Stump grinder upgrade.

marne said:
352 diesels are known for terrible engine issues and their sweep arc is way too small. In addition the delivered torque is not what you can expect from a diesel. A RG1645 would get my vote.
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That’s good information to know. I thought the diesel would have more torque. I have looked at an RG1635 with a 35hp gas and wondered if it would be a suitable upgrade. Thanks for your input.
 
A 1635 I would not consider as an ugrade, too little gain. Instead you can check out the "list of upgrades to sc252" on the other site:p.
This will give you a much better machine than a 1635 for peanuts. The cheapest serious upgrade would be a RG1645, or a Bandit 2550, but this one is probably to new and still expensive.
 
marne said:
A 1635 I would not consider as an ugrade, too little gain. Instead you can check out the "list of upgrades to sc252" on the other site:p.
This will give you a much better machine than a 1635 for peanuts. The cheapest serious upgrade would be a RG1645, or a Bandit 2550, but this one is probably to new and still expensive.
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Thanks for the reply. What site are you talking about that has a list of upgrades for the 252? I agree that the 1645 with the kubota diesel would be a good step up. Thanks again for your input.
 
The Bandit 2550 would be a decent step up - diesel, and around the 40 hp mark. It’s not as much power as a Vermeer 652 or 60TX, which would be another good step up in my opinion, and they can usually be found used.

If you want to go all out, try out the new Bandit SG-75 - we demoed one the other week and it impressed me, which is saying something. I’m like Tim “the Tool Man” Taylor, nothing ever has enough power for me.
 
Definitely go for diesel if possible. The torque is irreplaceable. Grinders are constantly getting bogged down, and gassers just don’t get back up to speed quick enough to be productive. I get they’re more expensive and can run up huge hours, but good ones can still be found. You probably already know all this. Sorry. :D
 
Reach said:
The Bandit 2550 would be a decent step up - diesel, and around the 40 hp mark. It’s not as much power as a Vermeer 652 or 60TX, which would be another good step up in my opinion, and they can usually be found used.

If you want to go all out, try out the new Bandit SG-75 - we demoed one the other week and it impressed me, which is saying something. I’m like Tim “the Tool Man” Taylor, nothing ever has enough power for me.
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Thank you for your input. My CFO (wife) is the bean counter and wants me to be sure and get the right one this time
 
WayneNlynnholt said:
Thank you for your input. My CFO (wife) is the bean counter and wants me to be sure and get the right one this time
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I’m right there with you, buying the right sized machine makes a huge difference. Look at how much you use it, if you do a lot of grinding, spending more on a bigger machine will actually save you money by allowing you to do more in less time.

For example, that SG-75 shaved nearly 40% off our per-stump grind time over the Vermeer 652 we usually run - that allows us to do another 25% per day, around here that means this grinder should average about $2k per day in sales, as the 652 will typically do about $1600.

If you only do $500 per week average though, you may lost money with a big grinder though, as it just sits all the time and doesn’t pay for itself.
 
Reach said:
I’m right there with you, buying the right sized machine makes a huge difference. Look at how much you use it, if you do a lot of grinding, spending more on a bigger machine will actually save you money by allowing you to do more in less time.

For example, that SG-75 shaved nearly 40% off our per-stump grind time over the Vermeer 652 we usually run - that allows us to do another 25% per day, around here that means this grinder should average about $2k per day in sales, as the 652 will typically do about $1600.

If you only do $500 per week average though, you may lost money with a big grinder though, as it just sits all the time and doesn’t pay for itself.
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I’m a small fish in the pond of stump grinders here in my area. I finished up a job today where I had two 3’+ diameter oaks that wore me and my little 252 out. Took me 3 hours on each stump. You are right on with what I normally bring home in a week.
 
WayneNlynnholt said:
I’m a small fish in the pond of stump grinders here in my area. I finished up a job today where I had two 3’+ diameter oaks that wore me and my little 252 out. Took me 3 hours on each stump. You are right on with what I normally bring home in a week.
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If that’s all you do in a week grinding, you would probably come out ahead to contract out your grinding to a company who does nothing else. Or rent a larger grinder, and go without owning one for a time - group stumps together and wait until you have a day of grinding, then rent a grinder and do them all at once.

We do something similar, we only break out the grinder when there’s a full day of grinding to do. That’s about one day a week here right now though.

Just for comparisons, the Vermeer 652 will grind a 36” oak stump from 12” above to 6” below ground in less than 45 minutes with decent teeth. The Bandit RG-75 will do the same stump in less than 30, and quite possibly close to 20 minutes!
 
One thing I'll add to the thread is a larger machine will want to chew up rocks as opposed to a smaller machine will bounce off them. I went from a 252 to a 652 some years back. The power difference is night and day and I have made more $$ with the 652 than the 252 while the 652 is more costly to run. I miss the size of the 252 but I don't miss the slow grind times.
OP buy as much HP as you can afford IMO.
 
I sub my stumps out as I wouldn't have much income from stumps alone and the biggest rental machine around here is a vermeer sc30tx gas with not very sharp teeth. Its possible to make money with the rental but it takes all day and does not pay as well as other work that I can be doing by the time that you subtract the rental fee.

My subcontractor runs a vermeer sc60tx diesel with wireless remote. Earlier this year I removed a silver maple, 8' diameter stump cut within 6" of the ground. He had it ground out in 30 minutes. That would have been near a whole day with the rental machine.

My only complaints with subbing stumps is that I do not create his schedule, so while he usually gets to a stump within a week it still delays the completion of a job. The only other complaint is that it tends to be a bit of a mess on jobs where the homeowner does not want the grindings cleaned up. The sc60tx does not have a blade so the best he can do is try to push the chips together with the grinding wheel and protective flaps.
 
Jehinten said:
I sub my stumps out as I wouldn't have much income from stumps alone and the biggest rental machine around here is a vermeer sc30tx gas with not very sharp teeth. Its possible to make money with the rental but it takes all day and does not pay as well as other work that I can be doing by the time that you subtract the rental fee.

My subcontractor runs a vermeer sc60tx diesel with wireless remote. Earlier this year I removed a silver maple, 8' diameter stump cut within 6" of the ground. He had it ground out in 30 minutes. That would have been near a whole day with the rental machine.

My only complaints with subbing stumps is that I do not create his schedule, so while he usually gets to a stump within a week it still delays the completion of a job. The only other complaint is that it tends to be a bit of a mess on jobs where the homeowner does not want the grindings cleaned up. The sc60tx does not have a blade so the best he can do is try to push the chips together with the grinding wheel and protective flaps.
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I
Jehinten said:
I sub my stumps out as I wouldn't have much income from stumps alone and the biggest rental machine around here is a vermeer sc30tx gas with not very sharp teeth. Its possible to make money with the rental but it takes all day and does not pay as well as other work that I can be doing by the time that you subtract the rental fee.

My subcontractor runs a vermeer sc60tx diesel with wireless remote. Earlier this year I removed a silver maple, 8' diameter stump cut within 6" of the ground. He had it ground out in 30 minutes. That would have been near a whole day with the rental machine.

My only complaints with subbing stumps is that I do not create his schedule, so while he usually gets to a stump within a week it still delays the completion of a job. The only other complaint is that it tends to be a bit of a mess on jobs where the homeowner does not want the grindings cleaned up. The sc60tx does not have a blade so the best he can do is try to push the chips together with the grinding wheel and protective flaps.
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Jehinten said:
I sub my stumps out as I wouldn't have much income from stumps alone and the biggest rental machine around here is a vermeer sc30tx gas with not very sharp teeth. Its possible to make money with the rental but it takes all day and does not pay as well as other work that I can be doing by the time that you subtract the rental fee.

My subcontractor runs a vermeer sc60tx diesel with wireless remote. Earlier this year I removed a silver maple, 8' diameter stump cut within 6" of the ground. He had it ground out in 30 minutes. That would have been near a whole day with the rental machine.

My only complaints with subbing stumps is that I do not create his schedule, so while he usually gets to a stump within a week it still delays the completion of a job. The only other complaint is that it tends to be a bit of a mess on jobs where the homeowner does not want the grindings cleaned up. The sc60tx does not have a blade so the best he can do is try to push the chips together with the grinding wheel and protective flaps.
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I am a one man operator. A friend of mine is a tree cutter and he sends stump jobs my way. I am a retired teacher and enjoy being my own boss for a change. The comments I have received from everyone have been very helpful. I just have to narrow the options down to the machine that is affordable and will cut my time down considerably.
 
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