# DR 10 HP Chipper



## thewoodlands (May 2, 2012)

Took about 45 minutes to chip up this pile. My plans for the chips are for leveling the ground in the new stacking area.

zap


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## DexterDay (May 2, 2012)

What is the largest diameter that it will chip.... 

There have been some used ones around me? It would be nice to do something with the Tops. Instead of throwing in a pile and burning, or throwing back in the woods.


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## ScotO (May 3, 2012)

I'm gonna own a chipper someday, holding out for a larger diesel with auto-feed (I do a ton of treework on the side).  Did I mention how much I hate dealing with branches?).  That unit you have there would be great for homeowner use, and if you keep the blades sharp that little machine will earn its keep.


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## Realstone (May 3, 2012)

The only shortcoming to harvesting wood IMO is that it removes the source of humus for replenishing the soil. Chippers are great for restoring that compostable material and accelerating the decomposition process and keeping the wood lot neat & tidy.


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## KarlP (May 3, 2012)

IMO - If you want to tow it with a lawn tractor or ATV the DRs are probably the best chippers out there. If you can get a bigger tractor or small pickup truck in there, I'd spend a little more on a used Bandit, Morbark, or Carleton 6" chipper with a 6x11 opening and manual hydraulic feed. As much as I'd like a diesel and auto-feed, they are more than most small time homeowners are willing to pay. :-D


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## thewoodlands (May 3, 2012)

DexterDay said:


> What is the largest diameter that it will chip....
> 
> There have been some used ones around me? It would be nice to do something with the Tops. Instead of throwing in a pile and burning, or throwing back in the woods.


I'll look later on in the manual but my guess is 2-3.5.

This is from the manual online,
 The Chipper can chip twigs and branches up to 3-1/2" in diameter. Cut your materials into manageable lengths before
feeding them into the Chipper Hopper.
zap


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## thewoodlands (May 3, 2012)

Scotty Overkill said:


> I'm gonna own a chipper someday, holding out for a larger diesel with auto-feed (I do a ton of treework on the side). Did I mention how much I hate dealing with branches?). That unit you have there would be great for homeowner use, and if you keep the blades sharp that little machine will earn its keep.


 Since we bought the land I cut on a bigger chipper would be nice, like you said this is good for around the house.

zap


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## smokinj (May 3, 2012)

10 hp with sharp blades, I'll take one!


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## thewoodlands (May 3, 2012)

Regarding our sandy soil; looks like I'll make use of some smaller cherry branches by chipping them up then spreading them out on that area. I'll throw down some grass seed before spreading the cherry chips out, we'll see how well it works.

zap


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## Realstone (May 3, 2012)

zap said:


> Regarding our sandy soil; looks like I'll make use of some smaller cherry branches by chipping them up then spreading them out on that area. I'll throw down some grass seed before spreading the cherry chips out, we'll see how well it works.
> 
> zap


You might want to add some nitrogen Zap.  Composting material robs the soil of native nitrogen.


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## MasterMech (May 4, 2012)

KarlP said:


> IMO - If you want to tow it with a lawn tractor or ATV the DRs are probably the best chippers out there. If you can get a bigger tractor or small pickup truck in there, I'd spend a little more on a used Bandit, Morbark, or Carleton 6" chipper with a 6x11 opening and manual hydraulic feed. As much as I'd like a diesel and auto-feed, they are more than most small time homeowners are willing to pay. :-D


 If you've got serious chipping needs and a tractor then you're halfway there!  PTO models are available that are just as good as the big towables and use your tractor for power.


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## MasterMech (May 4, 2012)

zap said:


> Since we bought the land I cut on a bigger chipper would be nice, like you said this is good for around the house.
> 
> zap


 
Might be a great accessory for that tractor on your wish list.


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## tfdchief (May 4, 2012)

I really want one of those


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## thewoodlands (Jul 30, 2012)

tfdchief said:


> I really want one of those


 Looks like chipper action tonight so I can get that area for the fireplace cleaned up again.

zap


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## tfdchief (Jul 30, 2012)

I looked at one exactly like this at the hardware store yesterday.  I really want one but can't hardly justify the money for the amount of use I would give.  Unlike you, I am sure, who can use it a lot.  Trouble is, when I need one, the only alternative is to haul all that stuff off, and then in the spring, BUY MULCH


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## thewoodlands (Jul 30, 2012)

tfdchief, I'm glad we bought it when we did, like the boss would say it's not in the budget! 

zap


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## firecracker_77 (Jul 30, 2012)

I love the DR Field and Brush Trimmer commercial.


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## velvetfoot (Jul 30, 2012)

That DR appears to work way way way better than the MTD I have.  It jams so much it's pathetic and the only way to use it is with the shredder .  The chipper even with new blades doesn't work for crap, for me anyway.


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## thewoodlands (Jul 30, 2012)

velvetfoot said:


> That DR appears to work way way way better than the MTD I have. It jams so much it's pathetic and the only way to use it is with the shredder . The chipper even with new blades doesn't work for crap, for me anyway.


 When I was looking at chippers he (The Wood Chop Shop) told me if the DR was out of my price range to stay away from a chipper/shredder for that reason, I started saving money each week when I could then bought the chipper the next year.

This year we had them change the belt along with some new blades.

zap


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## velvetfoot (Jul 30, 2012)

zap, exactly which model do you have?
I was on the drpower web site and they have rapid fire chipper only models and also some chipper shredders.
They seem to start at 11.5 hp though.
Thanks.
(And no, they aren't cheap.)
This was where I was looking:
http://www.drpower.com/Content.aspx?N=0&Ntk=primary&Ntt=chipper


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## thewoodlands (Jul 30, 2012)

velvetfoot, I'm not sure on the model # (I'll put it up tonight) but that 11.5 hp would be similar.

Zap


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## blades (Jul 30, 2012)

I have a 20hp  Echo-Bearcat, chipper/ shredder( #5720 electric start)), it really does chip to 5". not inexpensive though new are like 8g's, got it used for a great price. It is not a controlled feed but does pull the branches in on its own most of the time in the chipper section, the shredder section  pulls it in quick but has a limit there of 3/4" according to manual. I was a bit leary of the specs, having had the experience of one of the 8hp  mtd ( months til done) units, as was stated by another poster jam-a-matic if you feed it to fast, and a abosolute pain to try and clear. Main thing I liked about the bearcat was the ease that one could clear it of a jam, 1 bolt to remove and top half of the chambers fold open for any service work.


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## certified106 (Jul 30, 2012)

Nice chipper! Do you always chip all the limbs off of trees you fell? I never have and I usually just pile them up in the woods but often times I have wondered if it ok to do that or if it slows down the forest regrowth.


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## thewoodlands (Jul 30, 2012)

certified106, we usually just chip up the dead pine branches around the house. Here are tonights pictures of some chipping I did, because of the pine needles I took off the safety shoot so it would not plug, it worked out great the chipper was throwing some of the chips 30 feet back.

All the small stuff on the ground will go back in the woods, the chips will go on the trail leading in to the woods. Pic 5741 was about 30 feet back from the picture, the chipper used just over half a tank of gas.

zap


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## osagebow (Jul 30, 2012)

Got a nice used one off a CL add in North Dakota. Had to clean it up a bit, though.


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## MasterMech (Jul 31, 2012)

blades said:


> I have a 20hp Echo-Bearcat, chipper/ shredder( #5720 electric start)), it really does chip to 5". not inexpensive though new are like 8g's, got it used for a great price. It is not a controlled feed but does pull the branches in on its own most of the time in the chipper section, the shredder section pulls it in quick but has a limit there of 3/4" according to manual. I was a bit leary of the specs, having had the experience of one of the 8hp mtd ( months til done) units, as was stated by another poster jam-a-matic if you feed it to fast, and a abosolute pain to try and clear. Main thing I liked about the bearcat was the ease that one could clear it of a jam, 1 bolt to remove and top half of the chambers fold open for any service work.


 
Bear-Cat makes some of the absolute best chippers on the market.  For you guys looking for small units, their line up of 3-5" units, including the chipper shredder combo units, will get it done for sure.  Last I checked you could do a 3" chipper/shredder for under $1100 new.

http://bearcatproducts.com/



> mtd ( months til done)


   That's one I haven't heard yet...

Money taken daily and Must try Deere are personal favorites.


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## velvetfoot (Jul 31, 2012)

I love it!  Can totally relate (MTD)!


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## thewoodlands (Jul 31, 2012)

I had the trailer full of Hemlock from a couple days ago so I decided to stack it tonight then clean up in the area I chipped in last night, since I took the pine branches back in the woods I went up top so I could get a small load of Hemlock to finish stacking.

We had a small Basswood come down across a trail which I'll take care of this weekend.

zap


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## certified106 (Jul 31, 2012)

Looks Great! I'm stuck at work right now and living vicariously through you......


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## thewoodlands (Jul 31, 2012)

When are you firing up the smoker again? We have some thunder with heavy rain moving in, the temp dropped 20 degrees from 90 to 70 degrees since I stacked, coming down hard.

zap


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## DexterDay (Jul 31, 2012)

As always, some beautiful stacks Zap...


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## thewoodlands (Aug 25, 2012)

In the 90's here so I decided to get the chipper out for some easy work, I took four loads out from around the fireplace,twigs,stumps,smaller pine branches and some pine needles.

zap


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## MasterMech (Aug 26, 2012)

Are there any sticks on the ground at your place that you _don't_ know about Zap? 

Get It Before It Rots 

Beautiful woods.


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## certified106 (Aug 26, 2012)

Your place looks great! It was definitely hot yesterday afternoon.


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## thewoodlands (Aug 26, 2012)

Thanks MasterMech and Certified106, this is the first time since we bought the land I cut on that I actually spent some serious time working around the house.

zap


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## thewoodlands (Aug 28, 2012)

certified106 said:


> Looks Great! I'm stuck at work right now and living vicariously through you......


 Looks like that downed wood will be taken care of tonight, our neighbor with the Kubota is going for a ride on the Rhino through our property tomorrow.
zap


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## thewoodlands (Aug 28, 2012)

I took care of the rotten tree that came down across the trail, went up the trail to find this bassoakwood which started to split from the backside about two months ago finally came down.

I guess I'll take up carving.

zap


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## Clarkbug (Sep 2, 2012)

Zap,

Im curious about your chipper.  Seems like it handles most of the stuff you throw at it, but you also have processed most of the sticks down already.  Do you ever put anything through it that still has leaves on it?  I have some really pesky box elder near me that I want to chip the smaller stuff, but I dont want to have to cut all of the leafy bits off of it.


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## MasterMech (Sep 2, 2012)

Clark, most chippers I have run across will handle leaves on the branches just fine.


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## thewoodlands (Sep 2, 2012)

Clarkbug said:


> Zap,
> 
> Im curious about your chipper. Seems like it handles most of the stuff you throw at it, but you also have processed most of the sticks down already. Do you ever put anything through it that still has leaves on it? I have some really pesky box elder near me that I want to chip the smaller stuff, but I dont want to have to cut all of the leafy bits off of it.


Most of what we put through it has been dead pine, it is better if you get rid of the leaves, it will handle it. I ran Pine with needles on it, it will plug up. I was working by myself so I took the guard off it to solve that problem.

zap


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## Backwoods Savage (Sep 2, 2012)

I'm still amazed with this chipper.


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## thewoodlands (Sep 2, 2012)

Backwoods Savage said:


> I'm still amazed with this chipper.


Sav did they use those for pellets?
zap


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## MasterMech (Sep 3, 2012)

6 Axles on that trailer (inc. the tag) ! Think it was designed to haul some weight?


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## Clarkbug (Sep 3, 2012)

Thanks for the replies Zap and MasterMech, much appreciated!


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## Realstone (Sep 3, 2012)

zap said:


> Sav did they use those for pellets?
> zap


I sure hope so.  Otherwise it seems like a big waste


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## Backwoods Savage (Sep 5, 2012)

zap said:


> Sav did they use those for pellets?
> zap


 
No pellets out of that. Not 100% certain which company it was or what they do but for sure no pellets.


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## DanCorcoran (Sep 6, 2012)

This is the chipper they used at the cabin last week.  Had a 6-cylinder Ford gasoline engine.  The entire area was covered 3-6" deep in chips when they left...


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## Ashful (Sep 6, 2012)

zap said:


> Regarding our sandy soil; looks like I'll make use of some smaller cherry branches by chipping them up then spreading them out on that area. I'll throw down some grass seed before spreading the cherry chips out, we'll see how well it works.


 
In one part of my woodsplitting area, I had spread a heavy bed of woodchips, when a long rainy season (and me doing a lot of work in the area) destroyed all of the fine grass I had in that area.  I found the woodchips, despite being spread fairly deep, did not add much stability to the soil.  I (and my tractor) still sunk and displaced mud, almost as if they were not there.

Like you, I'll be planting grass in my new woodsplitting area, to establish a root system and some soil stability.  Even if I kill most of it working and stacking in the area, I'll still have a (hopefully) live root system.


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