I know of two people who use
LogRite arches behind either an ATV or UTV. In my opinion, Logrite arches are top-of-the-line in design and durability. They aren't cheap, but they last forever - they are just as happy operating behind a tractor or truck as they are behind an ATV/UTV.
One of the folks I know is a 3rd generation logger who decided to move into specialty logging. He keeps himself as busy as he wants to be with his specialty work: low impact, operating in tight places where regular logging equipment or compact tractors could not go (or at least could not go without constructing a path to the trees in question.) If I remember correctly, he uses a
LogRite Fetching Arch. It has some unique design features that allow him to also use it remotely from the ATV with a rope. Once the log is out of the deep woods to where he can get the ATV up to it, he uses the towing tongue option to haul it out. See the video at the link for a demonstration. It will handle up to a 25" diameter, 2000# log, and will fully suspend a 16' long log.
The other person has a
LogRite Buck Arch. It's a bit smaller and lighter than the Fetching Arch (Buck arch is only 39" wide, vs the Fetching Arch 58.5" width). It will handle a 22" diameter log and fully suspend up to a 10' log when in towing mode or a 16' log when using by hand. His is mainly personal use: harvesting firewood, doing trail maintenance, and bringing in the occasional saw log for a project.
One thing that both of them caution about:
It's one thing to be able to pull a log, it's another to be able to stop it. Pulling a fully suspended log can be a lot of weight to stop. It can easily just push your ATV around. Both of these guys will suspend just one end of the log when pulling heavy logs in hilly areas: It's still
far easier than just dragging a log on the ground, but dragging the tail end acts as a bit of a brake, helping to keep the log under control when coming down hill.
I've seen several homemade arches. These can be an inexpensive alternative, especially if you are good at scrounging and fabricating.
There are a few manufacturers who make somewhat lighter-duty arches than the LogRite models.
Woodland Mills log areches are one example. These still seem like a fairly solid design, though I have not seen one in person (I would go for their Loglander 28 over their smaller/lighter Loglander 20.) Both Woodland Mills arches are designed to lift one end of the log. I'm not sure where you are from. Woodland Mills is in Canada, but I checked: the prices shown on their website for these arches does accurately reflect the to US buyers, if you have selected the United States tab on their web site. You just have to add shipping ($99 or $129, depending on the model chosen) and whatever local taxes apply (apparently they've either built that tariffs into their pricing, or the tariffs don't apply.) IT ships from their Buffalo, NY warehouse.
I've also seen some arches being sold that just seem WAY too light-duty for my uses. Some people seem to like them, and they are light weight. However, I have concerns about how they would hold up to work in the woods.
