DK2 5-Inch 14 HP 429 cc Hydraulic Auto-Feed Chipper Shredder with Electric Start

Shipping took a very long time. When it arrived the crate was in good condition overall. However after uncrating it, I found that the main assembly, with the wheels was not secured, so could roll back and forth during shipping. The intake chute is shipped with no protection and stretched wrapped only. There were scratches and dents in the fuel tank as a result as well as a pinched wiring harness and paint rubbed off the underside of the feed chute. There were loose fasteners found in the crate as well, and I received NO manual. I found a screwn when opening the hydraulic reservoir which I had to fish out with a magnet. I placed a warranty claim and are waiting to hear back about replacement parts.They made some modifications to the design that are mostly positive....except that the adjustable foot assembly was welded too close to the pull starter and scratched it down to bare metal the very first time I retracted it.The manuals and videos omit several important issues and saying they are incomplete is being overly kind to the manufacturer. Especially the assembly video. There are falsehoods as well I found. They claim the bearings are sealed, and they are greasable and the fittings were only finger tight. Before running this unit, you need to check everything. If you do as the incomplete instructions say, you will likely cause an early failure. There was very little grease in the wheel bearings for instance....After assembling the unit, so far, it has performed as expected. Hopefully, if I stay on top of the maintenance it will last awhile. For $5k, the customer deservces better. I own lots of equipment and have never seen such incomplete documentation for something this expensive.

First: I followed the manual and assembled. Not easy to install the hydraulics...need 2 people.Second: the manual has NOTHING about hydraulic Trouble Shooting.Third: engine starts...but auto feed DOES NOT WORK!!! I emailed and called DK POWER - no response. I contacted seller through Amazon- nothing yet but I’m hoping they can help.Not ONE VIDEO on line about trouble shooting or hydraulics on this unitLASTLY: terrible engineering and design: IF YOU REMOVE THE HYDRAULIC COVER: good luck getting it back on without dismantling the heavy parts around it. It does not go on and line up with 4 bolts: 3 of which need different socket sizes...so just think about being in the field and trying to get into this using 3 separate socket sizes and not being able to easily re attach. Very poor design.Plus this was very expensive and I have yet to use it as my auto feed won’t engage.UPDATE: 6-12-20 DK has contacted me. We are trying to work out the issues. My auto feeder is working but VERY slow. DK told me5.5 quarts of hydraulic oil. 4 quarts topped it off! So I had to drain a quart which is Really messy - even if careful. So still unsure what 3/4 full is...manual is Horrible. They need glass eye toKNOW, fill level. They need videos On assembly as well as trouble shooting.I would Love to see the owner assemble from crate and get started!! Give it try...

This chipper is amazing. I have it pictured next to my other gas chipper, it is a 3" model for size comparison. The narrow straight chute design was a pain to use on the small HF chipper.I have a hydraulic car lift in my shop and used it to pick up the chipper from the crate, not sure how someone would get this off the crate otherwise. Packaging was mostly nice but part of the chute rubbed/scuffed the gas tank paint off. Not like the thing will get dirty in use anyway, so it doesn't matter much to me.Assembly was straight forward and mostly easy. The battery connections are difficult and awkward to get to. The hydraulic controls were a massive pain in the bum to install, I had to use a car jack and tie down straps to hold it up and just get the bolt started. Took me an hour to do. Two people would have been easier. But I also think if I were to do it again I would install the hydraulics on the chute then put the chute on the body.I'm using a 20hp riding mower with a DYI ball plate to tow it around. I need more height on my ball to avoid the legs scraping the ground, but that is a design flaw on my part. Maneuverability is very easy towing it around with the mower or my truck. But if I need to move it by hand in the field it can be a challenge due to its weight. Turning is easy but rolling anywhere other than concrete or asphalt isn't going to happen by hand.I had 16 trees taken down and shredded the branches with ease using the chipper. It is a hungry beast and will take anything up to it's rated size. I found that even on slow feed rate it still feeds too fast larger 3.5"+ branches. I use the hydraulic stop lever to let the motor come back up to speed and feed another few feet in until it is small enough to just go. I am very happy to have the hydraulics, it makes for much easier chipping compared to my other chipper that sucks in too fast and stalls, or won't take because just a little too much brushy extras clogs the feed hole. This one takes it no problem. And if there is a harsh bend or crazy offshoot in the branch I can stop the feed and cut the branch to fit then keep going. It really makes all the difference in the world of chipping. Really worth the extra cost to me.All the safeties are nice, electric start is really nice to have, the chute adjustment is great but I almost wish it was 180° adjustable because sometimes I'd rather just move the chute than turn around and reposition. It could use a tool box storage for common wrenches and PPE. But I don't expect it. I might get a box that bolts to the tow arm. I thought maybe the tow arm would be easy to remove but it gets bolted in, makes it a trip hazard for storage in my garage. I would t take this on the road despite having DOT rated tires. It is so narrow I would be scared of it tipping over plus where I live would need lights and license plate.Overall it is amazing, a few flaws like the horrid hydraulic install process, but I would buy one again and again. It is awesome.