How did the Piranha BT300 design come about?

The Piranha BT300 is the lightest and sharpest-priced 190+hp chipper currently available anywhere in Australia.

The Piranha BT300 was designed to address two key challenges common in the current offering of woodchippers: performance and serviceability.

Design of the BT300 kicked off with performance in mind and started on a clean sheet of paper. From there, Piranha Chippers built a robust woodchipper that will chip 300mm-diameter (12″) solid Australian hardwood. That’s what the ‘BT300’ model number signifies (300mm), and it can process tough timber up to that diameter with ease.

Powering the BT300 is the supertough Isuzu 4HK1 engine, producing a class-leading 197hp, which spins the 26″ (650mm) diameter drum and its four staggered knives. The drum is fed the timber via two large horizontal feed wheels, with high torque capacity hydraulic motors, through a direct infeed opening at 500mm wide x 390mm high (20″ x 15″) to produce very impressive chipping performance.

The BT300 has a huge 170-litre fuel tank custom made to fit underneath the chassis and create a low centre of gravity. The large capacity ensures the chipper will work for many days before needing to be refilled, saving valuable time at the start of every day as the crew heads out. Add in the comprehensive hydraulic-assisted features which include infeed hopper up and down, 360-degree discharge chute swivel, automatic clutch engagement, feed roller lift/crush and a powerful winch, the BT300 is a serious performer designed from the ground up to excel at chipping wood and making life easy and safe for the operator.

All this is packaged into a modular chipper design which is hand made from Australian 350-grade structural steel to ensure the BT300 will perform as expected every day.

Real value

Does that mean that the Piranha is expensive or heavy?

It’s a good question.

The reality is that in 2024 the BT300 is, at 3800kg, currently the lightest and sharpest-priced 190+hp chipper currently available anywhere in Australia. If horsepower equals productivity, then the BT300 is offering serious value for money. Backed by a comprehensive five-year/3000-hour warranty, it’s a true revelation in ground-breaking design. When you see the BT300 operating in person, you’ll truly appreciate the craftsmanship and value a Piranha chipper has to offer anyone serious about chipping timber.

Serviceability

Serviceability was another factor Piranha wanted to get right and could see the most practical solutions were not being offered in other chipper designs.

First is the resilience of the Isuzu engine itself, renowned as one of the world’s most reliable engine packages. The 500-hour service intervals of the 4HK1 mean you can concentrate on working for longer, while the chipper is earning its keep rather than being stuck in the workshop being serviced.

Next is the front engine-cover access door which houses all engine and hydraulic filters in an easily accessible configuration, making servicing the BT300 stress free. When it comes time to change the engine oil, a remote drain sump hose makes the task easier than could ever be imagined. There is no more crawling underneath the chipper to remove sump plug and watch the dirty oil spill all over the trailer chassis to make a time-consuming mess that needs to be cleaned up.

Next, the central greasing station: there’s no need to climb all over the chipper looking for every grease nipple that needs to be greased. The BT300 has a centralised grease station which ensures that this daily task is simple and straightforward, making life easier.

Then there’s the chipper drum housing – possibly the greatest feature of all Piranha chippers – which makes servicing the cutting knives as easy and as safe as possible. The whole top of the drum enclosure opens, fully exposing the chipper drum, so knives can be changed out as quickly and easily as required. In addition, there is an accessway alongside the drum housing to ensure secure footing is available while maintaining the cutting knives.

The whole top of the drum enclosure on the Piranha BT300 opens, fully exposing the chipper drum, so knives can be changed out as quickly and easily as required.
The whole top of the drum enclosure opens, fully exposing the chipper drum, so knives can be changed out as quickly and easily as required. Image: Piranha Chippers

Quality build

Finally, all the running parts themselves. The Piranha BT300 has been built with the highest quality parts available here in Australia, and all parts are widely available off-the-shelf from quality suppliers, meaning parts are readily available Australia-wide. With the factory support and backing from Isuzu Australia, the Piranha BT300 can easily be booked in for a service at any of the 42 factory Isuzu service agents Australia-wide.

To learn more of the BT300 and the Piranha company, log on to piranhachippers.com.au.

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