Bandit 2550, Carlton 4012, Rayco RG 45.

[Stump Grinder52]

I read your posts,and agree with you guys,dealer service/network is everything,weather it's chainsaws,chippers,log splitters, trucks ect.If you can't get service,parts or question answered what good is their product.I am just very lucky i live 25 miles from my dealer and have the owners and his mechanic tel. number and could call those guys and they would do their best to try to help me out.I have yet bought a machine from them,if they had what i wanted i would,yet they don't care.They know they are building up a long term customer relationship.Mtrstump sounds like you have a good dealer ,don't blame you for sticking with him and his product.Coen that just shows you that dealer just doesn't care.When i went over to buy teeth for my grinder he asked me what style teeth had ,i didn't have the slightest idea,lucky enough i had copied the vin number off the machine,he called Carlton gave them the vin number and they told him what kind of teeth i had,things like that make a difference.

 

[Coen]

Yep, I wish I could replay that story in my life. Just one more gripe and I'll quit. No two more.
When it was delivered it was the first Carlton I'd ever seen in my life and the operations manual that came with it was for some tow-behind model. I notified the dealer right away about this and he said he would bring the right one with him when he came to see me which never happened. I think I received the correct one two weeks later in the mail after quite a bit of aggravation by my son trying to figure out how to run it.
Last thing which was probably my fault. The poly belt going to the cutter head came apart after about 20 hours. It probably should have been tightened, which we didn't do. Carlton got a belt to me right away.
I was pretty good at checking belts on my 252, but they rarely needed tightening.
Ok: I'm done talking trash about _________. That's just my experience.

 

[Coen]

Three times I was sent the wrong teeth. Why the hell should I have been responsible for shipping costs to send them back??!! If Carlton wanted to rotate the teeth 45 degrees, why didn't the people they had me dealing with in Detroit and Chicago know this? They knew I was mad, and I never got one apology or nothing.

 

[Mowingman]

I have purchased two, brand new Carlton stump grinders over the years. I am located about 1000 miles from the factory, which is my only source of parts and warranty assistance. This has never bothered me at all. Never had any trouble with either machine, other than a couple of very small issues. The factory folks helped me with all the info I needed, to correct those issues myself. Factory support from Carlton is second to none.
Jeff

 

[Coen]

I'm happy to hear you feel this way, but I've been disgusted thus far. Thank god I haven't had anything major.
To me when I order teeth with parts numbers 0450131 and 0450130 told to me right from the factory, and two different dealers send me teeth that are 45 degrees out, I think the factory is responsible for my frustration. When I get a machine that I need right now and I get the wrong operations manual???? When someone is supposed to show up at my house and go over the machine with me and doesn't? To me that factory/dealer support is BS.
I know these things I've mentioned seem small, but I'm too busy during tree season to deal with crap like that.
The last chipper I bought from Bandit; I can't tell you all the trouble the rep went through to make sure I understood the machine, and was satisfied after the sale.

 

[Mtrstump]

Coen, I think you owe it to yourself to investigate some other grinder. Just call Vermeer and ask for a demo, tell them your situation. Maybe not right now, but later they may run up on a demo machine or a low hour trade in and they will think about you. If you don't open the door no one will ever come in. Just put some feelers out there.
Good luck.

 

[Stump Grinder52]

Coen,That is so unexceptable the dealer should lose his franchise,bad enough give you no manuel,but give you one for a tow behind.You must be a mild mannered person,if it was me i would casually asked the [scumbag] i mean salesman where he was staying on vacation,then every time i had a question or problem i would pay him a visit early in the morning,make sure he was having as much fun as i was,it would be the last time he'd ever pull a stunt like dropping off a piece of equipment on his way on vacation.That is such a different animal than a 252,you had remote control ,adjustments to your ground speed and cutter head so you don't charge into a stump and bog it down if you swing to fast.When i bought my used machine the guy was nice enough to let me grind two stumps just to get the feel of it.One final note you should ,you should let everybody who the dealer is so nobody else makes that that mistake

 

[Coen]

Coen,That is so unexceptable the dealer should lose his franchise,bad enough give you no manuel,but give you one for a tow behind.You must be a mild mannered person,if it was me i would casually asked the [scumbag] i mean salesman where he was staying on vacation,then every time i had a question or problem i would pay him a visit early in the morning,make sure he was having as much fun as i was,it would be the last time he'd ever pull a stunt like dropping off a piece of equipment on his way on vacation.That is such a different animal than a 252,you had remote control ,adjustments to your ground speed and cutter head so you don't charge into a stump and bog it down if you swing to fast.When i bought my used machine the guy was nice enough to let me grind two stumps just to get the feel of it.One final note you should ,you should let everybody who the dealer is so nobody else makes that that mistake

The wrong manual was shipped right from the factory with the machine. It is southeastern equipment out of detroit. I found out that selling carlton grinders is just a small part of their operations so I think the sale meant little to them. And I am way north of them. Not far from Sault St. Marie, Canada. Too far for them to be concerned about. I went with them because they are the closest dealer.

 

[Mtrstump]

Hey coen, I thought Vermeer was phasing out the sc1152, but I just found out today that the 652,852 and 1152 are no more because of the tier 4 engine requirement. Might be a good time to get a deal on close-out. Just a thought

 

[Coen]

Probably good advice, but I think I'll just keep my fingers crossed for now and hope for the best. My mind is too occupied with grapple trucks. I have to figure out how to get one without getting burned. I dont trust anyone anymore.


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[Mowingman]

In the future, forget about that dealer. Just call Carlton direct, give them your machine S/N, and order the parts you need. Same for any questions you have, or problems that come up. Call the factory and ask to talk to Huey. He, or one of the other parts/service guys will fix you up with exactly the parts or info you need.
They ship fast, and you can also request next day, for a little extra cost.
Jeff

 

[Coen]

Thanks

 

[Coen]

These are the teeth they kept sending me compared to what I needed.


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[Mowingman]

Yes, you need the 45 degree, angled shank, as I call it. Carlton factory folks will ask for your machine's serial number when you order teeth. They can tell from that, which style teeth you need. The "squared" shank, fits older Carlton machines. This type is the standard tooth you can get from any Sandvic dealer. The 45 degree shank is only available from Carlton. It is their own design modification to the Sandvic tooth. I am not sure exactly whay year the change was made. However, older Carlton machines use the squared shank, while newer models use the angled shank. Again, the factory could have told the dealer exactly what tooth you need to save you a lot of trouble. I think you have a dealer problem for sure.
Jeff

 

[Stump Grinder52]

I have a 2008 and has the 45 degree angle shank,like Mowingman said call the factory direct

 

[craneguy1]

Hey coen, I thought Vermeer was phasing out the sc1152, but I just found out today that the 652,852 and 1152 are no more because of the tier 4 engine requirement. Might be a good time to get a deal on close-out. Just a thought

Lol...no deals to be had! Just gave back the last 852 my area will ever see! It cut well but nothing like an 1102 which is our main machine...and $64000 for a stump grinder that is twice as slow is a hard pill to swallow!

 

[Mtrstump]

Lol...no deals to be had! Just gave back the last 852 my area will ever see! It cut well but nothing like an 1102 which is our main machine...and $64000 for a stump grinder that is twice as slow is a hard pill to swallow!

Your right, that is no deal. Trust me when I tell you much better deals than that are available. And how do you get that 1102 through a gate

 

[craneguy1]

Lol...crane it over like the tree came out! All kidding aside, going through a gate is not a deal breaker for us. We also have a 206, 630b,and a 502. And a friend that spezializes in stump jobs like that with a modded rayco 1625. For a lot of our jobs a fence is dropped to get the big equipment in anyway, and the money isn't in grinding stumps.

 

[Mtrstump]

Lol...crane it over like the tree came out! All kidding aside, going through a gate is not a deal breaker for us. We also have a 206, 630b,and a 502. And a friend that spezializes in stump jobs like that with a modded rayco 1625. For a lot of our jobs a fence is dropped to get the big equipment in anyway, and the money isn't in grinding stumps.

Don't get me wrong, 1102 is a great machine. I started with a 502. Just missed out on too many jobs when the tornados hit alabama. Went to a 60tx and now a 852. Sounds like your a Vermeer man anyway

 

[craneguy1]

Vermeer is the only company that seems to understand that chip containment is important...however; that being said why develope a self propelled stumper grinder line that involves the 2 most expensive ways of transmitting power to the working end? Follow that up with "oopsey! Out of motors and no new designs ready!" Good work from the original stump cutter maker. Too many irons in the fire if you ask me.