Going rate for dozer and operator?

[60047]

I have ten acres of lightly wooded land that needs clearing. I've tried a disk mulcher, drum mulcher and just popping the trees one by one. The result is not what I'm looking for. I recently saw a Cat 963 smooth out a couple acres without even trying to hard.

What is the going rate for a medium-sized (~D6) dozer and operator? I'd like to have an idea of what to expect before calling around.

 

[Carl_NH]

Depending on where you are located, rates will vary $150 low side to $200 hr plus transport costs range $250-350? each way. Then you will have a few piles of trees to burn/remove too. Depending your final plans and soil type you may need topsoil etc.

 

[60047]

I'm outside of Chicago. Yes, the burning isn't a problem.

 

[4570Man]

A dozer is good for shoving over trees but not good at making piles that actually burn. You’ll probably end up having to get a trackhoe to burn and pile everything.

 

[mwayne]

I hired a D6 last winter for $115 per hour, since he was there all day no trip charge. Another operator was $95 per hour with a $100 trip charge he had a John Deere 750.

 

[caver]

I recall a fella in south central MO advertising on FB Marketplace for maybe $85 an hour. I think he had a minimum of say 4 hours. Some go that route instead of having an extra transport fee. I can rent a JD650 that's about 75 miles away for $515 a day plus whatever it costs to transport it. Or, $1515 a week. But then I have to run it so having a skilled operator is preferred for me.

 

[Rustyiron]

I'd hire the 963 waaay before a dozer. Like 4570 said, dirt doesn't burn well and a dozer can't make a good (tall) pile.
A good operator on a 963 will have a lot of trees (including the stumps) in a pile in a days time.

 

[4570Man]

I'd hire the 963 waaay before a dozer. Like 4570 said, dirt doesn't burn well and a dozer can't make a good (tall) pile.
A good operator on a 963 will have a lot of trees (including the stumps) in a pile in a days time.

A loader is made for loading not clearing. They might be a little better at building a pile vs a dozer but they still can’t pickup and carry trees. And they don’t have any good way to dig a tree bigger than it can push. A trackhoe is what you need.

 

[Rustyiron]

I'd argue with that, the slightly less efficient tree digging of a loader is more than offset by the moving of the trees to a central burn pile that is totally impractical with an excavator. Smaller trees pop right out and you can "roll" a dozen at a time to the pile. By the time your there the root ball is mostly free of dirt. Same thing for bigger trees, just not as much. Don't get me wrong, I love an excavator, but have done a LOT of clearing with a 953, one size under a '63.
Ideally it would have a root rake with clamps.

 

[4570Man]

A large trackhoe will move brush better than you’re giving it credit for. You can dig up several small trees and grab them all in the thumb and carry them. A root rake with clamps would be a game changer on the track loader but a machine that just pushes is hard to move brush and build a pile with.