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Tyndra
Member
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# Posted: 5 May 2017 03:06am
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I apologize it this has been asked but in searching I haven't found a definitive answer. I just bought 25 acres, now the work begins. I live in the city so this will be a long project for me. However, my first goal is access. I am having a driveway put into but that will be along one side. I would like to add some trails to have to the natural clearings on the rest land. But as the picture shows, it is dense with small trees. There are some larger trees and such that are fine, but you cannot walk more than a few feet without a pine or birch saplings having to be pushed out your way. They average .5"-2". Obviously a brush cutter, shears and a chainsaw will work but they will leave hundreds and hundreds of little stakes sticking out the ground ready to trip you or puncture a tire.
What is the best way to clear, say 6' paths across the property that wouldn't have countless 1" tripping, tire destroying little stakes sticking up? Or how do I remove the saplings roots and all? Get a walk behind brush mower and keep cutting them off short a few time a year until they are dead?
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SE Ohio
Member
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# Posted: 5 May 2017 07:11am
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A neighbor used a smaller bulldozer to make his path. No stumps. It gets enough traffic that new saplings don't have a chance.
SE Ohio
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LDamm
Member
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# Posted: 5 May 2017 11:35am - Edited by: LDamm
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The only way to go.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M2ycNYhOjko
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creeky
Member
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# Posted: 5 May 2017 12:29pm
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Now that's one heavy duty flail mower.
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DaveBell
Moderator
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# Posted: 5 May 2017 01:46pm
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What happens when that Forestry Cutter hits a rock?
I have some stumps I'd like to use that on but concerned about the rocks doing damage. I have to use a backhoe in WV.
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LDamm
Member
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# Posted: 5 May 2017 02:15pm - Edited by: LDamm
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Quoting: DaveBell What happens when that Forestry Cutter hits a rock?
If its a small enough rock, it turns it into gravel. If its a to big a rock, it breaks a lot of $50 teeth on the drum. And yes, if you rent one, the cost of the teeth comes out of security deposit.
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bldginsp
Member
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# Posted: 5 May 2017 03:47pm
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Put a winch on the front of your truck and get a snatch block or two to double the winch pulling power, and rip the stumps out.
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DaveBell
Moderator
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# Posted: 5 May 2017 04:01pm
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Not my stumps. It is a fight using a Deere 310.
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Salty Craig
Member
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# Posted: 5 May 2017 04:59pm
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This is what I prefer to use.
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Tyndra
Member
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# Posted: 5 May 2017 05:48pm
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Driven a few D10s, it works but it boring! Put blade down, clear path, clean up, done! Now, that forest cutter looks like fun!
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Salty Craig
Member
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# Posted: 5 May 2017 08:28pm
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DaveBell
Good ol' Virginia stumps. Wish I had a buck for every one I've dug out.
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old243
Member
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# Posted: 5 May 2017 09:40pm
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If you have equipment putting in your driveway. Have the contractor grub out some main trails for you then you can make other ones when you have time . Likely there will already be old logging roads there if you look around. old243
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Greenland South
Member
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# Posted: 5 May 2017 10:17pm
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Put one of these on the front of a tractor. I use mine on the front of a New Holland Boomer. Easily takes care of up to 5" poplar, rips the roots right out.
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creeky
Member
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# Posted: 6 May 2017 08:28am
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I got into trouble grading the back of a ski lodge. Long story. Water lines, sewer, gardens. Big plan.
So I call the local guys and they say. Oh you need a D9 for that.
Took 'em an afternoon. The hardest part was getting the beast in and out. We could have moved the whole mountain.
But the lodge owners were a tad upset. $$$.
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adakseabee
Member
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# Posted: 6 May 2017 06:14pm - Edited by: adakseabee
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The last thing I want on my property is a big piece of machinery tearing up the ground that leaves nothing that resembles a trail through nature. How I solve my problem of clearing brush and small trees is to cut them off 18"-24" above the ground leaving a skinny stump. If I am not able to pull the stump out by hand, a couple of whacks with a grub hoe (like a pick axe with one end that has blade about 3" wide) into the soil and towards the stump a few inches from the stump will either free the stump entirely of cut through enough root to put it out of the ground. It's slow going, but satisfying work that I find more useful to keeping my aging body in shape. It also helps to keep the area more natural. However, if what you are looking for is to drive a 4 wheeler like a maniac along your own highways though the woods, then ignore my advice and go for the dozer.
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Greenland South
Member
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# Posted: 7 May 2017 11:35am - Edited by: Greenland South
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Tyndra,
I should have read your post a bit more carefully. I used to own a Swisher 54" rough cut trail mower that had an 18hp engine. I pulled it around with a Honda quad. That mower was advertised to be able to handle 2" saplings. It could if you went slow. I used it to clean up a bunch of older trails scattered around our 1/2 section. I started out with the mower deck at its highest setting which was about 6". Went over the trails 3 times lowering the deck with each pass. The blades were pretty dull and rounded over by then, this left a shattered stem that certainly wouldn't puncture a tire that was in good condition. Mowers of this type are not inexpensive and do require a lot of maintenance. The one I had was $3800 when I bought it 6 years ago. Just sold it a month ago for $1700.
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toyota_mdt_tech
Member
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# Posted: 7 May 2017 12:28pm
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I'm using my brand new Kubota L2501 in spring to clear trails.  
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KinAlberta
Member
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# Posted: 7 May 2017 04:33pm - Edited by: KinAlberta
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We got one of these in the 1970s
https://www.jarimowers.com
Our trails followed the path of least resistance and over time have straightened out a bit. The Jari got a new motor and is still used. Great machine!!! (As I warn everyone, keep your pets tied up. It's a sickle bar!)
In the forest, upkeep is just an easy walk every year or two.
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Greenland South
Member
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# Posted: 7 May 2017 04:57pm
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This is what I'm using now, to maintain my trails and fields.
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OutdoorFanatic
Member
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# Posted: 7 May 2017 08:42pm
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Cut em and chip em then have a small excavator clean up the stumps. Any other way and you will have one hell of a mess to clean up.
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Cowracer
Member
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# Posted: 8 May 2017 12:41pm
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Someone else asked this a while ago, and I told 'em to beg, borrow or steal a walk-behind sickle bar mower. Best way, bar none, to clean up brush without using big equipment.
The ones I remember could cut through a 1-1/2 to 2" tree without much difficulty.
Tim
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KinAlberta
Member
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# Posted: 8 May 2017 05:21pm - Edited by: KinAlberta
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Quick points,
Jari takes out a lot without tearing up the ground.
Wood chips might be nice but would be spread pretty thin and would get sucked into a mower blade if mowing in a year or two.
Our trails would never supply enough future growth to chip much more. The Jari is good for ongoing maintenance and other cleanup so it's somewhat versatile.
We just tossed the wood into the bush and it disappeared.
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FishHog
Member
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# Posted: 8 May 2017 09:18pm
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Quoting: KinAlberta Jari takes out a lot without tearing up the ground.
how large of a branch will they cut through?
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Hart Ridge
Member
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# Posted: 9 May 2017 11:12am
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I started cutting trails in earnest last late summer: southeast Ohio, lots of brush, multiflora rose, small dogwood, scrub growth under a thin tree canopy. I also chose the "path of least resistance" method for obvious reasons (conservation of energy) but also because I liked the meandering result of the trails, which resulted in longer walks and easier to traverse the steeper sections of my property. My initial tool was axe and bow saw for clearing larger woody growth (which was not often), followed by gas powered weed-whacker with blade attachment for clearing smaller growth. The final stage was a push mower with power drive to make everything pretty. I was pleasantly surprised how much progress I could make in 30 minute increments. Ice cold beer, at the end of the day, never tasted better and sleep was amazing.
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hueyjazz
Member
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# Posted: 9 May 2017 12:04pm - Edited by: hueyjazz
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I too have 25 acres with nearly the same density of growth except my mature tree are all hardwoods. I've employed several methods for clearing paths through my woods. One caveat was I wanted path to mimic animal trails and not look like a road through the woods.
First I chainsaw down any bigger trees. My good chainsaw does the bulk of work but I keep and orphan saw for leveling stumps as close to ground as possible.
Next I have a commercial straight shaft weedwacker . On this is a brush blade that closely resemble a table saw blade as it is a multi-tooth carbide tipped saw blade designed for this purpose .
I buy every $30 Craigslist mower I can find. I particularly go after the belt driven, self propelled mowers and detach the belt. These mower have bigger engines. I put a extra HD blade in these and set the deck height fairly high. This is torture on the mower but gets the job done until the engine starts to go. I have an inventory of decks and engines.
Last year I too found a Jari sickle bar mower on Craigslist. This thing is amazing. Pretty much tree two inches and smaller get mowed down. The bigger trees may take a few seconds to saw through but they go down. When I first got it I didn't know the company was still in business making the exact same mower. I didn't have instructions. I got the engine going, put it to full throttle and engaged the drive. It was off to the races as the thing took off clearing a patch of destruction. Turns out you don't put it to full throttle unless you are in really dense stuff. Half or less throttle is fine for most efforts.
The Jari does an amazing job of skipping over rocks. Even with a third of my teeth being broken as obtained this still did a decent job. I cut a few paths through the woods leading to my tree stand. During hunting season I watch the wildlife use my paths. Over the winter I put a new engine and blades into my Jari. I'm now anxious to resume using it but it been doing nothing but rain the last few months here.
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