I have a Trot Bilt Super Tomahawk chipper/shredder. The question is what should the chipper knife clearance be. If someone could measure it and reply, I would be very grateful. The holes in the main shaft set the flail/chipper location and the old shaft was very bad. This machine came to me with a bent main shaft and bad main shaft bearing. I had to cut the ends off the main shaft to get the flail assembly out of the machine. I have made a new shaft and it all looks good and should work well. I am running 1 in shaft bearings on the new shaft and that should improve the life. If anyone needs a shaft or other machine work done to extend the life of their machine pleas send an E Mail. I also have manuals and numerous sources for parts. I make flails out of old truck springs and harden them.

Hello All- I have a Troy-Bilt Chipper Vac with a horizontal shaft Tecumseh on it. This machine is 5hp and VERY heavy. I upgraded to this unit from a Sears 4.5 hp lawn mower style vac. I wanted more suction. I assumed with such a large impeller that I would be moving more CFM. But it feels about the same as my old machine performance wise. I would not trade back for the world, but wanted to know if anyone had improved the suction of the vacuum on these machines. Would a block off plate for the chipper seal that vacuum chamber better? What about a fan with more impellers? Kyle

I found the Model 47261 manual at brentchalmers.com. This manual included the information that "The Model Numbers that appear on the front cover of the Owner/Operator Manual have changed as follows: Model No. 47260 is now 47278 Model No. 47271 is now 47280 Model No. 47261 is now 47279 Model No. 47272 is now 47281". Here is a link that might be useful: Chipper Manuals

If it's in good shape and has a newish motor - I'd say go for it. Mine's a 1991 model w/8hp B+S which I bought a couple months ago for $300 that has seen very little use. Stored in a dry barn by the PO and is in near-new condition. Chipper blade is very sharp and all the flails show no signs of wear. Gas was sitting in it for a number of years - so I cleaned the tank and fuel lines, rebuilt the carb (20. kit), hooked up a new battery (electric start model) - it starts instantly and devours piles of brush and tree limbs. The shredder (top hopper) takes branches up to about 1" to 1-1/2" and the chipper (side hopper) takes up to 3" limbs - but does that slowly . . . fairly fast up to 2-1/2" dia. It's essentially self-feeding - whips material through the top hopper very quickly, so unless you like getting cuts and scratches on your arms and hands, wear gloves + long sleeves. Be sure to also wear goggles and ear protection - very loud with clutch engaged. I really enjoy using it and have produced several 20 cf cart loads of mulch - and, processed much material for composting the gardens. The single chipper knife is removable by two bolts and seems to be easily sharpened by using a bench grinder and honing stone. The flails are double-ended so reversible and replacements are available from a number of sources. Check the bottom link for one resource. Here is a link that might be useful: Chipper parts