ATVs for Snaking Logs Out of the Woods

[VTBen]

Hi all,

I need to get something to snake logs out of the woods at my new place. I used an old Ford 8n tractor as a kid and would love to get another one of those, but this property only has a really steep trail to get back to the woodlot and I don't think a tractor would work unless it's 4wd (which puts it out of my price range).

So I'm thinking about going with an ATV and possibly one of those log skidder contraptions you can get to pull behind them. I would be curious to hear any thoughts about whether ATVs work well for this kind of thing and if so if there are brands/models that work well with others. Since I've only ever done it with a tractor I'm worried about whether or not an ATV would have enough power to do it. I've never worked with one.

Thanks,

Ben

 

[BobUrban]

I fabbed this thing I call the log dog(single log skidder) to mount into the Reese style receiver I made for my quad. Although it is not a tractor and cannot be compared to the power or weight of a tractor it works well. The chain and legs are really overkill. I just notch the log with a DBL wide kerf and set it onto the angle. Weight holds it in place. The system is designed to extend beyond the tires and can completely swivel around so the logs follow directly behind the machine. Getting one end up makes the pull much easier and keeps the log clean. If I can lift it onto the angle the bike can haul it out. Everything in the pics was hauled with the Griz.

 

[Shmudda]

I use a ATV exclusively to haul and skid logs. My old reliable is a 1993 Honda 300 FWD. This machine can't be beat for this type of work. If you are looking into this you want to have a machine with a straight rear axle, you don't want indenpendent suspension as it will sag to much under the tongue weight. I would highly recommend a Honda 350 to 450 in size. If you get something bigger it will become very hard to handle in the woods.

Let's talk trailers. Skidding is easy but it's not efficient in my opinion. I have been using a 17 cubic foot trailer to haul my wood out since 1993. I purchased this trailer the same year I bought the quad. I have found its much more efficent to cut, split and load into the trailer to haul it home to stack. The only change I made to the trailer is I put a 2" receiver on the tongue to accept a trailer ball. This is a must.

That's been my approach since 1993, and it's been working well for me.

Craig

 

[VTBen]

Thanks guys. That's helpful.

Craig, I had the same idea. My woodlot is only 50 acres so I wouldn't be that far out in the woods when I cut. Might make sense to at least cut it, or cut and split out in the woods and bring it back in a trailer.

I'm one of those guys who can't use one of those fancy log splitters anyway. A good old splitting maul is just too good a way to get my exercise in.

Ben

 

[AroostookDave]

I use my atv and a heavy duty cart. Cut the wood up in the woods, throw into the cart, bring up to woodshed area and split and stack. Been doing this for years. I have to carry up hill sometimes, 4wd and low range when needed.

 

[Hills Hoard]

View attachment 124700 View attachment 124701 View attachment 124702

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your lawn in the second pic.!!.......perfection...!!..how do you get those lines....

 

[firefighterjake]

ATV and a heavy duty cart myself.

Maybe Backwoods Savage will be along though to post some pics of his cart . . . and the dray he built to haul out longer logs.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Hi all,

I need to get something to snake logs out of the woods at my new place. I used an old Ford 8n tractor as a kid and would love to get another one of those, but this property only has a really steep trail to get back to the woodlot and I don't think a tractor would work unless it's 4wd (which puts it out of my price range).

So I'm thinking about going with an ATV and possibly one of those log skidder contraptions you can get to pull behind them. I would be curious to hear any thoughts about whether ATVs work well for this kind of thing and if so if there are brands/models that work well with others. Since I've only ever done it with a tractor I'm worried about whether or not an ATV would have enough power to do it. I've never worked with one.

Thanks,

Ben

Welcome to the forum Ben.

The trouble with skidding logs is that dirt gets into the bark. Then you either have to clean the dirt off (and it is hard getting it all off) or else sharpening the chain a lot because dirt just ruins a good saw chain fast. If you can't buck up the wood and haul it out with a trailer, you might consider something like we threw together. It is an old time dray. My cost was about $10 and it works like a charm whether you have snow or are on bare ground. btw, our atv is a Yamaha Grizzly 700.

 

[BobUrban]

Nearest neighbors lawn - that is spring before any mowing had been done. Their son works for a landscape company and pros do that FAST! Me... I get er' done with a 20hp Craftsman tractor and my lines are never that nice. We live in the woods at the end of a dead end private road. No one see's my lawn or landscape(that consists of ever growing wood piles)

The pics are from March - here is a better perspective from my deck in April

 

[Firewood Bandit]

your lawn in the second pic.!!.......perfection...!!..how do you get those lines....

You talking about this?

(broken image removed)

(broken image removed)

Just make alternating passes with the mower, rollers on a Simplicity mower help too.

 

[gerry100]

VTBen- FYI - even 4wd tractors suck in the woods, I've got a 4wd MF and there's parts of my small lot I just can't get to.

If I were starting fresh an ATV would be the way to go for me.

 

[firefighterjake]

There's a time and place for both tractors and ATVs.

Having used both . . . the 4WD tractor is nice (especially with a winch) if you're hauling out big, tree length stuff to a pile to stack up and cut at a later time. It's hard to beat the brute force . . . and the ability to add attachments to make it even more handy both in the woods and around the house. That said, depending on the terrain, time of year and the wood lot, the tractor can also make a little more of a mess with bigger ruts, more banged up trees (in some cases) and wider twitch trails . . . although an ATV driven hard can also rut things up, bang up trees, etc.

The ATV will limit your load and length of wood and even the best winch cannot compare to a tractor's wood winch. The trade off is you can reduce the impact on the land with fewer, deeper ruts (again depending on the terrain, time of year and how you drive) and narrower twitch trails. The added benefit of an ATV is you can play with it after the work day is done and go for a trail ride . . . whereas the tractor is usually not something you would go for a ride down a trail (although it can be handy for use around the property.)

Honestly, there is a time and place for both. If moving a lot of wood in as short a time is the goal, the tractor is the better choice in my opinion . . . or if you think you would have a lot of use for projects around the property. If minimizing the impact on the land or getting a dual play/work toy, the ATV with a trailer is a good choice as you can thread your way to the tree without having to cut out wider twitch trails.

 

[triptester]

I have a small trailer that is used to haul a ATV and haul wood.

 

[bassJAM]

I'm curious how steep of a hill you have to climb? My dad had an 8N too, and I took it up some hairy trails as a young dumb kid, and also got it stuck, and then unstuck in a muddy pond a few times as well! That tractor will climb, and it's light enough to not sink too bad in the mud either. Dad eventually "upgraded" to a slightly larger Ford diesel, and while it sips fuel and will pull down a house, the front gets stuck in the mud way easier.

I'd vote for a tractor, it also won't get pushed around as much hauling a trailer full of wood back down a steep hill as an ATV will. I'm going through the same thought process right now to make life easier for myself on my small 3 acres of woods, and my plan is an older garden tractor with tire chains. ATV's are fun, and because of that I think people often try to justify them for work when there are better options. If I had the money, I'd probably jump for a side-by-side over an ATV for firewood duty.

 

[gerry100]

My issue with a tractor ( 4wd or not) is not the hills but uneven terrain, rocks etc , side grades etc.

My tractor is also a pita to turn around in my woods.

 

[Hills Hoard]

You talking about this?

(broken image removed)

(broken image removed)

Just make alternating passes with the mower, rollers on a Simplicity mower help too.

lawn porn! yep, that's the one...Looks magnificent!

The house we bought had renters living there prior to us and the lawn was out of control with thick knee high weeds....its taken me 2 years of hard work mowing etc to get the grass back and under control so I appreciate a nice lawn!...

 

[VTBen]

Thanks BassJam,

My hill is pretty steep. I live right on the side of a ridge. And I'm actually less concerned about going up the hill than I am about getting back down it. The 8n I had as a kid didn't have much for brakes and taking it down even lesser inclines could get pretty . . . interesting.

I may see about renting a tractor for a weekend in the spring so I can see how it does.

Ben

 

[VTBen]

Thanks for all the replies. They are helpful. I haven't made any decisions yet but the more I think about it the more I think that an ATV and trailer would work well. That way I could cut down one tree, buck it up, split it, haul it in and stack it and then go out for the next tree.

And an ATV would probably have more ancillary uses for me than a tractor.

Ben

 

[richg]

A friend of mine is a motorcycle/quad/small engine mechanic. He swears by, and will only own, Honda Quads. good enough for me.

 

[Backwoods Savage]

Thanks for all the replies. They are helpful. I haven't made any decisions yet but the more I think about it the more I think that an ATV and trailer would work well. That way I could cut down one tree, buck it up, split it, haul it in and stack it and then go out for the next tree.

And an ATV would probably have more ancillary uses for me than a tractor.

Ben

My apology that I forgot yesterday to post a picture of our trailer. Best thing is that it has wide atv tires so that going through mud is not a problem. It does also have a tilt bed so that if you get some heavy rounds, you can roll them into the trailer rather than lifting. Another thing is that even without tilting, it is very low to the ground so no big high lifts to do.

 

[Bocephous]

I've been skidding logs out of our woods for several years with an '07 Suzuki Vinson 500. Solid rear axle, semi-auto trans with high/low range. Has been absolutely bulletproof.

I also recently bought an ATV log skidder and am still working out the bugs. Nothing major; I know it will do what I want it to.

BWS is correct, dirt will get in the bark and dull the chain quickly. I kind of negate that by only skidding out 5 or 6 logs a day, buzz them to length, and finish the day by sharpening my chain. It also keeps me from pummeling my body too much in one day.

 

[triptester]

WARNNING DO NOT ATTEMP This is only to show what a ATV can do if you enjoy trying to destroy things.
A full cord of oak hauled 3 miles.

 

[bassJAM]

I've been skidding logs out of our woods for several years with an '07 Suzuki Vinson 500. Solid rear axle, semi-auto trans with high/low range. Has been absolutely bulletproof.

I also recently bought an ATV log skidder and am still working out the bugs. Nothing major; I know it will do what I want it to.

BWS is correct, dirt will get in the bark and dull the chain quickly. I kind of negate that by only skidding out 5 or 6 logs a day, buzz them to length, and finish the day by sharpening my chain. It also keeps me from pummeling my body too much in one day.

A number of years ago I was close to pulling the trigger on an ATV, it was a Vinson. It had all the features I wanted and has a great track record. I'm still planning on getting an older garden tractor for wood hauling / snow removal because there's good ones to be had for less than $500, but if I could convince the fiance after we're married I'd consider a Vinson instead for yard "work". It'd be MUCH more expensive but it might be an easy sell, I let her ride my dirt bike back in November and she fell in love with it. An ATV will be much easier for her to control on the trails than being on 2 wheels. And it'd be more fun for me in the snow/frozen ground then my dirt bike!

 

[D8Chumley]

Heres my Honda Rincon 650 and my 6x4ish $100 military special. Works great for me, but it has that stupid receiver you have to twist the knob on top to tighten it onto the ball. Taking it off is a small pain, but it works great for the abuse I give it. It has detachable 2' high side boards all the way around that the guy I bought it from made

 

[firefighterjake]

View attachment 125223

Heres my Honda Rincon 650 and my 6x4ish $100 military special. Works great for me, but it has that stupid receiver you have to twist the knob on top to tighten it onto the ball. Taking it off is a small pain, but it works great for the abuse I give it. It has detachable 2' high side boards all the way around that the guy I bought it from made

How do you like your Rincon . . . it's on my short list for my next quad.