Nigel Whelan, marketing director at Spaldings, describes Pfanzelt's product engineering as coming from the upper end of the quality spectrum: "The
f amily-owned business has a philosophy of building equipment for perf ormance, lang service life and low maintenance.
"Jt's a family-owned specialist in forestry and woodland equipment, which in addition to winches also makes timber cranes and trailers, forest tractors and selfpropelled timber forwarders. As with the TMC Cancela products, we'll support the Pfanzelt machines supplied in the UK and Ireland with our own service back-up team."
TRACTOR-MOUNTED WINCHES
Tue Pfanzelt S-Line and Profi tractor-mounted geared cable winches are designed for extracting timber from awkward felling locations and skidding out of woodland to a trackside loading point.
Tue S-Line single drum models come in three sizes with St, 6t and 7.2t of pulling power, while the eight single- and twin-drum models in the Profi range span 7t to 19.2t single drum and 6t to 8.St double drum.
Remote wireless control means the winches can be used efficiently and safely by one operator and cables from 70m to 1 00m long are wrapped on relatively large diameter drums to minimise the number of layers.
Pfanzelt engineers point out this minimises variation in winding-in speed and tractive force, makes the cables easier to pull out and reduces friction wear and snagging.
In-line drum orientation avoids the up to 30% traction losses that can be incurred by winches with drums set 90 degrees to the direction of pull because of the extra guide rollers needed.
Paul Denton, Spaldings product development manager, points out that the relatively low position of the winch in-feed pulley - about 1.3m from the ground - is a more stable arrangement than the high-mounted pulleys of some designs, particularly when pulling at an angle generates lateral forces.
An automatic brake is fitted to the in-feed pulley to maintain tension between the cable and drum should the line go slack when winding-in logs downhill.
Tractor pto drive to the cable drums is transferred by an oil-immersed warm gear and controlled through wet multi-disc clutch and brake mechanisms that
can be fine- tuned using a three-stage clutch-brake switching mechanism for different winching situations.
"The precision drive and control system provides more positive and consistent winding-in and brake
performance than the chain drive and band brakes of some designs," says Paul Denton. "These may be simpler in some respects, but Pf anzelt chooses to build winches with a more sophisticated fully-enclosed design that is not exposed to the elements or to tree sap, so the winches have lower maintenance requirements and a langer service life."
Wedge-shaped logging plates are formed in a torsion-resistant box structure to provide a strong and stable anchorage whether the winch is pulling straight or at an angle.
Handy storage compartments are built in for a chain saw and fuel can, and for tools and other items in
another two more lidded compartments.
Prices start at f,7700 for a St Pfanzelt S-Line winch, and f,20,850 for an 8.6t Profi single-drum model. As with the TMC Cancela woodland and forestry machines, the winches can be ordered on the www. Spaldings.co. uk website or through the company's local sales staff covering the UK and Ireland.
SELF-PROPELLED MINI TRACTOR
The Pfanzelt Moritz Fr50 rubber tracked vehicle is designed for easy mobility and for locations that are difficult to access, are too delicate for full-size machines or which pose a danger to an operator.
Tue vehicle weighs 1400kg, is 2.2m long and stands just 1.2m tall. lt is powered by a 35hp diesel engine and has hydrostatic drive.
"In standard form, the Moritz carries a two-speed cable winch with a heavy-duty Zagging plate," points out Paul Denton. "But the winch can be replaced by a 1.2m jlail mower on the Cat I linkage to extend the machine's workload."
Tue relatively low weight and l.lm overall width
means the Moritz Fr50 can be transported by trailer behind a 4x4, pick-up or van to work sites such as steep woodland or grass embankments where the track spacing can be widened hydraulically by up to 400mm for maximum stability.
"We envisage a contractor using the Moritz for woodland and embankment vegetation control or to provide tension for controlled direction felling where trees have to be cut down in a confined location," says Paul Denton. "Skiddingfelled trees from woodland and dealing with light brash and vegetation are also within its scope, and Pfanzelt are planning a stump grinder attachment."
Remote control of all functions means these tasks can be carried out with maximum safety for the operator, who also has the convenience of a large storage within the chassis of the machine for all the tools and equipment needed for each job. Tue Moritz Fr50 base vehicle is priced f,44,500.
Contact Nigel Whelan +44 (0)1522 500600