hvy 1ton
Senior Member
ZTS vs Full Radius vs Swing Machine vs Converted Hoe
This one has been turning around in my head for a while now. I've been trying to figure out a good setup for cut to length logging. For no other reason than it something else to do besides school work. Hey, its been raining... a lot.
Anyway to keep comparison simple, i think i'll use Deere equipment as examples. I am a bleed green guy, so it only makes sense.
135 converted hoe
703 harvester/225 converted hoe 25t
853 harvester/2454 roadbuilder/harvester 35t
One of my first thoughts was that a 25 ton machine can't make out to well on primary thinning jobs and i wondered why no one makes a 135 or 160 sized machine to fill this application. Maybe i'm way off, but that's why i'm asking. I'm not really expecting it to keep up with any of the larger machines, but think it would work well for certain apps. The nice thing about this system is versatility. It can dig, cut trees, and run a mulcher. A forestry shear would be a low cost way to get started with clearing/thinning jobs.
The next comparison is of the 703 and 225 hoe setup for the woods. Both are in the 25 ton operating class, weighing somewhere around 52,000 with a dangle head. The 703 has 22hp extra, 2 extra cylinders, and a hi walker undercarriage. The 703 is a purpose built machine, and i would imagine it will hold up much better in the woods than the 225. The 703 also has a much tighter swing radius than a 225. About the only advantage the 225 has is cost, even after conversion.
Now for the bigwood/high production machines there are the 853 and the 2454. The 853 is a beast in the woods, 8.1L @274hp, it has almost as much flow as 2454 without counting the saw pump. Looking at it again, do harvester even have saw pumps, or is it only for the feller bunchers? I'm not really expecting the 2454 to preform on the same level as the 853, but give up some performance for flexibility. I don't have any idea how well a 2454 would work as a at stump harvester or if its even a feasible idea. I'm not sure how possible this whole idea is either, but could you spec out a 2454 roadbuilder with the hardware to run a harvester and then put dangle head on a quick hitch? A second, less desirable solution would be to switch to a harvester stick whenever cutting. I have a feeling the road builder stick/quick hitch will be to heavy to swing a big head. For what little it would, I was planing on pulling the thumb off to save a little weight.
I have a feeling that the 2454 would preform slightly better against the 853 than the 225 against the 703, but it's probably more cost effective to run a dedicated harvester and have the 2454 be a loader when cutting wood. With enough time in Pro-E and a big piggy bank i could build a real hot rod of a dual purpose machine, but i digress. I wrote some of this last night before i fell asleep on my desk, some of it might not make sense.
This one has been turning around in my head for a while now. I've been trying to figure out a good setup for cut to length logging. For no other reason than it something else to do besides school work. Hey, its been raining... a lot.
Anyway to keep comparison simple, i think i'll use Deere equipment as examples. I am a bleed green guy, so it only makes sense.
135 converted hoe
703 harvester/225 converted hoe 25t
853 harvester/2454 roadbuilder/harvester 35t
One of my first thoughts was that a 25 ton machine can't make out to well on primary thinning jobs and i wondered why no one makes a 135 or 160 sized machine to fill this application. Maybe i'm way off, but that's why i'm asking. I'm not really expecting it to keep up with any of the larger machines, but think it would work well for certain apps. The nice thing about this system is versatility. It can dig, cut trees, and run a mulcher. A forestry shear would be a low cost way to get started with clearing/thinning jobs.
The next comparison is of the 703 and 225 hoe setup for the woods. Both are in the 25 ton operating class, weighing somewhere around 52,000 with a dangle head. The 703 has 22hp extra, 2 extra cylinders, and a hi walker undercarriage. The 703 is a purpose built machine, and i would imagine it will hold up much better in the woods than the 225. The 703 also has a much tighter swing radius than a 225. About the only advantage the 225 has is cost, even after conversion.
Now for the bigwood/high production machines there are the 853 and the 2454. The 853 is a beast in the woods, 8.1L @274hp, it has almost as much flow as 2454 without counting the saw pump. Looking at it again, do harvester even have saw pumps, or is it only for the feller bunchers? I'm not really expecting the 2454 to preform on the same level as the 853, but give up some performance for flexibility. I don't have any idea how well a 2454 would work as a at stump harvester or if its even a feasible idea. I'm not sure how possible this whole idea is either, but could you spec out a 2454 roadbuilder with the hardware to run a harvester and then put dangle head on a quick hitch? A second, less desirable solution would be to switch to a harvester stick whenever cutting. I have a feeling the road builder stick/quick hitch will be to heavy to swing a big head. For what little it would, I was planing on pulling the thumb off to save a little weight.
I have a feeling that the 2454 would preform slightly better against the 853 than the 225 against the 703, but it's probably more cost effective to run a dedicated harvester and have the 2454 be a loader when cutting wood. With enough time in Pro-E and a big piggy bank i could build a real hot rod of a dual purpose machine, but i digress. I wrote some of this last night before i fell asleep on my desk, some of it might not make sense.