Looking for new Stump Grinder

we are testing out a Vermeer SC552 self propelled unit. I'm pretty happy with it so far. Figure out your budget and go from there. Be sure to demo it as well. a New stumper is a big investment.
 
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I used the vermeer 552 on a huge maple stump 84" with flare. It was a demo. Was impressed. Probably buy it next year. $65k.
 
We run a bandit 2900T, We started with a 2650 had some motor issues so we swapped for a 3 year old 2900... had motor issues with that vaporlocking so they offered to build us a brand new 2900T. We got the machine this month and hoping they have it figured out. Grinds like a beast and couldn't imagine downsizing to something that isn't as fast or powerful. Its kind of like sitting floor seats for a big sporting event.. if you don't plan on sitting in them the rest of your life don't even try it in the first place.. you will always say I wish I would have gotten the bigger one.
 
Wow, $65K. Back in the mid-80s, I built a stump grinder from scratch for around $700. It had a 52HP overhead cam engine from a Chevette (purchased complete with a broken cam shaft and no title for $100) coupled to a four-speed transmission locked in second gear. The cable-operated clutch was spring-loaded to disengage, and operated with a lever. A shortened driveshaft drove a boat trailer wheel/tire that was spring-loaded against the side of a 30" diameter cutter wheel with twenty-four Vermeer carbide teeth. The cutter wheel was made of three discs of 3/8" steel plate welded together and mounted on a mobile home axle/hub. The boat trailer tire could slip (and smoke) if the cutter wheel got bogged down.

All of that stuff was mounted on a cradle that could be tilted with a trailer tongue jack to control the depth of cut. That cradle was supported by another cradle that was connected to a telescoping tongue for towing. The second cradle could be moved 36" side-to-side on a mobile home axle and 36" fore and aft on the telescoping tongue with jack screws driven with bicycle pedals and chain wheels.

Hand cranking the grinder around provided a great workout while the sweet little Chevette engine and big ass cutter wheel turned the stumps into chips. I used it on several hundred stumps over a period of five years, most of them after Hurricane Hugo devastated the Charleston area in 1989, but all the hard use took its toll. I sold the worn-out grinder to the local scrap dealer after my wife nixed the idea of having it as yard art. Unfortunately my pictures of the beast got lost in the move to southwest Georgia.

What started out as an office bet among a couple of missile engineers (There's no way in hell you can build a working stump grinder for less than a thousand dollars!!) blossomed into a great design/welding/fabrication project. Showing it off in the parking lot at the missile base made it worth every penny spent and all the hard work. Being able to actually use it to do lots of favors and to make a few bucks was icing.
 
Winchman said:
Wow, $65K. Back in the mid-80s, I built a stump grinder from scratch for around $700. It had a 52HP overhead cam engine from a Chevette (purchased complete with a broken cam shaft and no title for $100) coupled to a four-speed transmission locked in second gear. The cable-operated clutch was spring-loaded to disengage, and operated with a lever. A shortened driveshaft drove a boat trailer wheel/tire that was spring-loaded against the side of a 30" diameter cutter wheel with twenty-four Vermeer carbide teeth. The cutter wheel was made of three discs of 3/8" steel plate welded together and mounted on a mobile home axle/hub. The boat trailer tire could slip (and smoke) if the cutter wheel got bogged down.

All of that stuff was mounted on a cradle that could be tilted with a trailer tongue jack to control the depth of cut. That cradle was supported by another cradle that was connected to a telescoping tongue for towing. The second cradle could be moved 36" side-to-side on a mobile home axle and 36" fore and aft on the telescoping tongue with jack screws driven with bicycle pedals and chain wheels.

Hand cranking the grinder around provided a great workout while the sweet little Chevette engine and big ass cutter wheel turned the stumps into chips. I used it on several hundred stumps over a period of five years, most of them after Hurricane Hugo devastated the Charleston area in 1989, but all the hard use took its toll. I sold the worn-out grinder to the local scrap dealer after my wife nixed the idea of having it as yard art. Unfortunately my pictures of the beast got lost in the move to southwest Georgia.

What started out as an office bet among a couple of missile engineers (There's no way in hell you can build a working stump grinder for less than a thousand dollars!!) blossomed into a great design/welding/fabrication project. Showing it off in the parking lot at the missile base made it worth every penny spent and all the hard work. Being able to actually use it to do lots of favors and to make a few bucks was icing.
Click to expand...
Wow, that sounds like quite the machine! And designed and built by a rocket scientist, no less! Too bad the pictures disappeared, it sounds like it would be interesting to see.
 
Daren Smith said:
We run a bandit 2900T, We started with a 2650 had some motor issues so we swapped for a 3 year old 2900... had motor issues with that vaporlocking so they offered to build us a brand new 2900T. We got the machine this month and hoping they have it figured out. Grinds like a beast and couldn't imagine downsizing to something that isn't as fast or powerful. Its kind of like sitting floor seats for a big sporting event.. if you don't plan on sitting in them the rest of your life don't even try it in the first place.. you will always say I wish I would have gotten the bigger one.
Click to expand...

I was also looking to go for the bigger one instead of starting small..
 
Winchman said:
Wow, $65K. Back in the mid-80s, I built a stump grinder from scratch for around $700. It had a 52HP overhead cam engine from a Chevette (purchased complete with a broken cam shaft and no title for $100) coupled to a four-speed transmission locked in second gear. The cable-operated clutch was spring-loaded to disengage, and operated with a lever. A shortened driveshaft drove a boat trailer wheel/tire that was spring-loaded against the side of a 30" diameter cutter wheel with twenty-four Vermeer carbide teeth. The cutter wheel was made of three discs of 3/8" steel plate welded together and mounted on a mobile home axle/hub. The boat trailer tire could slip (and smoke) if the cutter wheel got bogged down.

All of that stuff was mounted on a cradle that could be tilted with a trailer tongue jack to control the depth of cut. That cradle was supported by another cradle that was connected to a telescoping tongue for towing. The second cradle could be moved 36" side-to-side on a mobile home axle and 36" fore and aft on the telescoping tongue with jack screws driven with bicycle pedals and chain wheels.

Hand cranking the grinder around provided a great workout while the sweet little Chevette engine and big ass cutter wheel turned the stumps into chips. I used it on several hundred stumps over a period of five years, most of them after Hurricane Hugo devastated the Charleston area in 1989, but all the hard use took its toll. I sold the worn-out grinder to the local scrap dealer after my wife nixed the idea of having it as yard art. Unfortunately my pictures of the beast got lost in the move to southwest Georgia.

What started out as an office bet among a couple of missile engineers (There's no way in hell you can build a working stump grinder for less than a thousand dollars!!) blossomed into a great design/welding/fabrication project. Showing it off in the parking lot at the missile base made it worth every penny spent and all the hard work. Being able to actually use it to do lots of favors and to make a few bucks was icing.
Click to expand...

Wow! That's incredible.. I wish you could show some pictures. You have great skils right there. You can earn from it! Mind-Blowing!
 
I am in a similar boat. I demoed the Rayco rg55 today. It is a savage. Ground a 4.5 foot (including flares) elm stump in 20 min. Very impressed! I don't like the Rayco teeth so I think lll switch them to something else but other than that it was a good machine. 47k with the remote since you want to know. 20200220_122856.webp
 
Just demoed a Vermeer SC552 today. Very impressed to say the least. Did 23 stumps today at 5 different jobs. I have used a few smaller units before and a demoed a new SC70 ($80k) last fall. The 552 seems like a good middle of the road machine. Lots of power but not super expensive if your not doing massive stumps every day.
 
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