Tips on Buying Knuckleboom for Loading Chunks
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PTS
ArboristSite Guru
Around here we call knuckle booms the ones that fold up and hide behind the cab or at the rear of the truck. Is that what you are talking about or are you talking about a clam truck (log hauling truck)?
If it is a clam truck look at the Prentice. I have found that if you go talk to the logging companies or saw mills you will be able to get a good deal on a well maintained truck. Bigger companies don't like to have to sit on a unit they want to move it so it has been my experience that you can get a good deal on a good truck.
If it is a clam truck look at the Prentice. I have found that if you go talk to the logging companies or saw mills you will be able to get a good deal on a well maintained truck. Bigger companies don't like to have to sit on a unit they want to move it so it has been my experience that you can get a good deal on a good truck.
Manco
ArboristSite Operative
I don't have a good answer but maybe a good question ? Do they make them with a dump body ? I've used a few, but seems like a dump body would be easier to unload than having to grapple it out. Either way, you're bound to save time and man-power. But, you can't always get as close to the material you need to load if you do a lot of close-quarter residential work.
LightningLoader
ArboristSite Operative
I don't know what you want to call the things that fold up behind the cab (I think those are techincally cranes), but I can say that the units with 16-22 ft booms are about to be defined by ANSI as "knuckleboom grapple loaders" and they are commonly called grapple trucks. I'd call the really big prentice types w/o dump bodies "log loaders."
Anyway, I'll ask my standard question. Are you taking about moving wood from residential jobs, or out in the middle of the woods/logging? If you're doing residential, then I'd recommend a grapple truck with a 24-30 cu. yd. dump body. A 20 ft. boom is plenty of reach for normal jobs, and clamshell grapple buckets are pretty much all purpose.
Anyway, I'll ask my standard question. Are you taking about moving wood from residential jobs, or out in the middle of the woods/logging? If you're doing residential, then I'd recommend a grapple truck with a 24-30 cu. yd. dump body. A 20 ft. boom is plenty of reach for normal jobs, and clamshell grapple buckets are pretty much all purpose.
knuckleboom use
I am planning on using the jobs on large removals along state highways and residential jobs. I would like to be able to take a load of logs to the mill from time to time. My thought is eliminating pulling a dump trailer with a loader tractor. I have to go back and pick up the tractor after I dump.
I would like to be able to pick up more than 1000 pounds as that is the limit of my JD 4410.
I realize the knucklebooms/grapple will not solve all my problems but I think they would eliminate some headaches for these contracts.
I am trying to find something that will fold up behind the cab like the Southco unit at the TCIA show but I am finding more trash trucks that sit in the dump or on the end of the dump over the doors. I want the truck to double as a chip truck.
I am planning on using the jobs on large removals along state highways and residential jobs. I would like to be able to take a load of logs to the mill from time to time. My thought is eliminating pulling a dump trailer with a loader tractor. I have to go back and pick up the tractor after I dump.
I would like to be able to pick up more than 1000 pounds as that is the limit of my JD 4410.
I realize the knucklebooms/grapple will not solve all my problems but I think they would eliminate some headaches for these contracts.
I am trying to find something that will fold up behind the cab like the Southco unit at the TCIA show but I am finding more trash trucks that sit in the dump or on the end of the dump over the doors. I want the truck to double as a chip truck.
LightningLoader
ArboristSite Operative
I think if you're doing bigger clearing jobs it would serve you better to get a a trash truck. Those fold up types can meet the lift capacity of the trash trucks, however they aren't really designed for duty cycle/repetitive loading.
I'm guessing that you want it to fold up so that you can chip into the body, but you can chip into the body of a trash truck too, you would just need to put the boom on the ground. It all depends on where you want to waste your time. You can either use it up unfolding the boom for loading on the one type, or you can spend a couple seconds to get the boom out of the body for chipping on the other kind.
If you're going to load more, get the trash truck type knuckleboom, but if you're going to chip more and rarely load, then maybe the fold up loader is reasonable.
I'm guessing that you want it to fold up so that you can chip into the body, but you can chip into the body of a trash truck too, you would just need to put the boom on the ground. It all depends on where you want to waste your time. You can either use it up unfolding the boom for loading on the one type, or you can spend a couple seconds to get the boom out of the body for chipping on the other kind.
If you're going to load more, get the trash truck type knuckleboom, but if you're going to chip more and rarely load, then maybe the fold up loader is reasonable.
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