BEST WOOD CHIPPER TO BUY?

[paulhogan87]

Hey guys, I'm new here and wasn't sure which topic to post this question in but here goes.
I live in NE Oklahoma and have about a couple acres and about 1.5 of it is nothing but trees. It's mostly oak and some other native trees I'm not sure of but the area is very thick with trees as anyone from the state can imagine. It renders a huge portion of my property unusable as it's also on a slope and during the summer you can even see through it all. There are probably a couple hundred trees varying anywhere from 1" to maybe 16"+ in diameter. I have purchased a new saw and plan to start thinning it all out using the trees for firewood and possibly, if I have time, eventually milling some lumber from it. I'm quite new at this but am pretty stoked at the prospect of utilizing all this to my advantage. My question is, after I've felled the trees most folks burn the remaining stuff but I can't beings how I dont have a safe place far enough from the house, so I was thinking of investing in a wood chipper. What would be my best route to go on a gas chipper knowing the amount I have, diameter of branches, density of wood etc.? I'd like to get one that will last a while but dont have a ton to spend either. Anyone ,especially local Oklahomans, that have some input or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Have a blessed weekend and a safe memoial day!

 

[Sebago Guide]

Curious what you ended up buying? I have a similar situation in Maine and my slash pile just keeps on growing.

 

[Conquistador3]

Curious what you ended up buying? I have a similar situation in Maine and my slash pile just keeps on growing.

I am not familiar with American brands, but what sort of branches are you dealing with? Big stuff? Small stuff? Do you also have other things to shred, such as leaves? Do you have a tractor?

 

[Swamp Yankee]

Rent,

I had a 3pt hitch chipper and found it to be a royal pain to use and transport over rough terrain. It never lived up to its billing to say the least.

Now when I need to chip I get a 6 inch Vermeer from the local rental place for either a 1/2 or full day. Wish I had done that before buying the 3pt hitch. I can rent the Vermeer, with power feed 20 to 25 times for what I paid for the total POS Bearcat 3pt chipper.

Rather than pile, if you can wind row the brush with the butt ends all in one direction you'll be amazed at how fast the chipping operation goes with the power feed.

Take Care

 

[Sebago Guide]

Rent,

I had a 3pt hitch chipper and found it to be a royal pain to use and transport over rough terrain. It never lived up to its billing to say the least.

Now when I need to chip I get a 6 inch Vermeer from the local rental place for either a 1/2 or full day. Wish I had done that before buying the 3pt hitch. I can rent the Vermeer, with power feed 20 to 25 times for what I paid for the total POS Bearcat 3pt chipper.

Rather than pile, if you can wind row the brush with the butt ends all in one direction you'll be amazed at how fast the chipping operation goes with the power feed.

Take Care

Good advice. My pile has been growing for years and I will eventually look to chip it.

 

[Sebago Guide]

I am not familiar with American brands, but what sort of branches are you dealing with? Big stuff? Small stuff? Do you also have other things to shred, such as leaves? Do you have a tractor?

No tractor, so the 3 pt hitch attachment not an option. I don’t think anything in the pile is over 2” thick. Mostly oak, beech and pine. Plenty long though and smaller branches shooting off. I’ve piled them in the woods in a bit of a gully as I’ve cut over the years. But as I clear more, the piles are now more noticeable to the eye.

Too many leave trees surrounding the piles to burn them. Making good habitat for wildlife though.

 

[Conquistador3]

No tractor, so the 3 pt hitch attachment not an option. I don’t think anything in the pile is over 2” thick. Mostly oak, beech and pine. Plenty long though and smaller branches shooting off. I’ve piled them in the woods in a bit of a gully as I’ve cut over the years. But as I clear more, the piles are now more noticeable to the eye.

Too many leave trees surrounding the piles to burn them. Making good habitat for wildlife though.

You can probably get away with something like this, which is the slightly larger version of what I have: http://www.caravaggi.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Bio-150-caravaggi.pdf
The self-propelled tracked version is very expensive (hence it's a special order) but really good for working in the woods: I am sure somebody your side of the Atlantic has come up with something similar.

A larger chipper can do the job faster or much faster, but needs to be hauled in place, often over broken terrain. With the crazy prices renting costs here buying new, albeit small, has already saved me money, especially considering during season I am chipping/shredding pretty much every other day.

 

[Sebago Guide]

You can probably get away with something like this, which is the slightly larger version of what I have: http://www.caravaggi.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Bio-150-caravaggi.pdf
The self-propelled tracked version is very expensive (hence it's a special order) but really good for working in the woods: I am sure somebody your side of the Atlantic has come up with something similar.

A larger chipper can do the job faster or much faster, but needs to be hauled in place, often over broken terrain. With the crazy prices renting costs here buying new, albeit small, has already saved me money, especially considering during season I am chipping/shredding pretty much every other day.

Good looking rig.

 

[alderman]

I was in much the same situation here 30 years ago. I purchased a Troybilt Tomahawk chipper shredder and while it could chip plenty fast for my needs, there were a couple of issues with it. The discharge is close to the ground so had to be cleared frequently or the chipper had to be moved. The infeed chute for the chipper portion was quite small so anything with many branches would not feed until they were trimmed.
I ended up making several trails through the woodlot so I could get the chipper close to the branches. Now after many years of thinning, the work has slowed considerably. The trees are far enough apart I can burn pretty much anywhere I need to now and seldom use the chipper.


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[Conquistador3]

I was in much the same situation here 30 years ago. I purchased a Troybilt Tomahawk chipper shredder and while it could chip plenty fast for my needs, there were a couple of issues with it. The discharge is close to the ground so had to be cleared frequently or the chipper had to be moved. The infeed chute for the chipper portion was quite small so anything with many branches would not feed until they were trimmed.
I ended up making several trails through the woodlot so I could get the chipper close to the branches. Now after many years of thinning, the work has slowed considerably. The trees are far enough apart I can burn pretty much anywhere I need to now and seldom use the chipper.

I solved the discharge issue with an old snow shovel... not much snow here, so at least I found a use for it.

 

[paulhogan87]

Thank you guys for all the input. I have not yet purchased one and will probably look into renting one numerous times before pulling the trigger. From what I gather from you all it sounds like my best bet would be to experiment and try a few models out so I have a better idea exactly what my needs are size, power, capacity wise. I haven't yet rented one either and my piles are getting larger and larger! I'll keep you all updated when I finally get some work done!

 

[qasim]

Hey there! For your acreage and the density of trees, I recommend a gas-powered chipper with at least a 5-8 inch capacity. Look for brands like DR Power or Woodland Mills—they offer durable machines for heavy-duty work. Make sure to choose a model with self-feeding capabilities to handle thicker branches easily. Regular maintenance will ensure it lasts, even with tough Oklahoma wood!

 

[composter]

I have the DR 3" chipper (14 HP, I think. Chips pretty well when sharp. The engineering is screwed up tho! To sharpen the knife requires lots of disassembly, so you spend an hour removing stuff to spend half hour sharpening, then an hour assembling. The smaller model I had first could be sharpened in 1/4th the time. When looking at machines, do go thru the maintenance steps before spending lots of cash!

 

[OM617YOTA]

6 year old thread.