Echo 74824 Owners Manual v.3 - Manual (Page 15)

Page 13 6" & 8" Bear Cat Chipper Operator’s Manual
4.4 CHIPPING
WARNING
Keep face and body away from the feed opening. Do not
overreach. Keep proper balance and footing at all times.
4.3 ROTATING THE CHIPPER BASE
Figure 4.1 - Chipper Base Rotation
1. Disengage the Chipper Lift Arm from the Chipper Base
and release it by pressing down (see Figure 4.1).
2. Rotate the Chipper Base to desired position.
3. Once the Chipper Base has been positioned, lift up the
Chipper Arm and lock it in place.
WARNING
The chipper base must always be locked in place. Failure
to do so may result in machine vibration, serious bodily
injury or death.
The Bear Cat chipper is designed to chip a variety of
materials into a more readily decomposable condition. The
following guidelines can be used to help you get started.
1. Run unit at full operating speed before starting to chip
material.
2. Select limbs that are up to 4-1/2" inches in diameter.
Trim side branches that cannot be bent enough to feed
into the chipper chute. Hold small diameter branches
together in a bundle and feed in simultaneously.
3. Feed brush from the side of the chipper chute, rather
than from the front. Then step aside to avoid being hit
by the brush moving into the chipper.
4. Do not lean over the chipper chute to push objects into
the cutting device. Use a push stick or brush paddle.
5. Never use shovels or forks to push brush. They can be
chipped, are expensive to replace, and can cause ex-
tensive damage. In addition, metal pieces can fly out
and cause serious injury.
6. Never push brush into the chipper chute with your feet.
7. Place limb, butt end first, into the chipper chute until it
contacts the hydraulic feed roller and is drawn into the
chipper blades. The actual feed rate of the limb into
the chipper will depend on the type of material fed and
sharpness of the cutting blades.
8. If the engine slows to where it may stall, stop feeding
the material and allow the engine to recover.
9. If the chipper jams, remove the branch and rotate it
before reinserting it into the chute.
10. Alternately insert and retract the limb or insert continu-
ously at a rate that will not kill the engine. Rotating the
branch as it is being fed will improve cutting action.
11. Chipping dead, dry material will create heat and dull
the chipping blades quickly.
12. Alternate greener material with dry material to lubri-
cate the chipping blades for longer life and better per-
formance.
13. When the chipping blades become dull, they will re-
quire sharpening (see Section 5).
OPERATION