agent@monitor.net.au

Rayco RG80 Stump Grinder: Why Ben Would Choose It Over the RG100

Why Bob & Ben The Tree Men Rather the Rayco RG80

After operating both the Rayco RG80 and RG100, Ben Zacka from Bob and Ben The Tree Men found that the larger grinder was not automatically the better machine for everyday arborist work. The Rayco RG80 Stump Grinder offered faster travel, better remote-control operation, a narrower working footprint and lower engine maintenance costs, while delivering similar fuel economy in Ben’s experience. The final result was five practical advantages in favour of the RG80, with only one notable trade-off: less drive power than the RG100.

The Challenge

Choosing performance without buying more machine than the business needed

Bob and Ben The Tree Men needed a stump grinder that could complete demanding work while remaining practical across residential and commercial sites.

The challenge was not simply finding the grinder with the most horsepower. The team needed a machine that would support productivity throughout the entire job—from unloading and site access to grinding, repositioning and maintenance.

The larger Rayco RG100 offered considerable power, but its size and operating requirements created several practical considerations:

Restricted working space around houses, fences and landscaping
Time spent moving the machine between stumps
The operating space required for its swing-out control station
Higher engine maintenance costs
The need for responsive and reliable remote operation
The cost of owning more machine than many everyday jobs required
The balance between drive power and overall usability

Ben’s goal was to identify which grinder provided the best overall result for the work his business completed most often.

The Strategy and Solution

Step 1: Compare the complete job – not just engine power

The RG100 provides more drive power than the RG80. If horsepower or drive performance were the only considerations, the larger machine could appear to be the obvious choice.

However, arborist productivity depends on more than how aggressively a machine can drive or grind.

The team considered how each grinder performed across the complete workflow:

Transporting the grinder to the job
Accessing the work area
Manoeuvring around obstacles
Positioning the operator safely
Grinding the stump
Moving between multiple stumps
Maintaining the machine over its working life

This comparison showed that a smaller, more manageable machine could deliver greater value across the whole working day.

Step 2: Select a grinder suited to confined arborist worksites

Many stumps are found behind houses, beside fences or within established gardens. The machine needs enough room to operate after reaching the stump.

The Rayco RG100 Ben operated used a swing-out control station. Although functional, the extended station increased the machine’s working width and required additional clearance.

The RG80 uses remote control and does not require the same swing-out operator station. This gives the operator greater freedom to work around the grinder without extending a control platform into an already restricted area.

The RG80 can also be reduced to approximately 91.4 cm wide with its blade folded and dual wheels removed. This makes it a practical option for many residential access routes, subject to a complete site and gate assessment.

The lesson for other arborists is simple: transport width is only part of the access calculation. Always consider the machine’s full operating footprint once it reaches the stump.

Step 3: Prioritise faster movement around the job

Ben found that the RG80 travelled faster than the RG100 he had operated.

Travel speed matters because stump grinders do not spend the entire working day cutting. Crews must unload them, drive them to the stump and reposition them throughout the site.

This becomes particularly important when:

A property contains multiple stumps
Stumps are spread across parks or commercial grounds
The access route is a considerable distance from the trailer
Crews have several jobs booked in one day
The machine needs frequent repositioning

Faster movement reduces non-cutting time. Even small time savings can accumulate across a full day and help the crew complete more revenue-generating work.

Step 4: Improve operator positioning with remote control

Ben reported that the RG80’s remote control worked better for his operation.

Remote operation allows the operator to select a position with a clear view of the cutter wheel, stump and surrounding hazards. The operator can move as the cutting angle changes rather than remaining beside a fixed control station.

This is particularly useful when grinding near:

Fences and buildings
Retaining walls
Garden edging
Surface roots
Established landscaping
Uneven ground
Other site obstacles

Remote control does not replace training, exclusion zones or safe operating procedures. Its value comes from improving operator flexibility and visibility during the job.

Step 5: Compare total ownership costs

The RG80 uses an 85 hp Ford petrol engine, while the RG100 Ben operated used a larger diesel engine.

Ben found that maintaining the RG80’s petrol engine was considerably less expensive. He also reported that fuel economy between the two machines was very similar in his operation.

Fuel consumption can vary according to stump size, timber species, ground conditions, operator technique and machine load. However, Ben’s experience shows why buyers should not base a decision on fuel type alone.

Arborists should compare:

Scheduled servicing costs
Engine parts and labour
Fuel consumption
Cutter teeth and wear parts
Transport requirements
Repair costs
Downtime
Cost per completed stump

A machine that costs less to maintain while producing the required output may generate a better return, even when it has less horsepower.

Step 6: Confirm that the smaller grinder still had enough cutting capacity

Choosing a smaller grinder only makes sense if it can complete the required work.

The Rayco RG80 combines its 85 hp engine with a 58.4 cm cutter wheel fitted with 24 Rayco Super Teeth. It provides:

A cutting depth of approximately 53.3 cm
A cutting height of approximately 50.8 cm
A cutting width of approximately 165.1 cm
An operating weight of approximately 1,465 kg

These specifications give the RG80 substantial capability for high-output residential and commercial stump grinding.

For Bob and Ben The Tree Men, it provided the required grinding performance without the larger RG100’s additional operating footprint and ownership costs.

The Results and Data

After comparing both machines in real working conditions, Ben said he would choose a new RG80 over the RG100.

The comparison produced the following results:

5 practical advantages: faster travel, better remote operation, narrower working footprint, lower engine maintenance costs and similar reported fuel economy
1 recognised trade-off: the RG80 has less drive power than the RG100
85 hp petrol engine: sufficient output for demanding residential and commercial stump grinding
91.4 cm reduced width: with the blade folded and dual wheels removed
53.3 cm cutting depth: allowing the RG80 to remove substantial material below ground level
165.1 cm cutting width: providing a productive sweep across larger stumps
1,465 kg operating weight: making the RG80 a more manageable machine than many grinders in the larger power class
No swing-out operator station: reducing the additional space required during operation
Similar fuel economy: based on Ben’s experience operating the petrol RG80 and diesel RG100
Lower engine maintenance costs: based on Ben’s experience maintaining the two machines

“If I was buying again, I would always buy a new RG80 compared to the RG100.”

– Ben Zacka, Bob and Ben The Tree Men

The result was not that the RG80 outperformed the RG100 in every category. The result was that the RG80 provided the better overall balance for Ben’s everyday work.

Key Educational Takeaways

Match the machine to your most common jobs

Do not select a stump grinder according to its largest possible job.

Review the access conditions, stump sizes and terrain your business encounters most frequently. A more compact grinder that suits 80% or 90% of your workload may produce a better return than a larger machine optimised for occasional specialist jobs.

Calculate productivity across the whole day

Grinding speed is only one part of productivity.

Measure the time required to unload, access the stump, reposition the machine, complete the work and load it again. Faster travel, tighter operation and better operator positioning can save time before and after the cutter wheel touches the stump.

Compare cost per completed stump

Purchase price, horsepower and fuel type do not reveal the machine’s complete financial impact.

Include fuel, servicing, repairs, wear parts, labour, transport and downtime in your calculation. The best investment is the machine that completes the required work at a sustainable cost—not necessarily the machine with the largest engine.

How Monitor Helps Arborists Choose the Right Stump Grinder

Monitor helps arborists compare stump grinders according to the problems they need to solve in real working conditions.

Before recommending a machine, our team considers:

Typical stump sizes
Residential and commercial access
Terrain and traction requirements
Required cutting output
Existing transport arrangements
Operating and maintenance costs
Parts and service requirements
Opportunities for future business growth

This avoids recommending a larger machine simply because it has more power.

For Bob and Ben The Tree Men, the RG80 delivered the right balance of cutting performance, mobility, operating width and ownership costs.

Monitor supports Rayco stump grinders with equipment advice, genuine parts and experienced servicing through branches in Tamworth, Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne and Perth.