Ultimate Set Up for Residential Tree Work

[reachtreeservi]

well im just a small guy and by watching my my new neighbor i must of did it all wrong . if you want the ultimate setup in USA by today standards you will need. 50 illegals, some of asplundhs old throwaway chip trucks a few Vermeer Spanglish chippers so the crew can read how to work em, because safety is first. 2 salesmen you bribed away from from the ford dealership that could sell salt to a slug. a foreman from the UK like(axehole) who speaks the lingo and will work em like my fathers father worked.and after a month of undercutting and shutting out the small guy, you go buy a mansion in Mexico and use bank of America to transfer all that monies ya makin and start buying motels to expand the biz

Very observant WLL, I'd laugh at your post....
But it's all true !

 

[brookpederson]

Welcome to the site...

Are you saying that you have a tracked articulating loader? Got any pics?

No tracks, I don't know why they named their company multi-track cuz none of the models have tracks. They are like small payloaders that bend in the middle. I can't say enuf good things about them, we have 2..one with a bucket one with a brush grapple.

 

[treeman82]

I think my ultimate set-up would be something like a BIG cab-over with a hook lift body. Have at least 2 or 3 bodies for it... a PHC body, a chip box, and a dumpster.
Maybe one of those Teupen lifts... 100' would be nice, but 80 would be more than enough in all honesty.
A 255?XP with a winch, big engine, dual axles, and a LOT of tool boxes.
A small knuckleboom truck... single axle... 14 or 16' dump body with a crane able to reach about 30' with a grapple and a built in winch.
A small chipper... a 625 Vermeer or a SMALL 65 bandit... something that can be moved by hand or with a tractor / quad.
Besides those things...
A little pick-up, the Nissan's are very nice, for just running around... estimates, bank runs, etc.
An F550 4wd with a 9' chip box for plowing snow, delivering firewood, working in the woods, and grinding stumps.
A super RG50 with the plow
A mini skid loader and a log arch for moving materials and logs.

I think that would do it for equipment investments. Maybe an old loader or tractor if one came along for cheap.

As for the important stuff though...

1) A few GOOD employees, with no more than 1 idiot. People who will show up on time, who can be sent out on their own to do various tasks without having to worry, who are mechanically inclined, who can think for themselves, who are team players, and the list goes on. The 1 idiot I'd keep around for back breaking work only... splitting firewood, dragging brush, raking, moving logs, etc.

2) A GOOD storage yard... well located, well thought out... plenty of room for trucks, trailers, cars, etc. A small building with an office, bathroom, garage for working on equipment, and then a good storage area for tools, and something for pesticides. It would also be nice to have a nice water supply for filling up the spray rig. Also some BS outdoor space for firewood, chips, mulch, soil, etc.

 

[oldirty]

I AM surprised to no one mentioned two climbers... That is crucial for optimal efficiency... Sometimes trading off on removals or crane work, or both pruning the same tree on big trees, or different trees at the same time. cabling is also much faster and better with two climbers.

The chipper... I would say minimun 15", 140 HP with a winch, though if your truck can pull, it would be really nice to go with 18" and 200+ HP.

The bigger the chipper the bigger the chip box you'll need. I AM happy with a 14' forrestry body right now, though I could probably benefit from upgrading to a 16-18' extra tall box... Last crane day we dumped three times and that was end of december with short days..

I AM also happy with an rg super-50 66HP, 4x4 self propelled grinder, though I wouldn't mind going to the super 90... I tow it with a SUV... one of my peers has the same grinder towed behind and f-350 grain body dump and he puts a mini skid steer (to haul dirt and chips) side by side on the same trailer as the stump grinder.... That is the ultimate residential set up for stumps...

for the true ultimate set up you'd need a) two buckets, 75' and a 65 or 55', b)two cranes, a 30-35 ton 110-127' (without jib), and a back yard crane, rear mounted, or possibly mounted behind the cab with bunks for hauling logs, at least 23 tons and 85-90' of stick, and c) two log loaders, the big tri-axle with a prentice 120 (or better) and bunks, as well as a smaller truck, dump box, and the telescoping boom with 50' reach...

You'd have to run 5-6 crews minimum to make it pay having all that hardware... More leadership than most desire or are capable of, myself included... So maybe for most people, one crane and a 75' bucket would be enough. Rent a bigger/smaller crane when needed and sub out the log hauling until you are sure it will pay to have your own truck.

all very true. and damn that is a big ship to keep afloat.

what murph says about the 2 climbers is key. more so than the equipment although it is nice to have the tools. when it comes to the tree work in general there shouldnt be anything at a job that a climber cant do. a good climber worth his weight can do anything from set up to clean up.

company i work at now has 6 climbers out of 7 employees. that right there is great though sometimes it turns into a footrace to get the best spot to throwball in.

i'm just glad when the spikes are coming out they know who's going up. lol



and here i am going to go with a little bit of buttkissing.

murphy4trees can you sign in here abit more please. like to read what you have to say. thanks


oldirty

 

[oldirty]

This is a nice set up, Add a nice crane and a tub grinder yard to this set up and your in business for some serious profits. (I would also go with a rear mount loader, over the center mount, I have both designs and the rear mount is far superior)

dil. you happen to have a tub grinder at the yard?

 

[treeseer]

murphy4trees can you sign in here a bit more please. like to read what you have to say.

HI Dan! Welcome back!

My Ultimate Set Up would be good pole tools (power not needed), 2 climbers, resistograph and air excavating tool. And a good stock of cabling and lightning system gear. Soil injection gear with compressor, and of course the usual diagnostic gear.

All this fitting in one truck. Sub out all chipping and removals, and do nothing but maintenance work for all woody plants, average 4 visits a year to the average property.

 

[osb_mail]

Wow treeseerer always looking outside the box (box being the chip box ) . Way to go alway good to have some one thinking different !

 

[undercut]

HI Dan! Welcome back!

My Ultimate Set Up would be good pole tools (power not needed), 2 climbers, resistograph and air excavating tool. And a good stock of cabling and lightning system gear. Soil injection gear with compressor, and of course the usual diagnostic gear.

All this fitting in one truck. Sub out all chipping and removals, and do nothing but maintenance work for all woody plants, average 4 visits a year to the average property.

I can only commend your thinking

 

[treeseer]

It won't happen overnight, but it is a good direction to go in. I'm probably 75% of the way there, and pushing.

It feels so much better to see a healthy tree in the rearview mirror than an empty place where a tree used to be.

 

[Tim Krause]

ultimate

i think the chipper is the heart of the operation. go as big as you can. we have a 1890 hd and that baby is worth it's weight in gold. get a chip truck with a real chip box and a ladder box. our 20 yard box is the perfect size. something to pick logs. our knuckle boom is't the fastest wood slinger but it sure beats loading it by hand. a 4x4 mason dump always comes in handy for getting the chipper into tight spots or delivering firewood. and a self propelled stumper to get those back yard stumps.
but the ultimate for residential tree work in my opinion would be a 28 ton rear mounted crane, a 1990 hd with 250 cat and loader, a kenworth t-300 with 30 yard arbortec box, rear mounted 75' aerial lift, asv rc 100 with beaver squezer, and a rayco rg 90

 

[Canyonbc]

i think the chipper is the heart of the operation. go as big as you can. we have a 1890 hd and that baby is worth it's weight in gold. get a chip truck with a real chip box and a ladder box. our 20 yard box is the perfect size. something to pick logs. our knuckle boom is't the fastest wood slinger but it sure beats loading it by hand. a 4x4 mason dump always comes in handy for getting the chipper into tight spots or delivering firewood. and a self propelled stumper to get those back yard stumps.
but the ultimate for residential tree work in my opinion would be a 28 ton rear mounted crane, a 1990 hd with 250 cat and loader, a kenworth t-300 with 30 yard arbortec box, rear mounted 75' aerial lift, asv rc 100 with beaver squezer, and a rayco rg 90

Got to ask, whats a ladder box.

Canyon

 

[BC WetCoast]

HI Dan! Welcome back!

My Ultimate Set Up would be good pole tools (power not needed), 2 climbers, resistograph and air excavating tool. And a good stock of cabling and lightning system gear. Soil injection gear with compressor, and of course the usual diagnostic gear.

All this fitting in one truck. Sub out all chipping and removals, and do nothing but maintenance work for all woody plants, average 4 visits a year to the average property.

I would agree, but put the tanks/pumps/compressor on a trailer, then your chip truck can either haul the chipper or the PHC trailer. I think this setup would give you the most flexibility. You can still do removals, but also maintenance work.

Way more profit in fertilizing and spraying than in removals, with significantly less risk.

 

[OLD CHIPMONK]

someone that loves tree work as much as I do. Bells & Whistles are good but willing, experienced help is much harder to come by. Just an old opinion.

 

[Tim Krause]

Got to ask, whats a ladder box.

Canyon

a compartment in the side of the chip box where you can put all your long tools. some people put the ladder on the roof but there's room in the box so i put it in there. ladder, 2'x4'x8' plywood, rakes, pole clip, pole saw, power pruner, it all fits. much better than straping all the gear to the side of the truck looking like a gypsy.

 

[(WLL)]

a compartment in the side of the chip box where you can put all your long tools. some people put the ladder on the roof but there's room in the box so i put it in there. ladder, 2'x4'x8' plywood, rakes, pole clip, pole saw, power pruner, it all fits. much better than straping all the gear to the side of the truck looking like a gypsy.

iv seen long ladders put on a brush bandit 250. 1 end over the exhaust and the other over the rear light mount. it dont look good but it sure works good.