<div class="htmlview paragraph">The forestry products manufacturers are being forced by economic pressures into producing wood handling equipment of larger capacity and more efficient operation. Consequently, four-wheel drive articulated skidders of larger sizes and increased horsepower are being designed and built. John Deere's JD740 Skidder is one of these units.</div> <div class="htmlview paragraph">This paper presents the design features of the JD740 and discusses aspects of these features important in their selection to meet the original design goals.</div>