KWF Tagung: Alstor's CEO on the new 850 Combi's development

WHILE many bemoaned the dreich weather on day one of KWF (which, by all accounts, didn’t improve the longer the event wore on), Alstor saw it as an opportunity to showcase just how little of a mark its new 850 leaves on a wet, boggy forest floor. 

Available as either a combi machine or a dedicated harvester, the 850 builds on the foundations of its 840 predecessor, but features a variable hydraulic working pump producing twice the litre-per-minute oilflow from the engine. 

Kristian shows off the Alstor 850’s capabilities. (Image: FJ/Jack Haugh)

All told, it can process 3.5 to 4 m3 per hour of timber during a thinning. 

“The 840 was really the first machine we applied to professional customers, and we learned a lot from that journey,” said CEO Kristian Laurell. “We have taken all of the good things from the 840 and applied them to the 850. 

“We now have a hydrostat mechanical drivetrain, which means we have full mechanical drive. That gives us a much smoother experience in the forest. We have improved the cabin a lot. It is a very nice place to be inside and you can sit easily 10 hours a day in there without getting stressed. 

“One of the biggest new things on the 850 is the variable hydraulic working pump. We only have a 25 hp engine in the machine, but that is one of the goals of Alstor; to have a small machine. It is very easy to build big machines, but we wanted to keep the weight of the machine down, while still increasing the capacity.”

Kristian added: “We have already delivered 30 machines and we have more than 100 on order.

 “Most of them are going to professional guys, but also to previous owners who are so happy with their Alstor.

“For a lot of operators, they feel it is like their Ponsse, for example, but on a small scale. There are so many positive reactions to the machine.”

Head to our YouTube channel to watch a full version of this interview, which will be published in the coming weeks.