Re: EarthForce
It's time to update the attachment list & progress to date on acquiring same. (I've come to find that construction equipment dealers don't know what you're talking about when you say "implements" - to them, they're "attachments".)
I finally talked to the Brush Brute folks. It turns out our initial calls were made at the beginning of moose season and that part of Ontario shuts down for moose season. (I don't make 'em up, I just report 'em.) Anyway, I talked to a very nice (and to make her truly interesting,
very informed) lady who is shipping me a 58" heavy duty model Brush Brute customized for a skid steer mounting plate. They have a "standard duty" model with teeth made out of 5/8" plate, and a heavy duty model with 1" plate teeth. Being a nut, I was only interested in the heavy duty model, of course. She told me that their experience, and they have a lot of it, indicates that I wouldn't be happy with anything wider than 58" or so because it's so hard to get around in the woods with. She said a lot of folks ignore them on that point, then end up cutting the bigger one down. I decided not to ignore her. Total price, including shipping, was $1090. I also have the model and pricing info for the rest of their offerings, if anyone wants it.
Instead of an FFC Grader Rake, aka FrontRunner, I went with a 7' York brand SSF model grader rake with gauge wheels, drop down grading blade and end plates. My reason for this change was that the York model is actually heavier, and can be had with a grading blade and end plates, which will allow it to do double duty as a box blade, albeit a somewhat lighter duty one, especially after I weld a scarifier bar in front of the rake. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif
The 6' Ammbusher mower with gauge wheel is on order.
A McMillen X1600 hex-shaft auger drive unit, 18/30" tree auger, and 12" auger are on order.
Pallet forks, a couple of bolt-on tooth-bar bucket edges, and some implement plates to convert my existing soil pulverizer and tiller to skid-steer mount are also on order. A Switch Hitch, which allows a skid-steer to pick up three-point-hitch implements and has a 2" receiver for trailer hitches is in the works, too. Jason, at Folcomer Equipment in Baltimore, MD (410-247-7454), has been incredibly good to work with. He's gotten together a lot of info for me, made who-knows-how-many phone calls all over the place to get all this stuff together, and is giving me excellent pricing on everything to boot. Best of all, he still answers the phone when I call, even though he knows by now what he's dealing with. /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif
I'm also getting several things directly another manufacturer, which hasn't quite been finalized yet. I'm getting 18" and 24" backhoe buckets. Also, they're going to have to custom-make a 78" 1.75 cu. yd. light material bucket, a backhoe quick attach coupler, a backhoe thumb, and the attachment-side couplers for the backhoe buckets and auger drive unit.
The EF-5 itself has been built and is on the boat, in route from Czechoslovakia. I should be able to pick it up early in November in SC and if all goes well, I'll be able to pick up the custom attachments from a manufacturer just a few miles away. When that happens, I'll be able to switch my signature to
!!!
MarkC
