skidder chains, when and how?

[amberwood]

Off to try out the new to me Timberjack this weekend and see how much we can actually harvest in two days. Just looked at the weather and after 7 yrs of drought it is going to start raining this weekend. I have a pair of chains that came with the 205. The tyres are about 40%.
At what point should I fit them?
Front or rear fitment?
What is the best method for fitting?
Is there a downside to running chains?

thanks
DTR

[Sawyerfortyish]

Put em on the front I've always run front chains on my Jack. I tryed going without but once you have them you will miss them if you take them off. The chains will help you steer over damp or moss covered rocks and down logs. You won,t believe how far or steep of a hill you can back up to hook up to a tree. I always believed that chains protect the tire but a word of caution sometimes a tire chain will hook limbs or other stuff and carry it around and up into the cab area.

[Ken]

A set of chains installed on the front tires will greatly increase the skidders traction.   Make sure you get them as tight as possible.  Will probably require 2 people and some D-links.  If you have access to some chain tighteners it will make your job considerably easier to get the chains tight.  The only downside I can see is that the chains will sometimes increase the damage to the bark of residual trees you are working around if you are not careful when driving past them. 

[amberwood]

thanks guys. I will take up a bucket of shackles and a pair of mini tirfors I have. Should suffice as chain tensioners.

Fingers crossed.

DTR

[Greenedive]

Hey Amberwood,
I agree with the guys...put em on the front...but one thing I do to keep the tires from slipping in the chains when they get a little loose is to cut a small hole in the rim and run a cross chain through and clevis it on each end to a link on the side chains. Some people just attach them under a lug nut so they don't have to cut the hole in the rim, either way stops the tires from spinning in the chains and creating excess wear. Have fun, it's a heavy job...a guy can do it alone...but it is waaay easier with 2 people. Not sure if you can see what I mean from this photo:

[Gary_C]

I always ran chains on my forwarder on the front also. But the best way to get them tight is to get one of those chain tighteners like Bailey's sells. There are two styles, one like a handy man jack and the other is a screw tightener. With those you can get them on with no slack. When you get the tightener, buy some of those pin clevices. They work the best for connectors.

[jokers]

I definitely recommend a tightener and a helper. You can also air your tires down a bit while putting the chains on then air `em back up to regular pressure when they are where you want them.

[Reddog]

I will be the stick in the mud.

Running chains with out snow cover and frozen ground is a good way to get killed or hurt bad on these older open cab machines.
You can pick up tops and limbs and shove them into the cab.
On the newer machines with fully enclosed cabs you have less chance of getting hit with something caught in the chains.
 And that is also a good reason to run them as tight as possible. Less chance for things to get under them.
Two places I have worked have had guys killed from using chains in the summer.
So I tend to just run good tires in the summer.

So if you need them for the extra traction or protection from rocks/stumps. Just be careful and aware of what they can pick up.

[Greenedive]

Reddog is surely right. I usually take mine off in the Summer and Fall.

[amberwood]

I can see they would be a pain in summer especially on hard ground...shaking the whatever out of you. Gave them a good run yesterday after overnight rain. An amazing leap forward in traction. A bit scary when you go crashing trought the small stuff and half of it goes around the tyre for a second go! Definitely KEEP BODY PARTS INSIDE THE CAB!
We had another 25mm of rain overnight. Called it a day. No point in making mud and the increased potential on an accident. Nothing quite the mix of wet logs, mud, heavy machinery and chainsaws.
How do you get the chains from one landing to another without a round trip in the skidder?
 
Here is the process I used...I made the assumption that the lugs on the rings are to grip the tyre.??
Laid out ready to go

Half way up..i used one of my come-alongs to add enough weight so it would "stick" to the tyre while i wound it on.
 
Tensioning under way
 
Finally in use on some of the easy stuff.
 
And one taken from on top of the bonnet. It was along way down the slope. Almost the entire drum of cable.
 
These were all taken with my new phone/camera Nokia 6233..2mp camera.

DTR
 

[Don K]

They are not used very much in the south where I live, but seems like if I remember correctly from pics I've seen the lugs face out from the tire.     Don

Duhh!  I looked back up the post at Greendive's photo of his Super E and they are facing out.

[Black_Bear]

The lugs are definitely designed to face out and grip the earth.

Installing and maintaining chains properly is really an art that takes time and patience. I've found the best way to put the chains on is to have three people present and have two people hold the chains up while the third person creeps the skidder forward or backward. Two people can "walk" the chains up and over the tire rather easily while the skidder is creeping forward. One person is enough to "walk" the chains if he or she is rugged enough. The chain tightener that Gary C. refers to is what we have always used; I think it works great. Just be careful when you release it. The handle releases at a lightning quick pace and really hurts when you get whacked by it.

Also, make sure that your side chains are EVEN or they will eventually walk off the tire. In other words, make sure the inside ring has the same amount of links as the outside ring. Use clevis' to even things up if you need to.  Often, after much wear and tear, the chains stretch and/or become worn down and don't fit so well. It is good to have some torches handy to cut out the excess chain and to have some new clevis' handy when retightening the chains. Make sure they are EVEN!! If the chain does start to walk off one side a high speed trip up and down a truck road may cause the chain to slide back into an even position so that you can tighten it properly without having to use your back and muscle. A log loader can also be used to grab the chains and right them into the correct position where they can then be tightened properly.

Here in the hills and mountains of northern New England we run 4 chains year around and they can be a pain in the arse if you don't put them on correctly. It pays to take the extra time to install them properly and to perform chain maintenance from time to time. Granted, they may pick up some limbs and crash them into the cab, but up here there is no way around it. We personally do not use the chain through the rim to keep the chains tight. That is an extra limb and stump grabber that is not needed if the chains are installed properly. They do keep the chains tight though.

You may also try putting your blade down into the ground so that it lifts your front end and your tire is off the ground. This will allow for easier positioning of the chain after it is up and on the tire.

Ed

   

[stonebroke]

If I remember right Sawmill and Woodlot Magazine had an excellent article on how to put chains on not too long ago. Might want to look it up.

Stonebroke

[arojay]

Amberwood, in your photos it looks like you're chains are mounted with the lugs facing the tire.  If this is the case you will want to take them off and reverse as the lugs will wreck your tires and not provide the intended traction aid.  Last time I put my chains on I tried something different.  I laid the chains out roughly side by side and a little wider than the tread width of the skidder.  I rolled the machine up between the chains and stopped around the middle.  I hooked a come-along like yours from the center of the inside chain rail to the sweep on my canopy and hoisted the chain up and over the side of the tire to the inside.  A little more work to fit the rest of the chain and it was done.  Repeat for the other chain.  This is the easiest way to do it alone that I've found yet. Next time I will use a chain hoist(falls) to reduce the length between the fixxed and hoisting hooks, but the come-along worked OK.  I had a couple of 2 foot fsf chokers made up so that I can extend the reach of my chokers to get around larger than usual diameter  logs.  If I take one of these chokers and slip it around the lengthwise center of a rail from each chain, then hook around my mainline above the top slider, I can hoist the chains to the arch and off of the ground for transport.  I take the chains off when making short moves on public roads, when thawed.  This method saves loading etc..  It is a bit of a toss up for me as to using chains in the thawed ground season.  I always have them around, sitting on a small pallet so they don't sink or freeze in. 

[slowzuki]

The teeth on your chains should face out and they are traditionally called corks from the days work horses had them on their shoes.

[Dale Hatfield]

Im not sure but isnt that machine a full time 4 wheel drive unit?
If so just  remember in the dry season with chains you have more grab at wheels. this might be the cause of broken drive train parts.Drive it  like it might break at any second and dont horse it and things should hold.
Dale

[Sawyerfortyish]

I've run chains on the front of my timberjack since I got it in 1989. On occasion something will get caught in the chains that needs to be cut out but most of the time a few trips around and it falls out. I have never taken it easy on solid ground because of the chains. Those older timberjacks have detroits and there's only one way they like to be run and thats pedal to the metal.
  Amberwood the cleats on the rings face out to grab and claw your way through slippery conditions

[jon12345]

There is a neat article on skidder chains (Canadian Chain) in the April NELA magazine 

[amberwood]

many thanks all for the input. Looks like I have some chain removing / refitting practice coming up next week. I had better reverse those chains!
Yes it is full time 4wd..but has the Ford 4cyl diesel(fordson). You can just drive at the speed you want. No need for excessive rpm.

DTR

[Corley5]

The tire won't slip in the chains with them on like that  I know several loggers up here that won't run chains in the winter because they think they're more apt to break something.  I guess they'd rather have churning, spinning tires instead.