any what the biggest log size a bc1500 can take?

[chipperscompany]

I know its a 15 inch chipper but I doubt it can take logs that big. Any help with what the inches refer to would be appreciated

 

[treeslayer]

as big a log as you can get in it. autofeed should do the rest.

I have some bids going in on some BIG jobs near Houston, wanna work that chipper hard?

 

[treeslayer]

anybody with a big chipper down there, let me know.
Dave
757 784 4574

 

[Mikecutstrees]

a chipper will chip right up to the maximum size. Chipping alot at the maximum size is very hard on a chipper though. I personally try to keep hardwood logs at 25% of capacity and softwood logs at 70% of capacity. Just rough numbers here. So a 15'' would be able to chip a 10-11" soft wood log pretty comfortablly. My BC1000 w/ 12" capacity will chip 8'' softwoods pretty easily. An occassional full capacity log is ok but if your doing it alot you should have a bigger chipper...... my 2c's .... Mike

 

[treeslayer]

I personally try to keep hardwood logs at 25% of capacity and softwood logs at 70% of capacity. An occassional full capacity log is ok but if your doing it alot you should have a bigger chipper...... my 2c's .... Mike

25% 0f 15" is 3.75" your math is a little off.

stick with the 70 % at least. but still, 125 HP? let er eat.

 

[teamtree]

I have a bc1500 and it will take a 15" piece.....

however...I would not recommend running 15" oak or sugar maple or any other hardwood.

it will consistently run 15" pine, poplar, soft maple, etc.

two things to look at....

when dealing with larger diameter....you can waste time trying to get the thing into the chipper as well as it will take twice as long to chip it as it would to load it on the truck by hand. A grapple or winch helps this out but if you try to take too much (esp brushy stuff) you will lose efficiency in the long run.

also...if you run the bigger stuff on a regular basis....you will put more money into maintaining your chipper....

while my chipper will take it...i try to stay under 10" and the chipper runs smoother and the knives last longer.

 

[ASD]

It's not the cap of the in feed that matters it's the HP!!!!!!!!! We have chippers with 115 HP 200HP and 395 HP

115 HP = 11" with no auto feed input needed
200 HP = 15" with no auto feed input needed
395 HP = 22" with no auto feed input needed

So get the right HP chipper for what you are chipping if the auto feed keeps coming on you have a chipper with to little hp. and remember the auto feed moves things away from the blades so if it's working your chipper is not filling you truck! and it's burning fuel!!!

 

[teamtree]

ASD you are correct about the fact that HP conquers all but if you read the question from the original poster...he asked specifically about the BC1500 so infeed and performance of the particular machine is relavent. Sometimes it is not so easy for a guy to go bigger. There are additonal overhead costs associated with a bigger machine and if it is not being used efficiently you are losing margin there.

P.s. having a good set of knives is very important, both on performance and wear and tear.

 

[treevet]

I got a bc 1250 w a 110hp turbo perkins. It is really all I need. When I bought it the Vermeer dude said go ahead and use it at capacity but with the big logs cut them to approx 8' length. We did that for 10 years and it worked fine but as said change a dull set of knives and adjust the bed knife.

I just added a bc 2000 with 200 hp cummins. We got bombed with hurricane and I needed something bigger. We load it with the dingo or crane and it is a pretty amazing machine. Called a "tree chipper". Bought it used and got a good deal from Vermeer.

Only thing that has gagged so far is capacity spruce. Strings out when stump grinding too.

 

[senechal]

it will take twice as long to chip it as it would to load it on the truck by hand.

chipper handling vs. lifting into chip box. hmmmm.

Lift away, I will happily exert myself less and chip everything I can.

 

[treevet]

I agree and chips are easier to give away to places than a load with big honkers on the tailgate. I sell firewood but I am not likely to sell much "stinktree" to customers this year.

 

[teamtree]

every situation is different but don't take my quote out of context but

go ahead and do what you want...but from an efficiency standpoint you will lose. I know every situation is different but say for if you are cutting logs say 9-12" in diameter white oak and 6-8' long it is quicker to throw them on the back of the truck or in our case, dump trailer. I, as an owner of the chipper, do not like to put more thru my chipper than I have to...especially nice firewood size logs. Now I understand if you want to minimize blocks and maximize chips then go ahead and chip, if you have soft wood, maximize the chipper.

Again, we are talking about the BC1500 and strictly from an efficiency standpoint you are losing time by trying to chip larger diameter stuff. I don't have a problem with chipping what you can but at some point you have to suck it up and lift a little....besides...you exert as much effort or more trying to chip really big and brushy a bc1500 as if you just cut the piece accordingly and throw the bigger stuff on the truck.

 

[teamtree]

chipper handling vs. lifting into chip box. hmmmm.

Lift away, I will happily exert myself less and chip everything I can.

You will work harder trying to chip everything....use a little common sense and you will ultimately use less energy.....plus a little labor goes a long way on the useful life of your chipper....but then again....that is why some don't get as much out of their chippers....no common sense

 

[teamtree]

i agree, chips are easier to give away....

i sell firewood and I can sell any type of wood to one commercial customer....so yes my situation is different but at the end of the day

you will wear your machine down and/or increase your maintenance cost if you max it out 24/7....talk to the wall if you don't believe me

oh...yeah...you can go bigger and then that is not the issue....we are talking about a bc1500

no wonder no one wants to come to this site anymore.....

 

[ASD]

ASD you are correct about the fact that HP conquers all but if you read the question from the original poster...he asked specifically about the BC1500 so infeed and performance of the particular machine is relavent. Sometimes it is not so easy for a guy to go bigger. There are additonal overhead costs associated with a bigger machine and if it is not being used efficiently you are losing margin there.

P.s. having a good set of knives is very important, both on performance and wear and tear.

Understood.
The point i was trying to make was that the size of the in feed dose not dictate what a chipper will proses well

I think the BC 1500 has 125 HP so it should do a 12" log well.

I did not mean that anyone should "go big" with the HP just that HP is real important when looking at a chipper when you are talking about wood more so then with brush. With brush the most important thing in my mind is how wide the feed is as this makes it proses brush better.

 

[Husky137]

If you can cut and load rounds more cost effectively than feeding a tree through the chipper then I would take a serious look at your efficiencies and common sense practices.

 

[ASD]

NOW this is how to chip :greenchainsaw:

http://www.banditchippers.com/index.php?option=com_video&itemId=38&task=view&id=49&limit=10&limitstart=0&search=&orderby=0

 

[ASD]

And for all of you that like to put rounds in the back of a truck this 1's for you


http://www.banditchippers.com/index.php?option=com_video&itemId=38&task=view&id=41&limit=10&limitstart=0&search=&orderby=0

 

[treevet]

go ahead and do what you want...but from an efficiency standpoint you will lose. I know every situation is different but say for if you are cutting logs say 9-12" in diameter white oak and 6-8' long it is quicker to throw them on the back of the truck or in our case, dump trailer. I, as an owner of the chipper, do not like to put more thru my chipper than I have to...especially nice firewood size logs.

I'm with you on the dump trailer but if we're trying to save energy and reduce injuries either chipping or loading then this the answer. (it's great you got someone to take any kind of wood for firewood)

 

[teamtree]

If you can cut and load rounds more cost effectively than feeding a tree through the chipper then I would take a serious look at your efficiencies and common sense practices.

here is a scenario, 15 - 10" dia x 8' white oak logs with no brush and you have a bc1500 with new knives, regardless of who you are and where you are from you could load those logs faster than you could chip them...a basic time study will tell you this...

put a larger chipper into the scheme and maybe things are different...

i will lay money on this scenario...assuming you do not care about getting the most chips and the least amount of blocks.

if i carry with say the help of another groundie one of those logs to the chipper you are going to exert the same amount of effort or slightly more to throw that in a dump trailer.

1 you save the time that the the bc1500 chipper will take to run it through with the auto feed system.....think about it...it takes a second to reset and you may take say 6" of that log at each interval so that is at least 6 seconds of resetting.....

2 in addition to the time you save by throwing it on trailer...you extend the life of your chipper and the time before you need to replace your knives.

again, assuming you don't care about chips vs. blocks you just need to remove the tree....and you don't care about the slight increase in effort


but hey...put your money where your mouth is...bring $1000 to Southern Indiana and we will have it out....

so Husky....it is about efficiencies and common sense and if you used any and had the facts to back it up....you would learn that sometimes people actually use facts to back up a post and not just some opinion....