short log skidding

[spencerhenry]

i have 70 acres of aspen that i am thinning. i am only taking the dead and downed trees. all the ones that i fell, i leave tree length or half tree length. the problem i have is that there are alot of short logs already on the ground. most all of it goes to firewood so the short lengths are usable. i use a cable skidder with 9 chokers. to the back of the property is about 3/8 of a mile. the skid road is too steep and rocky to get a truck into the woods. currently i hook up a couple of long ones and then hook up 2 or 3 bundles of short logs. it is not very efficient. anybody have a technique or tool for moving lots of 3' to 8' logs. trailer?

 

[JimL]

make the road better. Ive taken semis 5 miles+ back in the woods on roads i built with the skidder and my dozer

 

[Pacific]

You have to get the road in better shape to get a highway truck into the site or get a excavator (Trackhoe) with a hydraulic thumb or grapple. Then you get a 6x6 articulated truck to carry the wood out of the area they can travel over some pretty rough terrian. I wouldn't bother packing out any wood shorter than 8' lengths the anything shorter should be used for firewood.

If you want to get a highway truck into your site then spend the money on getting the road in decent shape.

 

[Husky372]

i would use my 4x4 truck. through logs in and go. just make sure to flush cut the stumps should be no problm.

 

[spencerhenry]

i could improve the road, but that is not only a big expense, but also something i dont want to do. i am only thinning the trees and trying to be low impact. it is my property and the last thing i want is a highway into the woods. a forwarder would be the perfect tool, but it is not a machine i currently own, nor one i can justify purchasing. the value of the wood is essentially zero. it only has value if i put the time into processing it. so further expenditure would serve only to thin my wallet. the most capable 4X4 truck i have owned (38" tires, lockers, flexible suspension, horsepower), would not make it into the woods, or at least not more than one or two times. did i mention i live in the mountains?

 

[treeman82]

What about making up a sled? Not sure what your abilities are for welding and carpentry, but that might be your best option.

 

[caryr]

 

[Pacific]

Is the wood worth hauling out ?

What are you getting paid for this wood ?

I know you are trying to selective log but you still have to build a fairly decent access road.

 

[Husky372]

spencer if you have the stumps cut short and there are no big rock in the way and the slash is cut down there should be no problm gettin a 4x4 truck in there. you must have babied the other truck of your becuase i've had truck in alot of place you would'nt think you can go until you do jmo. but i also like the 4 wheeler idea to.

 

[tawilson]

"currently i hook up a couple of long ones and then hook up 2 or 3 bundles of short logs. "
You said to the back of the property is only 3/8 of a mile. Sounds like you are doing ok the way you are without having a road. You must be able to get a pretty good pile out in a day.

 

[spencerhenry]

thanks for the responses. an atv would cost more than i have in my skidder. sure i could get a 4x4 truck into the woods, so if you want to offer up yours, id be glad to destroy it while hauling wood. i had a built truck in the woods years ago and had a hell of a time getting out of the woods,( with chains). being in the mountains, the ground is not flat, and not without rocky ledges. even if a pickup would work, which it will not, i dont have one except my 4 door long bed with 35"tires. not exactly a woods truck. i have cut and hauled alot of wood with a pickup. but that was in wisconsin, where you could drive anywhere the truck would fit.
i do get quite a bit of wood out of the woods in a day. i only work on it after work and on weekends. yesterday i made 6 loops. the frustrating part is that the skidder will pull 20 times the wood i put behind it, but with small trees and short logs that is just the way it is. almost all of the wood i remove, i sell as firewood. one out of 30 trees is usable for saw timber. most are under 12" dbh, and most are crooked. average height of a big one is 75' alot of what i am removing are only 30' with 9 chokers and crooked logs, it is a mess.
i can weld up anything i need. i was thinking about building a short log trailer to tow behind the skidder.

 

[tawilson]

I've been doing the same thing with a 4wd tractor, course now that mud season is here, I'm on to other things, such as cutting and splitting what I piled up. If you are only going 3/8 of a mile, by the time you load and unload the trailer, you might not be gaining much, timewise. What's with all the short logs, left over from a logging operation?

 

[Timberjackboy]

CHOKERS

well man put some more chokers on the skidder. I know some french men around here that run 24 chokers. Load that skidder right to the limit.