Thunderbird Yarders, Loaders, and Etc from the Murray's in Eugene Oregon

[Murk100]

 

[John Shipp]

Great pics Murk. Which part of BC is that going on at, mate?

 

[furpo]

Look great Furpo new paint is always nice.. The one I've been driving is due 5 years now #S5130 All you need now is a topping line winch and the Kobalt rigging control valve.

Cheers murk

How do you find the kobalt valve compared to the rexroth valve? The system in our machine is based on the rexroth valve and it works ok. We are looking at going down the plc control route with a new cab.

Lots of other updates as well as the paint. All the tower pins have been line bored, trackframe plating has been done, polycarbonate windows, air conditioning, air dryer sorted, last of the oil leaks sorted, new diesel tank (old one kept cracking) plus a few other things.

Definitely have an eye on your gantry upgrades. Time to pull some wood now though

 

[Betelgeuse]

View attachment 103576
back at wheeler

What is the attachment on the bulldozer blade?

 

[Betelgeuse]

Saw my first thunderbird! It looked like a 942 or that size. Just outside of Eatonville WA heading towards Rainer. Didn’t have time to stop had the whole family in the car. It was loading a shovel side on the side of the road. Big machine!
Not really a thunderbird question. But their were quite a few slash piles that we passed that looked like they were a few years old. What is the standard protocol for slash piles? Leave em burn em chip em? What is the replanting process like these days?
Have really been enjoying following the history of these machines.

 

[Skeans1]

Saw my first thunderbird! It looked like a 942 or that size. Just outside of Eatonville WA heading towards Rainer. Didn’t have time to stop had the whole family in the car. It was loading a shovel side on the side of the road. Big machine!
Not really a thunderbird question. But their were quite a few slash piles that we passed that looked like they were a few years old. What is the standard protocol for slash piles? Leave em burn em chip em? What is the replanting process like these days?
Have really been enjoying following the history of these machines.

Most of the time guys will try to burn them or just let them rot down. Personally on our place we try to do as much as possible mechanical planting, most company ground I’ve been on in NW Oregon is all hand planted through all the slash.

 

[John C.]

Depends on where you are at on the slash piles. On the Washington coast forests I see them with black plastic over the tops in the summers. They try to burn them when the rains come. East of the Olympics they generally just leave them in place to rot.

I haven't been out in the woods to much lately but replant used to take place in the late fall through winter. Last I saw, that was taken over by the latinos working cheap. There are loggers here that know far more about it than me.

 

[boatmaster]

TY 90 enquiry

Regrettably Johno I didn't take the opportunity to note any such info on the day. Provided it was new and working back from the build records it might be Y9067 but I'm not sure if 9067 was a trailor mount. Otherwise I think it would have to be a used 90. On the plus side, from the recent discussions, there would be a good chance that the rubber 255 in the shot is one and same as in log Frog's recent 857 post. I have S5090 with a Pierce Undercarriage (not a T/Bird as I mistakenly wrote, post 853) The problem with my old workshop records is that they are on very fine printed deteriorating fax paper and the notes are in a kind of brief shorthand. The only hint I have as to which 255 was on a T/Bird rubber mount as in Torkell's post, is S5074. It has SP by it in the notes. Does this sound right. It was the first 255 built and sold to Red McKenzie.

(Ken) Huffman Logging Fortuna Ca bought out Mckenzie in 1990 and got the Tsy255 s-5074,838 on carrier s-8310 and Tmy70 t-7046, quit contract logging in 1995, believe machines went to Worldwide Equipment in Eugene.

 

[Hallback]

I am looking for info on a Thunderbird swing yarder model 155 serial number 5115 please.

Thank you.

 

[Diamond Danebo]

I am looking for info on a Thunderbird swing yarder model 155 serial number 5115 please.

Thank you.

Only thing I’ve found so far is that it was built in nainamo oct 1992 and sold to Weyco cosmopolis division.

 

[Hallback]

Ok, that's what I needed!
Were the 155's good for grapple yarding?

 

[Diamond Danebo]

Ok, that's what I needed!
Were the 155's good for grapple yarding?

Sorry I’ve never worked around one not sure that’d be a question for Russ Smith at Modern. Do you want his #

 

[Hallback]

I have Russ's number. Thank you though.

 

[Blk prince]

I have Russ's number. Thank you though.

Hallback,there is a fellow on here running Thunderbird here on the island. Murk 100. If he sees this he will reply. Watch to see what happens

 

[furpo]

The 155 is a great little machine for both grapple and msp work. There are a couple of 155 machines down here doing so.

The 155 is different to the 255 in that it is 2 way interlocked. With the 155 I would look at replacing the pull clutches for the Goodrich type oil bag clutch as the thunderbird internal band clutch does not like the constant engagements they get when grappling. It is not a necessary upgrade it just makes the machine a bit more durable.

 

[furpo]

Spotted this ty80. Think it is the only one in nz. What is the spline on the end of the shaft for? Was it an option to have the strawline on the other side?

 

[Hallback]

Yes, it was optional to have two haywire drums.
What is the SN of it?

 

[Hallback]

There were only a couple of those ty80 Slackline machines built. Eric Krume has the other one here in Southwest Washington.

 

[Diamond Danebo]

just realized this ty-80 is on here. im thinking its Y-8036. Don peacock owned it at one point. I'm told those guys have it for sale now.

 

[Plebeian]

even putting grooved drum sleeves on the old thunderbirds.