2. Rubber-tired skidder (fig. 6) . A medium- sized, rubber-tired skidder was 



selected to represent a type of machine commonly used in north Idaho. This 

 unit was a John Deere Model 540 equipped with a winch and five to seven chokers. 

 In practice, five to seven logs were skidded to one of three landings. (The 

 blade of the skidder was used to deck the pieces 6 to 8 feet (2 to 3 m) high. 

 The operator was free to skid as he wished, provided that all marked pieces 

 were removed. No machine down time other than fueling was noted for this 

 operator. Two full days and 1 partial day were required to skid the 5-acre 

 (2.02-ha) area. In both instances, the wood recovered was not sold to the 

 logger. 



Timed observations .--Two people observed production on each study area. One indi- 

 vidual, positioned at the landing, recorded number of turns and pieces and measured 

 length and diameter on all pieces. The second person followed the turn of logs from 

 the woods to the landing. All elements of the operation were timed with a stop watch 

 to the nearest hundreth of a minute. Elapsed time for each event was noted, then the 

 watch was kept running. This method allowed for a slight error when compared to total 

 operating time (about 2 to 3 percent short). Unusual delays in production were noted. 

 Because the crew members were in frequent contact, number of pieces per turn, turn 

 number, and gross time could be compared. 



Figure 6. — Relogging Lee Creek with, rubber-tired skidder. 



15 



