New Ponsee Scorpion...

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100 a cord? 20 a ton here. don't know bout that machine doob, but I bought my bell for cheap and it comes in handy for pine and saw timber. any thing under 25" and I can top with it to.
 
100 a cord? 20 a ton here. don't know bout that machine doob, but I bought my bell for cheap and it comes in handy for pine and saw timber. any thing under 25" and I can top with it to.
this is gonna be married to a yarder-limbing top logs and pulling the shoot clean. i Don't think a Bell would fit most typical yarder landing applications but thanks for the input. Gonna need to be a dangle head, just won't be able to buy into the newer stuff. Found an Kesla/Hyundai set up(about 15 yrs. old) finals are shot in carrier, though.
 
this is gonna be married to a yarder-limbing top logs and pulling the shoot clean. i Don't think a Bell would fit most typical yarder landing applications but thanks for the input. Gonna need to be a dangle head, just won't be able to buy into the newer stuff. Found an Kesla/Hyundai set up(about 15 yrs. old) finals are shot in carrier, though.

no I don't expect it would. you on steep ground then?
 
no I don't expect it would. you on steep ground then?

Yep- Am trying to piece together a crew and machines for some yellow pine and fir in eastern Montana. As soon as my knee heals that is!:bang: If everything doesn't go just right then i will have to wait till it is(next spring). and cutting till then ain't so bad either.
 
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To add to this. I may very well have to pull away with a skidder and buck w/a chainsaw. But, the only way i can compete is by acquiring a machine that was top of the line, say 10 yrs. ago; and build it up as the $$$ is earned. No silver linings here. It's all by slow and steady jerks- Although that Ponsee is really nice:msp_smile:
 
it's hard to compete with those that will "do it cheaper" and big mills. I been doin slow jerks for years, but I got no payments.

That's my angle on the competition. Most of them that are loggin' got the mindset that yarder logging is to hard so they won't try it or have already quit it. The mill i am working with has over 4 million ft. of line ground and can't seem to find anyone willing to yard it. Hope I get to try.:cool2::cheers:
 
A guy could pick up an old yarder for under 40k. Find a couple few good guys a shovel and line up a few trucks and make one Hel of a go at it... say a crew of 6-7 depending how the cutters are arranged. Just say'n...

I've managed to not be under contract with any mills (wouldn't even know how to get one) but if it meant I could go full time and still pay my bills on a reasonable schedule... I just might do it.:cheers:
 
Northmanlogging- You make it sound like its gonna came out of a pop up book w/ pixxee dust. LOL . :msp_smile: To find a willing crew is the toughest hurdle. Most all the kids nowadays are splittin' for the oil patch as soon as they are 18. Won't need to worry about trucks, the mill has self-loaders under contract. Have a Ts 8 to pull the wood away from the yarder. Oh! It's a 6.5 7.5 hr. drive to the wood. the mill is almost in the middle of that. It will take 4 decent hands or 5-6 if the crew has to be trained. We would most likely work 4 days on- three off. I will have to undoubtedly saw on at least one of those days to stay ahead. We are looking through whats available for yarders now. The better stuff(well maintained, not ness. age)is bringing top dollar. The ideal set-up for us is gonna be a skidder mount but i have been toyin' with the idea of mounting a tower on a front end loader like a 966-988 cat or a 644-748 JD. But that isn't practical for my $ situation. A decent tower would have to be stripped to build one. But It would make a very roadable yarder. It doesn't hurt to dream. But like i said earlier, all this has to be just right or i will just keep sawin' timber around here.
 
Its cause your in Montana, no good workers in Montana, just a bunch of sheep shaggers up there, look south to Wyoming...:msp_biggrin:

What about some of them little yarders like the Koller brand. They make one that is tractor mounted and most of em are remote control. Meaning less people on the landing or somthing...

And yes good equipment does pop out covered in pixie RUST...
 
Its cause your in Montana, no good workers in Montana, just a bunch of sheep shaggers up there, look south to Wyoming...:msp_biggrin:

What about some of them little yarders like the Koller brand. They make one that is tractor mounted and most of em are remote control. Meaning less people on the landing or somthing...

And yes good equipment does pop out covered in pixie RUST...

Funny on the sheep joke!:jester: I looked at the Koller towers and the two used ones that are were aavailable here in the U.S. both sold recently. Good idea though. One thing about the pto towers is the line speed is way slow. That would make me insane, i watched the travel speeds on some of these on you-tube and the choker setter could do most of the falling past 450-500', and that is only 2-3 trees per turn or one nice 2-logger. maybe I could go sheep loggin'- my gran dad would roll over!LMFAO:hmm3grin2orange:
 
Yeah the PTO stuff is all kinda slow... when your starting out at a max of 540 rpms it makes ramping it up to something a little better very difficult. My home built gyppo yarder was originally pto powered, its faster now and still very slow... (the skidder at very low almost stalling out idle has a faster line speed...)


The self powered rigs seem to have better line speed, they are still small compared to the average Skagit or Madill though.

I saw a good used Christy about a year ago for 7k on Clist... around a year ago... pretty sure I know the guy selling it or that bought it, when I saw it parked in his yard was about the time it stopped being listed?

I live by the motto of keep looking for it and eventually you will find the one that fits you and your budget. Took me 3-4 years to find a good skidder I could afford.
 
I hear ya. Like i said though, it will happen right or the whole thing will have to wait. I know i am one of the kings of spontaneous financial adventures and for some reason am not wanting to rush into this. It's time to walk down to that field, and not run.LOL. Only thing in a hurry is the wood. The majority of it is starting to die. most of the timber is decent, the loads should avg. 20-30 logs per 27-ton load avg. That's the other reason nothing very micro will work. The wood is heavy.We can take a butt log off in the brush but the limbs /tops go to the landing.
 
Scorpion looks pretty good if they keep the cost reasonable. In order to run a decent sized head you need to get the scorpion king though. I'm sure that runs up the cost a bunch more. According to their site it can carry an h7 head which is about the size you d want in our hardwoods. Sounds like the same engine pump combo as the ergo so not really any fuel savings over current models.

And what happens when the wishbone over the cab cracks up and the main is in your lap?

Never buy a first run model. Let others work the bugs out.
 
Thanks everybody including dooby!:msp_thumbsup: Its all good!:msp_thumbsup: Here in Finland we pay for the harvester in 2-3 years! About the 3rd year,we decide to trade for new one or keep & rebuild! These machines operate usually two 12hr shifts 7 days a week... Minus thaw time/spring time & breakdowns/service. It will be awhile before me or anyone gets in the seat in the near future! They are turning them out very slowly. Filling pre-orders first. I will post when hear of someone talking about it or if I get the chance to get in the seat! Thanks!
 
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Thanks everybody including dooby!:msp_thumbsup: Its all good!:msp_thumbsup: Here in Finland we pay for the harvester in 2-3 years! About the 3rd year,we decide to trade for new one or keep & rebuild! These machines operate usually two 12hr shifts 7 days a week... Minus thaw time/spring time & breakdowns/service. It will be awhile before me or anyone gets in the seat in the near future! They are turning them out very slowly. Filling pre-orders first. I will post when hear of someone talking about it or if I get the chance to get in the seat! Thanks!

That's a lot of use. Night logging used to popular in the N.W.USA but not so much now here in my area(Mt.) Didn't mean to jack your thread. I created a new one. Sorry I sounded a little gruff. How popular is yarder logging in Finland ?
 
That's a lot of use. Night logging used to popular in the N.W.USA but not so much now here in my area(Mt.) Didn't mean to jack your thread. I created a new one. Sorry I sounded a little gruff. How popular is yarder logging in Finland ?
Almost unheard of in Finland and Sweden, but poplar in Norway! Look at this- grapple t3 - YouTube Enjoy!
 

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