Skid Steer or CUT for Road Maintenance?

[4570Man]

I'd flag that ad. Looks way to good to be legit. For $10k I'd buy it and ship it to CA.

It looks legit enough to me. Old graders don’t sell for much. If I had a legitimate need for one I’d buy one. Here’s what I found in 2 minutes of searching. I could see myself owning a midsize grader that’s short enough to transport on the trailer I currently own.

 

[spruce Deere]

Tractor for road maintenance. Between my FEL, box blade, landscape rake and my tilting, angling and offsetting rhino rear blade not much road maintenance I cannot do.

Top and tilt on a tractor with a box blade and front end loader you could pioneer a road in, level road bed, make ditches and spread rock on the level, prepped road bed faster and more efficient than a skid loader.

Not knocking skid loaders, when digging trees in the tree farm there ability to lift, maneuver and operate in close quarters is second to none. But when they are done doing there vital work in the tree farm, out comes the tractors to smooth and level back out where they turned and moved on access roads and landings... Tracked skid loaders aren't as bad as the wheeled ones but there is always bumps left behind.

 

[LHF2019]

It would be useful if OP stated what equipment he had other than saying has 2 tractors already for the work he intends to do.

For those that think skidsteers tear up the ground . Nobody says you have to spin them around in its own little circle. They can be driven respectfully and do zero damage. I have chains on mine for winter and currently the ground is soft and no snow and yet you would not find a single place where I have tore up the driveway. Use it for yard work all the time and wife keeps a well kept yard.

 

[Piston]

I currently have two tractors and am considering a third to use exclusively for maintenance on my 1.25 mile private road. I do a lot of grading, ditch work, hauling & spreading material, etc. Some of the work is in tight spaces. Ignoring the significant difference in price between a CUT and a skid steer, what would you choose and why?

I would definitely choose the skidsteer, and put a grading blade with gauge wheels on the front of it. If price is no object you could get a laser grading setup as well.
As far as why? Because you already have two machines that can do the same thing with their own implements, and money is ignored, so go with the new Case DL550 Minatour and you have a dozer/skidsteer all in one unit, that will basically do the exact same thing that you can already do with your current tractors

 

[oosik]

My neighbor has an old, old road grader. It's the "tow behind" kind. One of these days I'll ask if it still works. It could help cure the woop-te-doos on my driveway.

 

[bdhsfz6]

It would be useful if OP stated what equipment he had other than saying has 2 tractors already for the work he intends to do.

Perhaps a better explanation is in order.

I have an 8' York rake with scarifier, gauge wheels and blade that I use behind one of the tractors for grade work. The combination works fine for maintaining the road surface.

The ditches are the main problem. Due to steep slopes, soft ground and all the rain & snow we get, they are a real chore to keep clean. I have to do the work 3 or 4 times a year and sometimes more if we get a lot of rain. The road is 12' wide with banks trees and guardrails in some locations on each side. Due to the tractors length, it's difficult to maneuver when using the FEL while working perpendicular to the roadway.

I tried renting a grader with an angling blade that pulls material out of the ditch and onto the road surface. The problem is, it's mostly soft mud which fouls the roadway. The spoils need to be carried away or scooped and dumped back on the slope above the ditch. If there is a tow behind implement that will do this, I'm all ears.

For years, I used a small tractor, which worked ok on the ditches using the scoop & dump method. Due to it's size and limited FEL capacity, the job took forever. I have a wide bucket for the backhoe on one tractor but it is also tough to maneuver and the ditch work goes slowly.

There is a development across the valley with a road similar to mine. Once or twice a year, the property owners hire a contractor who cleans the ditches with a skid steer or grade all. Due to it's shorter length and small turning circle, he does in a day what it takes me three to do. Yes, the SS makes a mess of the road surface, but a couple of passes with a rake cleans it up nicely.

The contractor, the only one in the area that does this kind of work, charges $2500/day, including equipment transport. There are 12 people in the development who share the expense. Sure, I could hire him to do the work but I would have to pay the whole cost myself.

Doing the math, I decided buying another machine would be cheaper in the long run. This is especially true if you consider the trade in value of the machine.

I have no experience with a skid steer but watching that contractor use his, makes it look like the ideal machine for the job.

 

[Piston]

Another good (better) option that would complement your tractors nicely, is a mini excavator with a ditching bucket and 6 way blade. This would make quick/clean work of your ditches and give you the extra reach/maneuverability. that would come in handy near the guard rails and on steeper sections.

 

[MtnViewRanch]

Can you please post a few pictures of your roadway and ditches? Without pictures, everyone is just guessing. You know what is commonly said, "A picture is worth a thousand words."

Letting us know what tractors you have would also help in recommendations.

 

[LHF2019]

Perhaps a better explanation is in order.

I have an 8' York rake with scarifier, gauge wheels and blade that I use behind one of the tractors for grade work. The combination works fine for maintaining the road surface.

The ditches are the main problem. Due to steep slopes, soft ground and all the rain & snow we get, they are a real chore to keep clean. I have to do the work 3 or 4 times a year and sometimes more if we get a lot of rain. The road is 12' wide with banks trees and guardrails in some locations on each side. Due to the tractors length, it's difficult to maneuver when using the FEL while working perpendicular to the roadway.

I tried renting a grader with an angling blade that pulls material out of the ditch and onto the road surface. The problem is, it's mostly soft mud which fouls the roadway. The spoils need to be carried away or scooped and dumped back on the slope above the ditch. If there is a tow behind implement that will do this, I'm all ears.

For years, I used a small tractor, which worked ok on the ditches using the scoop & dump method. Due to it's size and limited FEL capacity, the job took forever. I have a wide bucket for the backhoe on one tractor but it is also tough to maneuver and the ditch work goes slowly.

There is a development across the valley with a road similar to mine. Once or twice a year, the property owners hire a contractor who cleans the ditches with a skid steer or grade all. Due to it's shorter length and small turning circle, he does in a day what it takes me three to do. Yes, the SS makes a mess of the road surface, but a couple of passes with a rake cleans it up nicely.

The contractor, the only one in the area that does this kind of work, charges $2500/day, including equipment transport. There are 12 people in the development who share the expense. Sure, I could hire him to do the work but I would have to pay the whole cost myself.

Doing the math, I decided buying another machine would be cheaper in the long run. This is especially true if you consider the trade in value of the machine.

I have no experience with a skid steer but watching that contractor use his, makes it look like the ideal machine for the job.

Since you have seen the equipment being used I would say your on the right track but with no experience I wonder what result you would have. Reading your description, to me it does not sound like a skidsteer is the equipment of choice and a small excavator would be better seeing how the the company is using a grade all as well. Soft ground and a skidsteer don't mix well.

 

[bdhsfz6]

Since you have seen the equipment being used I would say your on the right track but with no experience I wonder what result you would have. Reading your description, to me it does not sound like a skidsteer is the equipment of choice and a small excavator would be better seeing how the the company is using a grade all as well. Soft ground and a skidsteer don't mix well.

All the work is done from the road, which is on ballast and quite firm. the only thing that comes in contact with the soft stuff is the bucket or blade of the machine being used.

I don't have my heart set on a skidsteer. From what I've seen, it appears to be more practical than what I have now. A mini ex might indeed be a good option, especially with a wide landscape bucket. I could offset part of the expense by selling my BH92 backhoe. Thanks for the suggestion.

 

[airbiscuit]

I like the mini ex option. Maybe rent one first to see how feasible it is?

 

[bdhsfz6]

Can you please post a few pictures of your roadway and ditches? Without pictures, everyone is just guessing. You know what is commonly said, "A picture is worth a thousand words."

Letting us know what tractors you have would also help in recommendations.

Pictures wouldn't show much this time of year with a foot of snow on the ground.

My tractors are listed under my avatar and the attachments I own under my username.

I'm cleaning the ditches now using an 8' York rake with a T&T kit I bought from you Brian. It's been working great for over 15 years now, and increases the usefulness of the rake 10 fold. These pics are of the rake on my old L3430:

The problem is, the rake draws the debris from the ditch up on the roadway surface and makes a muddy mess. The best approach is to scoop and dump the material back on the bank using the FEL. I thought a shorter wheelbase skid steer would be much easier to maneuver. LHF2019 above, suggested a mini ex which might be a better idea.

Anyway, thanks to all for the advice & suggestions!

 

[MtnViewRanch]

I guess what I'm thinking is that if you were to get a rear blade that can reach over 4 feet from the edge of the tractor, would it not be waaaay faster to just drive along pulling the ditch clean and then scooping up all of that material and disposing of it as you prefer?

Just a thought.

 

[scootr]

I guess what I'm thinking is that if you were to get a rear blade that can reach over 4 feet from the edge of the tractor, would it not be waaaay faster to just drive along pulling the ditch clean and then scooping up all of that material and disposing of it as you prefer?

Just a thought.

That's a nice one !

 

[spruce Deere]

That's how I pull ditches with my rhino back blade. Pull the offset pin on the plow frame, swing it over, angle the blade down and hit the ditch.

Mine is not as fancy as mntview's though, with all the nifty hydraulic movements.....

 

[bdhsfz6]

I guess what I'm thinking is that if you were to get a rear blade that can reach over 4 feet from the edge of the tractor, would it not be waaaay faster to just drive along pulling the ditch clean and then scooping up all of that material and disposing of it as you prefer?

Just a thought.

Thanks for the suggestion but that's pretty much what I do now with the York rake. I offset the blade around 30" and drag the spoils out onto the road. It's a mix of mud, round stone and biomass which is tough to clean up without disturbing the packed stone road surface. It's the cleanup that takes all the time, considering how far I have to haul the spoils.

Timewise, it would be faster to use the scoop & dump method working perpendicular to the roadway. The more I think about it, the more I like the mini ex idea using a wide landscape bucket. The superior reach of the boom would allow me to dump the spoils farther up the bank so they wouldn't need to be hauled away.

 

[tradosaurus]

I have a 1,000 ft gravel driveway and use a box blade to fill in ruts.
If it was a mile I would buy a land leveler as they are specifically made for driveway maintenance.
If Everything Attachment was still in business I would have provided a link.

 

[CliffordK]

I was going to suggest saving the money on a tractor and paving the driveway. But at about $50 a linear foot, it adds up.

 

[tradosaurus]

I was going to suggest saving the money on a tractor and paving the driveway. But at about $50 a linear foot, it adds up.

One estimate I got was $150/ linear foot.

 

[Johndeere3720]

Over the years I’ve used a number of things to grade gravel roads. My go to now is my tracked skidsteer with a tilt tatch and typically my tooth bucket. This setup is heavy enough to break through the hard packed gravel as well as establish a crown on a formerly flat graded road. I have a landplane I use as well but the bulk of the work is done with the bucket. Once grade is set I lock it in place with a vibratory roller. I use this setup commercially but it’s been a game changer for grading.