Best single machine for land clearing/grading/compacting a gravel driveway

[Sebculb]

I'm of the opinion that construction Backhoes are the best most versatile piece of earthworking machinery out there. You can make it do whatever you need it to, until you get too weird and need a more specific machine like a dozer or an excavator. But then that other more specific machine will be limited for doing all the other things you need to do, like digging big culvert ditches or carrying quantities of dirt across the lot. I've never driven one but I think skid steers are kind of small capacity and not really good at excavating compared to a big hoe. One vote for renting a big hoe!

 

[Tough Luck]

Go to youtube and look for "outdoor with the morgans". Mike does an excellent job of discussing the pros and cons of tractors vs. skid steers and does a lot of the work you have described using three of Rural King's tractors and implements.

 

[PILOON]

Most contractors I know no longer have dozers in their arsenals as a tracked digger can do it all.
They dig, load trucks, level *(by swinging side to side) and compact by driving back and forth.
With the boom they take down trees then dig big holes to bury root balls.
I have also seen them 'plant' hydro poles using a chain to lift.
Demolition also comes easy for a tracked digger.

Smaller compact trackhoes also usually have a blade to help leveling tasks.

While a wheeled backhoe does just about all the same it really does not do any all that well.

The main downside of tracked machines is displacement from site to site as U need a flatbed and suitable tow vehicle.
If only for use on your land then tracked could me the better option to consider.

Another bonus is that tracked hoes rarely get stuck while many a tractor has struggled in wet mucky soils.

 

[EddieWalker]

Tracked machines are probably the very worse thing out there for compaction. By the very design of the tracks, they spread out their weight over more of the surface, resulting in less weigh per square inch on the soil. My backhoe weighs 14,000 pounds. With a full yard of dirt in the front bucket, the front tires will sink several inches into the ground after my 40,000 pound dozer has spread the dirt.

Tracked machines are horrible for traveling any distance. Not just that they tear up everything when turning, it's just a miserable experience doing it for more then an hour.

Excavators are fantastic at digging and removing trees and brush. Nothing is better. But they are one of the very worse machines out there at moving material from one point to another. A backhoe will have a front bucket capable of carrying a yard of dirt, or more depending on the size of the backhoe. I put a grapple on mine so I can haul trees to the burn pile after I take them out with the hoe. While not as good as an excavator, there is no tree that's too big for me to remove with my backhoe.

By back dragging with my front bucket, I can grade a road, or a building pad better then I can with my dozer.

No other machine does anywhere near as much as a full sized backhoe. It's only real drawback is that it doesn't have a PTO and cannot be used to mow anything.

 

[bdog]

I have a 100hp tracked skid steer. I used to have a full size backhoe. I sold it and bought a mini excavator. The excavator is so much easier to position and dig with than the backhoe. Being able to spin 360 when digging / loading is great. My skid steer bucket does not hold as much as the backhoe loader bucket did but it can work circles around it. Being up close and able to see the cutting edge on the skid steer is great, especially for a novice operator.

I thought the backhoe was kind of like a Swiss army knife. It is capable of doing anything but is not the best tool for any particular job. The pros are it can move around between job sites quickly, you can dig with the hoe, load with the loader, etc. The cons are when using the hoe you have to set up and put down the outriggers and then you are limited to about 180 degrees arc of the hoe. The loader on them is powerful and can lift a lot. The cons are you can't see what you are doing very well. With experience you can do nice things with one but it takes practice. Also they get very tippy side to side with a loaded bucket up in the air. When I was digging my pond I had some scary moments loading the dump truck with the backhoe loader.

Everybody has their preferences in machines but I sold my backhoe in January and have not missed it at all. I have since then completed several projects with the mini ex that there is no way the backhoe could have done.

 

[mikester]

Tracked machines are probably the very worse thing out there for compaction. By the very design of the tracks, they spread out their weight over more of the surface, resulting in less weigh per square inch on the soil.

I think it depends on the type of tracks you have. LGP with deep single grousers I totally agree with you - tear up city. Low profile triple grouser shoes can compact the ground well. On flat, firm level ground the ground contact patch on a crawler loader is surprisingly small - that's by design to make the machine more maneuverable. In soft ground you get a larger contact area for floatation. My 15 ton crawler loader had low profile triples and did a good job compacting and pounding down rocks etc for driveways. Easily pulverized concrete paving slabs into dust. Didn't do so good in soft wet clay and swampy areas.