Prospective purchase for the mountains.

[boozle]

picked her up today. Not the best condition, but it'll do the job and give something to clean up!

 

[airbiscuit]

Have fun!

 

[M59]

Thanks! So as update, I found a well used Ventrac with Tough Cut with a few attachments that will be a starting point for the basic property mowing/maintenance. After that, I'm going to take my time to find the right deal on a more general purpose machine for some of the other projects that involve loader and heavy duty implements. This way I'll feel safe and can begin work on the most urgent projects of maintenance while learning more about what my actual needs are in the forest.

Every bullet point here has been engrained from this post has stuck with me (Widest stance, Weights, Filled tires with Beet juice, no turning up hill, slow everything, up and down inclines, CoG low, loader low, higher HP, etc).

I never expected a 9 page thread on my questions, but it is a statement to how great this forum is. Thank you all sincerely for taking the time to help. It's a great community.


B

Boozle,

One more piece of advice.

Grease ( Molybdenum Disulfide ) is your best friend and too many machines get ruined because they don't get greased frequently enough. The combination of high pressure/ high loads, dirt, sand water, and dry rotating surfaces will quickly turn a good machine into junk. Get a grease pump with locking tip and buy grease in 5 gallon buckets. You will save massive amounts of time and money and the machine will get properly greased and live a long useful life because this setup makes it easy and less costly. Cartridge grease is 5-10 times cost of bucket grease. The tip locks onto the grease nipple so no need to press it on by hand.

Use water and a spray nozzle to wash the old grease, dirt, etc away from the grease nipples before greasing. Wash grease fittings and grease where family members or pets won't be walking.

Your choice to take the time to find best choice/ deal on more general purpose machine is a good one. Machines ( new or used ) are horrendously expensive right now because of COVID. Every home owner had time on their hands so the landscapers got super busy and sucked up everything related to landscaping or property improvement ( machines, trailers, implements ) so prices went thru the roof.

Enjoy playing in the mountains of WNC.

 

[kantuckid]

I'll chime in on lawnmowers for steeper ground. I had a common 46" tractor style Husqvarna lawn mower from Lowe's and after 10 years of belts (expected) and many, many deck repairs (un-expected) and lots of spinning rear wheels and body weight shifting to create some traction-> I was at my Stihl dealer picking up a Motronic chainsaw only he could repair. They are a mom & pop Cub Cadet/Stihl dealer (he's a top level Stihl mechanic) and I asked what mower they sold was best for steep ground. His wife pointed at the only one they had left after selling several truckloads during the Joe ***** checks era had lots of people flush with money.
Cub Cadet RZT zero turn mowers are the trick she said. It's a typical zero turn but with a steering wheel, not the more common version with two steering arms. I began looking for a used one and had decided on a 46" as only two blades/spindles to maintain, uses less gas and mower cost less to begin with- plus I also went for the fabricated deck as they are 11ga steel not the more rounded formed steel decks, so much more durability. It also has a more sophisticated PTO set-up, better deck suspension, better safety factors in reverse, better seat, better seating position, better brake and more...
I bought a used 2019 RZT S, 46" fabricated deck and even though I'm not much of a lawn mower freak I gotta say they are the trick!
It's MUCH faster than the Husqvarna was, MUCH easier to steer & negotiate around trees, etc., has MORE power as a 24hp engine and it will flat climb a tree! Truth be known it's got enough traction to never slip and could easily get you in trouble as it will go where you shouldn't be mowing!!! Sort of reminds me of a 4wd PU truck in the winter which causes a false sense of traction. I will admit though that I now mow a couple of spots that I used a sting trimmer on before.

Not sure I'd agree with the HST comments above? Lots of logging machines are not HST but I will admit to never having owned an HST tractor.

 

[rScotty]

Regular greasing makes them last longer, but it can also make a mess.
I prefer to use the any standard poly grease and really like the multipurpose polyurea "green grease" cartridges from John Deere.
Poly grease does a good job for medium duty tractor bushings and bearings and it cleans up nicely.

I do have a couple of places that I will sparingly use that messy black moly disulphide grease, but those places are heavy duty swing table bearings on a big backhoe. Big bearings that are heavily loaded on a backhoe that can exert off center loads of thousands of pounds of lift & pressure. I keep the black moly grease in its own grease gun in a separate container.

I wouldn't expect a Ventrac would have any similarly loaded bearings that would require messing with that kind of specialized thick black grease. It's true that moly grease does reduce friction more than the poly greases, but it sure makes a mess and stains things. A blob of it on your lawn will find your tennis shoes......
rScotty

 

[kantuckid]

I have a Kioti CK30 in IL 11 acres mostly flat but the ditch by the road is really steep. It is no fun when the rear of the tractor starts to slide sideways and the uphill front wheel gets really light. I’ve given up on mowing it both with the tractor and 2 different ferris zero turns. I let the county road guys do it with their ditch mowing tractors. The zero turn I had going across and it seemed one lever was full forward and the other was in reverse just to keep it pointed uphill enough to mow across the hill. There is a culvert at the bottom you don’t want to get into and that prevents you from going up and down. So I don’t have any experience in the mountains but have been in the o crap situations enough. I do think that for your property I would not consider anything under 35 hp and as others have said go big, heavy, and ballasted. Someone mentioned a tracked skidsteer as an option and I really think that you should take a look at those. I have not used them but have hired 2 pros for projects on my property and that is what they used. They are incredible machines. I saw one pick up an oak log about 15 ft long that would barely fit in the grapple. The back end was coming off the ground but after a few tries they got it up and moved. I think they excel at construction and destruction type of work which sounds like what you need. Someone mentioned the option of a manual trans tractor which seems like a really bad idea for a newbie on hills. I have borrowed a buddies huge old JD to move some equipment my loader wouldn’t pick up. It was a manual. I felt like spider man with both arms and legs going at the same time and nothing but your rear holding you onto the seat. (I have owned manual trans cars and trucks for 30 years) The CK30 is HST so you have one foot firmly planted in addition to your rear on the seat. So whatever you buy test it out and make sure you like the pedal placement and controls. There are a lot of options. My CK has the forward/reverse AND left/right brake pedals all on the right foot with nothing on the left side (except the rear diff lock which is handy even with 4x4 to get you un-stuck) Seems like a dumb setup but my brakes should last forever because they only get used for parking. I think nearly every tractor implement has an equivalent skidsteer attachment. I swear I saw a brand new DEERE tracked machine on a trailer with a backhoe attachment on the rear (engine) end!?! the other day. Back when the CK was purchased, the main task for it was mowing about 7 acres a week and pushing some snow in the winter. since then the mowing has been reduced and I purchased a farm property with 6 acre hay field, put up fences for horses, and have done a lot of construction. It has been able to handle everything so far but the steep ditch mowing and being able to lift really heavy stuff with the loader (turned up the PSI but it still struggles at times) So as others have said you might make a list of tasks and try to imagine over time how that list might evolve. If I had to choose tractor vs tracked skidsteer all over again now I believe I would have gone with the skidsteer. Look up all of the attachments you might need too because you can get a used pto post hole auger for $300 for a tractor but the skidsteer hydraulic version will be triple that price plus. (rentals are available though) A rear blade is light years ahead of a front loader bucket for snow removal. A quick attach front end along with a set of forks and some spare pallets are required. You will also need fuel storage. Lugging 5 gallon cans from the station is horrible. 200 gallons is minimum for my diesel delivery. I have a raised 300 gallon tank I got used for $300. Rest of my gear includes: box blade, disc harrow, 2” receiver 3 point adapter, 6 bale square bale grapple, backhoe attachment with subframe (thumb for it but not welded on yet) cheap front grapple that I have nearly destroyed (buy HD!), fence post hydraulic driver, 3pt finish mower (gets used as a brush hog sometimes). I also have a steel barrel concrete filled 3pt counter weight that is under construction. Hope some of this helps you out.

I bought the HF diesel fuel pump on a special deal for ~ $80 and my wired together shoulder thanks me when i pump in diesel fuel from 5 gal. jugs to the top tank. Get one-they are actually very well made. Put some thought into the suction set-up, I use a right angle plastic pipe and an SAE plug off the battery, same as my Battery Tender uses. Keep the wire gauge heavy enough for that pump. It takes about 60 seconds to suck out 5 gallons! I've read reviews on HF of pro users who sucked a 55 gallon drum in 6-7 minutes.

 

[Ishkatan]

After that, I'm going to take my time to find the right deal on a more general purpose machine for some of the other projects that involve loader and heavy duty implements. This way I'll feel safe and can begin work on the most urgent projects of maintenance while learning more about what my actual needs are in the forest.

Every bullet point here has been engrained from this post has stuck with me (Widest stance, Weights, Filled tires with Beet juic

picked her up today. Not the best condition, but it'll do the job and give something to clean up!

View attachment 705160

e, no turning up hill, slow everything, up and down inclines, CoG low, loader low, higher HP, etc).

I never expected a 9 page thread on my questions, but it is a statement to how great this forum is. Thank you all sincerely for taking the time to help. It's a great community.

I'm jealous! I'm also looking for something with mowing a 15-25 degree hill being a primary task. The pressure is off since I got the Ford 8N running again - I have the wheels set at 70" while the tractor center of gravity is around 30". I feel safe at 25 degrees as long as I hold on tight enough not to get bounced off the springy seat when I hit a woodchuck hole. However, something newer would be nice since the 8N takes some maintenance and showing it's age.

BTW, Ventrac sells a light weight bucket. See Tractor Time with Tim Youtube videos!

Most people with large properties seem to end up with multiple machines - utility vehicle, a couple different tractors... When you start contemplating a utility vehicle and a bigger tractor consider the Bobcat Toolcat instead of 2 vehicles. It's on my list when I hit the lottary.

 

[kantuckid]

Boozie-what IS that?
The last thing I need is something else to "clean up"...

 

[jeff9366]

Picked her up today. Not the best condition, but it'll do the job.

I eagerly anticipate your impressions after two or three days experience operating the Ventrac:

1) How well does the Ventrac perform relative to your requirements in Post #1.

2) How well does the Ventrac perform relative to all the recommendations here.

3) After factoring in your early Ventrac experience any change to your plan for a heavier machine in the future?

Where did you buy the Ventrac? Dealer? Golf Course? Private owner?


Great picture. I am jealous too.

 

[Pleease]

I bought a pt1430.
It is set to be delivered next week, but after playing with it during the demo, I’m sure I’ll be more than pleased at what I can do with it, in areas my tractor could never access.

Sounds like the right machine for your situation. Would be great to hear more about it when you've had a chance to use it.