<font color="blue"> Don't worry. If you are doing work for money, you will learn quickly a few things...
In doing volunteer work for our old Little League and our children's school and church, here's what I've learned...
Get a trailer with a workbox on it that is big enough to hold shovels, rakes, post hole digger and pry bar. Also keep chains, tie downs, hammer, punch and assorted hand tools, as well as your lunchbox. The trailer should be large enough to take your entire arsenal of attachments with you, wether you need them or not. This impresses the heck out of people when you show up as a one man crew with all this stuff in a nice, neat package.
Park in a place where you can unload attachments easily, if needed. I like to back off the trailer with my large bucket attached to the tractor. In that, I usually have nested my small bucket and the pallet forks. I dump the small bucket so that I can access it from the side that the quick attach for the forks is on. Then I go off to work. If I need to switch attachments, I quickly drive over to the staging area, drop the current attachment in a nice straight line with the other attachments and pick up the next one and go back to work ASAP. This impresses the heck out of folks, too.
I try to do the tasks as quickly and efficiently as possible. If working for a foreman(at church, there is always a foreman), I complete the task and drive over to the foreman and ask for another task. This also impresses people. Man, that machine works fast(they don't give credit to the operator).
At the end of the day, I load up all the attachments that I've used for the day in the reverse order and tie down the tractor. Then I give the operator's area a quick wipe down with a rag, double check my tie downs and lock my tool box. A quick inspection of the area for any debris and a handshake for anyone that stayed and worked as long as the tractor(this impresses them, too) and off I go.
I talk a lot about impressing people. But, after all, that is what you need to do to increase business by word of mouth. It is going to be your free advertising. And first impressions are lasting ones. </font>
MossRoads, that's great advice! I can't get enough of that from those who have been there! As I learn to effectively operate the equipment I'll start edging into what you mentioned along with developing a business plan. Initially, along with volunteer work, I'll be working my first market area, my immediate subdivison neighborhood where I can drive the tractor to the job.
I have been looking at trailers as its just a matter of time until I need one. I'll probably see how my brother's single axle trailer works and then go from there. The car hauler still sounds like the best way to go. The drawback to tandem rigs is the ability to move them around in my garage which is why my boat sets on a single axle trailer.
