New Tractor and Winch

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Talking of winch ropes you guys might want to take a look at what Slamm has to say about Amsteel Blue rope which he raves about for his skidders. I'll paste a quote of his below but there is more indepth discussion in his "Some sawing" thread. Judging by what he has to say I'll be trying it out next. Hope this helps and TS your thread rocks!:rockn:

I have used 5/8" and 3/4" Amsteel on my John Deere 540 Cable Skidder, and I will never use a Steel Cable again for a Cable Skidder, never. I will never use the 5/8" Amsteel either, LOL. The 3/4" is flat amazing in strength, and you will be constantly amazed by its performance.

I love the stuff:

Con: Low Abrasion Resistence
Initial Cost - (Now don't be short sighted here, the stuff does pay for itself in increased productivity and you can reused the "unused" portion of the cable)

Pros: Super Strong for Logging 3/4" and bigger is needed.
I can splice end loops in under 4-6 minutes with my "kit"
Super Light, if pulled out properly by the skidder you don't notice the line's weight.
You can reused the un-used first section of "cable" by splicing it to a new piece.
If you break it or damage it in the middle, you just splice it and carry on. With steel the whole cable is worthless.
No damage to your hands.
No more cable cutters or cutoff wheels, as I just cut it with my pocket knife in the field.
Splicing is now a quiet and peaceful operation and not some battle with a steel cable that is constantly trying to get away or stab me.
It is super cool, LOL.

My experience with Amsteel,

Sam Nelson
 
bpirger said:
Thanks for the help TS.

I've never operated a winch before...and I have a few more questions.

1. I see you replaced your line with swedged 1/2" cable. The original cable wasn't of swedge (or swaged...appears to be the same thing) construction?
The original cable was 3/8 wire rope non swedge, I dont remember what the wire configuration is off hand but I think it was 7/16- 7 strands with 16 wires each
2. Does the winch line spool up cleanly when pulling in a load?
For the most part, yes. But if I do multiple short pull there can be some binding. I watch the drum and if there seems to be any binding I will hook it to a tree, drive the tractor out to the end of the spool, and pull the tractor back to the tree applying slight pressure to the brakes. This spools the cable cleanly on the drum.
3. My understanding is that the Wallenstein is either pulling in (if the clutch is pulled to engage), the brake is applied (holding the drum fixed), or the drum will freespool out. Have you had any troubles pulling the winch line out? Does it ever tangle on the spool?
There is also an adjustable brake on the drum to prevent cable lash while pulling the cable out (free spooling). As long as the cable is wound clean and snug from previous pulls it come out no problem(see above)
It just pulls out easily as you walk into the bush? Do you require a second person to help pull it out back at the tractor?
There is obviously some weight when pulling out the cable. But personally I can take 4 chokers and pull the whole length of cable without issue. And for the most part I am a 1 man show, my FIL helps when he can but more as a spotter while doing blind pulls up the ravine.

4. The choker chains wrap around the log through the "C" ring and then the chain is "locked" into the slider on the winch line? Never used such a setup before, but it sure sounds sweet and easy.
In the past I have used cable chokers also. There are advantages and disadvantages to both. Cable chokes can be easier to fish under downed timber, while they will have more of a tendency to slip off of smooth barked trees. Chains are a little trickier to fish under downed timber, but they bite much better into the log. Which is really an advantage when trying to roll the tree while hung up, or around other obstacles while winching in.
The key hole sliders are very easy to use and work great. I will rig multiple logs for a pull keeping in mind that the sliders act as a snatch block. I can help guide the log on the hook (end of cable) around obstacles until it gets pulled up to the logs on the sliders.

Thanks so much for your help. Indeed, looks like you have a nice machine and setup there. I agree, a small utility seems like a better value than a compact diesel.

Thanks,
Bruce
Click to expand...

:)
 
Last edited:
possumtrapper said:
Talking of winch ropes you guys might want to take a look at what Slamm has to say about Amsteel Blue rope which he raves about for his skidders. I'll paste a quote of his below but there is more indepth discussion in his "Some sawing" thread. Judging by what he has to say I'll be trying it out next. Hope this helps and TS your thread rocks!:rockn:

I have used 5/8" and 3/4" Amsteel on my John Deere 540 Cable Skidder, and I will never use a Steel Cable again for a Cable Skidder, never. I will never use the 5/8" Amsteel either, LOL. The 3/4" is flat amazing in strength, and you will be constantly amazed by its performance.

I love the stuff:

Con: Low Abrasion Resistence
Initial Cost - (Now don't be short sighted here, the stuff does pay for itself in increased productivity and you can reused the "unused" portion of the cable)

Pros: Super Strong for Logging 3/4" and bigger is needed.
I can splice end loops in under 4-6 minutes with my "kit"
Super Light, if pulled out properly by the skidder you don't notice the line's weight.
You can reused the un-used first section of "cable" by splicing it to a new piece.
If you break it or damage it in the middle, you just splice it and carry on. With steel the whole cable is worthless.
No damage to your hands.
No more cable cutters or cutoff wheels, as I just cut it with my pocket knife in the field.
Splicing is now a quiet and peaceful operation and not some battle with a steel cable that is constantly trying to get away or stab me.
It is super cool, LOL.

My experience with Amsteel,

Sam Nelson
Click to expand...

Thanks, I have been following Slamms thread also, it is very good. That Amsteel cable looks very sweet. My only concern would be the abrasion resistance over long term use. Now that I have the heavier cable on the winch I am hoping for many years use out of it.
 
Last edited:
Thanks TS for the info on the winch , it really helps other people that are looking at winches on what to buy. Always look forward to your pics.


Beefie
 
Here is a fresh batch of pics from today. The first couple are from an area that has a bunch of beech trees that are dying. I don't mind cutting from this area as I made a campsite here and planted Biologic so the extra light will be a bonus.
attachment.php

attachment.php

Here is a pic of a top that broke out of a maple tree as well as a few cull trees I cut down.
attachment.php

Here are a couple of beech trees I cut. The closest tree I had some fun with as I cut the notch out of the rotten side, started the back cut, set a wedge then finished the back cut. Well the tree didn't want to go over, so I pulled the saw and started pounding the wedge, which was promptly spit out from the tree:( The tree sat back and I re notched and fell it where it wanted to go:) I hate it when that happens.
attachment.php

Here is a pic of the beech trees all pulled in together before pulling up to the tractor.
attachment.php

.......
 
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And here are the above trees pulled in to the tractor.
attachment.php

And the maple branch and cull trees pulled in.
attachment.php

I had a friend show up and want to cut down a few trees. He cut the maple that the top broke out off. This is him hooking up the chokers.
attachment.php

attachment.php

And here is what I have in the yard as of this afternoon.
attachment.php

......
 
the rest of the pics, this beech was heavy, over 24" at the butt, almost as wide as my ex wifes _ss:msp_tongue: it was standing straight up with most of the branches on the wrong side so i had to wedge it a little. no match for the 066 and 2171 however.
 
Nice pics Woodfarmer, that beech will make some excellent firewood! I was going to ask you the same question as Rvalue, how do you like your grapple?
 
Laird said:
Pics are kinda small not sure what I am doing wrong since the software changed.:(
Click to expand...

At the top of the page under the advertising go to forum actions, then general settings, then near the bottom of the page turn Enhanced Attachment Uploading off. Doing this changes the manage attachments back to the old style:)

Ps- I'm not seeing any pics?
 

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