Skidding Winch on Subcompact Tractor

[Doug in SW IA]

I appreciated the input from all. But I have come to the conclusion that this site is a bunch of enablers . No one really had a reason to not buy a winch, some cautions, but more "go ahead and do it". So in that vein I have ordered my winch and it should be on its way in a day or two.

Thanks again,
Doug in SW IA

 

[KiwiBro]

pics or it didn't happen

 

[rwoods]

I appreciated the input from all. But I have come to the conclusion that this site is a bunch of enablers . No one really had a reason to not buy a winch, some cautions, but more "go ahead and do it". So in that vein I have ordered my winch and it should be on its way in a day or two.

Thanks again,
Doug in SW IA

Well, I will say it - you don’t need that winch. Just have them ship it on to me.

Hope it works well for you.

Ron

 

[Weesa20]

I had a similar dilemma since I have a MF GC2300 with FEL. I thought about the farmi 290 and the wallenstein hydraulic b/c of the low PTO power (19) and then I was worried about the weight of the winch hanging off the back plus the weight of the log. I have skidded before using just a boxblade.

In the end I bought a barely used MF 1736 and will be putting a winch on it. Good luck with your setup, just go slow and easy and stay on as flat of land as possible.

Weesy

 

[wej52]

I appreciated the input from all. But I have come to the conclusion that this site is a bunch of enablers . No one really had a reason to not buy a winch, some cautions, but more "go ahead and do it". So in that vein I have ordered my winch and it should be on its way in a day or two.

Thanks again,
Doug in SW IA

Doug you won't regret having the winch. It improves your work efficiency and safety a lot. But as others have said, GO SLOW and learn the limitations of your setup. There are many threads talking about proper use of a winch. Read them as they are helpful. The most important piece of advice is to pull in as straight a line with the tractor as possible. Good luck and enjoy the winch. So we enable you to work more effectively? Is there a problem with that? W Jones

 

[bowtechmadman]

I've been pulling logs with a "log/boom" pole on the 3pt hitch of my Kubota 3600. Neighbor logged off 900 tree's and I have full access to the tops, been cutting the tops then pulling out the left over logs with the boom pole. Fortunately, the woods is pretty open so allows me to get to the tree's w/o winching. I am careful not to overload and cause the tractor to flip over backwards. What other factors would be improved by a skidding winch b/c I've also been looking at them.

 

[Sawyer Rob]

Not to mention, a skidding winch is useful for all kinds of "other" things too!

It saved me from having to drag that deer about 50 yards, with much of it THICK tangled brush, by hand.

SR

 

[93green12v]

I would add buy a winch that doesn't way a ton. Use a FX90 on a smallish MF, tractor has the power to run the winch but the winch weighs 800 lbs or so. Need to keep that in mind because that limits you with how much you can drag and how much weight you need up front. Loader frames work perfect for counter weights.

 

[Doug in SW IA]

I did purchase the Farmi 290 for my Kubota BX24 and finally got a chance to put it to use. I had did a couple small pulls before the weather blocked the access to my woods. They went well and I was looking forward to putting it to use. There is a learning curve and I had to replace the cable due to my inattention. I had a hickory that snapped 20' up the trunk and was still attached. I hooked up and did some pull and release to see if I could get it to drop. The brake was not set right and I had a birds nest that took an angle grinder to cure. I only lost about 5 feet of cable, unfortunately it was in the middle. Lesson learned, and brake adjusted.

This week my son and son-in-law came to help me clear up some of the storm damage in my forest. The winch worked great. We got a lot of the storm fall moved to where I can work it up. The self releasing snatch block was essential in my woods. A lot of what I cleared out were large branches that split off. Some up to 18" across. I used four retaining wall blocks as ballast in my loader and that seem to work well.

My overall plan was to get all the ground contact wood worked up first, then the trees that are snapped but still standing and finally the ones that are still standing but severely damaged. I heat with wood so I have a use for all of it.

Some pictures:





As you can see the terrain is a little challenging.

Thanks all for the advice. I am now firmly in the camp that logging winches definitely have a place on my acreage. My uncle had an interesting take on winches. He said it is like a farmers combine, you may only use it a few weeks in the year, but when you need it nothing else will do.

Doug in SW IA