Looking to buy a tractor, or CTL, or skid steer, need advice

[bf15]

Hi.

I am getting ready to start a project to build a garage. This garage is going on a hill. I have a flat section cut into it that i used a friends skid steer to do, and am going to be having dirt brought in and building a retaining wall to make a wider area. I need to buy something with a front end loader for moving and spreading the dirt, and then also have a backhoe attachment for digging the footer. It also would need to be used to pick up retaining wall blocks.

My property is hilly so i was leaning towards a CTL, or skid steer, but also thought a 4x4 tractor with the front bucket and rear backhoe would work well.

I do own a older ford 2600 series tractor but it is a more of a plowing tractor, no bucket, or backhoe, and research seems to indicate that these cannot lift much with a bucket, and that thos 3 point backhoes could damage the tractor since its not built up for something like that in the rear.

I am thinking my best option is to get a CTL, or a skid loader so that i can zero turn, due to the clif i'll be working next to, and since the drive up the hill to where the garage is, is a bit steep these should fair better than the tractor going up hill.

What would you guys recommend?

I could either get a CTL, or SKID, new 4x4 tractor with backhoe and bucket, upgrade my 2600 with a bucket and a 3 point backhoe, or get a new 4x4 tractor. My gut is that a skid steer is my best bet, but ive read that a CTL is better.

My budget is 15,000. and if i get new equipment, i'd like to stay as close to to 5000 lbs as I can. Im not sure the weights of skid steers and CTLs, but i can tow 12,500 lbs, truck is lifted so no 5th wheel option, and my triler is about 2500 lbs. Eventually i want to build a longer trailer to pull both a skid steer/CTL and the tractor, so i need to keep the weight of the skid steer down. my tractor with a scrape is about 3500 lbs, plus a bigger trailer would be about 3500 lbs. so this would leave me with 5500 lbs to spare.

 

[4570Man]

At 15k budget a tractor is your best bet. Throwing the budget out the window a CTL is infinitely better than a wheeled skid. If you’re talking about those standard pre cast concrete blocks like this you can forget about moving them with a 5,000 pound machine. My buddies Gehl skid steer weighs 7,000 pounds and will drag them around but can’t lift and set them. My M59 weighs 8300 without the optional weight it has and will just barely do it.

 

[amhicks21]

As someone with about 4000 hours on cut's and about 2000 on ctl's, i would go ctl for that type of work every time. you may have a hard time finding one under 5000lbs though. They are way heavier than they look. The machine i operate is considered a small frame machine and weighs in right around 8000lb. At that weight, it will just carry a standard 3000lb pallet of block safely. For example, the smallest ctl that bobcat currently makes weighs 6200. There certainly are smaller ones, like the terex pt-30 weighs only 3300lbs but at that size they're pretty limited on what they can do. I guess your biggest decision would have to be how much compromise on capability you're willing to take to be able to haul both your tractor and ctl together.

 

[4570Man]

As someone with about 4000 hours on cut's and about 2000 on ctl's, i would go ctl for that type of work every time. you may have a hard time finding one under 5000lbs though. They are way heavier than they look. The machine i operate is considered a small frame machine and weighs in right around 8000lb. At that weight, it will just carry a standard 3000lb pallet of block safely. For example, the smallest ctl that bobcat currently makes weighs 6200. There certainly are smaller ones, like the terex pt-30 weighs only 3300lbs but at that size they're pretty limited on what they can do. I guess your biggest decision would have to be how much compromise on capability you're willing to take to be able to haul both your tractor and ctl together.

A CTL is absolutely the best tool for the job. But at 15k they’re junk money pits.

 

[Ortimber]

Considering your budget, I'd first rent a CTL to do the dirt work, then rent a mini-ex to dig your footings and move blocks. Once all the construction oriented jobs are finished, pick up a nice tractor with a loader and you'd probably be set.

 

[4570Man]

I think you’ll be better off setting the blocks with a big CTL. Rental minis bigger than 5 tons are fairly rare and they won’t set 2 ton blocks. If you can get a big enough mini than it would be for the job.

 

[jeff9366]

Safety should be your first concern.

ON HILLS:

Front engine tractors with employed FELs are unstable.

Rear engine Skid Steers are reasonably stable.

Rear engine CTLs are most stable, also most expensive to acquire and most time consuming to maintain.

Considering your budget, I'd first rent a CTL to do the dirt work, then rent a mini-ex to dig your footings and move blocks. Once all the construction oriented jobs are finished, pick up a nice tractor with a loader and you'd probably be set.

Good advice.

 

[dodge man]

A skid steer or track loader aren’t going to dig a trench for your footers. The do make backhoe attachments for them but at your budget I doubt you are going to get one.

Is this a one time thing? If so I’d rent what you need. Most people find a tractor is better for long term use on property for landscaping, driveway maintenance, mowing, snow removal etc. I think at your budget unless you get a really small tractor you are looking at a well used piece of equipment with quite a few hours but doable if you can do maintenance on it.

 

[bf15]

This won't be a 1 time thing, just is my excuse to finally get one and stop borrowing by friends skid steer. He also doesn't have all the attachments.

So realistically what should I expect to spend? Just for the ctl? I was not including the price of the backhoe attachment in the 15k. Overall I was thinking I'd have 13-15 k in something like a t190, and then another 3-5 k in a backhoe attachment.

Ultimately I want to use it to bush hog slopes that I don't feel safe on the tractor with, picking up hay bales and putting up high in the barn, and to do some part time work for others for landscaping.

And I constantly find my self needing to pick up heavey stuff, I use a boom on the tractor to do this now, but I think the tractor just takes to much room to turn.

I have not worked on a skid steer, or ctl. But I have worked on diesels trucks and cars. I'm about to rebuild the Ford 2600 to repair the hydrolic pump on it. This seems like it's going to be a huge job. I've rebuild several engines. Mostly small gassers for karts and ATVs, or sbc engines. I always have handled repair work in the mindset that why pay someone else to fix it when I could use money saved and put it towards getting more tools, but I've never cared to work on other people's stuff. I willing enough to fix my own stuff to save the money,, but would never live the life of fixing other people's stuff for 8+ hours per day. My daily job is being network engineer, but I've been working on my own cars since I was 14, and grew up on on a 2500 acre tobacco farm where we fixed all our own tractors, and I built alot of attachments. I'm hoping with what I buy here I can pick up some weekend work. To help pay for it over time.

 

[Ortimber]

I think you’ll be better off setting the blocks with a big CTL. Rental minis bigger than 5 tons are fairly rare and they won’t set 2 ton blocks. If you can get a big enough mini than it would be for the job.

Yes, 2 ton blocks would be tough to deal with for sure.