Skylining micro-chipper into forested work site...ideas.

southsoundtree

southsoundtree

Been here much more than a while
Location
Olympia, WA
Not sure on nomenclature.



Thoughts on wire rope or 5/8" stable braid as a skyline. If like to move the 450 pound chipper about 75' across the forest. Tall trees are around. Headed downhill to work site, then back up to the road at the end.



I could probably reduce the weight by 100 pounds by detaching the feed and discharge chutes which could be carried in.
 
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What's the weight of the machine?

Sounds like a fun challenge!

How are you going to work in mechanical advantage to get it back up hill? Or pull it with a truck or machine? I'd probably do a trial run somewhere you can get a truck down to first in case you cannot get it pulled back up.
 
Edited 450 pounds

I have a GRCS/ power drill and Simpsin capstan for winching, miniloader and truck for tensioning/ hauling.
 
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Might need some fancy multi-pullley cart-like specialty hardware as seen in skylining videos. Don't recall seeing any bigger home brew videos. Going steel cable would entail an entire set of associated hardware not to mention handle-a-bility. Catenary or droop angles can help manage system rope tensions. Backstay tall anchors ala gin pole.


edit - I tried but couldn't find a vid posted of guys rigging a behemoth tree down a hill side. pretty sure that's where I saw the cart. separate lift lower, traverse/move lines.
 
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Without knowing the terrain, 75' is a fairly short distance. A 50ton crane can reach 90' horizontal. Can you just have a crane on site? I'm assuming with the use of such a small chipper that the amount of debris could be chipped during the cranes minimum? Or just hoist the brush out and run it through a larger chipper?



If that's not an option I'd look into a cheap zipline pulley if you plan on this being a one off setup. No need for an expensive system for one down and up. Amazon has zipline trolleys at under $30
 
Bart_ said:
Might need some fancy multi-pullley cart-like specialty hardware as seen in skylining videos. Don't recall seeing any bigger home brew videos. Going steel cable would entail an entire set of associated hardware not to mention handle-a-bility. Catenary or droop angles can help manage system rope tensions. Backstay tall anchors ala gin pole.


edit - I tried but couldn't find a vid posted of guys rigging a behemoth tree down a hill side. pretty sure that's where I saw the cart. separate lift lower, traverse/move lines.
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A video comes to mind of the DMM hubs when they first came out. Possibly still in the prototype phase. The Keanu and a larger version (I forget the name)

That may be what your thinking of.
 
reeve is the magic word

not the huge tree but informative

on a physics note, if you're gonna run numbers, the reeve line does 1/4 turn, 1/2 turn then another 1/4 turn. I'd rough that in on a 1.2 tension ratio per 1/2 turn so 1.2x1.2 = 1.4 higher than expected drag from those pulleys - could matter when added to the haul tension to get 450lb machine going up the incline taking it out after.
 
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Muggs said:
From a post of his from Sep 2019, 3500lbs moved 250 ft through the woods. Million dollars worth of rigging hardware (adjusted for inflation) to create a multi-purchase reeve system.

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His wife told him, “You can only buy them if you need them. I don’t care what kind of crazy ideas you get. You can’t just buy shiny stuff because you think it’s cool and you have ‘plans’ for them.” So then he found the perfect job…
 
southsoundtree said:
Not sure on nomenclature.



Thoughts on wire rope or 5/8" stable braid as a skyline. If like to move the 450 pound chipper about 75' across the forest. Tall trees are around. Headed downhill to work site, then back up to the road at the end.



I could probably reduce the weight by 100 pounds by detaching the feed and discharge chutes which could be carried in.
Click to expand...
450 ain’t much. A English or Norwegian reeve with a GRCS is doable. But with what you have on hand I’d anchor to the truck with the main line. Vertical lift with the GRCS and line out with the capstan maybe line in with the truck winch.
In and out lines can be on the load itself, this helps a lot with twisting.

Consider static rope (kernmatle). Sumthin like 13mm htp or km111. Both about or under 2% at 10% with a MBs of around 10k

Not the best running on a GRCS
 
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A double becket pulley on a lower skyline paired to a single becket trolley on a parellel skyline above??? Less sag, lower rigging points, less leverage on the rigging trees...
 
Jehinten said:
Without knowing the terrain, 75' is a fairly short distance. A 50ton crane can reach 90' horizontal. Can you just have a crane on site? I'm assuming with the use of such a small chipper that the amount of debris could be chipped during the cranes minimum? Or just hoist the brush out and run it through a larger chipper?



If that's not an option I'd look into a cheap zipline pulley if you plan on this being a one off setup. No need for an expensive system for one down and up. Amazon has zipline trolleys at under $30
Click to expand...
This is native forest with trees overhanging the one lane road.

We could drag brush, skid brush piles, or high line brush.

This microchipper will be a versatile tool for a specific niche.

On this job, I can probably roll the chipper in. I found a route. Only native ferns getting roughed up a bit.

I specialize in tough access jobs and low-impact, so it is a matter of building capacity to do various work in various ways.


Cranes are great tools, but they need a bunch of space.
8 years or more ago, a 50t was $1300+ minimum port-to-port.
 
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