Based in Crossmolina, Co Mayo, Jimmy Munnelly runs his own forestry harvesting business, Jamun ltd. A large proportion of the work carried out is the clear felling of Coillte-owned forestry with a smaller degree of thinning carried out also.

In 2018, Jimmy secured a five-year clear fell contract with Coillte, with the majority of which is within his home county of Mayo. As part of the contract, a new harvester and forwarder had to be purchased to carry out the work.

Today, the majority of harvesting is carried out with purpose-built wheeled machines which are a significant investment for any contractor. Already with one wheeled harvester in the fleet, Jimmy was slightly hesitant to go down the route of buying a brand new wheeled machine which was going to cost him in the region of €450,000.

Cost was not the only factor for his hesitation, he wanted a harvester that would suit the work. He noted how there is a lot of pine in Mayo, much of which is very rough and crooked. He felt that a two-wheel drive cutting head was best suited to this timber, the Logmax 700Twin head in particular. No wheeled machine he looked at was available with this particular type of head.

Having wanted this large 2t cutting head, Jimmy decided to go down the route of an excavator fitted with a cutting head. Although, not overly common anymore, this type of setup was common years ago in Mayo and is still a popular option in Scotland, Jimmy explained. The lower cost and option of selling the digger secondhand, fitted with a bucket, seemed like a safer investment he felt.

The decision

Jimmy opted for a 21t Komatsu PC 210 LC excavator. The main reason for buying Komatsu was overall value for money, good power to weight ratio and six-cylinder engine. The machine was fitted with over 3t of steel armour leaving it ready for work in the forest.

The machine fitted with the Logmax 7000Twin head and armour has a total weight of 27t. The excavator joysticks have been modified to suit the cutting head with a large 12in control terminal also fitted. The terminal provides all the capabilities that a wheeled harvester has. Jimmy is happy with how the head and excavator marries together with comfort being the only negative of the setup when compared with a purpose-built harvester.

Now, three years into the contract and over 4,200 hours clocked up on the machine, he is happy with how the outfit has performed.

“Output in a good clear fell might be slightly behind a wheeled machine but there is areas the excavator will outperform, especially on larger trees and when laying out timber for the forwarder. On a good day in spruce, I can cut in the region of 250m3 which is a good result for any machine,” Jimmy noted.

The Logmax 7000Twin cutting head suits the excavator well Jimmy said but he feels it would bully any smaller of an excavator around. The head requires a minimum hydraulic flow of 200l/min, peaking at 300l/min when under heavy operation. The hydraulic pump fitted to the PC 210 LC has a flow rate of 475l/min and a reservoir capacity of 132l which according to Jimmy is adequate.

The verdict

“A lot of people thought I was mad going down this route initially, but now are surprised with how well the machine is working. Output is very close to a wheeled machine, I feel a setup like this certainly has a place in the forest especially in this part of the country.

“What’s more, I have the peace of mind given the current situation around licences that in the worst case scenario I can remove the head and fit the digger it with a bucket. And either work it or sell it.”

For the full story and to find out Jimmy’s verdict, check out this week’s edition of the Irish Farmers Journal.