99 e350 full float Dana 60, a friend has a 4wd converted van that had this axle in it. The van axle is 6" narrower then the super duty axle so instead of wheel spacers we swapped in a full size super duty rear axle to match width of the Dana 60 front axle. The narrow part doesn’t bother me any, smaller chunker package! 3.55 gears ehhhhhh…I’ll live with it. Got the axle for a song and a little wrench spinning so I’ll make it work
This needs some hot snot fixing, old school Lincoln locker to come. Actually a miller locker to be exact. Nice and clean inside, we just pulled this axle last month and right before it got pulled it was driven from Florida to Washington, about 132,000 miles on it
Very nice! I’m hoping to get some kind of gearbox soon. Found a 30:1 box recently and I’m keeping my eye on that. Hopefully Old Boy has a forklift to drop it into my truck bed.
I think it was mostly the wrench spinning that did the favor tom haha the e350 van axles are kind of oddball and not used for much so not super looked for in the after market
Marcus, you have probably already decided on the construction of a wood cutter, otherwise it is easy to implement, but not very easy to use. As you have shown, you are a good constructor and have good equipment, so I think you are going to do more demanding work, but later you will find it very efficient and easy to use.
https://youtu.be/mNxEweWOYX0
This last link shows the way with the cleanest cut, double spiral, this would be perfect for you Marcus, one more demanding project, …
Very interesting I had not seen any of these videos after many hours looking for different ideas. The screw style looks very efficient in that it will take everything down to the tips of a branch not unlike our commercial chippers here in the states I have used for years in tree service work. For that versatility I really like the rebakk style chunker you other side of the pond users have. Notice I title this v1 as everyone seems to modify there chunker over time, and when space and time allows I’m sure I will build other style chunker a for the fun of it. I’m very interested to see if my truck will run either differently or more efficiently on chunk/ fractured wood then my saw chunks
This is more what I am used to, extremely fast paced destructive power. These older chippers where know as a “huknduk” spread the words out and watch the video you will see why it earned the name https://youtu.be/jUy_S2RQqlg
These types of machines aren’t built anymore for many safety reasons, though I looked into finding one and slowing it down and setting the blades out longer for larger chunks, not a feasible repurpose. To much re engineering vs building to meet my needs
Marcus, the wood cutting style is similar to the style you plan to make, except that it automatically feeds the wood and the helix pitch determines the length of the cut. In my opinion, this is one of the most economical and simple procedures, it works smoothly without vibrations, once you grab the wood there is no stopping, …
Interesting video’s Tone.
I have seen the spiral system before. Some have purchased these. Or made up a verson. Ben Peterson made up one.
What becomes apparent it that this style needs higher levels of input power and torque.
You will not be powering with a common sized electrical motors or small engines.
Then there is the REBAK (sp) opposed shafts clipper/snipper style. And this system can be ran with common electrical motors or small engines.
Then the rotating drum shear style that MichealG, WayneK, BobMac, ChrisSeanz, and others have made up. Can also be common electrical motor or small engines ran.
Most important is to realize the original purpose for each type of “chipping system”.
Almost all here are to reduce down, year around, in all seasons, in-foliage/in-leaf cut off brush and tree limbs.
Reduce, grind it enough to blow-load; haul away and dump. Then job done.
Now the REBAK and the spiral cutter are to reduce down to heating system chips naked (not in leaf) cut brush and tree limb out to the twig ends.
I am not sure about the REBAK’s ability to handle in-leaf/in-green-needles foliage. I am sure the spiral chipper would bind up and stall out unless it could be fed 3X, 4X the normal power input.
Now the drum shear system is ONLY to make gasifer sized chunks. True controlled sized best-in-gasifer chunks. And the control comes from the operator inputs selection and on-hands twist positioning irregular limbs for the best sized chunks made. The output quality is the priority over speed.
Not: brush reduce/limbs tonnages per hour.
Not: to clear acres of right-of-way per day.
ALL. Rewatch MicaealG’s videos. Watch his hands. The whys are there.
I was rewatching all of @mggibb videos last night and actually was pondering his hand movements, twirling and spinning the feed as it got chunked. Larger feed stock the slicing action left a angled cut that he would then switch towards the cutter side and therefore change the slice made and chunk size each cut. I knew this will be more of the learning curve for me as at the west coast woodgas meet I was quite surprised when @JocundJake kept telling me "bigger, bigger, bigger!) As I was chunking I was thinking to myself in the moment wow that is way bigger then my truck likes to run! But after much reading about the pros of fractured wood chunks and @KristijanL recent comment about @Wayne chunks being deceivingly smaller then they appear due to the process by which it has been made it had began to make sense. Hence my interest to see how my truck will respond to the fracture wood. I have thought the greenery leaf waste would still be a fuel to an extent, but I plan to strip down to good wood for the energy density. I definitely get better milage with smaller round branch wood simply as it fills out the hopper better. Noticable even in the feed bag, a bag of round branch wood far out weighs my saw cut chunks full of air in the bag. So I think fracture chunked wood will be a lighter bag yet, but maybe more efficient burning then my saw chunks. If my theory is correct I may need to carry a little more fuel? Same weight in more bags. Only one way to know and that’s get to building it
Exactly the right thinking.
What system will give ME the best results for my needs.
Ain’t about some Wooo-eei lookie what I made! A Deathheads Eat’s All roarin’ machine!
Anyone who has tried forking, shoveling a dumped off load of free Arborist grind knows the agony!
Move, shuffle, screen separate and classify out 10,000 pounds to get what? 10%? 20%? 30%? gasifier useable.
FREE energy, it ain’t.
Marcus you really want to clog just put leaf in.
S.U.
Even the big commercial chippers, end of the day always a pile of leaves left behind. Always leave out a last real brush tree top, stack leaves into the shoot and stuff the top in. Wispy branches grab and drag the leaves through for the final cleanup of the day. That small stuff is a turd to run though the biggest meanest chippers. For chunking I have just been machete trim the greens and smallest twigs off then saw up and been ok. Chop saw no go, likes to grab small bits and throw instead of cut. Table saw same, unsafe use. Makes even more sense watching the chunking videos of everyone here and feed stock rarely seems to go smaller then 1" diameter in rotating drum style shear, where as rebak eats that stuff right up. Different method for different feed stock for best yield
I didn’t know those big pull behind chippers were no longer made. Every tree service around here still uses them fed into a closed box built on a dump bed. Never saw it done any other way.
Oh they still make them, just not the huknduk specials. Now feed safety features, bump bars, anti roll-up sensors, rope sensors, OSHA filled systems. Yes safer, taking the brain out of the operator. I learned when I lost my first hard hat into the chipper of a huknduk being the chipper man is no joke, be on your toes! Still very carefully around the safety feature laden ones, don’t trust them either but they have a much more cichlid feed rate providing time to get he hell out of the way should things go wrong. Feed rollers often grab a small log and whip the butt end around and will take you off your feet in a hurry if you aren’t aware. Seen busted teeth sprained joints and damaged eyes from this, the worst thing that could ever happen is if you are speed lining and your climbers rope gets drawn into the chipper and rips him out of the tree, that’s the rope sensors now. We never have the speed line close to the chipper, always tied off 20 feet away and pack the brush to the chipper while a ground man tends the climbers ropes for him. For those that don’t know speed lining is a technique for arborist to get branches and tops away from the tree and redirect for safety around houses cars structures and such. Here is one of my favorite arborist to watch out of Oregon who has a taste for theatrical editing his tree jobs you will see some speed lining used and ride the limb to the ground https://youtu.be/xswwZW04hMs
And here is one of his collaboration videos with some of the best arborist in the United States https://youtu.be/kaGERZ6RfMc
We have some machine close to that but purposes are separated out one machine either tires or tracks that forward the wood to the landing and either stationary chipper/shredder or tub grinder for larger wood and stumps, and a dedicated machine for loading those or a self loader built into it. Then loaded into on/offroad semis and hauled off sight
I climbed trees like a monkey when I was a kid. No fear. Climbed iron for 30 years. A little spooky at times but never enough to slow me down. Now I can barely climb a ladder to clean out my chimney. Old age will take two things from you. Good balance and good boners.
I’m betting Arborists are big fans of battery powered chain saws.
It has been coming around yes electric saws are being pushed and tested by these guys and for home owner association work with noise ordinance it’s a good answer
Battery saws are not going to replace gas ones in my book but when I’m cutting firewood I usually bring back the small stuff and limbs and throw it in a pile. The 58 V Echo I have is way better to cut that stuff up with. For one thing it doesn’t run at the RPM the gas saw does so much less likely to bite into a piece and bash it into your shins.
I had not seen any of these videos after many hours looking for different ideas. The screw style looks very efficient in that it will take everything down to the tips of a branch not unlike our commercial chippers here in the states I have used for years in tree service work. For that versatility I really like the rebakk style chunker you other side of the pond users have. Notice I title this v1 as everyone seems to modify there chunker over time, and when space and time allows I’m sure I will build other style chunker a for the fun of it. I’m very interested to see if my truck will run either differently or more efficiently on chunk/ fractured wood then my saw chunks
