Berger Manufacturing- Logging Equipment Built in Seattle

[Contract Logger]

Anyone have much experience with Log Loaders with grapples working in the Millyards?
I'm looking for a good log grapple to handle 16' logs being loaded into the Sawmill. The loader is a 980G. Anyone have much info?

Cat built the 980G as a 'Forest Machine' they called it, and there are quite a few around. Lots in BC/Vancouver Island country. It certainly can be done. The forestry version had a few modifications regarding linkage, boom, etc, as well as counterweight, so it would be a good idea to consult with your Cat dealer before buying a grapple, just to see what you're modifications might be. You will need 3rd function hydraulics to run the clamps for sure.

I just looked at MachineryTrader.Com and found some grapples for you. On the home page, scroll down to click on 'attachments and components'. I entered 'Grapple, log' in the item box, and '980G' in the model box, and found a few.

This one looks very good, pictures but no price.

Theres another for $8500 but it looks a little rough in the pics.

Grapple, Log 980G Call AB, CN
Stk #: ATP288; Good used Balderson Quick attach log grapple to fit Cat 980G;
Headwater Equipment Sales and Parts
Phone: 18773278311
or (403)327-3681
Details & Photo(s)


Good Luck!

 

[John C.]

I don't recall a G model that had much of any mods for logging. Usually it was just heavier counterweight on the back and an aftermarket set of logging forks from Medford or Young along with the third valve. Most of the loggers I had anything to do with were 980Bs. There are quite a few of those around with bucket installed now. They make good diggers but all I've seen in the last few years are well worn out. There are some G models around but a company would have to be bankrupt before they would part with one at this time.

The 988 models though were a whole lot different. The booms were shorter and the tilt cylinders were larger. There was a whole lot more counterweights on the back of those. You might find a 988F around. I believe Cat made their own logging forks for the G and H models but I'm sure you could still get the Medford or Young fronts also.

If you are searching, be sure to check CatUsed.com. These will be pricey but you will usually get some photos and descriptions. There are machines as CL says that may be dirt machines with a logging fork installed. It may or may not do what you want.

 

[NZLOG]

One piece move Berger SP-23 that I used to own here in New Zealand, used to find the nose of machine very light with the guy drums out that back and up high. Going onto our transporters she would pull a wheel stand...

 

[Murk100]

Gents could you tell me what model of Berger this is and how long is the pipe? Didn't have time to crawl around on it or the 6250 sitting close by, the other 2 in the car didn't seem to have time (women) it's under the Longview Bridge on the Or side.
HDX I just bought a brand new tin hard hat, the good old USA:usa

 

[Murk100]

I think this is a Berger in action! just a few miles out of Clatskani Or on the rd to Vernonia, Skyline over the hi way.
I went for lunch at Camp 18. I guess the women aren't so bad hey CL, love the 160 ft wooden spar tree etc...

 

[JeremyM70]

I have a picture of that 6250 on page 10 of the T-Bird thread, it's been sitting there a while
Welcome to the neighborhood! I'm about 20 miles south of Longview.

 

[Contract Logger]

Gents could you tell me what model of Berger this is and how long is the pipe? Didn't have time to crawl around on it or the 6250 sitting close by, the other 2 in the car didn't seem to have time (women) it's under the Longview Bridge on the Or side.
HDX I just bought a brand new tin hard hat, the good old USA:usa

This is a Berger T-23 (one of the first T-23's built) and was ordered new in 1983 by Herb Olstedt of Jewell, Oregon. It was delivered by famous Berger salesman 'Jim Hay' (we called him 'Berger' King!) to a job Herb was logging at Forks Washington, along ways from home at Jewell. Herb traded in a Washington 127W on a tank bottom for this rig. (I'll post pics of Herb's 127 someday- it's currently parked at Bremmeyer's in Ravensdale). Herb ordered this yarder with the one-piece 80' tower "so we could move quicker between landings". He felt that the telescoping process just made tear-downs and rig-ups take "to damn long"- Herbs words. Most of the T-23's had a 100' telescoper rather than this long 1-peice stick. Has a KT Cummins for power.

Herb had a gorgeous 1960's B-Model Mack restored and painted to match this yarder as the line truck- it had a big Berger line hoist on it and a beautiful pair they made!

When new, this T-23 hoist was orange with blue trim. The cab was white with orange trim, and the tower was blue with a white top- beautiful yarder. 'BERGER' was painted white and trimmed in orange on the light blue tower and rigged up againtst the old-growth fir looked amazing.

From Forks Herb took her to work the big timber south at Roseburg Oregon(working for Roseburg Forest Products) and then things turned bad in the NW. Herb dumped most of the gear and came up to Alaska logging with his whole family but not the Berger. We lost track of the machine until Harve (Bighorn Logging at Vernonia) bought it for a long-span job in 2001. They used it a year or so and it's been sitting at the bridge since about 2002.

Herb Olstedt has a thousand or more pictures of this yarder new and I never managed to borrow and scan any of them- someday I will. He also logged on the Mt St Helens cleanup in 81/82' and has a ton of cool pics from all that mess (logging with his 127W and a Tyee).

Been a year or so since i spoke to Herb, but he was logging then right around the North Oregon Coast and running 4 or more yarders. (Madill 071, Washington 137W, Diamond, and some Yoaders. He also owns a dandy Berger MARC 2 on D8 with a 110' tower, but uses it sparingly as it is a nightmare to move.)

Hope this helps a little with the T-23 Berger history.

Glad you enjoyed Camp 18-- Wish I had been there- I'd buy you lunch anytime!

 

[Contract Logger]

I think this is a Berger in action! just a few miles out of Clatskani Or on the rd to Vernonia, Skyline over the hi way.
I went for lunch at Camp 18. I guess the women aren't so bad hey CL, love the 160 ft wooden spar tree etc...

That's a Berger alright! Looks like a newer Cat loading there too. In that neighborhood there arent too many possibilities--as I said above Herb Olstedt has the 110' telescoper, it could be that machine. Also- Evenson Logging at Clatskanie Oregon was using a Berger Mark 3 (trailer mounted, highlead-only machine) for some of thier longer-span jobs. This might be Evenson's Berger. Both Olstedt and Evenson own late-model Cat shovels and use Boman carriages, so the clues we have arent doing much good here!

Beautiful day and beautiful setting nonetheless. Sometimes it's more fun just to wonder....

 

[Murk100]

This is a Berger T-23 (one of the first T-23's built) and was ordered new in 1983 by Herb Olstedt of Jewell, Oregon. It was delivered by famous Berger salesman 'Jim Hay' (we called him 'Berger' King!) to a job Herb was logging at Forks Washington, along ways from home at Jewell. Herb traded in a Washington 127W on a tank bottom for this rig. (I'll post pics of Herb's 127 someday- it's currently parked at Bremmeyer's in Ravensdale). Herb ordered this yarder with the one-piece 80' tower "so we could move quicker between landings". He felt that the telescoping process just made tear-downs and rig-ups take "to damn long"- Herbs words. Most of the T-23's had a 100' telescoper rather than this long 1-peice stick. Has a KT Cummins for power.

Herb had a gorgeous 1960's B-Model Mack restored and painted to match this yarder as the line truck- it had a big Berger line hoist on it and a beautiful pair they made!

When new, this T-23 hoist was orange with blue trim. The cab was white with orange trim, and the tower was blue with a white top- beautiful yarder. 'BERGER' was painted white and trimmed in orange on the light blue tower and rigged up againtst the old-growth fir looked amazing.

From Forks Herb took her to work the big timber south at Roseburg Oregon(working for Roseburg Forest Products) and then things turned bad in the NW. Herb dumped most of the gear and came up to Alaska logging with his whole family but not the Berger. We lost track of the machine until Harve (Bighorn Logging at Vernonia) bought it for a long-span job in 2001. They used it a year or so and it's been sitting at the bridge since about 2002.

Herb Olstedt has a thousand or more pictures of this yarder new and I never managed to borrow and scan any of them- someday I will. He also logged on the Mt St Helens cleanup in 81/82' and has a ton of cool pics from all that mess (logging with his 127W and a Tyee).

Been a year or so since i spoke to Herb, but he was logging then right around the North Oregon Coast and running 4 or more yarders. (Madill 071, Washington 137W, Diamond, and some Yoaders. He also owns a dandy Berger MARC 2 on D8 with a 110' tower, but uses it sparingly as it is a nightmare to move.)

Hope this helps a little with the T-23 Berger history.

Glad you enjoyed Camp 18-- Wish I had been there- I'd buy you lunch anytime!

Thanks for that info!! I noticed the one piece tube right away, I like the mat set up on the bottom of the tower can you lean the tower ahead like you can with the Madills ?

 

[Contract Logger]

Berger Free-Standing Towers-

Many of the Berger towers were free-standing (right on the ground) with the big 'foot' pad underneath, and guyline drums mounted right onto the tower itself, along with raising and telescoping drums.

The yarder carries the tower on top of it to the landing, stands it up with the raising line, telescopes with the telescoping line (if it telescopes), and tightens the guylines all with the 2 (1 hydraulic supply and 1 return) lines off the yarder engine-driven hydraulic pump. Then a pin or 2 (depending on the model) is pulled, and the yarder hoist pulled a few inches away from the tower for yarding. The tower is connected to the yarder ONLY by the 2 hydraulic lines, therefore none of the structural stresses (or vibrations) of the yarding process is transferred into the yarder hoist, carrier, or operator. Also- the tube can fall away from the yarder in any direction -except straight back- and not damage the yarder at all- only the tower. Still a bad day.

Since most Berger towers were big and heavy they needed to come off the yarder anyway to get legal for highway moves (all the drums with lines- guylines, raise, and telescope line is heavy and stays ON the tube), the hyd. lines had quick-couplers in them.

Usually the tubes were moved on a log truck with some bunk-logs down. it did require a big shovel to remove and re-install at both ends of the move.

After rig-up, if you un-pinned, un-coupled the hyd lines, and un-shackled the raising line- you could drive off the hill with the yarder and leave that tower standing there all by itself! No big deal.

Some of the bigger players had spare Berger towers and a Berger trailer without a hoist on it just for pre-rigging the towers. Simpson did this at Grisdale. The lowbed truck and trailer/tower would go in with a rig-up crew and stand the tower up using a big (higher flow) PTO setup on the truck. The tower would be standing there ready on a setting, (with haywire run up through all the sheaves and back down of course) ready for the yarder. The trailer was left down the road in a wide spot -or taken to get a tower from some other setting that had finnished up. Usually the rig-up crew also had a truck-mounted 2-drum hoist for pulling the haywire, guyline extensions, etc.

The moved-in-later yarder could be anything- even a triple-drum on a Cat D8, or a big Skagit on a tank, trailer, or a sled. Needless to say even at the Grisdale closing auction in 1984 the had alot more Berger towers than Berger yarders!

Sorry to ramble, but Berger (and the contractors/owners) did some really neat and innovative things to keep production up.

The 80' tower on on this T-23 (above) can stand there all by itself, yes.

Attached are 2 pics from a hydro-project where a Berger 110' telescoper was used as a tail-tree, all by itself, no yarder deal. Yarder/Tower was a Skagit BU-98 on the other side of the canyon, they were skylining 42" pipe.

 

[Murk100]

Berger Free-Standing Towers-

Many of the Berger towers were free-standing (right on the ground) with the big 'foot' pad underneath, and guyline drums mounted right onto the tower itself, along with raising and telescoping drums.

The yarder carries the tower on top of it to the landing, stands it up with the raising line, telescopes with the telescoping line (if it telescopes), and tightens the guylines all with the 2 (1 hydraulic supply and 1 return) lines off the yarder engine-driven hydraulic pump. Then a pin or 2 (depending on the model) is pulled, and the yarder hoist pulled a few inches away from the tower for yarding. The tower is connected to the yarder ONLY by the 2 hydraulic lines, therefore none of the structural stresses (or vibrations) of the yarding process is transferred into the yarder hoist, carrier, or operator. Also- the tube can fall away from the yarder in any direction -except straight back- and not damage the yarder at all- only the tower. Still a bad day.

Since most Berger towers were big and heavy they needed to come off the yarder anyway to get legal for highway moves (all the drums with lines- guylines, raise, and telescope line is heavy and stays ON the tube), the hyd. lines had quick-couplers in them.

Usually the tubes were moved on a log truck with some bunk-logs down. it did require a big shovel to remove and re-install at both ends of the move.

After rig-up, if you un-pinned, un-coupled the hyd lines, and un-shackled the raising line- you could drive off the hill with the yarder and leave that tower standing there all by itself! No big deal.

Some of the bigger players had spare Berger towers and a Berger trailer without a hoist on it just for pre-rigging the towers. Simpson did this at Grisdale. The lowbed truck and trailer/tower would go in with a rig-up crew and stand the tower up using a big (higher flow) PTO setup on the truck. The tower would be standing there ready on a setting, (with haywire run up through all the sheaves and back down of course) ready for the yarder. The trailer was left down the road in a wide spot -or taken to get a tower from some other setting that had finnished up. Usually the rig-up crew also had a truck-mounted 2-drum hoist for pulling the haywire, guyline extensions, etc.

The moved-in-later yarder could be anything- even a triple-drum on a Cat D8, or a big Skagit on a tank, trailer, or a sled. Needless to say even at the Grisdale closing auction in 1984 the had alot more Berger towers than Berger yarders!

Sorry to ramble, but Berger (and the contractors/owners) did some really neat and innovative things to keep production up.

The 80' tower on on this T-23 (above) can stand there all by itself, yes.

Attached are 2 pics from a hydro-project where a Berger 110' telescoper was used as a tail-tree, all by itself, no yarder deal. Yarder/Tower was a Skagit BU-98 on the other side of the canyon, they were skylining 42" pipe.

Thanks for taking the time to explain this system awsome!!!! I spent the first couple of yrs. of my career on a 009 and then on to GYs
I could see that working great for yarding down hill(a canadian thing) get the yarder and operator out of the bight, how many degrees could you yard without turning the tower around or could you just move the winch to the other side???360

 

[Contract Logger]

Ok CL, lets see if you have a brochure on this monster. In the late 70"s Lone Pine Log did a job for Burlington Northern near Skykomish. On a trip to the Berger shops in Seattle to inspect the new Marc 2R 120 Foot yarder being built for him my boss was offered a brand new Berger Loader at a price he couldnt refuse. I personally ran it for a time in the old growth DF and it was a monster. I remember loading 30k plus logs with ease. Some of the specs I remember are, 50 foot bom, 1 1/2 D7 Cat tracks on each side, a cab one could have a meeting in, atf fluid for hyd. oil 200 gals, huge hoses not tied down that jumped like snakes when operating, 14 ft width and heavy. Controls were air over hyd with a manual swing control and various other Rube Goldberg features. I cant remember the weight but seems like 140K. Clyde Sprague had one at Enumclaw and Wayne at Berger told us only 6 were ever built and that the person who designed it used Brtish WW2 Battleship Gun Turret technology for the basic design. So, I do have some pics and will post someday lol. Any brochures anywhere? Best regards, Allan

I found what must be an artist's rendering of this machine tonight-
here it is! Doesnt look far off from the real one....
Quite the beast they were! Wonder if any exist today?

 

[furpo]

Kiwi C-19

Here are some pictures of a C-19 I found down here logging in the Wairarapa, New Zealand.

The picture of the build plate is not very good however it appears to be #1077.

Enjoy

 

[Jim1960]

Ok, I'm looking at it and it doesn't look like a north bend system. It looks to me like the haulback is hooked to the back of the carriage. Am I seeing things? Not sure what you would call it.
It seems I remember this or some tower similar having a write up in Loggers World once with a picture of that tall tower you mentioned. Maybe a different one although you wouldn't think there would be too many like it.

There was an out fit called Skycar Log had one of them skyline drum machines around here but a little different. I thought it was homemade, maybe not. They had a skagit, banjo top tower to skid with. I think I remember it being a BU80 but they went out along way with small lines on the skidding machine. 6000' one setting.

Could that be a Tyler system?

 

[Contract Logger]

That's a Berger alright! Looks like a newer Cat loading there too. In that neighborhood there arent too many possibilities--as I said above Herb Olstedt has the 110' telescoper, it could be that machine. Also- Evenson Logging at Clatskanie Oregon was using a Berger Mark 3 (trailer mounted, highlead-only machine) for some of thier longer-span jobs. This might be Evenson's Berger. Both Olstedt and Evenson own late-model Cat shovels and use Boman carriages, so the clues we have arent doing much good here!

Beautiful day and beautiful setting nonetheless. Sometimes it's more fun just to wonder....

I was up late last night and found those Evenson Logging 'Berger M2' pictures. Here are some taken near Clatskanie Oregon in 2000.

I believe this was the yarder Murk saw on his trip.

 

[Contract Logger]

Evenson M2 yarder.

 

[Contract Logger]

Here's a good-looking Berger M2A belonging to Mike Walch of Ranier Rigging (Auburn Wash) and dredging at Monroe Washington in 2001. This machine came from Simpson's Camp Grisdale operation and was purchased at the closeout auction there in 1984.

 

[Contract Logger]

Chilton and Preston of Woodland Washington logged with this Berger T-23 for several years before buying a Thunderbird TY-90. The Berger was sold to a contractor working near Monroe Oregon and I got a couple shots of it being towed down I-5 behind a Shermann Brothers tractor doing 65+ mph!

The T-23 is a one-piece move if you use a 2-axle jeep and 2-axle booster, as seen here.

This would have been about 2004.

 

[Contract Logger]

Berger M2A Slackline Yarder-

Trailer mounted machine with a 100' tower. Good looking yarder, parked in a millyard South of Lyons Oregon when I took the pics in 1999.

I have no idea who the owner was, It was parker near Freres Lumber.

 

[Contract Logger]

In 2001 I was in the Oregon Coast Range -Southeast of Lincoln City- and ran across Ralph Wakefield who was moving his Berger highlead machine to a new setting. Yarder is being pulled by a Shermann Bros Freightliner tractor and assisted by Ralph on his D7. They 'got er done' as they always do!

I have a bunch of pics of this machine logging and will post more later. I think it's a Berger Marc 2 and it is trailer mounted with a 90' tower, all Berger.