Hi Denis. Just remember that temperature is critical. By the way, this has been a trick used by local cable skidder loggers for many years. However, they accomplish the same thing not by driving over the branches but by leaving a large tree here and there in bends in their skid trails that cause the twitch of trees to tumble across each other thereby breaking off limbs. Then, just before coming onto the log landing, they will back the twitch up through a thicket of trees or under a fallen log leaving limbless rat tails to be cut off at the small end diameter specified by the accepting mill. With my tractor and tractor mounted winch, I find backing up a twitch both unsafe and impossible and have modified the concept to fit with my machine's limitations. Hope that this completes the picture for you. Be safe! Vince
What a *professeur* you are everything is so well explained and detailed. Thanks for using the metric system for us Canadians. If you use the professeur title you must use french language a bit. Sorry if i have mistakes in spelling. My main language is french. Merci beaucoup
Eric, Thank you for your kind comment, but there is no need to thank me for using the metric system. Do you know that the USA, Burma, and Liberia are the only three countries in the entire world still using the antiquated British system? Even the UK went metric over 50 years ago. In some things the USA is a slow learner, and failure to adopt the metric system is a fine example. I am sorry, but I do not speak French. I can get by in Spanish and know a handful of German phrases. When I was a young man I worked for several years for a big company (Great Northern Paper) logging operation deep in the North Maine Woods. Most of my fellow loggers were French Canadians and they gave me the nickname, "le professeur." The name stuck to this day. Merci de nuevo ("de nuevo" is Spanish for "again"). Vince "le professeur"
That video put a big smile on my face. I've seen it before, but enjoy watching again! Also learning about decks, distances and trails. I just read some comments below and learned about "le professeur". Thanks!
Glad to make you smile! Unfortunately, we had few below zero Fahrenheit (below -18 Celsius) days this winter. There were only two when I could delimb fir this way. My productivity fully doubles compared with delimbing with a chainsaw. So now you know how I got that nickname more than 40 years ago, but it stuck. Be safe, my friend! Vince
Vincent, what an awesome RUclips Channel you have. I subscribed because I haven't once found information this indepth or so detailed. Your system in original to say the least, and and it has all of the key and necessary components.
Kevin, I thank you for your kind words. However, I must give credit where credit is due. The system is not mine. It was developed by the National Board of Forestry, Sweden in a very successful effort to decrease tractor-logging related injuries and deaths and was introduced to me over thirty years ago by a very special man and mentor, Professor Benjamin Hoffman of the University of Maine, who guided me despite the fact that I was never enrolled at the University of Maine. Professor Hoffman passed away this past January. A great man. If you have not already downloaded and studied the free PDF version of the book published by the National Board of Forestry, Sweden I encourage you to do so. The link is www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwjHrdGzp-nsAhXJpnIEHWn7AREQFjAAegQIARAC&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.maine.gov%2Fdacf%2Fmfs%2Fpublications%2Fgeneral_publications%2Ffarm_tractor_in_the_forest.pdf&usg=AOvVaw1syWkQz8wRgZpeMQU767cT. If that link doesn't get it for you, please let me know. I will take credit for the focus on quality education in most of my videos and don't begin a video project if I find that somebody else has already done a good job with the topic. I work out a lesson plan and shooting script before ever turning on the camera, and it always takes months, if not years, from start to finish of a video project. My reward comes from woodsmen like you who benefit from my tutorials. Thanks again and be safe in the woods! Vince
Hi Motown. Sorry, but I didn't notice your comment until today. This winter was going very well with many days below zero Fahrenheit that allowed me to harvest all the fir I planned to cut this winter without having to delimb many with my chainsaw. Then we got slammed with snow right about the time I was ready to hit the aspen. 47 inches so far in January alone. The aspen adds up fast and I really like harvesting it. Right now the snow is too deep for me to safely fell trees so I'm catching up on some other things as I await a mid-winter thaw that may or may not come. Thanks again for your note, and please excuse my delayed reply. Vince
Thanks for the new video. Been so long since your last opus I was getting worried. Just bought some timberland in VT and I have learned much from your videos that I hope to put to use. Cheers.
Thanks for your feedback, Richard. Since my focus is education rather than entertainment, my video efforts first get born from a perceived need for instruction. After that, I spend considerable time planning a shooting script before ever turning my camera on. Once filming begins, it often takes months to shoot the desired footage. After that comes the tedious job of editing. I worked on my first three chapter RUclips production over a period of four years. That being said, I'm sure that you can see why my RUclips contributions will always be few and far between. Over the past year or so I have been working on four separate short projects simultaneously including this one. The second one should post today. Having timberland in Vermont, and regardless of how much firewood you may have already split in your life, I hope that you will find today's new posting beneficial. The last two of my four projects probably won't appear on RUclips until mid to late winter. My best wishes to you and your newly acquired Vermont timberland for a long and loving relationship. Vince
Very nice video having watching your videos and doing some of the same things has got me about a couple years of some really nice timber harvesting work we have now a couple of tractors and winches trailers thanks again sir for them
Rick, yes, Kathi and I are very lucky and firmly believe that the adage that people make their own luck has some truth to it. It wasn't an easy road, but labors of love seldom are. I would enjoy learning more about your position and the impediments that you face acquiring a woodlot of your own. I seriously doubt if it is an impossible situation. Let me know if you'd like to discuss this further, and I will send you a personal email address. Thanks! Vince
@@bombadiltreefarms314 thanks for the reply Vince, i have just purchased a new tractor, a small one, but will do for me, i bought a wince with it, and will be my main way of twitching out my wood for now, i have a little bit of a health issue, so i am taking it easy, but not too easy, as i also purchased a small mill...lol, how much wood do you cut in the run f the winter, i realize that varies, i am at present looking for a bigger woodlot, but, around here the price is very steep, but, thats the way she goes, again look forward to your videos.
@@ricklarade3593 Hi Rick! Last winter I harvested just shy of 180 tons in a little under one month. That's about what I like to produce each winter. Enjoy your new tractor and be safe! Vince
Thank you! The same concept works even better using a skidder where you can back the twitch of wood through a thicket of small trees or through a steel delimbing panel that looks something like a livestock gate and is thus just called a "delimbing gate." This option isn't possible with a small tractor, but the technique illustrated in my video, as you saw, is a satisfactory substitute. Air temperature is critical. At 5 above zero Fahrenheit (about -15 Celsius) balsam fir branches are still tough and limber as rubber heater hoses and you can drive a tractor up and down them all day long to no avail. Spruce branches don't become brittle until the temperature gets down around -15 Fahrenheit (-26 Celsius), but balsam fir branches start getting brittle just below 0 degrees Fahrenheit (about -18 Celsius) and snap beautifully by -5 Fahrenheit (about -20 Celsius.) Thanks again for your comment. Vince
Very good video Sir, de limbing branches when frozen with tractor is good idea, I'm still cutting Infected Ash with occasional Maple. The next area that needs attention has some nice Oak and a Winch like yours would be nice to prevent collateral damage. As all ways good to see you. Take care.
Hi Mark, It breaks my heart every time that I hear folks like you tell me about the ash devastation in their area of North America. Why can't these imported pests go after something like poison ivy? If you would really like to learn about logging big hardwoods with a tractor mounted logging winch, I suggest you contact Canaan Addison in eastern Tennessee. See his comment below. Last year, upon his invitation, I visited him and learned that what he does with big hardwood and a tractor mounted winch on difficult terrain is beyond amazing. Be safe in the woods! Vince
Hi Justin. Sad to say that a 20-ton truckload, after the cost of my trucking, brings me just a little over $700 U.S. Good news is that I can normally produce two to three truckloads per week working six to eight hour days in the woods.
Never happens and the reason rests in what makes it possible to delimb the trees in this manner - adequately cold temperatures. When it is cold enough to make the limbs brittle, any branch or piece of branch that might get picked up in a tire chain quickly gets broken into smaller pieces as the tire rolls. By the way, I don't know what a "hero line" is. Please fill me in. Hope this reply helps. Vince
Hi Sebastian. You know, that would seem like a reasonable risk but apparently isn't. In fact, I'm still using the original agricultural tires that came on the tractor from the factory back in 1982 and they have stood up to many additional apparent forestry use puncture risks like cut off saplings. I have yet to puncture a tire in all those years. With my limited knowledge of the Yukon's boreal coniferous forest, please correct me if it is not primarily white spruce. To delimb white spruce using this method, the temperature must be colder, at least -25 Celsius to work well but some spruce with thinner limbs will snap at around -22 or -23. We used to have many nights that cold in northern Maine but now have only a few each winter. In the Yukon, you should have all the cold nights and days that you need! Vince
@@bombadiltreefarms314 Indeed, we mostly have white spruce, as well as black spruce and birch. Coming from ATV tires, i am used to be over cautious i guess but it's impressive to know how resistant theses tractor tires are! -25c is fairly common in winter here with an average temperature of -20c or so from mid November to mid february. I usually don t work past -25 or -30 as it get too hard or equipment. Being off the grid, i ll have to plug the tractor for a little while before starting it i guess, past a certain temperature. Thanks again for all the videos, please, keep it up as i learn a lot from your them! I ll be happy to keep you in the loop of my learning curve! I only started 2 years ago and have a long way to go and lots to learn! (Weisser Firewood Cutting being my FB and working name). Thanks a lot again! Sebastien
Hi. Unrelated. Question. I have an issue with the skidding winch i just got for my little Kubota. I am not sure if you are familiar with the wallenstein models.Than one is operated with a remote control or via a little switch as a back up. The clutch of the winch is remotely activated via Hydraulic. But i can t get the remote or switch to work unless i push the rear hydraulic lever control on the tractor. When i do so, the winch starts pulling in but i can t stop it unless i shut the PTO off, as a emergency shut off. Which defeat the purpose of being able to operate the winch from a distance. Does my rear hydraulic line need to stay on the open position? Its a spring center valve so i can t leave it on. I have long learning curve but this should be pretty easy to operate. Did i miss something? I ll be happy to talk about that issue if you have time or good advice to help me out. I can t wait to go to work...but i want to make sure i am familiar with the equipment first and have a bit of practice with it. Regards. Sebastien.
@@sebastienweisser4839 Great to hear from you again! Unfortunately, I know only one woodsman operating a Wallenstein winch and his lacks remote control. Wallenstein has a good reputation, and their official website is www.wallensteinequipment.com/us/en/group/skidding-winches. Have you tried contacting them? My guess is that you bought your winch second hand, but that shouldn't get in the way with the factory techs helping you fix your problem. If you brought your winch to me in Maine I'm sure we could figure out your problem, but I doubt if that would be worth the 10,000 kilometer round trip. From the little you described, however, it sounds like the problem is not in the winch but how you have connected your tractor's hydraulics to it. Wallenstein no doubt has clear instructions how to attach to your tractor's hydraulics and that will depend on issues such as whether your tractor's hydraulic output requires downstream valves to be open center and what type of valve the winch incorporates. Hopefully they have those instructions available for free download from their website. It's also almost a certainty that the winch's valve that activates the clutch requires a fluid return line that runs unobstructed by other valves back to the tractor's hydraulic reservoir. Without a fluid return line, once pressurized the clutch activating piston will stay engaged regardless of what its electronic control switch, either manual or remote, tells it to do. Let me know how you make out. Vince
I couldn't agree more! And the air temperature is critical. At 5 above zero Fahrenheit (about -15 Celsius) balsam fir branches are still tough and limber like rubber heater hose and you can drive a tractor up and down them all day to no avail. Spruce branches don't become brittle until the temperature gets down to about -15 Fahrenheit (-26 Celsius), but balsam fir get brittle just below 0 degrees Fahrenheit (about -18 Celsius). Vince
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Sir again you just blew my mine... never ever thought of this what a great idea thanks for sharing this...
Denis
Hi Denis. Just remember that temperature is critical. By the way, this has been a trick used by local cable skidder loggers for many years. However, they accomplish the same thing not by driving over the branches but by leaving a large tree here and there in bends in their skid trails that cause the twitch of trees to tumble across each other thereby breaking off limbs. Then, just before coming onto the log landing, they will back the twitch up through a thicket of trees or under a fallen log leaving limbless rat tails to be cut off at the small end diameter specified by the accepting mill. With my tractor and tractor mounted winch, I find backing up a twitch both unsafe and impossible and have modified the concept to fit with my machine's limitations. Hope that this completes the picture for you. Be safe! Vince
We Love your Videos my Brother!!!!! I can watch them over and over!!!! :)
Thank you! Vince
What a *professeur* you are everything is so well explained and detailed. Thanks for using the metric system for us Canadians. If you use the professeur title you must use french language a bit. Sorry if i have mistakes in spelling. My main language is french.
Merci beaucoup
Eric, Thank you for your kind comment, but there is no need to thank me for using the metric system. Do you know that the USA, Burma, and Liberia are the only three countries in the entire world still using the antiquated British system? Even the UK went metric over 50 years ago. In some things the USA is a slow learner, and failure to adopt the metric system is a fine example. I am sorry, but I do not speak French. I can get by in Spanish and know a handful of German phrases. When I was a young man I worked for several years for a big company (Great Northern Paper) logging operation deep in the North Maine Woods. Most of my fellow loggers were French Canadians and they gave me the nickname, "le professeur." The name stuck to this day. Merci de nuevo ("de nuevo" is Spanish for "again"). Vince "le professeur"
That video put a big smile on my face. I've seen it before, but enjoy watching again! Also learning about decks, distances and trails. I just read some comments below and learned about "le professeur". Thanks!
Glad to make you smile! Unfortunately, we had few below zero Fahrenheit (below -18 Celsius) days this winter. There were only two when I could delimb fir this way. My productivity fully doubles compared with delimbing with a chainsaw. So now you know how I got that nickname more than 40 years ago, but it stuck. Be safe, my friend! Vince
Vincent, what an awesome RUclips Channel you have. I subscribed because I haven't once found information this indepth or so detailed. Your system in original to say the least, and and it has all of the key and necessary components.
Kevin, I thank you for your kind words. However, I must give credit where credit is due. The system is not mine. It was developed by the National Board of Forestry, Sweden in a very successful effort to decrease tractor-logging related injuries and deaths and was introduced to me over thirty years ago by a very special man and mentor, Professor Benjamin Hoffman of the University of Maine, who guided me despite the fact that I was never enrolled at the University of Maine. Professor Hoffman passed away this past January. A great man. If you have not already downloaded and studied the free PDF version of the book published by the National Board of Forestry, Sweden I encourage you to do so. The link is www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwjHrdGzp-nsAhXJpnIEHWn7AREQFjAAegQIARAC&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.maine.gov%2Fdacf%2Fmfs%2Fpublications%2Fgeneral_publications%2Ffarm_tractor_in_the_forest.pdf&usg=AOvVaw1syWkQz8wRgZpeMQU767cT. If that link doesn't get it for you, please let me know. I will take credit for the focus on quality education in most of my videos and don't begin a video project if I find that somebody else has already done a good job with the topic. I work out a lesson plan and shooting script before ever turning on the camera, and it always takes months, if not years, from start to finish of a video project. My reward comes from woodsmen like you who benefit from my tutorials. Thanks again and be safe in the woods! Vince
I just subscribed. Thank you for such a thorough explanation in all your videos. Priceless!
Thanks, Vince! Great to see another video. I hope winter 18/19 is good for you again. The cold weather sure is off to an early start here in WI.
Hi Motown. Sorry, but I didn't notice your comment until today. This winter was going very well with many days below zero Fahrenheit that allowed me to harvest all the fir I planned to cut this winter without having to delimb many with my chainsaw. Then we got slammed with snow right about the time I was ready to hit the aspen. 47 inches so far in January alone. The aspen adds up fast and I really like harvesting it. Right now the snow is too deep for me to safely fell trees so I'm catching up on some other things as I await a mid-winter thaw that may or may not come. Thanks again for your note, and please excuse my delayed reply. Vince
I enjoy your videos, and have learned much. Thank you for sharing, and enjoy your trips!
It always warms my heart to hear that viewers have found my videos educational. Thank you so very much for your kind comments! Vince
Thanks for the new video. Been so long since your last opus I was getting worried. Just bought some timberland in VT and I have learned much from your videos that I hope to put to use. Cheers.
Thanks for your feedback, Richard. Since my focus is education rather than entertainment, my video efforts first get born from a perceived need for instruction. After that, I spend considerable time planning a shooting script before ever turning my camera on. Once filming begins, it often takes months to shoot the desired footage. After that comes the tedious job of editing. I worked on my first three chapter RUclips production over a period of four years. That being said, I'm sure that you can see why my RUclips contributions will always be few and far between. Over the past year or so I have been working on four separate short projects simultaneously including this one. The second one should post today. Having timberland in Vermont, and regardless of how much firewood you may have already split in your life, I hope that you will find today's new posting beneficial. The last two of my four projects probably won't appear on RUclips until mid to late winter. My best wishes to you and your newly acquired Vermont timberland for a long and loving relationship. Vince
Very nice video having watching your videos and doing some of the same things has got me about a couple years of some really nice timber harvesting work we have now a couple of tractors and winches trailers thanks again sir for them
John, So glad you have found them useful especially if they have helped you expand your business. Be safe! Vince
you r a lucky man, to be enjoying something you like doing, i would love a woodlot such as yours, envious
Rick, yes, Kathi and I are very lucky and firmly believe that the adage that people make their own luck has some truth to it. It wasn't an easy road, but labors of love seldom are. I would enjoy learning more about your position and the impediments that you face acquiring a woodlot of your own. I seriously doubt if it is an impossible situation. Let me know if you'd like to discuss this further, and I will send you a personal email address. Thanks! Vince
@@bombadiltreefarms314 thanks for the reply Vince, i have just purchased a new tractor, a small one, but will do for me, i bought a wince with it, and will be my main way of twitching out my wood for now, i have a little bit of a health issue, so i am taking it easy, but not too easy, as i also purchased a small mill...lol, how much wood do you cut in the run f the winter, i realize that varies, i am at present looking for a bigger woodlot, but, around here the price is very steep, but, thats the way she goes, again look forward to your videos.
@@ricklarade3593 Hi Rick! Last winter I harvested just shy of 180 tons in a little under one month. That's about what I like to produce each winter. Enjoy your new tractor and be safe! Vince
Good video sir keep it up.
Impressive delimbing process!
Thank you! The same concept works even better using a skidder where you can back the twitch of wood through a thicket of small trees or through a steel delimbing panel that looks something like a livestock gate and is thus just called a "delimbing gate." This option isn't possible with a small tractor, but the technique illustrated in my video, as you saw, is a satisfactory substitute. Air temperature is critical. At 5 above zero Fahrenheit (about -15 Celsius) balsam fir branches are still tough and limber as rubber heater hoses and you can drive a tractor up and down them all day long to no avail. Spruce branches don't become brittle until the temperature gets down around -15 Fahrenheit (-26 Celsius), but balsam fir branches start getting brittle just below 0 degrees Fahrenheit (about -18 Celsius) and snap beautifully by -5 Fahrenheit (about -20 Celsius.) Thanks again for your comment. Vince
Very good video Sir, de limbing branches when frozen with tractor is good idea, I'm still cutting
Infected Ash with occasional Maple. The next area that needs attention has some nice Oak and a
Winch like yours would be nice to prevent collateral damage. As all ways good to see you. Take care.
Hi Mark, It breaks my heart every time that I hear folks like you tell me about the ash devastation in their area of North America. Why can't these imported pests go after something like poison ivy? If you would really like to learn about logging big hardwoods with a tractor mounted logging winch, I suggest you contact Canaan Addison in eastern Tennessee. See his comment below. Last year, upon his invitation, I visited him and learned that what he does with big hardwood and a tractor mounted winch on difficult terrain is beyond amazing. Be safe in the woods! Vince
How much does the mill pay per truck load of aspen on average?
Hi Justin. Sad to say that a 20-ton truckload, after the cost of my trucking, brings me just a little over $700 U.S. Good news is that I can normally produce two to three truckloads per week working six to eight hour days in the woods.
Do you ever get alot of limbs stuck in the tire chains that starts rotating with the tires threatening to take out the hero lines etc.
Never happens and the reason rests in what makes it possible to delimb the trees in this manner - adequately cold temperatures. When it is cold enough to make the limbs brittle, any branch or piece of branch that might get picked up in a tire chain quickly gets broken into smaller pieces as the tire rolls. By the way, I don't know what a "hero line" is. Please fill me in. Hope this reply helps. Vince
Great idea driving the bucket over the branches , but isn't there a risk of slashing tires with the broken limbs on the side of the tree?
Hi Sebastian. You know, that would seem like a reasonable risk but apparently isn't. In fact, I'm still using the original agricultural tires that came on the tractor from the factory back in 1982 and they have stood up to many additional apparent forestry use puncture risks like cut off saplings. I have yet to puncture a tire in all those years. With my limited knowledge of the Yukon's boreal coniferous forest, please correct me if it is not primarily white spruce. To delimb white spruce using this method, the temperature must be colder, at least -25 Celsius to work well but some spruce with thinner limbs will snap at around -22 or -23. We used to have many nights that cold in northern Maine but now have only a few each winter. In the Yukon, you should have all the cold nights and days that you need! Vince
@@bombadiltreefarms314 Indeed, we mostly have white spruce, as well as black spruce and birch. Coming from ATV tires, i am used to be over cautious i guess but it's impressive to know how resistant theses tractor tires are! -25c is fairly common in winter here with an average temperature of -20c or so from mid November to mid february. I usually don t work past -25 or -30 as it get too hard or equipment. Being off the grid, i ll have to plug the tractor for a little while before starting it i guess, past a certain temperature. Thanks again for all the videos, please, keep it up as i learn a lot from your them! I ll be happy to keep you in the loop of my learning curve! I only started 2 years ago and have a long way to go and lots to learn! (Weisser Firewood Cutting being my FB and working name). Thanks a lot again! Sebastien
Hi. Unrelated. Question. I have an issue with the skidding winch i just got for my little Kubota. I am not sure if you are familiar with the wallenstein models.Than one is operated with a remote control or via a little switch as a back up. The clutch of the winch is remotely activated via Hydraulic. But i can t get the remote or switch to work unless i push the rear hydraulic lever control on the tractor. When i do so, the winch starts pulling in but i can t stop it unless i shut the PTO off, as a emergency shut off. Which defeat the purpose of being able to operate the winch from a distance. Does my rear hydraulic line need to stay on the open position? Its a spring center valve so i can t leave it on. I have long learning curve but this should be pretty easy to operate. Did i miss something? I ll be happy to talk about that issue if you have time or good advice to help me out. I can t wait to go to work...but i want to make sure i am familiar with the equipment first and have a bit of practice with it. Regards. Sebastien.
@@sebastienweisser4839 Great to hear from you again! Unfortunately, I know only one woodsman operating a Wallenstein winch and his lacks remote control. Wallenstein has a good reputation, and their official website is www.wallensteinequipment.com/us/en/group/skidding-winches. Have you tried contacting them? My guess is that you bought your winch second hand, but that shouldn't get in the way with the factory techs helping you fix your problem. If you brought your winch to me in Maine I'm sure we could figure out your problem, but I doubt if that would be worth the 10,000 kilometer round trip. From the little you described, however, it sounds like the problem is not in the winch but how you have connected your tractor's hydraulics to it. Wallenstein no doubt has clear instructions how to attach to your tractor's hydraulics and that will depend on issues such as whether your tractor's hydraulic output requires downstream valves to be open center and what type of valve the winch incorporates. Hopefully they have those instructions available for free download from their website. It's also almost a certainty that the winch's valve that activates the clutch requires a fluid return line that runs unobstructed by other valves back to the tractor's hydraulic reservoir. Without a fluid return line, once pressurized the clutch activating piston will stay engaged regardless of what its electronic control switch, either manual or remote, tells it to do. Let me know how you make out. Vince
As always, it comes down to, "everything we do is to make our women happy!"
Yes, and a man that doesn't realize that that is our highest and most noble calling is missing out on one of life's greatest joys.
Never seen delimiting with a tractor. Whatever works.
I couldn't agree more! And the air temperature is critical. At 5 above zero Fahrenheit (about -15 Celsius) balsam fir branches are still tough and limber like rubber heater hose and you can drive a tractor up and down them all day to no avail. Spruce branches don't become brittle until the temperature gets down to about -15 Fahrenheit (-26 Celsius), but balsam fir get brittle just below 0 degrees Fahrenheit (about -18 Celsius). Vince