JamesHW
Platinum Member
- Joined
- Oct 18, 2009
- Messages
- 518
- Tractor
- BCS 853 w/ loaded tires
Sorry for being so piano. Here is a before and after pair of shots looking SW from the first pic I posted a few days ago (sitting on the deadfall). The trail continues on down the other side of the hill and a deep 30 foot ravine is just over to the right. There is also a branch to the right that goes over to another clearing I’ll try to get to tomorrow.
The 2 wheeler is great for this work except when it isn’t. On level ground it’s easy and can be controlled with one hand walking along side, but on rutted, uneven ground it can be a beast, so on uneven/ deeply rutted ground you need to strategize what direction you approach from to avoid dropping the wheels into a hole, grounding the tractor front and rear. Usually you can simply wrestle the tractor, rocking a bit to change direction and it will plow out of most situations. The filled tires help and hurt, depending.it’s tempting to run over the saplings in 2nd gear, but better to stay in first until you know what your dealing with.
I love the 853 maintenance, starts on first pull and you really just need to make sure air filter is maintained. Leaves tend to collect on the Honda engine so you need to keep that clear (theres a screen available). The del-Morino brush mower is very robust and only needs a few squirts of grease in a single zerk fitting. One thing it needs is a shield of some sort for the wiring on the right side of the Honda engine when cutting saplings.
This location (one of numerous trails, about 2 miles total I estimate) is about a 1500 foot walk from our shed, no problem with the tractor, but a long walk carrying the pole saw (though plenty of little projects along the way). Thinking some sort of sled may be in order until a proper vehicle is obtained so gas and saws can be staged as the projects get farther from the house. Really the immediate goal is over a few weeks manage to get back to all the clearings and get as many saplings (mostly beech) that are 5 years old. Talking to a fellow with skid steers and forestry heads to come in and do a proper clean up, but he shouldn’t have all the fun. One advantage of the walk behind is you‘re close to the ground so get to know the flora and fauna really well.
The 2 wheeler is great for this work except when it isn’t. On level ground it’s easy and can be controlled with one hand walking along side, but on rutted, uneven ground it can be a beast, so on uneven/ deeply rutted ground you need to strategize what direction you approach from to avoid dropping the wheels into a hole, grounding the tractor front and rear. Usually you can simply wrestle the tractor, rocking a bit to change direction and it will plow out of most situations. The filled tires help and hurt, depending.it’s tempting to run over the saplings in 2nd gear, but better to stay in first until you know what your dealing with.
I love the 853 maintenance, starts on first pull and you really just need to make sure air filter is maintained. Leaves tend to collect on the Honda engine so you need to keep that clear (theres a screen available). The del-Morino brush mower is very robust and only needs a few squirts of grease in a single zerk fitting. One thing it needs is a shield of some sort for the wiring on the right side of the Honda engine when cutting saplings.
This location (one of numerous trails, about 2 miles total I estimate) is about a 1500 foot walk from our shed, no problem with the tractor, but a long walk carrying the pole saw (though plenty of little projects along the way). Thinking some sort of sled may be in order until a proper vehicle is obtained so gas and saws can be staged as the projects get farther from the house. Really the immediate goal is over a few weeks manage to get back to all the clearings and get as many saplings (mostly beech) that are 5 years old. Talking to a fellow with skid steers and forestry heads to come in and do a proper clean up, but he shouldn’t have all the fun. One advantage of the walk behind is you‘re close to the ground so get to know the flora and fauna really well.