Skidding Firewood Logs with Pulley and Truck

[husqvarnaX]

I love cutting firewood in the forest and getting the most wood for my tags, where I live alot of people get to the best downed trees before me and my buddies can. So I've come up with a solution to get the harder to access. Most people only look on the uphill side of forest roads for wood since wood usually rolls easiest down hill. Anyways, I've come across sites with a ton of seasoned wood untouched.

First I climb a tree closest to the road set a CMI micro pulley with my spurs on using an eye sling set usually 15'-20' up the tree. This keeps the logs up in the air to prevent them from skidding into dirt, stump, other trees etc.. Using about 150' of 1/2" arbor plex I run one end through the pulley down to the seasoned piles of wood and the other end I wind around my hitch. My buddy sets the chokers and I drive forward until I see the trees coming up just feet from the road. Usually we can get a truck load of Cedar/ Oak 8' long poles in a few hours. I'd like to get an electric winch that I can plug into the back of my reciever but I dont know about the durability since we make mulitiple pulls.
I'll try to get some pictures posted here since wood season starts in 3 DAYS! Can't wait.

 

[savageactor7]

Hey that's pretty creative...a poor mans yarder. Good thinking husqvarna.

Edit I went to your profile to give you some rep for that wicked excellent solution ...but I couldn't figure it out, sorry. Well I figured it out after all.

 

[Low Key]

Anybody else have any ingenious ideas for easily bringing wood from the forest floors to the truck ? I'm always up for new ideas.......

 

[mdotis]

I have a 6 ton electric winch and battery. I have mounted the winch on a plate so I can hook up to a tree and then pull the tops to one location. I am cleaning up after some loggers so there are a lot of tops to pull. I pull to the edge of the field or logging road for easy access. I watch the winch very closely so it will not over heat. I make one pull buck up that tree. Then I hook up the next tree and pull it to the same place. The time it takes to buck up the first tree allows the winch to cool down for the second pull. It is slow but it saves a lot of labor. The 6 ton winch can really pull some big tops.

 

[treedogg]

husqvarna-i do the same thing and have never really wanted to move onto a winch 'cause i always bring a friend and it is always way faster.... i don't climb the tree as i would hate to wound any of the live ones. my set-up is a little burly-couple hundred feet of winch cable from a sno-cat(i used to be a skibum) and an big ol' block. i think the tow bar will probably be the first thing to rip apart. wrap it up and punch it!!

 

[Ohiowoodguy]

If you wanna skid logs- get a log skidder. Our 440B will bring out a (full) cord at a turn!:biggrinbounce2:

 

[Low Key]

If you wanna skid logs- get a log skidder. Our 440B will bring out a (full) cord at a turn!:biggrinbounce2:

The only thing is the gov don't want you on their property with one of those :biggrinbounce2:

 

[Metals406]

Anybody else have any ingenious ideas for easily bringing wood from the forest floors to the truck ? I'm always up for new ideas.......

Where are you at in NW Montana?

An improvised spar (like the OP did) is one of the good ways.

Another, is to setup a zip-line with a small improvised shotgun carriage.

Owning an old wrecker is a good option.

A double snatch setup can be productive. . .

 

[Low Key]

Where are you at in NW Montana?

An improvised spar (like the OP did) is one of the good ways.

Another, is to setup a zip-line with a small improvised shotgun carriage.

Owning an old wrecker is a good option.

A double snatch setup can be productive. . .

West of town in Kila..... Where you at ?

 

[Metals406]

West of town in Kila..... Where you at ?

I'm in Kila. LOL

 

[Low Key]

I'm in Kila. LOL

Haywire Gulch..... how bout you

 

[Metals406]

Haywire Gulch..... how bout you

Browns Meadow Rd.

That's too funny. . . You're the first Kilanite I've seen on here in 3 years. . . Other than myself of course.

I won't take the OP's thread anymore off topic. . . Sending you a PM.

 

[Ohiowoodguy]

The only thing is the gov don't want you on their property with one of those :biggrinbounce2:

Ouch.

 

[Iska3]

I love cutting firewood in the forest and getting the most wood for my tags, where I live alot of people get to the best downed trees before me and my buddies can. So I've come up with a solution to get the harder to access. Most people only look on the uphill side of forest roads for wood since wood usually rolls easiest down hill. Anyways, I've come across sites with a ton of seasoned wood untouched.

First I climb a tree closest to the road set a CMI micro pulley with my spurs on using an eye sling set usually 15'-20' up the tree. This keeps the logs up in the air to prevent them from skidding into dirt, stump, other trees etc.. Using about 150' of 1/2" arbor plex I run one end through the pulley down to the seasoned piles of wood and the other end I wind around my hitch. My buddy sets the chokers and I drive forward until I see the trees coming up just feet from the road. Usually we can get a truck load of Cedar/ Oak 8' long poles in a few hours. I'd like to get an electric winch that I can plug into the back of my reciever but I dont know about the durability since we make mulitiple pulls.
I'll try to get some pictures posted here since wood season starts in 3 DAYS! Can't wait.

Sounds like it should work. a good Mule would be good about now.

 

[treedogg]

thoughts on capstans

what kind of winch are you thinkin about using? since rope is being used has anyone tried using a smaller engine powered capstan instead of a cable style?

 

[wvlogger]

being the rigging genius i am o could set the stuff up to pull on side hills and even get it up high enough toload a truck. But this is not my thread. great method. I gotta say it really works. If you would set up a zip line and use a slackline yarder setup(could have that wrong) use a set of heavy come-a-longs like red devils to tighten your sky line the make a carrage of some sort(a pully with a eye might work) then a haulback and a good place to land them. I have used this method to get steel from over a hill. Hell if you have heavey enough rigging you could yard a car.