Steep slope harvester

[treeslayer2003]

Did you ruin any wood when you were learning the limits of yourself and your gear? Heck, I still kick my own arse when I ruin wood, which is often, I'm afraid. I am just thinking if they were experienced and still screwing it up, might be worth putting someone else in control of the multi hundy thou dollar equipment, but if they learnt a lesson they won't repeat in a hurry, then maybe the ruined wood was a price worth paying.

they weren't newbs, they didn't care.......to them it was just somthing to slow them down.

 

[treeslayer2003]

The big stuff is still cut by hand. There just isn't as much of it as there used to be. A lot of what a faller does now is cutting what a machine can't handle or get to. With the advances in machinery and technology that gap is narrowing all the time. There doesn't seem to be a lot of younger guys wanting to be fallers any more...not if they've been around the industry at all and understand the trends. A young guy starting out right now probably won't be able to make a full career as a faller unless he's extremely well connected and has a lot of luck. Right now there are always more fallers...dependable, experienced and skillful...than there are jobs. I don't see that ever changing.
I work mostly with one major timber company and they're heavily into plantation style reprod with a short cutting cycle. That makes for smaller timber and opens the door to mechanization.
I've seen jobs where you couldn't hardly find a choker or a chainsaw anywhere...just a lot of big machinery. I didn't care much for it.

i don't like it niether......in fact, i'd say it is the worst thing that ever happened to the woods, at least around here. now whats happened localy is there is only one major pine mill now so they control the price. pulp is the same and not worth hauling.
if the grade hardwood and tie markets go, its all over.

 

[KiwiBro]

they weren't newbs, they didn't care.......to them it was just somthing to slow them down.

Did they own and/or pay directly for the gear they were running and their time?

 

[treeslayer2003]

help i'm sure

 

[KiwiBro]

help i'm sure

Maybe I was brought up a little differently than most, but if I ever did something that was driven by neglect rather than a genuine mistake, I always expect to pay the costs of that. I had it taken out of my pocket money, then wages, then insurance deductibles, etc. A little thing called personal responsibility. Dad may have been a hard bastard but he was consistent.

That said, if someone I hired was costing me money through sheer neglect, they'd get the choice of paying the cost through deductions in their wages, or finding another job. If I couldn't employ people I trust, I'd do it myself or find another niche where I could be a sole operator self-employed, or go work for someone else. I'm not talking a mistake. We all make those and it's just something we have to budget/insure for.

 

[slowp]

The big stuff is still cut by hand. There just isn't as much of it as there used to be. A lot of what a faller does now is cutting what a machine can't handle or get to. With the advances in machinery and technology that gap is narrowing all the time. There doesn't seem to be a lot of younger guys wanting to be fallers any more...not if they've been around the industry at all and understand the trends. A young guy starting out right now probably won't be able to make a full career as a faller unless he's extremely well connected and has a lot of luck. Right now there are always more fallers...dependable, experienced and skillful...than there are jobs. I don't see that ever changing.
I work mostly with one major timber company and they're heavily into plantation style reprod with a short cutting cycle. That makes for smaller timber and opens the door to mechanization.
I've seen jobs where you couldn't hardly find a choker or a chainsaw anywhere...just a lot of big machinery. I didn't care much for it.

There may be a lot of "fallers" around but I've heard there is a shortage of good ones. One of our local guys is in the good category. He gets paid a bit more that most so commuting long distances to work for people who want him, pays off.

One lesson on steep ground for machinery is you might get those machines up on steep ground, but you mustn't reach out with them. You have to work close to the trees to keep from toppling over. A very experienced operator here told me that he learned the hard way. The self leveling cabs will also let you forget about the steepness of the ground and give a false sense of security. He learned that lesson also. He worked kind of like the eastern guys. He ran a processor around in the woods and cut to length.
They used a grapple cat for skidding.

Then there is the feller buncher. They do a good job, but they leave trees whole. That can lead to some scarred up leave trees during skidding in thinnings. I had problems with one outfit. The next sale they hand felled and did much better with the skidding.

 

[ChoppyChoppy]

How are you guys logging that a self levelling feller buncher is "new tech"? We had 2 for a while, sold the Timbco not long ago, needed about $25k of hydraulic work... leaked bad too (like 4-5 gals a day).
Have the Timberjack still. 8.3L Cummins powered, which sits down in the frame.
I'm not sure on the max slope, but I do know it has no trouble on hills that aren't very comfy to drive on with the skidders.

 

[Gologit]

There may be a lot of "fallers" around but I've heard there is a shortage of good ones.

Good point. There are still a lot of good fallers around but there are fewer every year that make a good living at it. Some of the best ones I know have left logging completely.
One thing about it, the faller's skills are more on display now than ever before. If a guy isn't any good it will show up quicker and get more attention.

 

[Skeans]

There may be a lot of "fallers" around but I've heard there is a shortage of good ones. One of our local guys is in the good category. He gets paid a bit more that most so commuting long distances to work for people who want him, pays off.

One lesson on steep ground for machinery is you might get those machines up on steep ground, but you mustn't reach out with them. You have to work close to the trees to keep from toppling over. A very experienced operator here told me that he learned the hard way. The self leveling cabs will also let you forget about the steepness of the ground and give a false sense of security. He learned that lesson also. He worked kind of like the eastern guys. He ran a processor around in the woods and cut to length.
They used a grapple cat for skidding.

Then there is the feller buncher. They do a good job, but they leave trees whole. That can lead to some scarred up leave trees during skidding in thinnings. I had problems with one outfit. The next sale they hand felled and did much better with the skidding.

An old post but they do make a fixed processor head there's a few here in the Pacific Northwest, mainly Fabtek 2000 that did up to 20" and then you'll see the quadco that could do up to a 24".

The biggest bonus is you have full control of the tree like a buncher and process 40' in the woods with ease. We have one of these heads working in NW Oregon if you're interested in seeing it.

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[Gologit]

An old post but they do make a fixed processor head there's a few here in the Pacific Northwest, mainly Fabtek 2000 that did up to 20" and then you'll see the quadco that could do up to a 24".

The biggest bonus is you have full control of the tree like a buncher and process 40' in the woods with ease. We have one of these heads working in NW Oregon if you're interested in seeing it.

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No thanks. I know they're the wave of the future and all that but I think I'll pass. That's nothing against you. A guy has to make a buck and I understand that. It's just that every time I see one of those damn things it reminds me how many guys it put out of a job.
Yeah, I'm old.

 

[Skeans]

No thanks. I know they're the wave of the future and all that but I think I'll pass. That's nothing against you. A guy has to make a buck and I understand that. It's just that every time I see one of those damn things it reminds me how many guys it put out of a job.
Yeah, I'm old. [emoji23]

It's all good, we mainly use it in 20 year old stands thinnings if it gets too large I still get to go fire up the saw and remember why I love being out on the ground so much.

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