Winches on chippers

deevo

deevo

Been here a while
Location
Horseshoe Valley, Ontario, Canada
So finally got the winch on the ol' Morbark last week, man what was I thinking not having one before! 2 days of working with it and love it! Didn't even start the mini up once yesterday on a big ash tree removal project! ( all big wood stays) we just pulled the entire crown to the indeed table, cut a bit up and ran it through, for sure bumped our productivity up!
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Even used it to pull over a few small back leaners
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I just bought a 1590 intimidator with a winch and absolutely love it. Buying one without a winch wasn't even a thought in my head. I sling it close to the butt end, winch it to the feed tray, slide the cable down the log and winch it into the feed wheels. Sometimes use it to force the brush past the feed wheels instead of cutting the crotches if a chainsaw isn't around! Just make damn sure you got your hand on the diverter to stop the feed wheels when they are pulling it in so you don't accidentally chip your winch cable. Also use it for raising and lowering small branches from time to time if the conditions are right. Or pop starting a bucket truck in reverse . The possibilities are endless.
 
Something that I do to speed up the process so you don't have to re-choke the hitch is this. If there is a branch or log that I am going to winch in. I choke the winch down the pieces about 10 feet or so, then put a half hitch up real close to the butt end. Now, when you winch it in and it clears the in-feed tray, you just have to slip off the half hitch off and then winch the piece in. This way you don't need to go back and free spool your winch. Your ready to go. I hope that makes sense. Kinda hard to explain. I will take a picture.
 
Royce, doesn't the bottom of the half hitch drag on the ground and thru the mud while you're winching the log the 100' or so to the chipper? And as such, doesn't it put a lot of wear and tear on the expensive synthetic winch line versus wearing out the cheap, disposable chokers we make out of old rigging lines?
 
I'm always amazed how many owners will shell out $50 or $60k for a chipper and not order a winch, because it costs another $4k. Are you kidding me? As Devon just discovered, you can almost pay for the winch in the first week you use it! We often find it helpful when you're trying to back the chipper into the ideal spot but can't get it there because it's too steep or muddy. Pull out the cable to a suitable anchor and have someone operate the winch while the truck is backing up the chipper. Usually adds just enough oomph to get it in right where you want it.
 
Jeff said:
Royce, doesn't the bottom of the half hitch drag on the ground and thru the mud while you're winching the log the 100' or so to the chipper? And as such, doesn't it put a lot of wear and tear on the expensive synthetic winch line versus wearing out the cheap, disposable chokers we make out of old rigging lines?
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Get the skidding cone if your worried about it. I have NEVER had a winch line break because of it dragging on the ground and recking the line. However, I wouldn't go and do it in a parking lot.
 
Most of the time it wont drag on the ground because the winch is mounted fairly high so its lifting and pulling. But the skidding cone would solve that issue like Royce said. Most of my winch lines get messed up on catching stumps or rocks, or the rollers where the winch feeds in, if you are trying to winch at a not so ideal angle.
 
Ahh....unless you're a cobbler.

The inventor of the auto feed can sell you the best electronic controller (from what I understand.) And he can tell you where to get the elec over hydraulic switches.

(Just posting in case someone had a non auto feed chipper they wanted to upgrade.)
 
Auto feed has a tendency to fail and/or not shut down in time if you are feeding big wood anyway. I would go with a winch over autofeed and keep hitting reverse bar or diverter switch to stop wood from progressing. Just my 2 cents
 
If the Autofeed can't handle logs, usually something is wrong. If the Autofeed settings are correct, my next thought is to check the belt.


Personally I'd far rather have Autofeed than a winch... I added Autofeed to my first chipper (Bamdit 200). With a mini skid and other material handling equipment, it's rare that I'm looking for a winch. By the same token, I'd rather sit in my excavator feeding a chipper vs running the feed bar because I didn't have Autofeed.
 
my last comment may have come out wrong with the feeding of bigger logs... the auto feed did shut the feedwheels down but when the blades and anvil were brand new on our bandit 255xp it kept sucking the material in because the disc just kept pulling it in. So it negated any benefit the autofeed had. Also like you said if you are feeding it with something autofeed or remote control reverse feed is definitely the way to go. But if your winch is feeding the chipper you are already in the right spot to stop the pieces if the motor bogs down.
 
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