Mini Skid

[Knotguilty]

My loader has DPF issues. Was considering a miniskid with tree grapple to feed the chipper. I noticed many of the miniskids don't have power rotation with their grapple. I wonder what setup I should buy for chipper feeding.
Pictured is my existing set-up. I wonder if the mini would have better visibility and be more efficient at times.

thanks

 

[flushcut]

I have a Vermeer s800tx with a BMG grapple and would not even consider using a power rotation grapple as it is not needed and eats up lifting capacity. "Be like water" and flow with the machine a little practice and you will see what I mean.
I should also note the we almost exclusively feed the chipper with the mini. I can count on one hand how many jobs last year we hand fed the chipper and those jobs were tiny removals or prunes.

 

[Fivepoints]

No need on a mini skid for power rotate as flushcut stated. We have been feeding our chippers for years with a bmg. They work great. We have added a mini ex to our lineup. We have a power rotate grapple on it. It still works well for feeding the chipper.

 

[Chris Schultz]

I agree….. lack of power rotate can be overcome/adapted to fairly easily. I came from lots of hours running a full on logging skidder with power rotate grapple, which was amazing… I really missed having it at first but it is something I’ve overcome.

 

[Mick Dempsey]

You don’t need it (powered rotator)…….but it’s nice.
Flushcut has a great vid somewhere of feeding the chipper with a BMG knockabout.

 

[southsoundtree]

I don't think that the loss of lift height is worth the power rotation. I've very successfully fed my chipper (not optimally- shaped feed tray) with a BMG for 7 years.

 

[Mick Dempsey]

I don't think that the loss of lift height is worth the power rotation. I've very successfully fed my chipper (not optimally- shaped feed tray) with a BMG for 7 years.

Just because you have done it for 7 years doesn’t mean you wouldn’t have done it better with a rotator.
I’ve used both, a skilled and patient operator on a knockabout can do some amazing things.
But a rotator is better, less effort to grab, easier to line the brush up to the hopper and you can stack and load wood neater.

It is better, is it worth the extra expense? that’s another question.

 

[southsoundtree]

I agree.

If I had an articulated loader, thereby having much more lift height, I would say it is a good thing. Losing about 6" of lift height is the real issue for me, not cost.




In the tight spaces and cross slopes that I work, in my micro- market within Olympia, a mini- skid works better than an articulated loader.

Having both machines would be the best.

 

[flushcut]

You don’t need it (powered rotator)…….but it’s nice.
Flushcut has a great vid somewhere of feeding the chipper with a BMG knockabout.

I think all those pics and videos are lost to an old hard drive.

 

[Fivepoints]

You don’t need it (powered rotator)…….but it’s nice.
Flushcut has a great vid somewhere of feeding the chipper with a BMG knockabout.

Having used both on a mini skid, Im going to have to completely disagree. Its not nice, its annoying. I drive a mini backwards mostly when dragging brush and feeding a chipper. Its very fluid to feed the chipper with a knockabout bmg. With the power one it wont free wheel as you turn. You have to stop, press the diverter button for the second aux function, rotate it as much as you think you'll need. Then you have to manuver more stuffing it in the chipper. If its not right, you have to do the diverter button thing again, etc. It's just awkward. The arms are also up a noticable but more when operating making it even more tippy.

 

[Mick Dempsey]

Having used both on a mini skid, Im going to have to completely disagree. Its not nice, its annoying. I drive a mini backwards mostly when dragging brush and feeding a chipper. Its very fluid to feed the chipper with a knockabout bmg. With the power one it wont free wheel as you turn. You have to stop, press the diverter button for the second aux function, rotate it as much as you think you'll need. Then you have to manuver more stuffing it in the chipper. If its not right, you have to do the diverter button thing again, etc. It's just awkward. The arms are also up a noticable but more when operating making it even more tippy.

That’s because you haven’t got the right buttons.
My rotator was like that till I got it plumbed in properly.
If you have an upgrade then you don’t need to use a diverter, You have one button to open and one to rotate, you just move your thumb from one to the other without looking.
With that you ‘help’ the rotator while your reversing.
I used a knockabout for many years, and took a great pride in my expertise.
But a rotator can do everything the knockabout can, and more.
They are bloody pricey though!

Edit

Thinking about it, if that’s not possible or poses a lot of problems to mount on a mini-skid (more plumbing and buttons) then yes I can see that a knockabout is better.

 

[Reach]

Thinking about it, if that’s not possible or poses a lot of problems to mount on a mini-skid (more plumbing and buttons) then yes I can see that a knockabout is better.

Many of the mini skidloaders only have one set of auxiliary hydraulics, and are not available with a second set, so it’s not possible to run a power rotator without a diverter valve. That would cure me from any interest in a power rotate.

On a bigger machine with multiple sets of remotes, and the controls set up to handle them, I’m sure the rotator would be a very nice feature to have.

 

[Mick Dempsey]

Many of the mini skidloaders only have one set of auxiliary hydraulics, and are not available with a second set, so it’s not possible to run a power rotator without a diverter valve. That would cure me from any interest in a power rotate.

On a bigger machine with multiple sets of remotes, and the controls set up to handle them, I’m sure the rotator would be a very nice feature to have.

Yes, the more I thought about it the more I realised I was looking at it from a articulated loader pov.