Which crusher to produce BRF (Raméal Fragmented Wood)?

[Ahmed]

What more specifically would you like on the locusts?

[Christophe]

Size, age, annual growth...environment?

Possible problems?

[Ahmed]

Yeah... You're not too demanding, after all!
Robinia don't have any problems, apart from very hot summers; it is an invasive species that willingly colonizes sandy land (fears stagnant water*), but interesting since it provides nectar for honey flies, stakes and the best firewood (in my opinion). They reproduce by seed, by suckers** and sprout abundantly from the stump after harvest (rotation about 30 years, which is fast). The shoots are vigorous and can reach 3 M the first year on well-rooted subjects.
With appropriate silviculture, ie regular thinning (which is not usually done), it would also be possible to obtain very interesting timber. In practice, the only large spontaneous locusts have hollow stem balls due to their canonical age...

* But I saw one in the middle of marshy ground: it had taken over the only mound in the place...
** Regrowth on the roots which then free themselves...

[izentrop]

A well-detailed specialized site https://www.broyeurs-vegetaux.com/

[humus]

For mulching, an old technique brought up to date that is worth its weight in peanuts but with zero fuel to use!
(personally I would have seen a small electric motor with a solar panel )

https://www.lafabriculture.fr/28-k-tchak

[izentrop]

For mulching, an old technique brought up to date that is worth its weight in peanuts

Besides, it seems that because of the price of steel, they no longer manufacture it.

I've tried shredding straw in a knife shredder before, but it quickly wraps around the shaft and jams quickly and it's not cut in a rotor shredder. Only the mower remains.

[humus]

For mulching, an old technique brought up to date that is worth its weight in peanuts

Besides, it seems that because of the price of steel, they no longer manufacture it.

I've tried shredding straw in a knife shredder before, but it quickly wraps around the shaft and jams quickly and it's not cut in a rotor shredder. Only the mower remains.

Thank you for pushing to be creative for a sustainable world!
By being motivated, there must be a way to do it in wood
and for the flywheel: concrete, or clay, or sand, or gravel, enclosed in a large wooden camembert box.
Only a few metal elements will remain to manage friction and cutting.

[Ahmed]

A recent shredding operation to remove the branches of a willow tree broken by the June storm, at a friend's house, went oddly: due to the season and the time that has elapsed since its fall, the branches are relatively dry . It doesn't make things any easier, although this wood is very soft when green, hence 3 rotor locks. The first 2 times, after a brief cleaning and turning the axis of the rotor with a key, it starts again without further ado, the third time, there were only 2 branches left to pass and there, it was necessary to open the hopper before, carefully clean everything that had gotten between the rotor and the housing before it spins freely. However, it was impossible to reposition the homemade clutch in its running position and I had to ask my friend to hold the clutch control by hand while I passed these 2 branches.

Back home, I started to disassemble the transmission cover to understand the cause of this problem and there, after a careful check, absolutely nothing has changed and this malfunction is downright incomprehensible: the stroke of the clutch lever has become too short to engage in its engaged position.
So I took everything apart and modified it so that it worked normally again, drawing lessons from my first "version". I added some play to better be able to adjust the stop notch of the lever and it became operational again; I only have a few finishing touches left, moreover in progress, and the trick will be played... It's a good thing, because one of my plum trees has also partially broken and I'm waiting for the harvest to cut the trunk and crush the branches in stride.

[Ahmed]

A small test of my new assembly does not prove satisfactory: a small problem of parallelism is manifested by a belt which tends to escape on the side. New dismantling and repositioning after pointing and adjustment; final weld then very satisfactory vacuum test. I am confident for the future, in a work situation. I take this opportunity to add a small wooden cover on the cutout made in the housing (see above) and some adjustments for stopping the clutch control rod in the running position, as well as a rubber stopper on the nixon crankcase in disengaged position...

[Ahmed]

As expected, I was able to grind the plum branches with no worries and also the product of a neighbour's Caucasian laurel pruning.
The only detail to review on this repair, the clutch stop control tends to jump with vibrations; I put a small temporary clamp, while waiting for a slight modification.
Another damage, foreseen this one, the cap at the end of the shredded material evacuation chute finally came off: having proven itself, this test device will be renewed in more permanent forms. After use, I also notice that the belt cover fixing bolt has fallen on the ground: the original 4 have all their nuts messed up, but it will not be difficult to replace, because the support is easily removed after removal belts.