaz107]

Hi everybody!

Reading all the posts here, and the more I read, the more confused I get (I guess!!). I am living on a property over 5 acres. Previous owner cut a lot of trees (cedar and maples), and left most of it (except the big trunks) on the ground. I might try to use a chain saw and get rid of the 10" and above limbs, but I think I need a wood chipper for everything else under 10" diam. I am in a need to clean the entire surface, and prepare it for other use. I cannot burn anything here, as there is a restriction from the city, so the only option viable for me is chipping. Piles as big as a house, and many of them!

I do not know where to start in locating information about wood chippers, and how to choose one. I do not have a tractor, and maybe I might not need it, if I could find a wood chipper with self engine.

As for rental, this is not an option. I do not have enough time to really make use of the full day, and anyway, a professional already told me that for a complete cleanup with a wood chipper, it would take close to a month. So renting for a full month is prohibitive.

Any information/direction where to start, or what is your experience? I know that I would prefer a self-propel, with hydraulic feed, and able to handle up 9-10"diam. As price, maybe I can find 5 grands for this. Is this realistic?

Thanks a lot.
Julian
WA

 

[ronjhall]

Julian
A chipper that can do 10” wood that is not green may cost a lot more than $5000. Here is a thread that has information and links to different chippers.
Click Here
There are some chippers on Ebay that may fit your needs. Click Here.

 

[IDjunker]

I dont know what you are going to do with the property but cedar makes good fence post.

 

[art]

They do build what you are asking for, there is a problem. You don't value having that job done enough yet as a used one cost you about double what you want to spend.

 

[MajMac392]

Here's my two cents worth. I'm not sure what you mean by a self propelled chippper? Most I have seen or used either are towed or go on a tractor. I would say the most common are towed. So if you look for a chipper you will need to move it around from spot to spot with either a truck or tractor. I helped a guy clear my lot for building and he had a Morbark that would take I believe a 11 or 12" tree. I did most of the grunt work feeding in the tops and branches, etc. One that size will turn trees into chips in almost seconds it seemed. We didn't chip anything that big that were good trees, all that went to a mill. The other thing is if you are planning on grinding up stumps and logs that have been laying on the ground they probably have lot of dirt, small rocks etc stuck to them. They will be heavier and the rocks and dirt will dull up the blades on the chipper. The town uses what you sound like you want that they dump whole stumps into but it is a semi-trailer mounted rig. Very big obviously. Let us know how it turns out.

 

[bigpete]

Did you mean "self-feeding" chipper?

Anyway, I have been piling up brush on my back 40 (well, 3 acres, really) for a few years and am in a similar situation. I am considering buying Bear Cat 5" PTO chipper/shredder with a blower. We're talking around $3,000 to $3,500 for something in that class. I will use 10 yards, or so, of the chips for trees and landscaping purposes every year (away from my house--termites, you know). If I ever get around to clearing any more land, I should be in pretty good shape for clean-up. I have no intention of getting into land clearing, logging, or commercial level of use so I cannot justify spending any more than this.

I will either turn the bigger logs into firewood or just allow someone to come in, cut it, and haul it away for free. I see many landowners doing just that--posting a classified ad stating "Free firewood, you cut and haul..." Plenty of folks who sell firewood see this as a freebie. Just make sure they sign a standard liability release before you let them on your land. If you have any valuable timber, don't sell yourself short. Call a board lumber operation to see if you can sell it.

 

[DIYGuy]

It will take a substantial chipper to handle 10" logs (Cross section ~78 Sq. In.) A 6" chipper (Cross section ~28 Sq. In.) will cost anywhere from $1800 (Chinese PTO 3pt.) to over $6000 (Towable name brand diesel standalone) I've never purchased a 10", but I have spent most of my weekends this past summer and fall cleaning up my forest with a 6".

For what you're wanting to do, a 6" chipper, plus a sign that reads "Free Firewood, you cut and haul", should get you cleaned up in about a year of part time weekends.

I think you'll find the cost of a 10" chipper to be over $10k for a well used one.

I bought one for my tractor because the cost of the chipper was cheaper than 4 weekends of rental.

DIYGuy (MarkS)

 

[bebster]

Unless they are really fussy, most people will take even as small as a 3" log for firewood. So if you give the firewood away, you'll be left to chip everything under 3". Now you're in the $1500 range for a chipper/shredder. You'll probably want one larger, but it's always better to have one with 5" capacity and just feed it 3" sticks since it will chew through them faster and you'll be done more quickly.

 

[bigpete]

Bebster, that's my philosophy. Kinda' like having a little extra HP at the PTO. It won't hurt and it won't go bad on you /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

I figure it's best to take what you want first and let them pick over the rest.

Here's the site of a chipper distributor in Oregon with a wide vaiety of makes and sizes. This might help with the original question and give some perspective on cost, make, options and size. I cannot justify the extra cost of a self-feed option, especially when I need the exercise anyway.

Enviro "Chipper" Industries

 

[johnno]

When I was looking at chippers last year an ok used 10" name brand chipper would go for around $10000. I demoed a Morbark 2400XL w/ grapple loader and a Vermeer BC2000 w/ grapple loader. Both these chippers can chip 20in but the Vermeer could go up to 24in in certain cases. The Vermeer was also built better and had better technology for their auto feed, plus the vermeer was put together cleaner, i.e.- no hanging wires or hydralic hoses. The Morbark was never running right during the demo even after the Morbark mechanic worked on it twice, it would keep stalling itself because the auto feed wasn't working right and it was also a poor machine, i.e.- wires hanging all over, no sheet metal covering over the parts, etc. Vermeer was also very helpful and gave us a one month demo, Morbark on the other hand only gave us a week. They were both in the same price range of $75,000. The biggest part of that was the option grapple which was about $25,000. In my case however the grapple was not an option because when I'm clearing in my subdivison and on my other land it is almost all total chipharvesting, I have plenty of firewood gathered from other places. So have have to beable to feed whole trees and so on. I don't think you need some thing this big however, I think you should look at the Vermeer brand, even though they aren't as popular as the Morbarks. And if you do go for something around 12", see if you can find one with a winch, anything to help you feed the chipper in invaluable, as you will find out. Hope this helps. /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif
John

My $.02