Franklin 105 Feller Buncher: Fifth-Row Thinning Application

Authors: Schroering, J. D.; Lanford, B. L.; Stokes, B. J.

Source: Southern Journal of Applied Forestry, Volume 9, Number 2, 1 May 1985 , pp. 110-113(4)

Publisher: Society of American Foresters

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Abstract:

Plantation thinning requires machinery capable of operating in confined conditions while causing minimal damage to the residual stand and site. The Franklin 105 feller buncher, equipped with a Tidewater DL-12 accumulating shear, was studied in a fifth-row thinning application to determine variables affecting machine operation and productivity. Machine operation was divided into two elements: (1) move-to-tree and shear tree; and (2) move-to-dump, dump load, and bunch alignment. Move-to-tree and shear times were influenced by the number of residual trees per acre and whether the operator was row/corridor harvesting or selective thinning, while move-to-dump, dump load, and bunch alignment times were influenced by the average diameter and the number of trees in the shear head prior to dumping. Production costs were higher for selective thinning than for row/corridor harvesting.

Document Type: Journal article

Affiliations: 1: Research engineer, Southern Forest Experiment Station, USDA Forest Service, Auburn, Alabama 36849

Publication date: 1985-05-01

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