Help me pick a skid steer

[alchemysa]

I find it odd that you know "my situation" when I haven't explained it ...

I know your 'situation' because you 'explained it' in the very first paragraph of your original post. Here it is to refresh your memory....

"I'm buying 6 acres of totally undeveloped property...and I've budgeted about $15-20k for a used skid steer to help me tame the land. I need to clear a driveway and a home site, as well as put in a bunch of trenches for utilities and remove a bunch of stumps. And a whole lot of brush clearing. I've never used a skid steer before.."

I guess most of us made the mistake of thinking you wanted to know whats the best machine to get all those jobs done for under $20k. A skid steer seemed an unwise choice to some of us, but we now know that you have a significant additional budget for attachments and plenty of time and patience to swap them around so a skid steer will fill your needs perfectly. We all look forward to seeing pics of your projects.

(Personally, for 'removing stumps' I'd still rather have a backhoe at one end of the tractor and a 4in1 bucket at the other end. They go hand in hand so to speak. One minute you'll be digging with the hoe and the next minute you'll be using the 4in1 to carry the stump away or push dirt into the hole. But I'm only speaking from personal experience of course).

 

[Turbys_1700]

Good advise here. We've run everything here on the farm except a track hoe and a skid steer. Around here Cat is the preferred unit for parts and support. I am more experienced in what to look for in other equipment. I would look for a person that you trust to help you with inspection of any unit you are considering. In the Raleigh area you should have ample dealer support from multiple sources. You may be able to save some $$$ if you can score a unit off Craigslist versus a dealer but again you will need good inspection and honest evaluation of any used unit.

 

[Xfaxman]

zmoz, have you seen any of my threads or done any research on compact telehandlers with a SSQA on the boom?

Mine will out dig a skid steer and can extract itself from a stuck in the mud situation.

Click the link at the bottom of my signature for information on what it can do.

 

[milligjg]

I bought 6 acres that needed cleared. I had a buddy that had an 873 BC he sold to me. It was a good powerful machine, but here is my take on the deal. I could have had all of the property cleared and stumps gone probably for less than 10 grand. I did spend a lot of time repairing small items on the machine. It was handy, but I feel I could have been done with the job by hiring it out. I sold the BC and bought a compact tractor (27 HP) and just clean up a little section at a time. Don't get me wrong I still would like to have one, but it's a want, not a need! If I would have hired it out, I would be done. My .02. Good Luck

 

[xtn]

zmoz,

Here's the thing. Sure, some people answered questions you didn't ask. They made faulty assumptions. But they WERE honestly trying to offer help. I'm quite sure that no respondent was just thinking, "Hey, lets mess with zmoz."

Your response is to just argue and call everybody idiots. I hope you do find a better forum, and all the participants will be able to pin down exactly what model of skid steer is best for you and your vague project without any hint of a suggestion at any possible alternative.

Good riddance.

 

[Pete6114]

Are you guys kidding? zmoz asked a simple question and gets nailed to the cross for wanting help choosing which SS to purchase. Lighten up folks.

 

[woolyAcres]

@zmoz-

Like you've, I've never used a skid steer so I can't offer any suggestions about which unit you should buy. But if you're trying to stay inside your budget, yet need to get brush cutting attachments, tracks, and a back-hoe attachment, and still stay below $20K I'd say you better be looking at units that are $12K or below.

I'm not a 'pro', at least not when it comes to big equipment, so I hired someone to cut a driveway, clear land for home, put in septic, and excavate for a basement. Although it may be possible, none of that was done with a skid steer- excavator and bulldozer. In fact, we've never used or hired a skid steer for anything here. I see lots of uses on my 30 acres for a skid steer but in my case, budget/time doesn't allow that. Instead I've had very good luck clearing the abandon pasture of trees, digging the occasional water line, power trench, and pulling stumps with a 45HP 4WD tractor with FEL with grapple and CX47 Case mini-excavator. It lacks the transportability you seek so it may not be what you're after but in my experience it gets a lot of work done. Especially that mini. I've used a 3pt hitch style hoe and it's a joke compared to this dedicated machine. I don't know anything about SS style hoes but if it's got to be transportable by the SS (and liftable) it can't be that heavy. I wouldn't want anything smaller for digging out 10" or larger stumps. Maybe they'd work for smaller stuff. Both our pieces of equipment were used. Total cost (not including grapple) was around $24k which included a 5' HD brush-hog.

You're posts have made it clear that you've already decided on a skid-steer. I wish you luck in efforts. The Yanmar engine in the Case is a gem. Anything with a Yanmar would be my recommendation. I'm sure the Kubota is good as well.

Be sure to post back with your choice and how well it meets your needs.

 

[two_bit_score]

When people make stupid useless replies such as yours...yes, I absolutely hate that and have no respect for those people.

And you, sir, will receive the distinct honor and privilege of being the very FIRST person to be on my ignore list.

Sent from my iPhone 2.0 using TractorByNet

zmoz,

Here's the thing. Sure, some people answered questions you didn't ask. They made faulty assumptions. But they WERE honestly trying to offer help. I'm quite sure that no respondent was just thinking, "Hey, lets mess with zmoz."

Your response is to just argue and call everybody idiots. I hope you do find a better forum, and all the participants will be able to pin down exactly what model of skid steer is best for you and your vague project without any hint of a suggestion at any possible alternative.

Good riddance.

zmoz wants YOU to tell him what HE WANTS TO HEAR but he wants you to guess it correctly on the FIRST try or he'll call you an IDIOT.


Must make perfect sense to him.



TBS

 

[Clay45]

We have a little less than 7 acres. It had been vacant for nearly a year and the previous owner let horses, donkeys, llamas, etc. "keep up the grounds". This included a long gulley drain down to a small creek that flows across the bottom and forms the boundary for our property in that direction. The gulley was mostly obscured from view by large oak and sweetgum trees with holly, vines, and privet shrubbery crowding underneat and up to 20ft tall. The gentleman that removed some weddingcake steps from the backside of my house and build a concrete deck and landing in their places also cleared the gulley, cut a side road over to the other side thru two groups of trees and reworked my exist road relied heavily on his Cat 303 mini-excavator. His team also used two bobcats - one wheeled and one tracked. The most useful for removing brush and trees was the mini-excavator.. It could push over fairly large trees and then pluck them up from the ground, lay them over and carry them to a burn pile on the other side of our property likety split and return back to the work rapidly. The tracked bobcat seemed much more useful than its wheeled brother on everything except moving gravel and dirt around with a front loader. The wheeled loader excelled at that kind of work. But shoving anything around or grading was the tracked loader's calling and the wheeled version was not as effective with that. The backhoe was only useful for digging and trenching where it was fantasticc for doing. All three were needed to perform the work and the contractor did not use a tractor at any time on the project at our property. Like us he had a compact tractor available to do light work lifting and moving or working a garden around his own land but the serious light construction work he performed with these three units.

I was very impressed with the mini-excavator but it was not a grader even though it carried a blade and was pressed into service when the bobcats weren't available. Seem like the mini-excavators were in the $40-$50k range.

Why not get someone that does grading and land clearing work to quote you the job for what you need done at your property. They can use the right tool for the job and you can save the light work for you and your new compact tractor once they have left the site?

 

[jb1390]

I don't claim a skid steer to be perfect at every job, but, it will accomplish a wide variety of jobs with a little effort, ingenuity, and the right attachment. Attachments can be bought and sold quite regularly and custom built rather easily. It would be great to have a track loader to remove big stumps and cut a road, but, the amount I would need to use it does not justify the purchase, and I refuse to rent.

I don't know where you come up with cost savings for a tractor...the base machine is about the same cost...most attachments for a skid steer cost roughly the same as the equivalent attachment for any other kind of tractor, and, you can use an adapter to attach any sort of implement attachment to a skid steer if they are cheaper or you find a good used one.

Zmoz,
My next door neighbor has a New Holland LX665 tire machine, with bucket, backhoe, posthole digger, etc. I have a Mahindra 3550 Tractor with a variety of attachments. My other neighbor has a 410D fullsize backhoe. I have spent hundreds of hours in all 3. They are all great at doing slightly different things. In Summary:

Skid Steer Pros:
Most maneuverable, easy to see attachments in front of you, excels in tight quarters, can accept many attachments
Skid Steer cons:
Eats tires like no ones business due to how it turns. Useless driving through deep snow - you will get it high centered and stuck. I will not touch the LX665 for snow. Also useless in mud. You will get it high centered and stuck. Fairly tippy - my neighbor has had it on its roof - I almost did. Harsh on the lawn unless you are real careful. Most difficult to precisely control bucket (due to foot controls). Expensive attachments if they spin - check out woodmaxx chippers if you don't believe me - compare the tractor and SS versions. This will hold true for mowers, chippers, brush cutters, augers etc. The price and availability are also worse if you want used attachments. When I use the backhoe on it - it was a PITA to have to swap back and forth with the bucket everytime I wanted to move a load of material, stump or rock. Also the least stable trying to carry a load - the short wheel base for maneuverability make it more prone to tipping over forward when carrying something heavy.

Backhoe (410) Pros:
Most powerful by far - if there are rocks and decent stumps, sometimes you just need a heavy machine. I did lots of work with the SS backhoe before using this, and they are worlds apart for serious earth work - both stumps and rocks.
Backhoe cons:
Not nearly as useful as either SS or tractor for precise work. I tend to do the heavy digging with the backhoe, and then shut it off and get on the tractor for everything else. It feels very unstable sideways on hills - much worse than the tractor. It also does not like the mud - being 18000 pounds, that's not surprising. I've had it up to its axles, pulled it out with my tractor, and then graded the mud with my tractor without any fear of getting stuck.

Tractor Pros:
Cheapest attachments by far, has SS style quick connect, best ground clearance by far, best visibility, far more stable than SS or backhoe, can maneuver through mud very easily, easiest to use for inexperienced operators (It is a hydro, and I have friends run it sometimes), good for material moving, good in the snow (chains make it even better), generally easy on the lawn. In addition, the ability to run 2 attachments at the same time is amazingly useful. When grading, I find I use both the bucket and the box blade - switching as appropriate. I also use the bushhog and grapple in tandem frequently. You cannot do that with a SS quickly. You pick one. I can get off of it safely with a suspended load. I do this all the time splitting or cutting wood, or material handling. If you are using your SS for loading material with forks - are you planning on getting out underneath it?
Cons:
Not many for its size. I rarely use my neighbors LX665 since getting my machine - though the SS is slightly faster for some things, it is not much faster. The tractor has generally better visibility, is gentler on the lawn and gravel driveway (ss rips it up when turning tight), and I have never had it stuck - in the snow or mud. I had the ss stuck so bad in the snow once on a hill it took two 4wd trucks to pull it up. The 410 is obviously more capable than the tractor, and sometimes there are tasks that my machine just will not handle and I need the 410. In general that is a small percentage of tasks though.


I will join the group that are suggesting to at least consider an alternative for what you are looking to do. If you are totally set on SS, check out the volvo line - at least then you can get out a side door when using it for material handling and not put yourself in danger of being crushed.

If I was a pro doing earth work, I'd have a SS in combination with an Excavator of some kind. The SS is the best machine for moving material and maneuverability. It is not, however, the best thing for every job. I think a 40-50 HP tractor is more versatile (especially per dollar), and better suited for most property maintenance tasks like you are describing.

Good luck.