Best 5-Inch Wood Chippers (2026)

SuperHandy builds this unit around a conventional rotor-and-knife design driven by a 15HP, 420cc overhead-valve single. That engine class is the standard answer for 5 inch machines, and the rotor approach is simple to service. The part that sets it apart from the other 5 inch picks is the discharge: the chute rotates through 270 degrees and a vertical guide plate moves through 110 degrees, so you can drop chips into a trailer, onto a tarp or into a flowerbed without moving the machine.

The tradeoff is that nothing about the cutting mechanism is special. Like every gravity-fed machine here, the operator supplies the push, so a bushy limb with side branches will hang up until you trim it. Against the WTRAVEL at the same 420cc and 15HP rating, you are paying for electric start and the better chute geometry, not for extra cutting power. Against the Purilitzs PW5 at 459cc, you give up a few cc and a published reduction ratio.

Ownership is routine small-engine work: oil, air filter, spark plug, and knife bolt checks. Electric start adds a battery, so keep a trickle charger on it between jobs and store the machine under cover.

The P4205 uses the same engine class as the SuperHandy, a 420cc air-cooled single rated at 15hp with electric start, but the chassis is where MechMaxx spent the effort. It rides on two 19 inch front wheels plus a rear wheel, with a tail light and towbar, which makes it the easiest of the five to pull around a property on a lawn tractor or truck hitch. A stop button sits on the upper side of the feeding drum and a press bar runs along it.

The cost is the same gravity-feed limitation as the rest of the field, plus a bigger footprint to store. Compared with the WTRAVEL, which uses two small tires and a bare towbar, the P4205 is more stable on slopes and uneven ground, and the dual stop controls are in easy reach during a jam.

Expect the usual three-wheel chassis habits: keep tire pressure up, grease the wheel bearings once a season, and check that the tail light connector is not corroded before towing on a public road. The knives are double-edged on machines in this class, so flipping them extends time between sharpenings. Treat the lighting as a convenience, not a road-legal promise, and confirm local towing rules before using a highway.

The PW5 pairs a 459cc engine with A8 steel double-edged knives and a published 22:1 reduction ratio. The extra displacement over the 420cc units in this guide is modest, about nine percent, but it is real torque reserve when a dense limb slows the rotor. The infeed is angled and wide, which helps with bushy material, and a 12V 20Ah battery supports electric start.

The caution is that a reduction ratio of 22:1 describes how much volume shrinks, not how hard it can cut. A chipper with a lower ratio and sharper knives will still beat a high-ratio machine with dull ones.

Ownership is the same as the rest of the field: oil, air filter, plug, knife torque. A8 steel holds an edge in oak and hickory longer than plain carbon steel, but it is more brittle, so a stone strike chips it rather than bending it. Keep the limbs clean, keep a spare knife pair on the shelf, and sharpen at the factory angle rather than eyeballing it.

The WTRAVEL gives you the same 420cc, 15HP engine class as the SuperHandy and the MechMaxx but drops electric start in favor of a recoil pull. That one omission is what makes it the cheapest sensible gas 5 inch option here. It has a widened chipping drum and 10 inch hardened steel blades, plus a tow bar and two heavy-duty tires.

The tradeoff is starting. A 420cc single has a lot of compression, and a cold pull in January is a workout. Against the SuperHandy and the P4205, you are saving the cost of a battery system but taking on that effort every time. Two small tires and a bare towbar also mean it is best moved short distances around a property rather than towed far.

Ownership is simpler with no battery. Use fuel stabilizer if it sits, because stale fuel is what stops a pull-start machine, and check knife bolts after the first hour.

This is the odd one out: no engine at all. It is a 3 point hitch attachment that runs from a tractor PTO at 540 RPM, with a Category 1 hitch and a standard 1-3/8 inch 6-spline shaft, built for tractors in the 15 to 50 HP range. The double-edged blades can be flipped, which extends sharpening intervals.

The tradeoff is that it only makes sense if you already own a compatible tractor. If you do, you skip an engine to maintain, and the tractor delivers more torque than any 15HP single. If you do not, it is not an option.

Ownership centers on the PTO shaft. Grease the universal joints each session, keep the guards on, and confirm your tractor really runs a 540 RPM PTO.