besides tractor, anyone own a skid steer? will it tear up the lawn?

[D33r3 6r33N]

If you expect to drive up in a lawn without tearing it up in a SS, you would be better off to think it can't be done.
On the other hand if you are going to totally gut the place anyway, then a SS is the better of the two.

 

[mud23609]

A skid will quickly destroy a lawn. They sure are handy little buggers to have around though.

 

[Tenn_Blue]

Just one more emphatic yes - the skid steer will tear up the yard! Even if you can straight in straight out, it still is heavy and will rut softer ground.

If it is not really groomed grass (like a field or something) you can back drag after you finish and smooth it out on the way out - thats usually what I try to do...

But the skid steer willl move and lift much faster than a tractor can - just not as neatly. A skid will spin in it's own length (that tears grass up big time) and pivot to get your bucket where you need it. Hydraulics are much stronger and faster - but it's a different kind of tool. We use ours a lot.

You can run it on plywood to lessen the damage on grass. On concrete/blacktop, throw some sand on the surface and it will minimize marking and extend the life of your tires.

 

[TripleR]

We have used a Gehl and Bobcat on our farms and I had to go around with my tractor and repair the "damage". They are great machines for many uses and outworked any of our tractors. We decided to just rent one when needed and have bought new tractors.

 

[BeeferMan]

Check out this Bobcat:

A300 All Wheel Steer Loader Specifications - Bobcat Company

It's an all wheel steer which is supposedly better on turf, and you can get it with turf tires...

I got one of these and it is realtively easy on the lawns. You can still make a mess, but it's is orders of magnitude gentler in 4 wheel steering mode than in skid-steer mode.

I actually use the 4 wheel steer mode a lot in messy areas, it has the added advantage of maintaining true 4wd when making tight turns on slippery ground, i.e. applies power to all wheels while turning. I can do real bucket work in areas (like muddy sloped cow pastures) where I'd be stuck in seconds in skid steer mode.

Big, heavy machine though, 80+ hp, almost 9000 pounds. Not a toy!

 

[funwithahoe]

I had to laugh when my brother bought a skid steer to do lawn work. The next time I went to his house his lawn was DESTROYED! I joked that who would think something with "skid" in the name would be hard on the lawn.

 

[archerynut]

Yes, if the ground is even little soft it will leave some tell tale marks. Moved one for a company for a lot of years installing swimming pools, had to fix quite a few lawns, not from me, I just moved it straight on and off the trailer!!

 

[Duffster]

I have a truck tire style tread on my skidloader and it is actually pretty easy on the lawn.

 

[Johndeere3720]

I have driven both tire and track skid steers on lawns and they both tear them up pretty bad. Have you seen the ASV PT30 with turf tracks? It is supposedly easy on lawn and still has the advantages of a compact track loader. I have used my dads Deere CT322 on lawn and it wasn't to bad, you just make wide turns. The tracks on it are similar to the mini excavator tracks and are more turf friendly verses the skid steer with R4 tires. My grandpa's Bobcat skid steer has never failed at destroying lawns on job sites and it doesn't ride very well on rough ground compared to the CT322. What would your budget be around? Used CT322's start at $24,000 and up verses the tire skid steers which start at about $9000-$15000 depending on your location and availability at the time of purchase. One thing that the skid steer will do is it will out lift most compact tractors, i have lifted 4000 pound pallets of stone with the CT322 and 1500 pounds of barn metal with the Bobcat skid steer. Skid Steers offer better hydraulic output verses a compact tractor and are a lot more versatile in tight locations. But you also loose the ability to use 3 point attachments, especially PTO driven ones and hydraulic attachments are far from cheap. Skid Steer loaders have long lasting engines, i have driven a Case 1840 skid steer with 6000+ hours and it still ran like the other 1840 with 2000 hours.

 

[CompactTractorFan]

I have driven both tire and track skid steers on lawns and they both tear them up pretty bad. Have you seen the ASV PT30 with turf tracks? It is supposedly easy on lawn and still has the advantages of a compact track loader. I have used my dads Deere CT322 on lawn and it wasn't to bad, you just make wide turns. The tracks on it are similar to the mini excavator tracks and are more turf friendly verses the skid steer with R4 tires. My grandpa's Bobcat skid steer has never failed at destroying lawns on job sites and it doesn't ride very well on rough ground compared to the CT322. What would your budget be around? Used CT322's start at $24,000 and up verses the tire skid steers which start at about $9000-$15000 depending on your location and availability at the time of purchase. One thing that the skid steer will do is it will out lift most compact tractors, i have lifted 4000 pound pallets of stone with the CT322 and 1500 pounds of barn metal with the Bobcat skid steer. Skid Steers offer better hydraulic output verses a compact tractor and are a lot more versatile in tight locations. But you also loose the ability to use 3 point attachments, especially PTO driven ones and hydraulic attachments are far from cheap. Skid Steer loaders have long lasting engines, i have driven a Case 1840 skid steer with 6000+ hours and it still ran like the other 1840 with 2000 hours.

You can get a 3-point hitch & hydraulic PTO for them...:thumbsup: