Attention 352 owners!!!!!!!!!!

[dogdad]

I have been happy with my 352,,,,just wondering,,,,,how aggressive do you get wioth your machine as far as grinding? What i mean is do you let the machine do the work or do you try and take to much stump . I can see when one forces it that it will really vibrate. I never try and grind to much at once.(a sweep)...just a thought.

 

[stevieb]

What speed are you grinding the stump out. As you know there is the fast and slow speed. Mine has now done 214 hours just over a year old and all this talk to be honest makes me nervous. My old 252 went to nearly a 1000 hours with out a bolt coming loose. Its a shame cuz this 352 can do the job!

 

[Liston]

at last some people that also have problems with their 352
i am now on my 2nd engine and 2nd head because of vibration problems my engine mounts have cracked three times and it is now in for repair again!!!
my machine has only done 260 hrs!!

Come on give us a call and look at swaping it in for a Carlton 4012 and end all the worrys and sleep better, I'll be happy to take it in part ex.:bang:

 

[gingekeith]

Hey Dibbs88, I have a 352 and bought it from B-Trac. I have experienced the cyl head problems and have had 3 cyl head gaskets fitted until they refused to fit any more until i had the anti-vibration kit fitted, after a lot of waiting, (six Weeks) i have collected my Vermeer from B-Trac with the mod kit. I have only done 20hrs since the kit was fitted and all seems ok. I can't stop listening to the machine when i'm grinding, paranoid that i can hear something dodgy.
Make a fuss if you want the kit fitting,
Keith

 

[dorshak]

Vermeer 352

I got good news today. A Briggs & Stratton rep said they will replace my whole dihatsu engine block for free. They're not giving me a cylinder head but that's ok. I was looking at a $5,000 repair for a new engine. Now, the whole repair will be under a $1,000. What a relief. Also, I do want to put in a good word from my Vermeer dealer rep. He was out of town when our machine originally broke down but when he got back and heard we had problems, he offered to let us use a 352 for free. So we've had it for a week or two for free and I think that was really taking care of us. Now, because our machine has been down so long and they aren't even doing the repairs, our rep said we can pay just for the hours we put on from here on which he is figuring at $25 per hour. I think that's a pretty good deal. Our machine should be ready this week finally. Also, I heard that Vermeer watches over these tree sites to check on what people are saying about their equipment. Fantastic. They said they saw my post here.

 

[gingekeith]

Vermeer comments

After reading the comments on the Vermeer 352 and after experiencing my own problems it would appear that there are a lot of disgruntled 352 owners out there. Well just to put things into perspective. While i was getting my 352 fitted with the kit, I was using the 50hp Redwood Predator fitted with Multi-tip cutters. What a huge dissapointment this was. No guts in the cut and if you are grinding in wet soil it can't spin it's own cutting wheel never mind grind stumps.

I also used the 25hp Rayco 1625. Ok machine but underpowered, and I also used the Carlton 25hp machine, I found this a bit rough and not as refined as the Rayco. So all in all although I grumbled about the Cyl head gasket, the 352 is the best machine with regards to weight / power / and operator friendlyness I have used.

Any 352 users agree ???

 

[Bigstumps]

Gingekeith,

You need to try the Carlton with the Kubota and Sandvik!!! Just over 100 hours and I love it. The Kubota engine is very nice!! With Kubota's reputation I don't forsee engine problems (at least I hope not!)

I sold a Rayco 1625 and don't think it was as refined as the Carlton. The Carlton drives better/faster and is an overall smoother machine.

What is a Redwood Predator???

 

[gingekeith]

BigStumps

The Predator looks a decent machine, its on tracks and you get the options of 25hp 50hp or 75hp. it slims down to about 30inches and covers the ground like Carl Lewis on speed, the thing is it has a Hyrostatic drive system to the cutting head which does not provide enough grunt, very disappointing.

As for the Vermeer, I am going to run it untill I get about 1500hrs on the clock and look to change it, then I will test everything on the market again and hope something out there will be perfect.

 

[Bigstumps]

I have seen the Hyrdostats over here cut, the Rayco RG50 and the Bandit. They also lose a lot of power, my Kubota with the Sandvik outcuts theirs.

I'm not so sold on the hydrostats

 

[stumpy66]

Getting back to the original issue. Ichecked with B trac if my 352 was eligable for the mods (whatever they were). They say yes i am, the fix kit (upgrade as they call it) from USA is £1500 supplied 'Free' but i will be charged £400+ to fit it. Can i have other peoples experiences. It seems a bit rich that a recognised rectification to a problem should cost me down time and £400 + and i have to drop it off and pick it up.
What have been other users experience of the 'upgrade'?.

 

[dogdad]

what upgrades are you talking about?

 

[stumpy66]

B trac state the there is an 'upgrade' which costs £1500 from usa which basically from what i can gather is a new chassis, the engine has to come out and B trac state it will take them 10 hours plus to do the work...vermeer only cover the cost of 4 hours.

I rang b trac on the advice of thier sales rep at a local show..they checked my chassis mnumber and told me straight that it was eligable for this 'upgrade'. my machine is 2002 ex demo.. and they offered the 'upgrade' with no shouting...makes me think that it NEEDS doing.

There must be someone out there who has had this done...all comments welcome..

 

[dibbs88]

352 upgrade Kit

my 352 has a upgrade kit on it now it looks like new again!
the vibration problems are supposed to have now been sorted .
i noticed it now has a cover over the problem area on the head, i pointed this out and asked was that so i could not see when the head had gone again, and i got a nervous laugh. the head is still showing signs of weeping and is going back to vermeer again!!at a cost to me as i have to drop it off again. i am careful with my machine and it is the most expensive bit of kit i have ever brought, i am an owner operator and i just want it to work properly is it too much to ask?

 

[Plyscamp]

The other option is upgrade your SC252 to a 35HP Briggs 57 Ft pounds of torque versus 40 Ft. pounds of torque on a 25HP Kohler. Smooth as glass, quite and will rip through a stump at 1/2 Throttle. I just converted one of mine and I love it.

 

[stumper63]

Plyscamp,

I just put the Sandvik wheel on my 252 and loving that.
Could you share what was involved in upgrading to the 35hp Briggs on your 252? I've got 2275 hours on my original Kohler 25 and still going strong, but one of these days it's gonna go. Rest of machine doing fine too, so maybe this would save me about 20K.

What all did you have to change out? Were there alot of mods to frame of machine? What were the costs? Did you have to increase size of jackshaft or cutter wheel shaft?

Thanks for your time.
Stumper63

 

[stumpy66]

Dibbs, how much did you get charged for the 'upgrade'? I am being quoted £400 + seems like a lot to me....the amount of work involved indicates just how fundamental a problem it is..

Good machine though..i love it...bar the problems..

 

[Bigstumps]

I would be afraid of putting that added horsepower and torque through the electric clutch - I know the Rayco's with the 35HP have had a lot of issues with the electric clutch.

My Carlton has bigger shafts and bearings than the same model with the 27HP Kohler. Allows it to handle the higher horsepower and torque.

 

[stumper63]

Bigstumps,

I was wondering about that. Maybe he fabricated some parts from the 352. I believe it uses an electric clutch and is powered either by the 35 HP Vanguard or a Daihatsu diesel. I wonder if any 352 owners have had any clutch problems. May not be too hard to adapt larger shaft and bearings from a larger machine like the 4012. Maybe easier just to buy the Kubota diesel and be done with it! Sounds intriguing though.

Plyscamp, what say you?

Stumper63

 

[stumpy66]

Like most things electric clutches can be abused. If you treat them well a well matched electric clutch should be ok. if you engage and disengage at hi revs problems will follow.

 

[Plyscamp]

Stumper63 It was not much of a challenge to mount the 35HP B/S. The secondary sliding engine plate on the 252 had to be cut in half, extended and welded to match the larger bolt pattern on the new engine. Had to relocate 2 of the engine mounting bolts in the engine base. The rest was a straight bolt up.

Time will tell on the clutch. I run a 1,376 CC Lombardini Diesel on my other 252 with 65 Ft Lbs of torque and eat a clutch in about 6 mos. Roughly 300 hours. I am currently doing research to find a larger electric clutch to replace the vermeer unit. On the diesel unit I have upgraded the jack shaft from 1.25" to 1.5" in diameter and run 3 pillow block bearings. Both units run the Multi Tip Cutting wheels and teeth.

I paid $1,836.00 for the B/S including freight.