A better 3pt. drawbar for skidding wood

Adirondack case guy · Feb 3, 2017

J.I.Case built and marked a 3pt. drawbar for Eagle Hitch tractors. It is much safer for skidding logs on a smaller tractor, and can easily be fabed with common 3pt. drawbars and some scrap steel. The butt of a log can be some what lifted for easier pulling and if you study the geometry of the hitch, you see that the harder the log pulls, the more forward pressure is applied to the top link , and thus forcing the front of the tractor down rather than pulling it up further to a point of a backwards flip. It is not a fool proof design, as you are still pulling from behind the rear axle fulcrum point. It does however allow more steering control since the choker chain is coupled much closer to the rear axle than a hook on a back blade would be.
Personally I use a 3pt. skidding arch that I built for my Kubota B2150. If a log catches and does raise the front, the blade on the arch digs in, rear tires loose traction and prevents the front from rising any further. The Kubota also has a ROPS.
Loren

lee little · Feb 3, 2017

Thanks for sharing Loren. I am always looking for a better way especially if it is something I can build. I am sure you have shared pictures of your arch before but I would appreciate if you could do it again , I would love to build one.

teddy52food · Feb 3, 2017

Looks like you like to sharpen saws.

notjustair · Feb 3, 2017

That would be handy on an IH. I have "old ugly" - a $200 auction buy side load 10 bale trailer. I pull it to the field with the 886, drop it using the three point drawbar hookup, and then pick it back up when I have it full. I had to weld together a contraption to hold the 10 hole three point drawbar from rotating under the pull on the ball. A setup like that would make it easy to get under that hitch and would have removed the need for me to build anything to hold the rotational forces. The things I used on all of the little barnyard tractors weren't enough when you are talking 7000 pounds with trailer through soft fields.

Traditional Farmer · Feb 4, 2017

Yep dragging logs thru the dirt will let the log catch a lot of dirt and grit that'll dull a chain on a saw real quick.Much better to cut up the tree where it falls and take the
trailer to the wood.A swing cart is the real thing to haul logs out when using a tractor.

Bret4207 · Feb 4, 2017

I would challenge anyone to get a cart of any type into some of the places I drag wood out of. Loggers ground skidded wood for decades and it's only lately that people have become so spoiled that sharpening a saw has become "too much work" somehow. As with so many other posts on this site, the judgmental tone of some of these posts really grinds my gears. I'm betting ACG does like most of us prefer and ground skids on snow if the chance is offered, but when the wood has to come in, you do what you have to. And the thought that those might be saw logs, which obviously can't be blocked up at all, never occurred to any of the detractors...

Adirondack case guy · Feb 4, 2017

No way to get a even small tractor and trailer into where the trees fall. The arch on the Kubota has a winch on it and I winch the logs to skid paths, where they are fastened to the arch with chokers so I'm not pulling from the winch on the top of the arch. When I get done cutting in the woods you would be hard pressed to tell where I cut trees. My skids are short to several landings in the woods, linked by a road that I can get bigger equipment into.
I don't have to sharpen saw chains that much. I cut and split 20 full cord of wood per year and my chains on my two saws are 3yr. old, and still have lots of life in them.
I have built machines to do the physical work, so for me cutting fire wood is easy and still fun.
Loren

GVSII · Feb 4, 2017

AMEN!

Adirondack case guy · Feb 4, 2017

What is a swing cart?? I have seen those little 2 wheel carts for wheelers. but they seam very akward to use in the woods, especially if you have to back one off the skid trail, to retrieve a log.
Loren

stonerock · Feb 4, 2017

good job ACG thats how I drag logs out to a landing. the dirt in the bark is just part of the job, as much wood as you cut sharping a saw is not a problem. got a 460 stihl 18'' bar,organ chain square tooth, skip tooth and smallest drive gear I can get on. a new chain is not sharp,file the rakers down, and file the chain then you are ready to cut wood. I only cut about 5 cord of wood a year anymore [fire place], free gas on the farm. cut wood after harvest during the day, work ground at night.

nl00sb · Feb 4, 2017

We too skid logs like this only difference is we lift the choked end up a little , we don't have a problem with blades going dull fast at all , we skid all logs out stack them then once were done skidding we pul 5 or 6 out at a time and cut them and split the load in trailer haul to house then ur done

A better 3pt. drawbar for skidding wood

Adirondack case guy

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lee little

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teddy52food

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notjustair

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Traditional Farmer

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Bret4207

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Adirondack case guy

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GVSII

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Adirondack case guy

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stonerock

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nl00sb

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