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Silage Chopper Converted Into Wood Chipper
"It'll handle branches up to 3 in. in diameter and does a beautiful job," says Lloyd Litchy, Plymouth, Minn., who converted an old Gehl stationary silage chopper into a low-cost wood chipper.
He uses his Simplicity 18 hp garden tractor to belt-drive the stationary unit. "To power the chipper, I simply drive the
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Silage Chopper Converted Into Wood Chipper WOODLOT EQUIPMENT Miscellaneous 33-6-19 "It'll handle branches up to 3 in. in diameter and does a beautiful job," says Lloyd Litchy, Plymouth, Minn., who converted an old Gehl stationary silage chopper into a low-cost wood chipper.
He uses his Simplicity 18 hp garden tractor to belt-drive the stationary unit. "To power the chipper, I simply drive the tractor forward a little in order to tighten the belt. Then I engage the pto clutch," says Litchy.
The chopper was originally designed to handle ear corn and was equipped with a conveyor and a chain-driven chopper-blower unit, which sent the ground material up into a silo. Litchy stripped away everything except the chopper and replaced the sprockets with pulleys. The chopper was originally equipped with four knives, but Litchy removed two to chop wood.
The chipper is equipped with two chutes, one on top and one on front. "I use the top chute for brush and leaves and the front chute for tree limbs," says Litchy. "The ground-up material exits at the bottom of the machine."
The machine can be fitted with a variety of screens from large to small. "The small screen leaves small, chipped material that I can put directly into my compost bin. The big screens works good for wood chips.
He says the tractor has more than enough power to operate the chipper. "I was already using the pulley on back of the tractor to operate a rototiller, snowblower, and lawn mower. I put steel wheels on the unit so I can pull it around my yard."
He bought the chopper at an auction for $40. "I came up with the idea because I have a 1-acre yard with a lot of trees and leaves. During the fall I use another garden tractor equipped with a bagger and empty the leaves into the chipper. The chopped-up leaves make great compost. It only takes about a year before they turn into nice, black dirt."
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Lloyd Litchy, 17515 30th Ave. N., Plymouth, Minn. 55447 (ph 763 473-1934; litchy@email.com).
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