Load Trailer with Logging Winch

[FLRA_Dave]

This is probably the best balanced load that my tractor will carry. This is not at the site that I'm having trouble getting wood out at in a timely manner.

 

[zogger]

I don't have an atv. I've thought about an arch for behind the tractor. There is something kind of like an arch, but looks like it could lift a full log, at the edge off a farmer's field in the next town over. It hadn't moved in the 6 years I've lived here. Total length has to be at least 20 ft.

The problem I run into isn't getting enough hooked to skid, but rather it doesn't take a lot for the tractor to be over loaded and not be able to lift the 3 pt to get the butts off the ground (or the winch off the ground if I try using the cable).

well, I guess you now know why they make dedicated skidders, when you want to move mass quantities fast. If you hit the limit of your tractor rig, you hit the limit, have to live with that and just keep plugging away at it.

There's tradeoffs every which way you go, want cheaper and be able to fit down real narrow trails, what you have now seems good.

That winching to trailer then unloading and reloading etc is gonna take time and back and forth out of the tractor seat etc, proly wind up taking you just as long and be more complicated.

 

[Oliver1655]

Dave I didn't realize you had a loader with a grapple. If that is your grapple on the tractor, I don't understand why you would be having problems loading the trailer. If it is a large trunk, just cut shorter lengths.

To speed up unloading, lay 4 or 5 lengths of pipe across the bed before loading the logs. Strap/chain logs in place for transport. To unload after unstrapping/chaining, you can drive backwards, the hit the brakes, & let the load roll off the back.

 

[FLRA_Dave]

Dave I didn't realize you had a loader with a grapple. If that is your grapple on the tractor, I don't understand why you would be having problems loading the trailer. If it is a large trunk, just cut shorter lengths.

To speed up unloading, lay 4 or 5 lengths of pipe across the bed before loading the logs. Strap/chain logs in place for transport. To unload after unstrapping/chaining, you can drive backwards, the hit the brakes, & let the load roll off the back.

Yes, it is my grapple.

The only time I would really have any trouble loading the trailer is when I come across a log that I want to have milled. Before I load my current trailer, I bring logs to the landing, then buck into 4 ft lengths so I can unload them by hand (carry or roll). I like the pipe idea though. In the next week or two I get my dump trailer and that should take care of the unloading.

 

[mike047]

I had a logging wench that loaded my trailer for a time.

She quit and divorced me

 

[jcl]

How about making a log landing in the woods! Drag logs to one spot with winch& tractor then take winch off and drag logs to landing with out the winch on tractor it will give you more 3pt hitch lifting capability

Or do what i did and buy a bigger tractor.

 

[FLRA_Dave]

How about making a log landing in the woods! Drag logs to one spot with winch& tractor then take winch off and drag logs to landing with out the winch on tractor it will give you more 3pt hitch lifting capability

Or do what i did and buy a bigger tractor.

That's essentially what I had mentioned before. Winch them to the trail so I can put on the 3pt grapple (250 lbs?) and skid them out and load on the trailer.

A larger tractor would be nice, but I haven't even had this one for a year yet (about 92 hours on it). I got a price for a 5045E and it was about $29k. Not sure what a 4044M goes for yet. I don't think a larger tractor is going to be able to happen for a while.

 

[FLRA_Dave]

This past weekend I used the winch to get all of the wood to an open area and then swapped the winch for the grapple. I think it worked much better this way. With the logs easily accessible to the 3pt grapple I was able to make trips within 15 minutes. This way also allowed the two of us to work together to get everything winched out, then my brother in law rode back to the trailer to begin bucking, and then I just made runs until I had all of the wood out for the day and helped get it finished being cut to length and loaded on the trailer.

Here is a video I put together:

 

[steved]

I have seen folks use a skid plate where the butt rests on it & the front is angled up to keep it from digging in. There is a hole in the front of the plate for a chain to go through.

Yeah, we did this with garden tractors before, a 3x5 sheet of 1/16" or 1/8" with a hoop of 1/2 bar for a tongue. Worked great...its amazing what you could move when it slides, just the tension pulling on it from the drawbar will make it twist up off the ground in the front.

We also welded a rack on the back at one point to put rounds against, you could pull more on that skid plate than you could on a trailer sunk to the axle.

 

[zogger]

cool vid!

Nice quality ruts, too! HAHAHAHAHA!

Really, you have a nice setup now.

 

[rwoods]

I wish my little Deere could go that fast, but I'm not sure I could handle the bee buzzing. Just kidding. Nice set up. Long haul. Ron

 

[FLRA_Dave]

I wish my little Deere could go that fast, but I'm not sure I could handle the bee buzzing. Just kidding. Nice set up. Long haul. Ron

Just watched out for the first time with sound. I need to republish the video without sound for the sped up section. That was horrendous.

 

[FLRA_Dave]

OK, I was finally able to update the video with a much reduced volume for the sped up section.

 

[pete_86]

I was thinking about how my 3032e is limited to how much weight it can lift on the 3pt and how this effects getting wood moved out to the landing. I was thinking that I could take a trailer / wagon and hook it up to the winch's drawbar and use the logging winch to pull logs out and directly up onto the trailer. When I get to the landing I would unhook and use the grapple to load the logs onto the road worthy trailer. Or if i was splitting at the landing, then I would buck them right on the trailer.

What does everyone think? Has anyone on here done this before? I saw many videos of people using electric winches to load trailers, but they were painfully slow.

Here is the rough idea (remember, don't take the simple model too literally - I know people do!).

Just curious what kind of software you using? Wish I had something like this for projects. I never took autocad in school and those programs are pricey.

 

[dave_dj1]

maybe something more like this?
personally i think it would be faster to just skid them, even at a shorter length if theyre too big for the tractor,
also if you to the trailer deal, you would still need 3 point capacity for tounge weight on the trailer, if the axle is too far foward then your likely to have traction issues when it wants to lift the rear of the tractor, so your going to need tounge weight, and looks like your hitch is on the winch frame... i dont think you would gain anything, you may be able to haul more wood per trip, but hitching the trailer, then pulling the logs on, drive to the landing, unhook trailer, unload with loader, re hook trailer. no real gains...

If you built the arch in the center of the trailer and tall enough to reach the ends you could load in one motion.
I like the grapple better though!
dave

 

[FLRA_Dave]

Just curious what kind of software you using? Wish I had something like this for projects. I never took autocad in school and those programs are pricey.

It's Autodesk Inventor 2014.

 

[rarefish383]

I built this out of extra 4X4's laying around the house. If it worked I planned on building one out of steel. It worked great. I hung a snatch block on the 4X4 and pulled one log up with the winch. It was sllooowwww. So, I unhooked the trailer and pulled them up with the truck. Trailer showed no sign of tipping or sliding forward. Soon as I get a chance I'm making a gantry out of steel that I can break down and take off when needed, Joe.

 

[FLRA_Dave]

Since this thread is up again, here is my new trailer if I didn't show it already.

 

[dave_dj1]

Nice trailer!