BC 1800 Vs. BC 2000

[treeman82]

Not that I have any money to buy these things, but I was just looking at them out of mere curiosity. What is the difference in machines, and is it worth the price hike?

The BC 2000 I was looking at had a 200 hp diesel, 150' rope winch, hydraulic jack, dual axles, 20" capacity, and cost $52,000.00

The BC1800 has a 105HP perkins diesel engine, winch, regular jack, single axle, 18" capacity, and costs $35,500.00 To go up to the big engine and keep the winch adds on an additional axle.

What do you guys think of the two machines? Which would be a better buy for doing removals and some clearing?

 

[Nickrosis]

I did a search for BC 1800 and BC 2000, only to find a lot of historical events and information. Nate probably would have gotten excited by that....

So those are Vermeer model numbers?

Nickrosis

 

[treeman82]

Yes Nick, they are Vermeer model #'s

 

[palmer4670]

In my opinion, and I may be wrong, but I think that the 1800 would be more versitile than the 2000. If you were lot clearing or just chipping from the curb, the 2000 would be great, but when you have to get in the yard and jack knife the chipper for some reason, the tandem axles will plow sod. Does not make for happy customers. Although you may never put a chipper in the yard, we do down here.

Another thing, I don't know much about the winch on these chippers, but I think that if I had the money to buy either one, I would look into getting the knuckle boom loader instead of the winch, seems to be more handy and less fooling with a winch cable.

Maybe when our business grows about 10 fold, I will be able to buy one and let you know for sure.

Palmer

 

[chrisarborist]

Chipper choice

The selection of a chipper is probably one of the most important things in tree care. It is just like selection of a climbing harness, eccept you can usually only afford one chipper.
Look at the work you do and that should dictate the type of chipper you need. I have worked with almost all of vermeers chippers. I do all kinds of work, by most of my work is in peoples yards and tight areas. I have a BC 1000.
As far as the 1800 goes. Nice for big removals of trees where wood is not usable for logs, lumber, firewood, or any other use you have found. Just turn it into wood chips... I sell those.
The winch... Excellent for speed line rigging or a tag line to pull big limbs to chiper before they are lowered to ground. Other than that, I have not found a good use for it, especially if you care about keeping your blades sharp and your customers lawn looking like a lawn. I feel to make good effective use of it requires good knowledge of rigging.
Engines... I recommend the John deere enging if they are still offering that as an option. It is a "balanced engine" and over time will save on wear and tear.
Hope that helps, Christian

 

[treeman82]

Christian, any thoughts on the big (200 HP) engine Vs. the small (105 - 115 HP) engines? One guy who does a lot of land clearing I know bought one with the 105 Perkins, but didn't get the winch and is very happy. Another guy I know has the model 17 Morbark with the big engine and it's pretty hard to womp on that thing.

 

[chrisarborist]

big vs. small engine

Hy treeman82...
Well, as far as the engine size, I would get the smaller one 100 to 115 horse. I don't know if vermeer beefs up the shaft, drum,bearings, clutch, and all those other piece of the puzzle that take a beating. More horses, means more beating on the equipment, decrease life time of that equipment increased maintenance costs. My BC 1000 was beefed up to a 12 inch machine from a 10 inch machine and I have since had it in the shop 2 or 3 times. I thing the machine is underengineered for the work it does. At least mine seems to be. The mechanics say they don't have many troubles with the bc 1000 and sell lots of them, so maybe I just got a lemon.
So, if you can go with a smaller engine, I think you will have the chipper for a longer time. Please remember these are my own opinions. I am very critical of all my equipment and it all has its goods and bads. I like vermeer stuff, but noone is perfect, and I hope I just have a lemon.

 

[treeman82]

Chris, my Vermeer dealer was telling me that the BC1000 was not meant for commercial use. It is meant more for institutional and other light duty purposes.

 

[chrisarborist]

Institutional and light duty purposes... LOL. I can't believe a vermeer rep would be so ignorant as to say such a thing. Either that is a very poor excuse and a very badly informed vermeer rep or I have been terribly misinformed and very poorly served by my dealer. I doubt the later is true. You may want to ask your rep to check up on who they are selling these units to. Anyhow, are you interested in purchasing a chipper? If so, don't miss the opportunity to demo chippers from other companies. Demo both disc style and drum style. See what you like better. Good luck, and don't believe everything your rep tells you.

 

[DFD34]

Vermeer

I don't have any experience with Vermeer chippers. We use The Morbark Tornados and the Hurricane models. Anytime we get a new chipper or anything for the tree industry, we say the beefier the better. Big engines, heavy-duty framing and big ballon tires are a must. Have you every seen a chipper that was beaten or abused a bit? This industry is not gentle on equipment and I don't care how easy you say you are on your chipper, they get beat up. The stronger the machine the longer it will last and the less downtime. Remember downtime equals money.
Two quick comments:
If people are worried about driving heavy trucks and chippers on lawns or sod then you should try using ply-wood. Lay it down and drive over that. We use it on most of our jobs that we have to drive heavy equipment across nice lawns. We also use it on new driveways. It is a pain in the butt sometimes to lay out and then pick up but it keeps the customers happy we you are done--and you are not paying for a new lawn.

From my experience with chippers the Morbark Hurricane is perhaps the best 18" chipper on the market. No residential tree job is to big or small. We have used it on some small land clearing jobs not much bigger than an acre. We usually set up so we can feed the chipper with our logging truck. If the set ups are good then we can bang out large jobs rather quickly because of this chipper. The only down fall is that we fill up our 22 yard chip trucks rather fast. The Hurricane is an amazing machine.

Just my opinions,
DFD34

 

[palmer4670]

If people are worried about driving heavy trucks and chippers on lawns or sod then you should try using ply-wood.

DFD34, What size plywood do you use, (thickness) and do you use 4' X 8' sheets or do you cut it to just cover the tire tracks. I have thought about doing this in the winter, but never have. How many sheets do you carry with you to a job? Just curious.

Palmer

 

[DFD34]

Ply-wood

Palmer4670,
We use 4 x 8 size ply-wood with at least 1x2 diameter for small trucks. For our larger trucks ie: Cranes,70ft bucket truck,and log trucks we will use 5/8 ths or better. It really disperses the weight well. We modified our cab cages on our bucket trucks to carry up to 20 sheets of 1x2 inch. Our new aerial lift 60ft buckets with out the chip box has an option that allows you to put ply-wood between the cab and the toolboxes. I believe that we can fit something like 12 sheets there. As i stated before using the ply-wood is a pain in he butt but, it really saves nice lawns and new driveways. It is well worth the extra effort to do this. Hope this answers your question.

DFD34

 

[palmer4670]

Is it true that the 1800 tows easier than the 1230 and 1250, or is that a bad rumor that I have heard?

Thanks DFD34 for the info, something that I might try this winter when the ground gets rotten. If it keeps raining here it may be sooner than later. How long does a new sheet of plywood last, 5 or 6 uses?

Palmer

 

[DFD34]

plywood

Unfortunatly, plywood does not withstand heavy trucks and equipment well. You might have to replace some sheets several times a season.---DFD34

 

[chrisarborist]

Re: Vermeer

DFD34: Just curious... How can you pick my nose from 110 feet away, and why would you want to?

 

[Nickrosis]

Sorry I'm continuing with the off-topic stuff......

We go through 100-200 sheets of 1/2" plywood per year.

Nickrosis

 

[Greg]

A buddy of mine who does my bobcat work has been going back and forth about the plywood thing for a while now. Can't decide to stick with pwood or go to the Alternamats(?) plastic/rubber matts used for same purpose but they are around $200 per sheet vs. $10 for p-wood. He can use the wood 2-3 times before it is trashed.
Nick with the number of sheets your biz is using I'd think the mats would be a better choice. Supposed to be much easier to handle than the wood and lighter.
Greg

 

[treepres1]

chipper1800

to give you my exp. with the 1800 i own.to chip 18 inch.the motor is underpowered.its a 115hp.and being that its a drum instead of a disc you really need more power.i also own a mobark but it is 9inch disc not bad .but our favorite is our bandit 250xp with a 125hp.with a winch.height adjustable discharge chute.live hyd.were looking at a 254xp 14inch .but i would buy a grapple loader on a truck instead of on the chipper,or maybe on a trailer for the same money.and dont forget our chipper truck is 22ft.with 5ft sides.the bigger wood feels the truck so fast .our grapple truck is a tandem prentice ts33 with a 45 yd box