Large Stump Grinder

[Rooted.Tree.Solutions]

Our company is planning to purchase a new stump grinder. We are looking for something in the 65-80hp range. We’ve demoed the Vermeer SC70TX and the Bandit SG-75. Both seem decent. We are also looking at the Carlton SP7015 tracked unit and the Rayco RG-80. We haven’t been able to demo the Cartlon or Rayco yet. Just curious what your opinion might be on these units and some of the pros and cons. For example, of these 4 the Carlton is the only one that isn’t direct drive and still uses belts. Is that a pro or a con? Seems like a con in my opinion, but I’ve never worked with a direct drive unit before. Thanks for any feedback.

 

[Merle Nelson]

If you go Carlton you could have a remote control done by Autofeedpluis.com.

 

[Winchman]

http://www.autofeedplus.com/ works better

 

[VenasNursery]

Our company is planning to purchase a new stump grinder. We are looking for something in the 65-80hp range. We’ve demoed the Vermeer SC70TX and the Bandit SG-75. Both seem decent. We are also looking at the Carlton SP7015 tracked unit and the Rayco RG-80. We haven’t been able to demo the Cartlon or Rayco yet. Just curious what your opinion might be on these units and some of the pros and cons. For example, of these 4 the Carlton is the only one that isn’t direct drive and still uses belts. Is that a pro or a con? Seems like a con in my opinion, but I’ve never worked with a direct drive unit before. Thanks for any feedback.

I’d like to demo a rayco rg165 has anyone tried one yet?

 

[Rooted.Tree.Solutions]

If you go Carlton you could have a remote control done by Autofeedpluis.com.

we will get a remote control with whatever unit we settle on. My biggest concern with Carlton is that it is still a belt drive unit. In my opinion a direct drive would be better. Does anyone have any other thoughts on that?

 

[TreeCo]

Belt drive is proven technology and works extremely well. It is also less expensive. I think you are putting too much emphasis on belt drive. Take what salesmen and sales literature says with a grain of salt.

 

[Bucknut]

I have always thought of belt drive as a semi-sacrificial link so to speak. Sort of like a snowblower has sacrificial shear pins on the auger. If you have a guy who gets too aggressive, abuses the machine, hits a rock, stalls frequently, etc, the belt will wear faster and fail before any much more expensive drive components. The belts aren’t cheap ($300) but I bet the direct drive components are more.

 

[Reach]

I have personally run the Bandit, and I found it to be impressive. I like it’s power, which is pretty incredible, and the way Bandit deals with big cuts - it stops and starts the swing rather than just slowing it like Vermeer does. The only thing I don’t like about the Bandit is that the controls aren’t the most intuitive, but with a bit of time they’re learnable.

A friend of mind ran the Bandit and the RG-80 side by side and still bought the Bandit, as he says it has more features he liked, although the RG-80 did have more torque. It has a slower swing though, so the only way to use the torque is to take deep cuts.

 

[flushcut]

Tho the 165 has some impressive numbers.

 

[96coal449]

It has a slower swing though, so the only way to use the torque is to take deep cuts.

This ^^^^
Two fold.
HP is speed. Torque is power.

 

[marne]

I would always prefer belts over hydraulics, even loader manufacturers state, that the loss in hydraulics is about 25-30%. All the time and fuel is lost to heat.
If something breaks, you have an insane mess and a freaking expensive bill. Belts and sheaves are peanuts compared.
But even more important is grinding depth and that is where carlton is still asleep.
It's not the grinding depth alone for the stump, it's more the pile if chips the grinder stands on, 5-10" built up like nothing and then you're left with the grinding depth of a home depot walk behind.

In that performance class, tracks are a must.

The downside really is, that with the options left, you're facing geardrives, which is imho the next stupid idea beside an oil heater. Hard shocks on gearboxes. No power loss but expensive to repair as well.
Most reasonable in long term would be a carlton with a dozer blade modified to lift the rear end of the machine for more depth on the head.

Now make your choice

 

[Rooted.Tree.Solutions]

We went with the Bandit SG-75. Super excited to get this unit dirty! Biggest selling points for us were:

1. Outstanding customer service from Bandit
2. Price Point: at just over $60,000, this unit is just as good as the Rayco ($85,000) or Carlton ($78,000) or Vermeer ($75,000)

We also went with the Reverse-S Wheel from Green Manufacturing instead of the New River Wheel. We demoed the New River wheel and just weren’t impressed. We have always been impressed with the products that we get from Green Manufacturing. I’ll try and post another update in a few months to share on how it’s performing. Thanks to everyone who provided feedback in this thread.

 

[Luzl78]

I would always prefer belts over hydraulics, even loader manufacturers state, that the loss in hydraulics is about 25-30%. All the time and fuel is lost to heat.
If something breaks, you have an insane mess and a freaking expensive bill. Belts and sheaves are peanuts compared.
But even more important is grinding depth and that is where carlton is still asleep.
It's not the grinding depth alone for the stump, it's more the pile if chips the grinder stands on, 5-10" built up like nothing and then you're left with the grinding depth of a home depot walk behind.

In that performance class, tracks are a must.

The downside really is, that with the options left, you're facing geardrives, which is imho the next stupid idea beside an oil heater. Hard shocks on gearboxes. No power loss but expensive to repair as well.
Most reasonable in long term would be a carlton with a dozer blade modified to lift the rear end of the machine for more depth on the head.

Now make your choice

My gear drive in my dinosaur Vermeer 752 tow behind is 20 years old and never been apart

 

[TreeCo]

My gear drive in my dinosaur Vermeer 752 tow behind is 20 years old and never been apart

Is Vermeer still selling gear drive stumpers?

 

[Luzl78]

Yes. Their new sc70 tracked backyard machine is gear driven

 

[Billtree27]

Our company is planning to purchase a new stump grinder. We are looking for something in the 65-80hp range. We’ve demoed the Vermeer SC70TX and the Bandit SG-75. Both seem decent. We are also looking at the Carlton SP7015 tracked unit and the Rayco RG-80. We haven’t been able to demo the Cartlon or Rayco yet. Just curious what your opinion might be on these units and some of the pros and cons. For example, of these 4 the Carlton is the only one that isn’t direct drive and still uses belts. Is that a pro or a con? Seems like a con in my opinion, but I’ve never worked with a direct drive unit before. Thanks for any feedback.

Rayco rg55 is an absolute beast,makes little work of big stumps

 

[Rooted.Tree.Solutions]

Rayco rg55 is an absolute beast,makes little work of big stumps

I totally agree. Rayco makes fantastic grinders that are practically bullet proof. Drawbacks for us were price point and Morbark’s service

 

[Winchman]

In that performance class, tracks are a must.

Just out of curiosity, what's the advantage of tracks over wheels? Does having 4WD with dual wheels even the score?

The RG37T without Command Cut is $1000 more that the RG37 with 4WD, dual wheels, and the CC option. Are the tracks that much better? (Price info from local AgPro dealer website)

 

[Reach]

Just out of curiosity, what's the advantage of tracks over wheels? Does having 4WD with dual wheels even the score?

The RG37T without Command Cut is $1000 more that the RG37 with 4WD, dual wheels, and the CC option. Are the tracks that much better? (Price info from local AgPro dealer website)

Tracks give far more traction, especially when climbing the chip pile, or going up a steep hill in a lawn. When you stop driving and set up to grind, tracks tend to hold the machine still much better than tires, so less likely to bounce the cutter head and stall the machine than with tires. The 4x4 with dual wheels do decent, but cannot begin to compete with the traction or the stability of tracks, but the tires are nicer on lawns.

Tracks are also easier to narrow to fit through a small gate - no need to unbolt the duals and bolt them back on again.

 

[Rooted.Tree.Solutions]

Just out of curiosity, what's the advantage of tracks over wheels? Does having 4WD with dual wheels even the score?

The RG37T without Command Cut is $1000 more that the RG37 with 4WD, dual wheels, and the CC option. Are the tracks that much better? (Price info from local AgPro dealer website)

Tracks also have zero turn radius. It makes maneuvering around a stump much quicker.