What?

Thanks! During my time as a logger I've learned a lot of ways how not to do things so I'm happy to hear that you have gotten an idea or two about HOW to do some things! Sounds like you are running buncher, whereabouts in the world do you work? Thanks for the comment, be safe!

Hey, thanks! Yeah, it seems pretty knuckleheaded to us too, but that's a big corporation for you I guess. Thanks for the comment and the interest, we appreciate it! Be safe

Thank you for the comment and for watching them. We appreciate that you find them interesting. All the best to you for the New Year! Be safe

Hi Harley, You bet, Alex had passed on your email so I had heard that you were planning on heading this way. I look forward to meeting you. What do you run for an excavator generally? Do you run one with one of those Engcon Tiltrotator buckets? Those seem like the Swiss Army knife of excavator attachments. We are all right in the soup now, full on winter, dodging the snow level and not being able to live without my Muck boots. Keep us posted on your travel plans, sounds good! Be safe

Glad Alex has let you know. My Visa application is submitted and my passport renewed, so as soon as I get an approval on that I can take the next steps. I run 8-25 ton excavators (mostly 13-18), the last machine I was on was a CAT but a wide range of brands are popular over here, probably Hitachi, Volvo and JCB the most where I work specifically. I don’t run a tiltrotator myself but I work with some guys who do and I have had a chance to do a little with one, and they are amazing pieces of kit for any application. They seem to be spreading out of Scandinavia at a steady rate so I think it’s a matter of time before they reach the US since they’re now quite common here. Stay safe

Hi Harley, sorry it's taken me so long to get back to you. Sounds like your travel plans are taking shape. Are you traveling solo or with a wife/girlfriend? The PNW is pretty incredible,you're going to like it I'm sure. From what I've seen those tiltrotators are pretty slick, seems like you'd have to have a careful/delicate operator to have them hold up but man they are capable. All the best to you on the travel plans, Happy New Year to ya too!

@@thedailylogger No worries Jason, always good to hear from you. I was initially planning to travel solo, but I'm now planning to come out with a friend of mine to share the stresses of travel with! He's never been to the area either so is looking forward to coming along with me just to see the area and enjoy the trip. I can't wait to see it myself, I've been doing a lot of research lately and I'm amazed by some of the sights. The tiltrotators are definitely a different animal, and they do require a certain style of operator. From what I've seen from the best operators I know It seems that the learning curve is understanding the balance between the range of extra movements the tiltrotator allows and still using the movements that are most efficient from the carrier, since the machines aren't really optimised yet for all that the tiltrotator can do. Even with that being true though, I know a few guys operating them and the amount they've increased the machine's productivity in each example is amazing. Stay well my friend 👍

@@Hp_409 Copy that! I'm sure it will be a great trip. I'd like to have a chance to look one of those tiltrotator heads over up close. Be safe!

Hey, thanks for the note. I am tethering quite a bit, but it seems like the videos aren't really going to work. I'm disappointed to tell you the truth. The tethered cutting is interesting. I like it a lot, I know just what you mean when you say it looks scary, but I actually feel a lot more comfortable and less stressed on the line than off. Especially now, winter and fully saturated ground, when it gets steep and all you're thinking about is holding on and not breaking free, and if you're cutting down into some draw or hole if youlll be able to get out again. The Summit system is great, it works easily, no problems and simple to work with. I've found that the details of cutting a block are the most important and where I'm feeeling the most learning curve on. Opening a block up, and how I'm going to move through it efficiently takes more time than freestyling. And just working with the line is quite an issue to work with. So I'm trying to get more efficient and productive each block I move through, kinda picking up tricks and ways to make myself more productive. I don't know if other guys feel this way or not but I feel that my piece count when I'm tethering goes down significantly versus free styling on reasonable ground. But I'm really increasing logging production on tough ground. For the shovels even on the real steep ground, and doubling or even tripling the production for the yarder. So that bites me in the ass a little, I'm used to burying the crews behind me, now I'm struggling to stay ahead. Another thing I've found is there's a lot more to deal with, another machine to maintain, quite a lot of moving two pieces plus cutting gates and my truck. A setting where I can place the line machine well back from the break and sit there for multiple roads, particularly when I can reach out 800 to 1000 feet is the cats pajamas! Short, tough pitches into a draw directly below a road are really tough and time consuming. But I like it, and I'll get better as I go, I recommend it to you, I think it's the way we're going and I think you'll like it when you get going on it too. Thanks for the note man, be safe out there!

Thanks! I appreciate the comment. Ground and wood like that unit make it easy but I'm a firm believer in making it as easy as I can on the machine and me. I've seen too much stuff get torn up and either had to figure out how to deal with it or pay for it to tear stuff up myself if I can avoid it. Thanks for the comment, good cuttin to ya! Be safe.

@@thedailylogger No need to dump the head all the way to 90 degrees and hold onto the tree all the way down...especially with conditions like that where it's a cut 1 and dump. You are putting an incredible amount of unneeded stress on every pin, bushing, grab arm, boom and the swing bearing. A good operator would be able to tilt the head 30 degrees, open the arms and have the tree land where in the right spot 90% of the time. I could see if you are cutting for a skidder where your piles have to be straight and the butts even but if you are cutting for a processor...open up those arms and let gravity do the work. Also, I notice how you don't drive the saw full speed into the tree...very well done. I have seen too many guys drive the head way too fast into big trees and not give the saw time to cut. I do the same as it dramatically lessens the stress on everything. Also noticed how you don't track back and forth for every tree...seen this way too many times with other operators. I've spent 25 years in various bunchers (Prentice 630, Tigercat 822, 870C and my current 855E) and the amount of unnecessary wear and tear makes me shudder every time i see it.

Copy. It's the best setup I've come up with. It doesn't get out as well as it would in an upright position but then again it lasts because it's protected. You probably have to do this too, I have to set up gates when I'm cutting within 2 tree lengths of the road and the radio gets out reliably so I can hear and talk with trucks. That's really the most important use I have for the radio as it is a priority requirement of the landowner we contract with. I run a different channel than the job as I am not really a fan of yammering on the cb or listening to others either, it takes both hands and both thumbs to cut! I'll try to get a video of the gate setup I came up with. They work well too. Thanks for the comment! Be safe

Yeah it's always kinda baffled me, I've never run a disc with less so I have always wondered if it was a weight issue for shipping, or like you say, marketing. But after this video came out I had several operators from the SE point out that a lot of the wheeled bunchers run 18 tooth discs. Worldwide they outnumber track machines pretty heavily so that may explain the box count. In the past I've looked into buying 10 boxes or more at a time, to get a better deal and have the teeth on hand, but the margins are pretty tight, the volume you'd have to buy to get a significant discount has always been more investment than I, or the guys I've worked for, wanted to tie up. It's pretty easy to get the 2 extra teeth at dealers with the box, so it's not like you have to buy a whole extra box. As I show in the video, I like to keep a full set of 20 on hand in the Pelican case just in case! Thanks for the comment, and for watching, be safe.

Thanks!

Copy. Glad you find the videos interesting. I'm disappointed that I can't keep them coming. Working my way through picking up the tricks necessary to make using the line machine efficient. It's a learning curve. I'm currently on a pretty nice unit in the blast zone, fun to be on reasonable ground and good wood. Freehand bunching is a treat! My production went through the roof! Be safe.

@@bobmartin6055 Copy that. I just took a week off, a road trip around NW WA. If you don't mind me asking, what work are you doing now? I'm getting more time under my belt with the line machine cutting both yarder and steep shovel/skidder ground, wish I had a free hand to show it. It's an interesting learning curve. Thanks for the comment!

Nice! It’s a long story but I left the woods up in NE Washington and went to school in Spokane to be an industrial electrician. From there I went to work in the federal hydroelectric industry, worked on the Columbia River for 13 years and then moved down to the Colorado River for the past 9 years. It’s been a journey but I’ve never forgotten the lessons I learned in the woods and am glad for the work ethic it in instilled in me. I would still love to get back into the woods after I retire from hydropower. If you feel the need to warm your bones up this winter, I’d be happy to show you around southern Utah and share some of the sunshine! The trees are shorter and the dirt is red but it’s pretty amazing country. Good talking to you! Best wishes.

I'm not quite sure if you message came through the way you wanted. But I think I hear what you are saying. The whole thing with our channel is certainly disappointing, but it's really more about Big Corporations and the Lawyers that run them than about Weyco in particular. Basically eliminating any type of liability is the name of the game in all the big businesses of the world today, and with that attitude nothing else can really be considered. It's unfortunate, but a reality. With that being said, I actually feel that Weyco, for example, does a really outstanding job of protecting the resources the public wants protected, growing timber and ensuring that their best timberland remains as that. I've always been an independent minded person, as another logger no doubt you are the same, so working within the rules of corporate structure isn't easy for me. But another reality of the industry is that in the US the big blocks of timberland necessary for progressive, high production logging are owned by corporations. They own the sandbox, so they get to make the rules. Not saying that it rests easy on me all the time, it's just the way it is. Thanks for the comment, be safe out there!

Hey Thanks, glad you like them. Are you working in the Timber industry now? Maybe Cut to Length? I've seen a few videos set in Scotland, one of a Tigercat harvestor working Salvage. If you have experience and are serious about working in the industry in the Pacific NW there is a huge need for qualified operators! Thanks again for the comment and for watching, we appreciate it.

@@thedailylogger Yeah almost everything we do is cut to length, and a lot of adaptations for soft ground as well. Many similarities in certain areas, salvage work being one of them actually, but very different overall. I’ve actually just started working full time in the business having left school, but grew up in the industry through family and friends. For that reason I’m not yet qualified, even if I do have almost a decades experience now. I’ve been quite lucky to have known quite a few American and Canadian guys working over here though, hence I developed the love of the way you guys do it early on. What do you recommend as a good way to get into your side of the industry if I did manage to make the move?

@@Hp_409 Interesting. I've only been to Scotland once, briefly, but it seems as though there may be some similarities in climate. You guys get a lot of rain, don't you? When you refer to being qualified, I assume you are speaking to an accreditation or certification? Am I correct in thinking that there, as in other parts of Europe, a degree of some sort is required? Have you or are you currently running a forwarder, a harvester, or a truck? A lot of questions, sorry! A little bit of background on me, I started and built a logging business on the East Coast with a business partner. After 20 years, we dissolved that and sold it off, and after about 6 months of exploring Logging/Forestry/Industry-related opportunities around the world and a couple of interview trips out here, I made the decision to move out to Oregon and see what happened. In my experience, the main ingredient for success in life is drive. If you are ready to move forward, I would suggest a couple of things. First, get in touch with me through Pacific Forest Contractors. Second, start setting yourself up to make a trip over here to suss things out. If you like it and have the drive to make it work, it will! Good luck! I hope to hear from you.

@@thedailylogger Yep you’re right, pours down about 90% of the year! That’s right about the qualification too. To be able to operate any machinery on a site over here you have to have a ‘ticket’- usually either an FMOCS (forest machine operator certification scheme) card, or in some cases a CPCS (construction plant competence scheme) card will do too. These are really just like driving licences, and you obtain them in a similar way. You have to have them to be allowed to operate machines on site, but along with some decent experience that’s really it. In the rest of Europe it is more common to get a degree in something like forest management, but unless you’re going straight in to surveying or jobs along those lines it’s really not that common here. The one exception may be apprenticeships, which in some cases offer a degree level qualification even though they are still on the job style training programs. I am currently running an excavator in road building applications, which is what I have most experience on, although I do have experience running forwarders, loaders, trucks, tractors and a little experience on tracked harvesters too. It’s great to hear a little about your background, it’s been a great insight talking to you so far. Am I right to say from reading other comments that your name is Jason? I have looked up Pacific Forest Contractors and it takes me to a Facebook page, is that how you would prefer I contact you? Thanks again, Harley.

@@Hp_409 The week is pretty busy for me, sorry it's taken me a bit to get back to you. Well, it definitely sounds like the weather is similar, interesting about the License requirement. From what I've heard, the industry has more respect given to it in Europe and other parts of the world than it does here in North America. A higher bar for working in the industry and higher value placed on the work would help us out here, I think. It would be great to have a chance to talk with you more, but first, the thing to do would be for you to contact my boss, Alex, through Facebook and use that platform to establish a secure contact with him. I will let him know that you will be contacting him so he can keep an eye out for it. It's a big project, and a move of this type involves a leap of faith really as there are a lot of details we would all have to think of, work visas plus all the little things, but anything good takes a lot of work so if it seems like a good match to Alex and you are committed I'm sure we all could make something come together. Good luck, and I look forward to speaking with you in person! Best, Jason

Yeah, I hope the powers that be will give us the ok on a video. I've cut some on the line and it's great. I felt much more comfortable right from the get go than I could have hoped for. I can see that the learning curve will be more in planning and layout so as to be as efficient as possible when on the line. I've felt comfortable in the 870 for quite some time on ground that I didn't feel comfortable on, if that makes sense. Being on the line changes the dynamic completely, I feel comfortable on ground I couldn't consider before. The capability of the tethered Buncher goes up exponentially. We also took delivery on a 635H swing boom and I tether skidded a unit with that too. What an animal. I still have reservations as to how much we will be able to untilize it in the winter rains but it is very impressive on the dry. Thanks for the comment, hope you aren't being impacted by all the fires up north. Be safe!

Oh man I like that! On a more serious note though, I've seen more stuff get torn up by fighting the inevitable or just plain old bullheadedness than I care to remember. And as an old guy I've done some of that myself too! One of the benefits of getting older is that I don't have to make the same mistakes twice. Having an out if things go sideways and using it if they do is a lot better than tearing something up. Cheaper too. Thanks for the comment and the continued interest.

That's a good question. I've got 3000 hrs on the tilter pins and bushings now. The original set began to show excessive wear at 4000 + hrs and Triad/Tigercat replaced them at 5000. I guess they had tried out a different manufacturer and had experienced problems with them so I have the original supplier hardware on now. This spring I had Dan Sprague from Triad give the machine a lookover and there was very little play in the pins and bushings and he didn't feel it was out of line. Accordingly, he saw a little bit of play in the rotek, again, not out of line for the hours. One thing I did religiously on this new set that I didn't do as well on the originals was to torque check them from the get-go at the recommended intervals during break-in to seat them. Took a week of diminishing intervals until they were all tight. I don't think the manual or the dealer (Triad) makes the point that this is the priority it is for getting good life out of them. I didn't check them enough when it was new and had a couple of pins move. That's a pain in the butt to shift them back so I got right with the program and torque-checked them after doing that and seated them all down so I didn't have any more issues until they showed wear. With that being said I think at 6200 hours you have done well in terms of taking care of your machine and getting that kind of life out of them. Sounds like they are showing some wear/movement but not failed? What does your dealer say? Is Triad your dealer? I do know that if you let them go too bad they will start to impact the leveling system upstream, like wearing your counterbalance cartridges so if they are worn out you will probably want to get a new set on. Or they can get real bad and waller out your cylinder bores. But you don't sound like that kind of animal! After getting the new set I started giving the spherical bushings top and bottom a double dose of grease, 50 shots, daily. I like grease. I also had Dan measure the track pins and bushings at the same time this spring and they showed 60% wear, or 40% remaining. This was at 7500 hrs, I generally figure that a Buncher undercarriage should go about 10000 hrs before you have to keep your fingers crossed all day so I feel like I'm right there in terms of life. How is your undercarriage holding up? That depends a lot on what you're working on for soil or the lack of it right? But operation plays a huge part there too. I appreciate your asking and am interested in how it goes and also how your undercarriage is holding up. Thanks for asking, good cutting to ya!

Copy that yeah my dealer is Bejac out of Anderson I’ve had my leveling top and bottom adjusted and tightened by taking shims out every 1000 hours since new, and have had my two center one tightened by undoing that bent tab on the inside and hitting that big but hard!! Yeah my counterbalance valances prob do need replaced I will this winter when I do the leveling! I have the up dated counterbalance valances in my leveling blocks since 3000 hours so they have been replaced once! I haven’t had any of my end caps on the pins come lose on my leveling pins though! Luckily! My undercarriage I would say is at 50% my sprockets and rolllers and look good! My pads are really wore on the bottom from rubber on the bottom slides though! My 755c with 6,700 hours undercarriage is in way worse shape then the 830 there steel isn’t even close as good.!it’s an animal thought yeah it’s my baby that’s for sure just got a 625H too that things an animal goes where ever I go with the tracks and chains on!

You have instagram or anything?

@@merritwalters5236 Hey right on. I've had the cylinder pins shimmed down once and the main pins at the same time. Didn't have to adjust the main pin though. Sounds like you get good service from Bejac. Once they are torqued up I haven't had the caps loosen for me up either. I just replaced the cartridges on the right side cylinder a couple of weeks ago. Got about 4500 hours on them. I haven't done the left side yet since it's not showing drift but I will when I get a spare minute. I find that I tend to see drift on the right side first, I may overreach on that side more? You may already do this but I bought a set of two new cartridges and that allows me to reseal them and keep one set in rotation. It's a Sun Hydraulics seal kit, 990-022-007 but the price is close to the same through Triad/Tigercat so I just go with that as they keep them in stock. Tigercat number 93511. They are only 25 bucks or so for each kit or so and is an easy reseal. The cartridges were like 900 bucks though so I keep up on replacing the seals as soon as I see drift. There is an outfit online, Radwells that I would probably go to if I need new cartridges, they have good prices on Sun stuff. I sucked a section of old mainline in last Thursday. Man, what an ass ache. It happens but it's never fun. I've had good luck getting them out sometimes and sometimes you have to cut it out with a torch. This wasn't real bad, I got two of the chunks out myself, and my boss helped me with a shovel pulling another two out. It was from the last rotation, after the mountain blew so it was still pretty tough. The really old stuff generally is more forgiving. You just can't always see the damn stuff, but if you pick it up you know it fast right? Good talking with you, be safe!

@@merritwalters5236 No, I keep it pretty simple.

@@bobmartin6055 Thanks!

Copy, it will be a while before we can get the video together, it's going to be a long one. But it's working great, I've been cutting and also tethered skidding. Exceeding our expectations! Thanks.

Thx be safe and keep her rippin sticks@@thedailylogger

@@bearbait2221 You bet, will do!

Unfortunately no. We'll have to get the tethered video approved, hopefully that willl work out. There is a strong push towards no boots on the ground so hopefully the "how to" message will allow it to get posted. Thanks, stay tuned.

Hey there, haven’t seen anything from you in a while, hope you’re doing well! Stay safe!

Thanks, I've got my feet wet so to speak and the line machine is working great. We'll try to get a video together as quick as possible showing what it's like to get started. Hopefully it will be approved!

Wow@@thedailylogger

@@craigtjen9130 Hi Craig. Yeah, the 635 is an animal for sure. We'll have to have another line machine right off for that cause I can't cut for 2 big shovels, the skidder, the 855 and the yarder and still keep a buffer behind me. So far what we've been doing is working the 635 in front of the 855, using that to grab tough stuff or handfall and pulling to a big shovel decking for the processor. Once we get a dedicated tether for the skidder I can cut with that in mind. From my experience in the past, I think correct bunch size is a key element. Would be glad to hear any suggestions you have for me though. Since it's me hanging on the line I'm pretty touchy about anyone else getting in my big old red-headed girl. Did you hear what the line machine said to her husband? Does this drum set make my butt look big? Glad to hear you're taking some time off. Are you being impacted by the fires? We're going to take a week off in September and do a road trip up north, we actually were figuring on taking the Coquahalla up to Kelowna maybe. Just saw that it's burning again there so we'll have to adjust. The fires seem really bad. Good to hear from you as always, be safe!

Right now no one is Allowed in to the area. Everything is on fire up here highway 1 is closed maybe Sept will be better Looking forward to watching you use the machine @@thedailylogger

Copy that. Did you hear what the Line Machine said to her husband? Does this drum set make my butt look big? Thanks for the comment.

Hi Josh, yeah, it's awesome. I felt comfortable immediately, I was surprised. Thought I might feel the same trepidation as when im free styling on real steep ground. It's is completely different, the control is apparent from the get go. The concept is pretty straightforward, just like all the rest of logging the nuance of getting skookum will take some time, efficient layout and figuring out lines of cutting and how to get to the stuff I can't go over. I picked out some bunny slope to get started with, good soil, later moved onto some rocky soil. I was impressed working over that too, the control is phenomenal. We hope to get a video together and approved, we'll see what happens. Thanks!

Absolutely! That was a nice one. I am sure it got quite a layer of ash and that really helped the trees. It's funny though, that was the unit that was seen by the Road Foreman, as it turns out, who mentioned that he saw the video and thought it had a lot of great stuff in it, to our harvest manager. So that brought about the end of cutting videos. Oh well, that's the way it is. Glad you liked it. You sound like a logger, where about do you work? Sure appreciate the comments and interest. Be safe.

@@thedailylogger Thanks for the reply! I used to work in the woods for roughly 5 years over in Montana and NE Washington and loved it! I ultimately left the woods for school but have always longed to get back. My last job in the woods was running a Denis stroke delimber, pretty old technology now! I sure enjoy watching the newer equipment and technology. Many thanks again and be safe!

@@bobmartin6055 Hey, right on! Well, if you're inclined we're always on the look for good hands. Thanks for the interest and comments, good talking with you.

Good question! So I've put over a hundred thousand on it now with a lot of off highway miles. I feel that the truck has held up well for that. You only have to look under the hood to realize that there are no easy fixes on a 6.7! This was purchased new by a Cat dealer in South Dakota, and I think they took good care of it. I take care of weekly and regular maintenance and do a major service annually and am lucky to have the support of two great mechanics in house for repairs on the truck. It still is on DEF and still stock under the hood with the exception of a disaster kit that Nate just put in a while back for me. There have been some component replacements but knock on wood they haven't had to get into the engine itself. So I'm well pleased, and thankful for the excellent backup I get from our shop mechanics. I run heavier than I want to admit, but I drive it carefully and give it a lot of service. As I've said in some of the videos, I work by myself a lot and my truck represents my lifeline so I take good care of it and it takes good care of me! I like Fords in general and I love this setup. Thanks for asking.

Copy! It sure came out beautifully. It's on the job now and I couldn't be happier with it. I am filming a lot and my wife will be editing it so there will be a video coming along on operation and how it is for me getting dialed in. I am really impressed and pleased with the machine and how easy it has been for me to feel comfortable. More to come, as long as we get approval for the video. Hope it works out. Thanks