Thread: Snigging Logs with a Tractor

they waved a magic wand and the faries and sprinkled them with fairy dust any way the skidder thing is sorted and as for the past its exactly that the past we should be promoting safty and safer ways of doing things after all isnt the role of socitey to progress not regress.

Originally Posted by johnnyroberts

Have you ever wondered what they did to move logs before dozers were invented

It was a very slow process. This link shows some of the hand operated gear.

Comprehensive Catalogue - Trewhella Bros., Land Clearing Equipment, 1962 - Museum Victoria

I used to have some motorised winches. They used a Ronaldson Tippet "hit and miss" open radiator motor (2HP). I gave them away, but I can't find any details about them on the net. I bought them off the local council. The GM told me later that the last time the council used them in anger, they had used two together to tow out a bogged bulldozer!!.

It was still a slow business.

Regards
Paul

If you have the time as lots of us do. moving logs is so easy with a bit of gear, I have always moved logs manually with a winch trailer, high lift jack, cable, block and tackle, turfer winch, 4x4 and a little bit of thinking., sometimes I've just put a load of wood in the back of the ute (for traction), chucked it in low range and out she comes.
Have not got the money for a dozer

Originally Posted by itsposs

they waved a magic wand and the faries and sprinkled them with fairy dust any way the skidder thing is sorted and as for the past its exactly that the past we should be promoting safty and safer ways of doing things after all isnt the role of socitey to progress not regress.

That does'nt even make sense

I finally managed to get out to the back of the place to get some pictures.

First two are a Leichhardt about 8m tronk and 800mm

Third not sure what is is but seems very hard and heavy about 8m and 700mm the hole only goes up about 2.5 meters solid after that.

Fourth one is a beauty about 15m and 1100mm

Fifth is a dead trunk still standing I cut another like it to see if it was sound, and it was fine no splits etc.

This lot of pics is of various logs along a track that we had to cut to clear the track. Mostly they are of the 500mm to 700mm variety. It does give some idea of the terrain though.

Some info on the old ways. The winches I had were called Monkey Grubbers. They came on timber skids and would fit, just, in the back of a ute. A picyure below and also of the motor that drove them.

Regards
Paul

Some nice looking logs there troppo. Must admit from the photos it doesn't look that steep but it doesn't take much to stop a farm tractor.
I didn't realise the discussion had moved on to talking about ways to move timber around the dump. I still thought we were getting logs out of the bush. Still I am not one for the old ways. I prefer to look at things from a financial point of view. .
Sure I can go along with Johny's logic if you have plenty of time and ingenuity.

IMO Troppo should get a local timber man in to get some advice on the value and quality of the logs and go from there.
Some of these logs will deteriorate quite quickly and need to be milled soon.
cheers
Steve

Steve you are correct we are still getting the logs out of the forest.

That said these is an amazing amount of ingenuity around as far as moving logs around without big machinery.
As someone said all this stuff went on long before dozers, skidders or tractors for that matter were around.
Thank you everyone for the ideas. The axle idea is a good one.

As for moving logs around at the milling sites I have a Case loader backhoe which will lift 2 tonnes. Lifting chains on a rated hock on the front bucket make this quite versatile. Only any good on level hard ground though.

Turns out a neighbour down the road did work in the timber industry locally so I'll get him to ID some of them. Once that is done working out the suitability and value becomes a lot easier.

All in all it is looking like the whole project may be viable.

Cheers
Chris

Fantastic stuff gonetroppo I used to listern to alot of the blokes on here with idolistic intent how ever you cant go past local knowloge. You have your pad thing sorted out to be a real good thing by the sounds once we start playing with winches and axles and ratchet straps and cable they were great ideas but they were horribly inefficent or cost counter productive I am glad you stuck with us as we each go off on our own tangents and I am looking forward to more of your posts and pictures as the work progresses

Originally Posted by gonetroppo

All in all it is looking like the whole project may be viable.

Cheers
Chris

Good to hear Chris nice to know some more logs are getting used instead of burnt or worse.

Don't look at the size of your tractor, look at how much of it is in contact with the ground .... only the bottom of the tyres! Now look at your log.... who's going to steer who on rough country? Synthetic rope makes good washing line and wire rope is fine in winches but you can't beat a chain when snigging. We always use a dozer with a skid shoe on the head of the log and even then things can go wrong in rough country. A tail vehicle can be a big help keeping the log on line.

I've been round and had a look at the situation with an ex timberworker, we test cut a few logs, soft wood had some borer in the sapwood. Hardwood is unaffected and mostly sound.

Turns out quite a lot of it is Red Satinash Acmena resa, yet to ID another numerous species, should have it tomorrow as well as 40+ logs of black wattle.

Today we have started cutting off the butts and tops painting them as we go, ready to pull out. Using a dozer and chain only 80HP but bloke has done a lot of this sort of stuff and is very confident it's do-able.

Looks like my estimate of numbers was waaaaaay light on, so far in half a day we have about 20 logs ready to pull out admittedly some are only 4 to 500mm diameter and 3 to 4 m long but with very little sapwood maybe still viable.

Forgot to take the camera up today so will get some pics tomorrow.

Way to go.
Next step is to start thinking about the sizes you will be cutting it into and your market or end users. Sounds like there will be a lot more framing timber than you need and the cabinet timbers will need to be cut to suit the trade. (25mm boards, squares, slabs, and some 38 and 50mm boards should do it. All cut oversize and no sap on the lyctus susceptible species.)
Cheers
Steve