AS SEEN ON TV the DR chipper 375 can only handle perfectly straight manicured lumber.

Seriously the marketing video is offensive: https://youtu.be/8RXEFMmaeWA

He might as well be feeding 2x2s off the rack at home depot.

  • sin_free_for_00_days@sopuli.xyz
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    3 days ago

    I had a similar that didn’t work for shit. I took it apart and took a grinder to the blades to sharpen them up again and it worked pretty good after that.

    • SteveOP
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      3 days ago

      The (one) blade is pretty close to sharp. I did reset the clearance after trying it once.

  • DavidP@lemmy.world
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    3 days ago

    I have the next model up (400 Pro) so mine will likely accept larger diameter branches. But with that said one needs to learn the machine’s limits in terms of both diameter and wetness.

    Before I chip up a pile of branches I’ll go through with a swede saw and lop off any parts that are too big. That’ll let me breeze through the pile without fighting the machine too much. Also cut apart any wide crotches that won’t feed through on their own.

  • 1995ToyotaCorolla@lemmy.world
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    2 days ago

    I’ve been “blessed” with some steep slopes that could use some erosion control and some holes that need filling. I cut my branches as short and flat as practical and then cover the ground evenly with alternating layers of branches and green yard waste.

    I got a chipper for free from a previous employer that shut down and pretty much only use it for mulching garden waste at this point. That seems to be about all it can handle

    • SteveOP
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      2 days ago

      Yea. Not fit for purpose. No fun at all.

  • TheOSINTguy@sh.itjust.works
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    2 days ago

    I had something similar and it was about $500, thing was a piece of junk. Could barely cut a stick with a diameter of around 3 inches despite being rated for 6 inches (no it wasn’t from a hardwood tree)

    I ended up selling it for $250 and felt bad for the person buying it thinking that it will clean there yard up from the severe weather we had a year ago.

    • OwOarchist@pawb.social
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      3 days ago

      Or, when local authorities don’t allow burning, just throw it in a pile in a back corner of the property … and let it sit. Over time, the pile grows and grows. But over even more time, it rots and shrinks. And in the meantime, it’s animal and insect habitat, lol.

      • toynbee@piefed.social
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        2 days ago

        My parents had a compost pile. It was big enough that my friends and I would build forts with its components or even make paths through it.

        Eventually my mother started noticing snapping turtles around it and we were no longer permitted to do so!

        Now, or at least last time I was around that property, you wouldn’t know it for anything other than a somewhat odd hill.

      • Emma_Gold_Man@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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        3 days ago

        If it’s small and you can spread it out (wooded area, on foot paths, etc), it will break down faster. The two inch rule is: if it’s not more than 2" thick and not more than 2" off the ground, it should break down in 2 years.

        • SteveOP
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          2 days ago

          We have forest fires here. Part of the reason I trim is to maintain the fire break around the house. Throwing the tinder into the woods would just make it worse.

  • SaneMartigan@lemmy.world
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    2 days ago

    I’ve got a 15hp chipper and need to be wary of my cuts so I can feed it nice branches. I’ve still got a bunch of “elbows” that wouldn’t fit that I’ve turned into garden borders. It’s nice to make mulch where you actually know what’s in it and not ground industrial waste or whatever.

  • brygphilomena@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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    2 days ago

    Oh man. That design looks like shit. It seems the prioritized the size and price over anything else. It’s so narrow and the feeder seems so small.

    For branches up to 3.75", it also doesn’t seem to handle anything actually worthwhile. Things that small are going to be relatively easy to manipulate with work. I actually tend to cut them into mini log lengths and store when I’m trying to get my fire pit going. It’s nice to have medium/small size tinder at the ready when the fire isn’t going enough to catch a proper log.

    • SteveOP
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      3 days ago

      It has no feeder of any kind despite the claim of “self feeding”. I checked the blade and set the gap.

      • davad@lemmy.world
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        3 days ago

        Not sure what kind of “feeder” you’re expecting, but I have a chipper that looks similar. For mine, the “feeder” is just gravity. If my blades are sharp, it feeds itself nicely. If they’re dull or get too much caught in them, it stops feeding itself and needs a shove.

        • SteveOP
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          3 days ago

          One sideways twig utterly defeats the gravity “feeder”. Whats the point?

          A proper wood chipper has an unstoppable hydraulic toothy roller that drags everything into the maw.

          This gravity feed abomination should never exist. It was designed purely for profit.

          • Typotyper@sh.itjust.works
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            3 days ago

            So buy a big ass professional chipper, even rent one.

            This one is a simple one for casual once in a while use. I’ve used these types. They work but you need patience.

            • SteveOP
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              3 days ago

              This one doesnt solve a problem for me. It took more work to chip my twigs than it would take to bundle them up for the trash collection.

              I’m mad that it exists at all. Plus the mfg outright lies about its capabilities.

              • Typotyper@sh.itjust.works
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                3 days ago

                Fair enough.

                Burning is good too for small stuff

                I had 11 big trees dropped in one day. We had bonfires of twigs. I was fortunate to have the space to burn it.

                • SteveOP
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                  3 days ago

                  I do sometimes burn the twigs but the old lady around the corner has to comment…

    • SteveOP
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      3 days ago

      Better than it deserves. Waste of ammo.