Anyone remember this contraption? They were manufactured under Patent #4790712. My dad had a set at Vail back in the late Sixties/early Seventies. They loaded 'em with a couple Pettibone swingers, plus a huge military tractor with a larger swinging boom they added. Had some bugs in that machine, so they gave it the ultimate fix: they painted it yellow. Worked like a charm... after a fashion. Anyhow.... the swinger skidders loaded the bunks with timber they skidded, the bunks would raise up with hydraulics, and drop the load of logs on to a log truck that had backed underneath. I have never heard of Batson bunks since. Any thoughts/stories?
Weyerhaeuser at Lonview used Batson Bunks, and I know Crown-Zellerbach used them at Cathlamet, Seaside, and Vernonia, as well. I believe Simpson Timber at Shelton also used them. All of the operations mentioned above used the Batson Bunks on commercial thinning operations and not in production application. As you pointed out they were loaded with swinging-grapple skidders in every situation I have seen. In those days most of the loading shovels were still cable machines, and not very efficient for loading that little thinning wood. I have lots of pictures of Batson Bunks being used at Weyerhaeuser Longview, and lots of magazine ads showing them in use in other areas. I'll need to find and scan them, which may take some time. In 1980 when Mt. St. Helens blew, Weyerhaeuser Longview had aquired Caterpillar 528 swinging-grapple skidders and with those bigger machines they were actually loading the highway log trucks with the skidder booms and had abandoned the Batson's by that time. I have lots of pics of this skidder-loading too, I'll scan those for you as well.
Roger Batson was the guy behind the Batson Bunks. If memory serves me right he was also one of the last owners of Christian Logging here in Springfield. There is a set near here but I've not seen them moved in a long time. My brother had bought a Pettibone swinger from Weyerhaeuser back in the mid to late 70's, I know there weren't many of those built. I think his was like serial number 8 not real sure. I did a thining project for Weyerhaeuser using the Pettibone and remember them talking about using the Batson bunks in Washington. I swung tree lengthers out of the shout and put them straight on the truck. At our prework meeting before we started the people in charge of this project said I'd never be able to unload a long log trailer without tripping the stakes. They were concerned about safety so I had to show them I could before work could procede. I knew I could unload the trailer but I had no idea about putting a load of tiny tree length junk on a long logger. They seemed upset that I was able to unload the trailer and left with these words, "Well, you'll never be able to get them up to weight". It wasn't too long before he was back telling me to lighten my loads up. I didn't see a problem being that it was all private road to the mill, but apparently they couldn't have over 100,000 lbs. on the scales at the mill. Fun little project. There is a picture of the Pettibone on the skidder thread.
Here's a quick picture of the Batson Bunks being used: 1. Bunks are empty at ground-level as swing-grapple skidder starts loading them. 2. Truck shows up and driver raises the loaded bunks with 4 hydraulic rams. 3. Truck backs under Batson Bunks with stakes on truck/trailer tripped and down. 4. Truck sets bunks and stakes back into position and lowers load onto truck/trailer bunks. 5. Batson Bunks are lowered back to the ground and loaded truck drives off (after pulling bunk-pins and comp pin hopefully). 6. Skidder starts loading Batsons for the next truck........
Thanks, RG. You truly are a wealth of info, and a gentleman to boot. My dad and I were talking about Batson bunks today, and that was what gave me the nudge to post. Looks like those stems in the photo were felled by hand, eh? I dropped a stem or three that size on the East Coast, day in and day out, usually with an 041.
Sure would love to know how you offloaded a pole trailer without a shovel or hoist. Did the Pettibone have the guts to pick a trailer up, or did you rig a tree?
All the tires were filled with calcium so you could pick a lot over the side. The big problem was being able to lift high enough. What I would do is park as close beside the truck as possible then lift and pull the trailer towards the stake. Then swing right and the trailer would pivot around the stake with the right front tires clearing the bunk by about 6 inches. Then just back up give the boom a little swing to get the trailer straight again. Getting the trailer off was easy, back on not so easy.
I lost a 5 log load once, had the hassel stake trip on a corner. I one ended those back on with the old Pettibone. Took about 4 tries to get the peaker back on.
Reminds me of an old saying about a Gradall: "You can't make any money with a Gradall, but you sure can save a fortune with one".
Skidders Lifting Log Trailers Off- Here's an old Franlin 190 with an ESCO 215 swinging grapple picking a long-log trailer off a contractor's truck. This is Weyerhaeuser Longview's 'Skidder #591' run by Garry Evitt lifting the trailer off an International 4300 owned and driven by Cal Callantine also of Longview. They were working on a thinning job up the Coweeman River in 1978 when these pictures were taken by Jesse Wilt (who was the Weyerhaeuser Company photographer at Longview at that time). As you can see, they have built a raised pad for the skidder to get some altitude for lifting those trailers, and a shot of the same man/machine loading the Batson Bunks. Many of the photographs in my collections came from Jesse Wilt- she was a real resource and great author. Her constant picture-taking is one of the things that really led to my taking pictures in the woods in the later 1970's. She's gone now but will be remembered always and by many. Darius Kinsey and his brother Clark, then Finley Hays, and Jesse Wilt were my real 'photographic' influencers as a youngster.
Outstanding photos. Thanks! Biggest Franklins we had on the East Coast were 170s IIRC, powered by a 4-53. I would guess the 190s ran either a 4-71 or a 6V53. Older Franklins were a pain in the butt to steer. I liked the Timberjacks with the steering lever. On an older machine, we just mashed the clutch, revved it, and held the steering lever until it turned. New iron was a rarity around here in those days. RG, do you have any photos of the old reload at Vail that someone might have given you? Not the stacker, the tree rig with the donkey. I would think that was before your days there, but I thought I would ask. Would love to buy a couple prints.
The pictures I have are poor quality old ones that Jesse Wilt gave me- she had lots of older Vail pictures. I do have a few, BUT: I would highly recommend the book 'Logging Railroads of Weyerhaeuser's Vail-McDonald Operation' by Frank Telewski & Scott D. Barret as it is completely packed full of history and pictures of the entire Vail Operation from opening in 1924 through the 1970's. Its over 350 pages and well worth having around the house! Attached are pics of the cover and a link to one currently for sale on ebay. I often see this book sell for $200 and consider anything below $125.00 a great deal. - http://www.ebay.com/itm/Logging-Rai...008?pt=US_Nonfiction_Book&hash=item20bece6db0
Thanks for the advice. I have that book. Bought it when it was in publication by Oso. Paid all of $45 for it, so it looks like I came out well. Also have several copies of Finley Hays' book on Saginaw Timber, including one hardcover copy that he autographed for me. A prize possession indeed. I believe the engine number of that lokie on the front cover of Scott Barrett's book is 120 IIRC. I did read that it was the biggest steam lokie to ever run the rails at Vail. I bought a complete print of that photo from Martin Hansen, including the string of loaded cars in tow. You probably already know, there is one steam lokie from Vail still running the tracks, Engine 110. Weyco surplused it to Rayonier, and I believe it stayed domiciled at Railroad camp until 1968, when they finally stopped running steam engines. Eventually, it went to Black Hills Scenic Railroad in North Dakota, where it pulls a tourist train. I believe it is the only operational Mallet left. Scott Barrett's dad, Jim, was brakeman when we were at Vail. Ernie Kell was the Engineer. I was there when they rebuilt Engine 493.
http://www.1880train.com/locomotive110.html
Yep, that's the one. I believe it was among those featured in Rayonier's Farewell to Steam Festival in '68.
I lucked out !! I just found that book online- NEW - (old stock) for $50-- I usually don't luck out like that ! isx
I know this is an old post, but I am a relative of Rodger Batson. The Batson Bunker isn't used anymore because the cost is much to purchase, run, and operate. The original is on the side of the road near Jasper, Oregon somewhere, in my 2nd cousins yard. Rodger and Dos Batson were the original creators of the Batson Bunker. They bankrupted on the project, and had to sell their company after the failure of the project. Both of them have now passed away. They didn't even make 50 of these machines.