Ditch Witch SK650 general discussion

[colb]

Just figured I would start this up for a few of us with sk650 machines.

My initial question is what size chipper can I drag around with my sk650? I have a few upcoming jobs where I can use a small chipper and I need to know what to expect - if I'm on a hill, on the flat, etc. I'm planning to use my bmg to tow it, which will also be my first time. Any words of wisdom out there?

@Sfoppema
@Fivepoints

 

[Jehinten]

I'm running a different mini, but I do use the bmg towing adapter to move my woodchuck wc17. You can pull the chipper in just about any direction, when pushing the chipper try to stay as inline with the chipper as possible, trying to push while turning will stretch the holes on the adapter that the pin goes through. My adapter is starting to get pretty sloppy from the holes being wollard out.

 

[Fivepoints]

I've pulled my bc935 all over the place with my sk650. It struggles to move my 990xp. On relative flat pavement it doesn't have any trouble. Going across lumpy yards, not so much. My hitch thing is pretty bad by now. I really should make another one as mine is unusable.

 

[southsoundtree]

I've bought a dedicated hitch-plate for my Boxer, though have yet to use it. It will give me more control and lift capacity, as its closer radius to the COG, with less slop. I think this will make it less likely to want to flip the mini over backwards, as well, as my tongue weight is very, very light on my chipper, for some reason. If I'm offroading, I have to be careful about that.

I get by well with my bmg-hitch, but, especially with a pintle, there is more slop ...added to the round pipe of my bmg-hitch getting egged-out by the hitch pin over time. I pinch the hitch tube with the grapple, and tighten a bit during use, as the pressure bleeds off slightly.

If you are towing on a steep cross-slope, the trailer might drift downhill a bit, if bumpy. Steady wins the race.

 

[colb]

I've pulled my bc935 all over the place with my sk650. It struggles to move my 990xp. On relative flat pavement it doesn't have any trouble. Going across lumpy yards, not so much. My hitch thing is pretty bad by now. I really should make another one as mine is unusable.

Looks like the 990xp is 5500 lbs., and the bc935 is similar to the bandit 65xp at ~3000 lbs. That gives me a good idea for what to target.

 

[Fivepoints]

The factory spec on my 935 was around 4000 lbs. The 990xp was around 6000 lbs as mine is diesel.

We also use my sk650 to move our 16 ft utility trailer that we haul it on. Its really useful to be able to turn it around on older dead end streets. In our area older streets don't have a culdesac. Otherwise it sucks having to back out half a mile, etc.

 

[evo]

I've bought a dedicated hitch-plate for my Boxer, though have yet to use it. It will give me more control and lift capacity, as its closer radius to the COG, with less slop. I think this will make it less likely to want to flip the mini over backwards, as well, as my tongue weight is very, very light on my chipper, for some reason. If I'm offroading, I have to be careful about that.

I get by well with my bmg-hitch, but, especially with a pintle, there is more slop ...added to the round pipe of my bmg-hitch getting egged-out by the hitch pin over time. I pinch the hitch tube with the grapple, and tighten a bit during use, as the pressure bleeds off slightly.

If you are towing on a steep cross-slope, the trailer might drift downhill a bit, if bumpy. Steady wins the race.

Hitch plate is nice. My chipper has a easily extendable tongue weighing in at 3k. I rarely if ever use the hitch plate any more, if you get the practice in you can lift/curl and move to help pop the chipper when otherwise stuck.
Doesn’t work all the time, but I’ve managed some pretty steep grades

 

[Sfoppema]

My 200xp is 6500 pounds. The spot where the hitch adapter fits into my bmg is too f*$#'d up to take the hitch, so I just grab the end of the tongue with the grapple. You have to have it in the sweet spot to really make it work. On pavement I would say you could pretty much move it anywhere. Can't say I've ever tried it on steep terrain. If it's relatively flat on the grass, it'll move the chipper just fine. Hills can be tricky as you'll just start to spin out.

I've used the winch on the chipper in combination with the mini to move my chipper in hilly/wet terrain. Worked really well. Just put the winch line around a tree at the top of the hill, had a guy on the winch lever, and I aided/directed the chipper from the tongue with the mini It's not ideal, but it got a 6500 pound chipper up a grassy hill pretty damn quick.

 

[Sfoppema]

I would imagine that you could move a 3000 pound chipper around easily... Obviously push uphill and back down hill. If you tried to pull it up a hill you're not going anywhere. the good thing about the mini is you can turn the chipper completely around very easily. Or a trailer as fivepoints mentioned. Very convenient to be able to spin things around it small areas!

 

[Sfoppema]

Keep two chalk blocks handy if you're on any sort of hill. as mentioned, I don't have the correct hitch set up, so sometimes if I don't quite make it to where I'm trying to push, I need to back up, put the trailer down, and reset the mini. You want to push straight. If you're in a funky spot that might mean resetting a number of times, in which case you're going to want some blocks....

 

[Sfoppema]

In the spirit of sk650 general discussion, unrelated to chipper towing, does everyone have a scabbard on the hood of their machine? Kind of hard to see in the photo, but it's just what I had on my phone just now. You can keep a saw right on the machine, out of the way of the loader and out of the way of being run over. Also hard to see, but I had a bumper bar welded on the front most top of the hood to protect if you should accidentally drop a log in a way that the butt comes down on the hood. Very heavy duty and has saved a lot of damage I think. The scabbard is a must if you don't have it only takes a minute to put on....

 

[colb]

I'm having sudden power down while motoring across asphalt. My Ditch Witch mechanic suggests clamping the fuse holder down to grip the fuse better.

I've been having this issue over the course of the past year and had it fixed three times by two different shops. I'm not blaming the mechanics. They have a good track record. It appears to be something that is complicated to get under control, and perhaps a frequent repair unless I buy a new fuse holder, which might include another magical electrical box and the metal bracket assembly between them.

Here is a picture of the back of the fuse holder holder (get that? The holder that holds the holder?):

I'm supposed to stick a flathead screwdriver in there somewhere, but I'm not sure where. I look at the front business end of one fuse holder and cannot connect that with what I see in the back of the fuse holder holder. Any words of advise on fixing it now, or permanently fixing it? It took me about 30 minutes to get in there, so a "permanent" fix would be good.

 

[colb]

Just got off the phone with ditch witch and it seems to be a poor connection in the leftmost of these four relay boxes in the picture below:


I can thump it with a wrench and the unit powers off.

Here is the whole assembly for the fuses and relay boxes, for perspective:

The mechanic told me to spray dialectic grease in there for starters, and possibly zip tie it to keep it from moving. Good times...

 

[Pelorus]

I have to wiggle the relay on mine about half the time I try to start my 650. Or it doesn't crank over. (~1350 hours) Havent tried dielectric grease on relay contacts yet.

 

[Bucknut]

View attachment 62998

In the spirit of sk650 general discussion, unrelated to chipper towing, does everyone have a scabbard on the hood of their machine? Kind of hard to see in the photo, but it's just what I had on my phone just now. You can keep a saw right on the machine, out of the way of the loader and out of the way of being run over. The scabbard is a must if you don't have it only takes a minute to put on....

Looks like you are using the BMG, and it looks fairly new. Did it not come with scabbards attached?

 

[colb]

View attachment 62998

In the spirit of sk650 general discussion, unrelated to chipper towing, does everyone have a scabbard on the hood of their machine? Kind of hard to see in the photo, but it's just what I had on my phone just now. You can keep a saw right on the machine, out of the way of the loader and out of the way of being run over. Also hard to see, but I had a bumper bar welded on the front most top of the hood to protect if you should accidentally drop a log in a way that the butt comes down on the hood. Very heavy duty and has saved a lot of damage I think. The scabbard is a must if you don't have it only takes a minute to put on....

I'd like a close up of both of those. I have a grill made - just need to pick it up/have it sent. I'm always denting the front grille and the front of the hood

 

[Sfoppema]

The scabbard is directly in the center of the hood. It's white. I don't understand the scabbard design on the BMG. I would never want to have a saw there. In this photo you can also see the bumper on the front. The saw never interferes with any machine/loader function in this location.

 

[Sfoppema]

I have to wiggle the relay on mine about half the time I try to start my 650. Or it doesn't crank over. (~1350 hours) Havent tried dielectric grease on relay contacts yet.

I have the same issue. If you don't hear the relay click when you hit the glow plug button you have to wiggle the relay. Haven't looked into fixing it but it hasn't bothered me too much yet...

 

[colb]

I have the same issue. If you don't hear the relay click when you hit the glow plug button you have to wiggle the relay. Haven't looked into fixing it but it hasn't bothered me too much yet...

Glad I started this thread - I'm learning all kinds of minutiae that I never would have picked up on otherwise.

 

[Fivepoints]

I had to replace both of the large relays in the above picture. They are just standard automotive relays. Where they are mounted they get moisture in them and they eventually malfunction. Mine was causing my starter to spin randomly while operating the machine.