bx22 limitations?

[SCB]

Okay guys. Great board. I have spent a few days (and nights) reading the massive amount of information from past to present. I have three acres in the NW. well drained and flat with undergrowth and some cedar trees. I have roughly two years to design/create the landscape prior to building. I am curious as to the ability of the bx22 to clear land. Can I use the bucket to cut down through the sod of the wild grass and the weeds to the topsoil? Will the bucket level the highs and lows? I have seen in here that some use a box scraper to accomplish this. Should a brush hog be used before doing this? or does the box scaper take the grass and brush too? As I am new to the board, any advice to this newbie is good advice. Thanks

 

[ronjhall]

SCB
Welcome to TBN. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
The BX22 is a great tractor. If you plan on doing extensive landscaping you may want to consider a larger tractor. The BX22 will do the job but 2 years may not be enough time to get it done. Checkout the load capacity of the loader and backhoe against some of the larger tractors.
Price and available time to do the projects you need to get done. Will have a lot to do with the size tractor you buy.
Do you plan on cutting lawn on the 3 acres when you are done landscaping? You may want to consider a tractor that will handle a 72” mower to get the mowing done in less time.

 

[bellweather]

I've got a BX22 and it is a very capable machine, but you may want to consider hiring some heavy machinery to do all the rough work first, and then use the BX for finishing and ongoing maintenance. The cost of a bigger tractor may not be the most cost effective way to go, unless you will need the extra grunt on an ongoing basis.

 

[Junkman]

Have to agree on this one. I had a similar situation and hired a excavator and a bull dozer to do the work..... 2 weeks later it was finished and all I had to do was the finish work. There are things that you can do and will take you a week to finish them and the right machine and operator for the job can do it is 1/2 hour. I had huge boulders that needed to be moved or buried, and a couple hundred tree stumps to deal with. Two professionals were needed to do the work properly and no amount of on the job learning would have been enough for me. Glad that I went that route in my case... With the right equipment, you can move mountains......

 

[Jim_Becker]

I agree on that, too. The BX-22 is an incredibly capable machine, but it makes a lot of sense to rent a larger machine for the really heavy work...largely to speed things up. Properly equipped, the BX will "do the work", but not nearly at the rate that might be necssary. Additionally, if any large rocks or stumps are involved, it may not be big enough to actually move them! Other than that, the BX-22 is an awesome machine that is great for that size "estate". I can't say enough "good things" about mine!

 

[SCB]

Thank you for the comments. I plan to have around one acre to mow and two acres to keep somewhat natural and brush hog two to three times a year. I will contract out the necessary tree/stump removal for the house and yard site. I hope to work in some grading to the deal being that cedar has a good value. But back to my initial question. Can I reasonably expect the FEL to cut down to bare soil? And if so, should I use a brush hog on it first? Or is it just better to use a box scraper from the start. The dealers I have spoke with have differing opinions and I don't want to buy what I may not need up front. I would prefer to purchase the implements as needed without the finance charge. Thanks again to all those who reply and make this board a great resource!!!

 

[GregW]

The BX can cut down the soil with the FEL, however you may want to buy a tooth bar to put on the FEL. The tooth bar will help you get down thru the turf much quicker. I have a BX 22 as well and have used the FEL to cut down the lawn to build a garage concrete slab as well as a new sidewalk,all without the toothbar, but It would have been much quicker to do if the toothbar was installed, it allows the turf to be ripped up, which greatly speeds up the leveling process. This would be true even if you had a tractor much larger as well. The toothbars run about $300 from various dealers.

Best of luck.
Greg

 

[SCB]

Thanks Greg. I have heard also that if you keep the toothbar just above the soil that you can rip alot of small brush out on the first pass or two. Is this a technique that is worth effort or should it be brush-hogged first? Any thoughts about the box scraper? or can a back blade level the broken soil? Thanks again Steve

 

[cpicton1]

If you don't want the extra expense of a toothbar you can use the drop down shanks of a box scraper to loosen the soil before using the loader bucket to dig. That can save you a few hundred dollars. The shanks on a good quality box scraper can soften up a good deal of turf in short order. The toothbar would be a big help if digging into a hillside or pile of dirt or rock where the box scraper wouldn't help.

 

[drcollie]

I have a BX22 with the toothbar and it makes a huge difference in cutting soil/sod. That said, you'll find you'll run out of traction in many instances with the BX22 trying to cut soil. I have turf tires on mine, and I suspect the AG's will do better for that kind of work.

As others have said, get larger equipment for stripping the land. The BX22 excels at doing the handy stuff, like digging trenches and excavating planting beds. I use the backhoe to strip sod as it can do it precisely and much more elegantly than the FEL.

If you get a mower deck, I'd recommend the 54" over the 60"er. The larger the deck, the more you scalp, especially on uneven terrain and turns. I have a 60"er but should have dropped to the smaller size.

Awesome tractor/bang for the buck. For my 5 acres (2 of which are lawn) it's perfect. I'd not trade it!

-Duane C.