best time/back saving equipment???

soutz

best time saving and money making purchases you have made, yes a fantastic leaf rake counts. what items have made any area of your work easier or more efficent???

Eric Frei

A miniloader by far, that with a grapple.

Dragging and loading log etc, pulling smaller trees over, kanga elevator into canopies, best thing ever.

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Drouin Tree Service

Chipper

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Drouin Tree Services | Excavator Hire - Drouin and SE Gippsland | Landclearing Melbourne

JohN Dee

Atm, it is our chipper. But that will change when we get our mini loader .

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We are what we repeatedly do... Excellence then, is not an act, but HABIT...

Red : Green : Blue

Tree Machine

Best time/back saving equipment???


Could we break that down into motorized, and non-motorized categories?

soutz

sounds fine to me

Roller

Chipper

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treefeller

Groundsman

Pete

Improved feed roller on the chipper that really bites and an edge that lasts saves us a lot of energy and time day in day out.
Log roller is fantastic.
It took me years to realise I was using ropes that were excessively heavy in applications where I could use lighter ones--this saves heaps of time and energy.
Throw lines are fabulous.
A good hook for putting a rope in using my long Barnel or the Wolf pole is also fantastic--especially for awkward spots straight up in a tree.

Tim Craig

Found a place in Scotland that sells Kangas, what model do you have Ekka?

Going to check them out next week.

Eric Frei

I have the 524 but new models are out.

I think new models are all 4wd and higher for ground clearance, check lift height/weight etc, make sure it can do the job.

There are other brands, be wise, UK is different to here, you get USA imports way cheaper than here and there's Thomas miniloaders etc.

The grapple is sold by Tnttree (called BMG) that's what you really need, that and a stumpy.

Also, no pucka lawns here to worry about but maybe you need different tyres or tracks. I got chunky mud type tyres but in hind site should have got the street tread style tyres.

Width is 990mm for a tight fit to get in, check that too, but I take down a few fences I tell ya to get in.

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Pete

Handbrake on chipper & tandem trailer is good! This enables manual handling (disconnected from vehicle) on mild slopes with full control.

Front tow ball is good for getting in to tight spots.

TREE-SURFER

Mitsubishi LWB 4X4. Plenty of horses to tow almost any bit of equipment. Case CX50 360 digger. Loading big stuff, Hire and errrr digging.

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The Aerial Arborist

Isle of Man Tree Surgeon| All Aspects of Tree Work

What experts say about TOPPING

shaggs

for non motorised, a hd removalist trolley. gets out those logs and palms with ease and thru tight gates. cut em long enough that you can "tip" them into the chipper, or have some ramps for your trailer to load those beautiful palm trunks (we dont chip them). cheers

old dude

Hookeroons make log rolling and turning of same a breeze with no bending over thus lessening the chance of lower back injury. Abt. $36-$38.
Also the jet sled. Originally desighned for ice fishing--can carry up to 400lbs. of gear (or ) short logs across a variety of terrain. Great for loading the stuff you might need out of your truck and dragging it to any remote corner of whatever property you may be working thus eliminating having to constantly trec back to the truck for stuff. Abt.$60 but worth every penny.
In case anyone is wondering----- no, I have no financial or commercial interest at all in the above.

bigshea13

big slingshot.

shaggs

For bigger gear, Toyota sdk8 skidsteer. Only brought out for big jobs, but quarters the time. Feeds chipper, loads logs, levels ground, moves mulch all at the twist of the wrists. Just need stump grinding attachment and she's complete.
I've had it for over 12yrs but now the track machines are much better.

ronnyb

Motorised- Vermeer S600 Mini Loader. Non motorised- Grcs.

Eric Frei

I was just thinking about parallel industries when it comes to this job.

I still recall the days when the tilers lacky would be tossing up 4 tiles a time.

When the concreters would barrow 6m in to the back yard in a procession.

But these days you see conveyors and concrete pumps doing the work. And rightfully so.

Funny how when a builder needs access or a pool builder to get his excavator in ... it's gonna happen.

Slowly we're doing the same.

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kimtree

niftylift 17 metre followed by 1250t vermeer then custom lowering device,just need my own loader next

shaggs

How's the niftylift go Kimtree? Is that the same as in Arborage??

kimtree

Its the trailer version 17 metre working hieght 8.7 outreach,has traction drive to the wheels.1.75 wide x 6.2 long 2.2 high.Very very happy with its capabilitys,can fit into most backyards here via driveways or take a neetascreen fence panel out ive had it 1 year now and now 80% cherrypicker work 20% climbing.However it has some warrenty work done on it already,all the hoses going up to the basket have been replaced due to some strange perishing of the hose covering.i reckoned it was UV damage the dealer says otherwise

Eric Frei

Got any pics of the lift in action?

What's the SWL in the bucket? Just asking coz many times you hold the piece you cut off adding to the weight of the operator, gear, saws and now a log!

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kimtree

200kg swl 90% of the time 1 operator only havent got any action shots

soutz

This is good always good finding out about how others solve the same problems we all have.Keep it coming the more we share as an industry the safer and hopefully smarter we will become in our work practise.

shaggs

The niftylift looks abit unstable when packed up. How does she travel over terrain when all retracted?

kimtree

its stable but does clank a bit
It travels fine on good roads unfortunatly we have no good roads they keep digging them up. we did 1 job where it had to loaded on a barge and taken 80km across the wyndham gulf to a remote community and on the return trip the lights got ripped off unloading on the high tide. to low,future mod when i get round to it. havent been offroad yet but have to later in the year

juniorgilman

I read about you guys using the Big Shot for so long, then I finally got one, and it lives up to everything you said. Only problem is when things get stuck in the tree they are even higher than before. Sort of like my golf game, new equipment only sends me deeper in the woods to find the golf ball.

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bigshea13

yeah..they rock. time saving wands. i use cheaper masonry string for any shots that are questionable. if its a crappy shot or unable to fall threw the canopy ....cut it off, tie on another bag and get the hung up bag when you get up to do your work. sherill sells the bags with a warrany on em. cant remember how long. they arent to expensive for what they are. my favorite is a 14 oz bag. with 8 feet of pole it can be launched over 200 feet in air. your choice of string/ fishline is going to be your handycap. i bought the poles and head a couple years agofrom sherril. i see now that they arre selling combos with case,poles,head,extra rubber,extra shot holder all in one. the case would be really handy... if a slice gets in rubber its useless.

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