75 acres of timber with house - trails, small garden, invasive control

[OlyPenAaron]

FWIW, I watched my neighbor clear his land off and on for the last 2 years and the best tool he has is the grappler on front of his 33 HP tractor. With it he can easily and efficiently move 10-12' logs of reasonable width (Fir, Maple, Alder in the 18-24" range). That grappler also makes fast work of Himal. BBs in our area. Once the huge masses are removed, the trail mower keeps them at bay. [+ 1 for Crossbow (even though you may not want to use it, which I get).]. I agree with the others who mentioned that a parcel your size is not suited for a tracked rig.

For my part, I cleared trees on my parcel with an excavator. It's what I had at the time and is what I learned on, so I felt comfortable working on my slopes. With the thumb attachment on it, I was able to easily stage log decks for firewood and for log truck runs to the mill. I did a mix of grappling with it as well as cabling. The boom makes it easy-ish to drag logs off of the steeper hillsides to flatter ground. It takes time and a willingness to get creative; I never thought I'd have use of a 8,000 lb. block, but I'll be darned if I didn't...and I'm now pretty good at maneuvering 30' log sections into position. The power and leverage you get from a heavier, tracked machine is a definite plus, especially when you need to drag. For me on 5 acres, Yes. If I had to manage 80, No - not as a main tool. I still see a realistic use case for it, tho.

I was definitely in the camp of towing a trail mower behind my ATV before I bought my current tractor (3-point finish cut mower- I don't do any heavy brush cutting with it). I think it's a decent choice as long as it's heavy enough to do the job in a reasonable time. IDK about you, but my thumb gets sore if I have to throttle to a consistent speed.

I didn't see if anyone else sugg. this, so apologies if I just missed it: Considering your overall budget, get a tractor that you're comfortable with and consider renting or hiring out the the heavy lifting (no pun intended). I understand that rent/hire is not the same as the equity you get from ownership. For instance, I paid a friend of a friend $2200 for some dozer work that I could have done myself with my mini-Ex and my tractor in a month, and it was done-done (right I might add) in a weekend. Renting means you need to be able to plan ahead and keep the commitment, and that does not always work out in life.

 

[ning]

I removed the majority of huge blackberry brambles on our property with a long chain and my truck before I got my tractor (would probably use the tractor the same way now but I don't have large brambles any more). Ran the chain around the bramble (used a pole to poke it through the middle of a really big one I couldn't get all the way around and did this in two parts), used a slip hook and other end attached to my trailer hitch.

The chain gathered the mass up tight and pulled most of it out of the ground nicely; the mass ended up in a decent ball, which got towed to an open area and burned (careful, this stuff is really flamable even if the outside was green the inside is like a lot of dry kindling!).

Aftercare of the site involved me yanking what I could out of the ground, sometimes with the help of my pulaski (best hand tool ever), and barely anything grew back - it's easily controlled now, in late spring I walk around and pull a handful of stuff out.

 

[Louhasaboat]

I just bought 75 acres of timberland that needs about 40 acres replanted. some is reasonably flat or gently sloping, some steeper.

• Would like to pull logs to a mini sawmill (don't have yet), or onto a trailer for pulling to a neighbors for them to mill.
• Would like to make some new hiking/ATV/dirtbike trails, and keep existing trails clean
• Control invasive himalayan blackberry... some in unplanted areas, some amongst seedling trees (might need a handheld brush cutter, like a weedwacker with saw, for this)
• till small garden
• grade/flatten the gravel roads
• maybe plow some snow

Had been thinking a backhoe could be useful too, but don't have any immediately obvious need for one.

I have looked online at crawler loaders (seem expensive/time-intensive when repairs are needed), tracked skidsteers (not cheap to buy, similar repair concerns and issues trailering/moving it around). Have not thought too much about traditional tractors because of the concern over tipping on the slopes and not really planning much "ag farm" work.

Have most recently been thinking to get a pull mower (brush or flail) for cutting trails and maintaining them, and also mowing the 1/2 acre or so of grass near the main driveway that the neighbor can see. (or just pulling my push mower haha)

Today at my "city house" I was talking to the neighbor and he's got a Yanmar 165D for sale, about 700 hours on the clock, with a bucket on the front, a brush mower (needs new bearing), a drag blade, and a tiller. Wants $2500, says the bucket should normally lift 500lbs but lately it's only doing about 300... so something needs worked on with that. One of the front bucket hydraulic cylinder brackets, the upper one, is bent a little (he hit something too hard) but he said there's so little articulation with it that it doesn't affect anything, no binding, etc...

It seems like an easy buy, small enough that I can pull with my diesel Jetta or Chevy Colorado, and a small utility/automotive trailer... but also maybe too small for some jobs (and I'm concerned that it will just be too small). Definitely seems wayyy easier to work on, or get loaded and take to a mechanic by myself (i.e. no calling a lowboy to come in).

This would be my first "heavy equipment" purchase.

Would love to hear some opinions to help round out my thoughts on the matter. Thanks.

What you might consider is a Bobcat Toolcat 5600 or 5610. It can act as a tractor, skidded, truck, XTV and many other types of equipment. You can often rent attachments for short term use. While these are expensive, you can find 2005-2008 versions for $11,000 to $25000. I purchased mine at a Richie Brothers Auction. Do a little research on YouTube, also. Good luck

 

[jeff9366]

From what I've read/seen, flail seems like the way to go (better cut, better mulching, easier to maneuver), except that if the drum gets dented repairs can be costly.

FARMWITHJUNK is no longer posting here due to ill health. Big loss.

FARMWITHJUNK operated a commercial mowing business. Here is FARMWITHJUNK's take on Flail Mowers

A flail mower is what you use to make your mowing job take longer, use more fuel to get less done, and keep the parts man and mechanics busy, all the while emptying your wallet at an incredible pace.


There are three kinds of men:
1.) The ones that learn by reading
2.) The few who learn by observation
3.) The rest of them have to pee on the electric fence for themselves.

 

[Fla FA]

Hello,
I concur that a larger tractor would be better for your use. 4WD with a grapple.

However, I own a 1977 Yanmar 1100D, which is a 4WD gray market import with 11 HP. I have been very impressed with it's relative strength and durability. I use it primarily with a 60 inch brush hog to mow trails on mostly flat land here in Florida. It hasn't required any major repairs, but I can find parts online.

I also own a 2019 Kubota 2601 with 4WD HST and a grapple. The grapple is amazing and very useful. The 2601 is 26 HP, and I wish it were a little bigger.

I wouldn't be as concerned about the size of your Yanmar if you look at it as a starter tractor and take your work in smaller pieces. I would be more concerned about its current maintenance and repair requirements.

 

[newbury]

I see so much back and forth on flail vs bush hog...<snip>

Flail is great if your concerned about flinging stones through house windows.

 

[Molalla1]

Flail is great if your concerned about flinging stones through house windows.

Yep and also good if your dogs like to follow you around while mowing . . .

 

[kenmbz]

still looking at flail vs. brushhog. Everyone seems to complain that brush hogs throw stones, very far and fast while Flails don't . So surprised to hear the above about throwing stones with a flail.

 

[K5lwq]

Flails will still throw stones Just not as likely to do damage. When mine picks up a rock it usually throws it low instead of up.

 

[Username Taken]

still looking at flail vs. brushhog. Everyone seems to complain that brush hogs throw stones, very far and fast while Flails don't . So surprised to hear the above about throwing stones with a flail.

When I was a kid Bush Hoggin on our 200 Acre rock farm, I was of the opinion that if I could run over it on our Farmall 200 (not a really big tractor) then the bush hog would take it down.

Didn't always work out that way, however. Had to get pulled off of more than one tree that got under an axle. )The Ol' Man would get P.O.ed!)

That was with a transmission PTO so sometimes I didn't have a lot of choice whether to run over the tree or not.

When I got a yellowjacket nest stirred up (the ground kind) I'd just put the bush hog over it and watch them get chopped into dead little yellowjackets, Hated those things. Some made it out. If you sit real still, they don't always see you

Loved that bush hog. No clue what make it was. Red. Bought Shear pins by the dozen.