Stump Grinder Advice

As with all equipment it is nice to have a reliable dealer nearby. Five stumps a month is nothing, maybe continue on contracting the work out.
 
If you're only doing a few stumps a week or month and have a mini, I would check out the 38 special. It's so easy to have with you if you're already there with the mini!

I think Daniel was selling his RG50 on here not that long ago.
 
ROYCE said:
Yes, any thoughts on that one? I grind about 5 stumps a month. I use a grinder more for digging holes for planting than anything else.
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The Vermeer 60tx is what I have. I love it, but I never used any of the other brands (except small rental units). In my opinion self propelled is a must.

Things I like about this machine: the cutter wheel is drive shared to the engine (direct power, no hydraulics), that it is wide and stable (it appears top heavy, but I've never rolled it), it collapses down to 36" without removing wheel, you can turn on a dime (helpful on large stumps).

Things I don't like: the tracks can be hard on the grass (more so then a mini), grinding depth of 16" max and minimal chip capacity under the machine, the unit is long (11.5'), no refill blade, and wish I had a remote.

I can't find my pink slip right now, so I can't tell exactly when I bought it (used), or the hours it had at the time. The earliest picture I can find is from 2008, I think it was a year or 2 before this. I currently have 862 hours on it. I haven't had any major issues with theis machine, and only a couple minor ones.

If I was shopping for a replacement for it, I'd most likely get a new model of the same machine.

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We've got an older Rayco 1625 Super Jr. but we put a GreenWheel on it and cut our time grinding by over half. A stump that used to take 30-45 mins with stock wheel, I can get cut out now in about 10-15 mins. GreenWheel is worth every penny... It will also fit through a 36" garden gate, and we've had many situations where a bigger grinder would not fit. We also have a big old T-Rex, Rayco 1675 for our larger stumps... Both were bought used so our initial investment was low, offsetting maintenance costs.
 
For a good machine Rayco has always been our go to machine I like 1645 but if you can find a good used RG50 you will never find a more versatile machine for large and small ,this is my opinion ,I did buy bandits this year but have not proven to be as tough as raycos yet but time will tell.i have never had engine problems with Rayco and we run 9 machines year round and the 3 bandits we just got last year (2650, 2x 2890s).
Teeth I would go Rayco super teeth for durability , Revolution for speed
 
The rayco looks pretty good to me too, for your circumstances. It would eat pines no problem. I've had very good luck with Raycos, had a small one and have an rg 50 now, good company imo. I demoed the vermeer 60, it was extremely tippy, even the salesman said it was kinda lame.. I've heard tracked grinders like the Mobark are awful on lawns. Fwiw, I love grinding stumps.
 
cory said:
I demoed the vermeer 60, it was extremely tippy, even the salesman said it was kinda lame.
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Care to expand on how you found it extremely tippy?

I've owned mine for 7 plus years and never once had it lay over on me, and I work on hilly properties (I've laid over a couple minis). The only time the 60tx got close was when I slid one sideoff ramps while loading it onto my dump trailer, but even then it didn't flip over.



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Royce I've ground more stumps then most company's have combined. I used a Vermeer 60tx. I love the 60tx but hateeee dealing with Vermeer . From the dealers to the parts to the machines there junk. Best bang for buck would be an rg 50 super. I currently run a rg 70. I kinda wish sometimes I could get a rg 70 with tracks but there hasn't been a stump I haven't been able to do because of hills or anything.
 
welltree said:
For a good machine Rayco has always been our go to machine, if you can find a good used RG50 you will never find a more versatile machine for large and small
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RIVIEZZO TREE EXPERTS said:
Best bang for buck would be an rg 50 super.
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X3! The Rayco RG series (50, Super 50, 66, 70, 85, 100) are awesome machines! I would consider searching for one of those and then being set for life in the stumper department.
Like everyone else said, I'd avoid the Ver-junk-meer. And while I've never run a Morbark stumper, I've heard several people say they have none of the power or quality that Morbark chippers are famous for.
 
Jeff said:
X3! The Rayco RG series (50, Super 50, 66, 70, 85, 100) are awesome machines! I would consider searching for one of those and then being set for life in the stumper department.
Like everyone else said, I'd avoid the Ver-junk-meer. And while I've never run a Morbark stumper, I've heard several people say they have none of the power or quality that Morbark chippers are famous for.
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Thanks for that!! Your my equipment coach. Always have some great info for me.
 
image.webp Royce I came across this grinder today you said your looking for a grinder to do about five stumps this should be able to do that I can inquire if needed lol.
 
Carlton 7015 for the win. The only way to make money on stumps is to do them fast. It is small enough to fit in our enclosed trailer with dingo and gear. It is fast enough to grind stumps up to 3-4' in diameter with a 3-5 man removal crew and not have the guys just stand around while the stump is finished. 1 guy usually starts on the stump grinding as soon as the trunk hits the ground. The stump is usually done before final clean up is done. We haul grindings 80% of the time, up charge double the grinding cost. The best way to make money on stumps is to do them the same trip as the removal.

The bandit 2550 is a good grinder but it is not in my opinion a grinder for a production removal crew. We have a Bandit 2450 it is perfect for small removals but is a nibbler compared to the 7015.

This was a stump from yesterday, 5' diameter silver maple with huge root flare on a hill side, made for extra grinding. Took 2 hours of straight grinding. Normally if we have a stump this big my friend brings his large Vermeer tow behind. I did a big cottonwood removal with him about a month ago, the stump was a little smaller then this one. He ground it out in 15 minutes, his grinder makes the 7015 look like a toy.
westernstump.webp
 
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