Wood Chipper Sale Scotland

How to Choose the Right Wood Chipper

Buying a chipper is a significant investment, and the right machine depends on three things: what you’re chipping, where you’re chipping it, and how often.

Do I Need a 6-Inch or 8-Inch Wood Chipper?

A 6-inch chipper processes material up to 150mm in diameter and handles most domestic tree work, hedge reductions, garden clearances, and lighter arb jobs. If the bulk of your work involves branches up to about wrist-thickness, a 6-inch machine will do it efficiently without paying for capacity you don’t need.

An 8-inch machine handles timber up to 200mm. It’s the right choice for professional tree surgery crews doing regular removals, contractors processing mixed hardwood, and anyone working on larger sites where volume and speed matter. The bigger flywheel and more powerful engine also mean less jamming and more consistent chip quality on tougher material.

Should I Buy a Towable, Tracked, or PTO Wood Chipper?

Towable suits most operators. It’s the most affordable type, the simplest to transport, and the most popular for good reason. Choose towable if the majority of your work has road or driveway access to the chipping point.

Tracked is worth the extra cost if you regularly work on sites with poor access, soft ground, slopes, or no vehicle entry. The self-propelled tracks save hours of dragging branches to a roadside chipper, and they avoid the ground damage that a heavy towable can cause on soft surfaces.

PTO makes sense if you already run a tractor. Lower purchase price, no engine to maintain, and the tractor provides all the power. The trade-off is you need the tractor on site every time you chip.

Is a Petrol or Diesel Wood Chipper Better?

Petrol models are lighter and generally cheaper upfront. Diesel costs more to buy but uses less fuel over time, which matters if you’re chipping several days a week. For operators running a chipper daily across a full season, diesel usually pays for itself within the first year or two.

New vs Used Chippers

A new Forst chipper comes with a 3-year warranty, the latest features (AutoIntelligence, ForstGrip), and the knowledge that nobody’s abused it before you. It’s the right choice if you’re building a fleet, starting a business, or want the peace of mind that comes with a factory-backed machine and full dealer support.

A used chipper costs less upfront and can be a smart buy if you know what you’re looking at. We carry used stock when it’s available, and every machine we sell second-hand goes through our workshop first. We won’t sell something we wouldn’t put our name to, and we’ll be straight with you about the condition, service history, and expected life left in the machine.

If you’re not sure which route suits your situation, talk to us. We’ll go through your workload, your budget, and what makes sense for the longer term rather than just making a sale.

The Forst Wood Chipper Range

Forst chippers are designed and manufactured in the UK. They’re built for the professional arborist market, which means tough build quality, reliable engines, and features that make a genuine difference on site. ILH is Scotland’s specialist Forst supplier, so you get factory-backed warranty, genuine parts, and technicians trained on every model in the range.

The full lineup covers four types: towable, tracked, PTO, and compact. Here’s what’s available.

Towable Chippers

Road-towable chippers are the workhorse of most tree surgery and landscaping operations. You hitch them to your vehicle, tow them to site, and set up wherever you’ve got firm ground and decent access.

Forst’s 6-inch petrol towable handles branches up to 150mm in diameter. It weighs under 750kg, making it towable by most pickups and 4x4s without any additional driving licence. A heavy-duty variant adds a tougher build for operators who need a 6-inch machine that can handle higher volumes day after day.

For diesel, Forst’s 6-inch diesel towable offers the same capacity with lower fuel consumption on longer jobs, which adds up over a season. Moving up to 8-inch, Forst’s towable range includes both petrol and diesel options that handle timber up to 200mm and are suited to professional crews processing larger material on a daily basis.

All towable models come with Forst’s AutoIntelligence feed control as standard, which adjusts the feed speed automatically based on the material going through, and ForstGrip feed rollers that grip branches firmly without you having to force anything into the hopper.

Tracked Chippers

Tracked chippers are self-propelled, so they go where towable machines can’t. Soft ground, steep banks, narrow access between buildings, woodland sites with no vehicle access. The tracks spread the machine’s weight and give it traction on terrain that would stop a wheeled unit.

Forst’s 6-inch tracked models are available in petrol and diesel. The 8-inch tracked chipper steps up to 200mm capacity with a 55hp diesel engine for professional crews working larger removals, site clearances, and storm damage contracts.

At the top of the range, Forst’s heavy-duty tracked chipper combines 8-inch capacity with a wider track base, a more powerful engine, and a 270-degree rotating discharge chute. It’s built for forestry and high-volume commercial work where the machine needs to keep pace with a full crew all day.

PTO Chippers

If you’ve already got a tractor, a PTO (power take-off) chipper runs from the tractor’s own engine rather than carrying its own. That means no separate fuel costs, no additional engine maintenance, and a lower purchase price compared to self-powered models.

Forst’s PTO chippers are available in 6-inch and 8-inch capacities, and mount on a standard three-point linkage. They’re popular with farmers, estate managers, and contractors who use a tractor on site anyway and want to keep their equipment costs down.

Compact Chippers

Forst’s compact chippers are designed for operators who need a capable 6-inch machine in a smaller, lighter package. They suit garden maintenance companies, smaller landscaping outfits, and anyone who needs to chip regularly but doesn’t need the throughput of a full-size towable.

Why Buy from a Forst Specialist?

You can find Forst chippers for sale through various channels: online marketplaces, used equipment sites, private sellers. But buying from a specialist supplier is a different experience, and it matters long after the invoice is paid.

3-Year Warranty

New Forst chippers bought through an authorised dealer come with a full 3-year manufacturer’s warranty. Buy privately or through an unauthorised seller and you may not get that cover, which means any fault in the first three years comes out of your pocket rather than Forst’s.

Genuine Parts and Fast Supply

We stock genuine Forst spare parts at our Cumbernauld workshop. Blades, belts, rollers, hydraulic components. When something wears out or needs replacing, you’re not waiting for a third-party supplier to source a compatible part. We have it on the shelf or we can get it next day from Forst directly.

Factory-Trained Technicians

Our technicians are trained by Forst on every model in the range. That means faster diagnostics, correct repair procedures, and servicing done to manufacturer standards. We also service and repair other brands including Timberwolf, GreenMech, and Jensen, so we understand the wider market and can give you an honest comparison.

Ongoing Support

When you buy from ILH, you’re not buying from a website. You’re buying from a team you can call when you need advice, parts, or a repair. We know our customers by name, and most of our business comes from repeat customers and referrals. That doesn’t happen if you disappear after the sale.