The collection of the National Museum of the Republic of Mari El includes a model of the LP-19 feller buncher. This self-propelled device had been produced at the Yoshkar-Ola “Lesmash” Forest Engineering Plant since 1974. It was intended for logging. The machine was designed based on the EO-4121 excavator, and the running gear was copied from the design of the TT-4 skidder — a special vehicle that transported wood. The mounted equipment included a base, a turntable, a manipulator, a grapple-cutting device, a hydraulic system, and an operator’s cabin.
The feller mechanism of the LP-19 machine is based on a wood chain saw. It was capable of cutting trunks up to 90 centimeters in diameter. Firstly, clamping levers fixed the tree at the proper height, then the tree was cut, and the mechanism pulled it up onto a platform that placed the trunk on the ground in a bundle that was convenient for transportation with a special skidder tractor. During operation, the gripper-cutting device was tilted at a 45-50° angle, so that the trunk did not hit the ground when the machine was stacking it, and there was less risk that the levers would slip. The maximum height of the stumps that remained after such work was 10-12 centimeters. As well as logging, the equipment was used to build plank roads — temporary crossings made of logs in swampy areas, on small rivers, or where vehicles could be stuck in the mud.
The carrying capacity was 3.2 tons. It took about 40-45 seconds to process one tree. The operator’s cabin was thermally insulated, kept out extraneous noise, and had increased visibility. Modern feller bunchers are also equipped with heaters and air conditioners so that the operator can work comfortably at any time of year and in any weather.
The first LP-19 model was produced at the Yoshkar-Ola Forest Engineering Plant from 1974 to 1984. In total, 3,268 feller bunchers of this type were manufactured. In 1984 the plant switched to a new modification called LP-19A. In 1994 and 1995, two more improved versions appeared — LP-19V and LP-19B. Since 2000, the production of feller buncher machines of LP series was taken over by the Yoshkar-Ola Company “Lestechcom”.
The feller mechanism of the LP-19 machine is based on a wood chain saw. It was capable of cutting trunks up to 90 centimeters in diameter. Firstly, clamping levers fixed the tree at the proper height, then the tree was cut, and the mechanism pulled it up onto a platform that placed the trunk on the ground in a bundle that was convenient for transportation with a special skidder tractor. During operation, the gripper-cutting device was tilted at a 45-50° angle, so that the trunk did not hit the ground when the machine was stacking it, and there was less risk that the levers would slip. The maximum height of the stumps that remained after such work was 10-12 centimeters. As well as logging, the equipment was used to build plank roads — temporary crossings made of logs in swampy areas, on small rivers, or where vehicles could be stuck in the mud.
The carrying capacity was 3.2 tons. It took about 40-45 seconds to process one tree. The operator’s cabin was thermally insulated, kept out extraneous noise, and had increased visibility. Modern feller bunchers are also equipped with heaters and air conditioners so that the operator can work comfortably at any time of year and in any weather.
The first LP-19 model was produced at the Yoshkar-Ola Forest Engineering Plant from 1974 to 1984. In total, 3,268 feller bunchers of this type were manufactured. In 1984 the plant switched to a new modification called LP-19A. In 1994 and 1995, two more improved versions appeared — LP-19V and LP-19B. Since 2000, the production of feller buncher machines of LP series was taken over by the Yoshkar-Ola Company “Lestechcom”.
