Bandit 65 xp

ChrHerrman · Oct 11, 2011

I have been doing some research on here as well as the internet about the best 6" chipper on the market. So far I have gathered that the BAndit 65 xp is probably my best bet. Any other opinions? Is the 27 hp kohler enough for the bandit?

I currently have an older Promark 310 chipper with a hydraulic feed roller, but even though it is rated as a 6" capacity, it really can only handle 3"-4" stuff. I have a fairly succesful side business of tree removals and selling firewood as a byproduct from the jobs I do, but I would like to actually chip a 6" piece of pine rather than cut all the little branches off. What I have works for now, but can be a pain sometimes and tedious. I feel like I want to invest some money in a new machine that will better suit my needs and allow me to expand my business. As I stated I do sell firewood, so any decent wood over 5" I keep.

I found a 2010 Bandit 65 xp in S. DE with 40 hours on it for $12,500. Does this seem like the right price range? I am gathering that brand new ones are around $15K. Thoughts and opinions?

VA-Sawyer · Oct 11, 2011

First off, I have to question a year old chipper with only 40 hrs on it. I would suggest having a good maintenance tech check it out first. There are things we can look at as indicators of time in service.

For true 6" cutting, I would want the diesel engine. I have experince with a 65 AW powered by a 3 cylinder diesel, and it could use more power on stuff close to max size.

Rick

ChrHerrman · Oct 11, 2011

Apparently the first owner ran some chain link fence through the machine and the dealer bought it back. The dealer then replaced all parts and is now re-selling it. I think the price seems a little high but I know these things aren't cheap. The motor on this unit is a 27 hp kohler.

Pelorus · Oct 11, 2011

I'm running a 65XP with a 35hp Hatz diesel.
Used to run an older 65 with a 30hp Wisconsin.
27 hp Kohler is gonna suck, imo, unless you have tons of time, and don't get frustrated easily. Better keep them knives sharp.

VA-Sawyer · Oct 11, 2011

I would really like to see a listing of what all was replaced. What kind of warranty will it have ? Is it the Fuel Injected 27 Hp from Kohler ? They are supposed to compare to the 35 Hp Wisconsins on Woodmizer sawmills. I have heard they are under rated on Hp from multiple sources. Price wise, I think 10 or 11 thousand given the damage history would be more realistic.
Rick

squad143 · Oct 11, 2011

I owned a Bandit 65xp (25hp Kohler) for about 4 years now. Love it.
Runs all day on hardly any fuel.

Anything bigger than 3 or 4 " is firewood anyways, so the 25 has no problems keeping up. Just keep the knives sharp.

Bought mine used (40 hrs.) from a rental company for $8500 (somewhere around there).

Been eyeing the newer 1390xp, however if I do get a new chipper, I'll keep the 65.

Best of luck to you.

ChrHerrman · Oct 12, 2011

squad143 said:
I owned a Bandit 65xp (25hp Kohler) for about 4 years now. Love it.
Runs all day on hardly any fuel.

Anything bigger than 3 or 4 " is firewood anyways, so the 25 has no problems keeping up. Just keep the knives sharp.

Bought mine used (40 hrs.) from a rental company for $8500 (somewhere around there).

Been eyeing the newer 1390xp, however if I do get a new chipper, I'll keep the 65.

Best of luck to you.

Thanks, I saw your set-up in another post and I like that a lot. I haul my dump trailer out to a job and then usually have my brother who helps me haul the chipper out. I have been surprised as well at the amount of people who I can talk into keeping the chips. I tell them to let it sit for a year and use it as mulch, or I can just chip it into the woods or a brushline that backs up to their property. Eventually I may look into a dump truck but for right now my pick-up is doing a great job.

A far as the chippers, I watched a video on bandit's website of a 65 xp and it put my little Promark 310 to shame. My chipper is rated as a 6", but I have found 3"-4" max. Granted it looked like the Bandit had a diesel engine, but still I think I could get a lot more done with a 65 xp.

I am just having trouble justifying the money right now. I do about 4-5 smaller jobs (removals and bruch clean-ups) a month totaling about $800-$1500. I know a bandit would increase production and possibly more jobs, but I am trying to be smart about this and not just buy one because it looks cool and would save me time.

How much money or work do you think you need to have lined up before a guy goes out and drops $10-$13 K on a chipper?

ChrHerrman · Oct 12, 2011

VA-Sawyer said:
I would really like to see a listing of what all was replaced. What kind of warranty will it have ? Is it the Fuel Injected 27 Hp from Kohler ? They are supposed to compare to the 35 Hp Wisconsins on Woodmizer sawmills. I have heard they are under rated on Hp from multiple sources. Price wise, I think 10 or 11 thousand given the damage history would be more realistic.
Rick

The chipper would have a 6 month warranty but I am not sure if the engine is fuel injected. Apparently the chute, drum, battery, and leads were all thet were replaced on this machine.

BCbound · Oct 12, 2011

Hey,

Remember that chipper on youtube is most likely a diesel with the best options bandit has. It sounds like your in the same boat as me for equipement. I even seen a very similar deal on a bandit 6 gaser in my area. I'm considering it but know a diesel is hands down better. I've used both. Too bad the diesel is almost twice as much. I think if you already have a chipper of comparable size I would hold out for a deal on a 9" bandit (Diesel). I think that's a great machine for a small company.

outdoorsman0490 · Oct 12, 2011

I was in the same boat as you guys, doing enough work to make money, but not enough to justify a new/larger chipper. I wanted to get a decent used 6" bandit, but instead found a 9" bandit, it is a '94 with a 37hp gas wisc. I bought it at about 1/3 the price you found on that 6" and it had only 333hrs on it, owned by a nursery. I put a couple hundred bucks into a couple hydraulic lines, put in new spark plugs and such, new blades, and the chipper runs great. Anything 4 to 5" is firewood for me two, but with a 9" by 17" throat, this thing really takes in the brushy stuff well, or 9" pine all day. When I have guys come in for the day with a bucket to put trees on the ground, they are all impressed with how well this model 90 rips through the brush pile; very few crotches are a problem. Just my 2 cents, but this 9" worked out great for me. And it is still light enough where two guys can take it off the truck and pick up on the tongue and wheel it down a driveway.

lone wolf · Oct 12, 2011

I would want more power than that if you are going to spend money spend it right get at least 100 horse.

ChrHerrman · Oct 13, 2011

outdoorsman0490 said:
I was in the same boat as you guys, doing enough work to make money, but not enough to justify a new/larger chipper. I wanted to get a decent used 6" bandit, but instead found a 9" bandit, it is a '94 with a 37hp gas wisc. I bought it at about 1/3 the price you found on that 6" and it had only 333hrs on it, owned by a nursery. I put a couple hundred bucks into a couple hydraulic lines, put in new spark plugs and such, new blades, and the chipper runs great. Anything 4 to 5" is firewood for me two, but with a 9" by 17" throat, this thing really takes in the brushy stuff well, or 9" pine all day. When I have guys come in for the day with a bucket to put trees on the ground, they are all impressed with how well this model 90 rips through the brush pile; very few crotches are a problem. Just my 2 cents, but this 9" worked out great for me. And it is still light enough where two guys can take it off the truck and pick up on the tongue and wheel it down a driveway.

I definatley understand your point. I think I will use the chipper I have for a little while and keep my eye out for a decent used 65 xp or 90 xp. I don't mind replacing some lines, knives, and smaller items, I just don't want to get a money pit. I'm hoping to find somebody on CL who needs to get out from under one with low hours.

Watching those videos on bandit's website is addicting. Makes me wish I had some more money sometimes. Oh well eventually.

How does your 90xp run with the 37 hp gas motor? Do you feel it is underpowered?

outdoorsman0490 · Oct 13, 2011

I feel that it runs fine, as long as the blades are sharp. When I am chipping hardwoods, the larger stuff is fire wood, anything 5" or less I just start in the chipper and walk away to grab the next bunch of brush, never have to play with the infeed. Me and a friend used a woodchuck wc17 12' with a diesel one day (blades not super sharp) then used my bandit with the gas the next day (sharp blades) and both thought that my chipper would outchip that larger unit in a side by side comparison. I can't complain at all about the performance, it chews up everything I put in it. Most people who see it run are very surprised at how fast it gets the work done. And for the money, I couldn't go wrong. Since it doesn't weigh much, I have towed it with my 1500 into back yards and up/down steep hills without having to worry about making ruts or a mess.

ChrHerrman · Oct 13, 2011

outdoorsman0490 said:
I feel that it runs fine, as long as the blades are sharp. When I am chipping hardwoods, the larger stuff is fire wood, anything 5" or less I just start in the chipper and walk away to grab the next bunch of brush, never have to play with the infeed. Me and a friend used a woodchuck wc17 12' with a diesel one day (blades not super sharp) then used my bandit with the gas the next day (sharp blades) and both thought that my chipper would outchip that larger unit in a side by side comparison. I can't complain at all about the performance, it chews up everything I put in it. Most people who see it run are very surprised at how fast it gets the work done. And for the money, I couldn't go wrong. Since it doesn't weigh much, I have towed it with my 1500 into back yards and up/down steep hills without having to worry about making ruts or a mess.

Since you said you have a 1/2 ton truck like I do, do you usually chip into your dump trailer or chip into the brush?
So many people say that you have to have a dump truck, which would be awful handy, but I have ended up just chipping into people's brushlines more than I have been hauling the chips out. A couple people even said they wanted to keep the chips after I already hauled the dump trailer over there.

outdoorsman0490 · Oct 14, 2011

Yes, I would always try to chip into a tree line or brush whenever possible. When that was not possible, I would chip into the dump trailer, I made a chip box for it that would take a few minutes to set up and then throw a tarp over the top of the sides. It worked fine, but was a pain in the butt when you were more than a few miles from where I keep my equipment and dumpt the chips. It worked, but you would end up spending a lot of time running back and forth, especially on big jobs when the trailer was filled with chips more than once. I have enough work coming in now that on Friday I just picked up a dump truck so I won't have to do it the old fashion way anymore.
Also, when you get into brining someone in with a bucket for the day to put trees on the ground for you, most homeowners are okay with leaving the wood on the ground for a day or two, but you need to be able to keep up with the bucket guy with the brush; especially when you are paying him for the day and you are trying to get 2 or 3 tree jobs on the ground.

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