Iron Horse Low Impact Extraction

Do you have a woodland that is unsuitable for heavy extraction equipment?

Wealden Heartwood uses specialist low impact machinery to ensure that any extraction footprint is minimal to a woodland, specifically the Iron Horse.

Iron Horse

Iron Horse extracting 18' coppice poles

Benefits of the Iron Horse

  • very low ground pressure avoids soil compaction. Continuous journeys over the same route has resulted in only a gradual grading of main extraction routes.
  • can turn within 1 to 2 m depending on terrain and load
  • suitable for soft timber extraction routes
  • useable in areas inaccessible to larger machinery
  • highly maneuverable around coppice stools, across streams and narrow routes
  • avoid the need to create wide extraction racks
  • extract long saw logs & pole lengths

Iron Horse features

  • powered by a Honda GX 270 9 hp motor
  • dimensions are only 108cm wide and 150cm high
  • rubber tracked
  • capacity of 500kg per load
  • power winch with 20 metre cable for skidding logs to bunk with a pull capacity of 1090 kg (empty spool) and 750 kg (full spool)
  • loads can also be lifted off the ground at both ends of the log using a sulky to enable transportation across lawned areas without rutting i.e. on golf courses, parkland and amenity open spaces
  • Economical fuel consumption with 1.7 gallon tank

Here are some photos where the Iron horse was used. The left photo is a typically extraction route through a compartment of semi-natural woodland, near Bovey Tracey. It was taken after the extraction work was finished. The right photo shows some of the sawlogs and woodfuel extracted from a small woodland in Mid Devon. This work was completed without the need for any heavy equipment on the site.

Iron HorseTo arrange a site visit and to discuss your timber extraction requirements further, please feel free to contact Iain Turner by phone on 01409 281549 or email to info@wealdenheartwood.co.uk