Tracked Skid Steer or Tractor?

aarolar · Feb 23, 2017

I have MX and I agree it would be many times better suited to the task than any B series and most all Ls except the grands I would think. That said if I was in your situation I would be looking at a nice mini x with a thumb for sure.

AKRazn · Feb 23, 2017

Rustyiron said:
I don't under stand, you have 2 landing craft, a summer island home and rental properties on the mainland. You want to clear several acres of mature forest (does this mean stumps?) and are thinking about purchasing a little "b" sized glorified wheel barrow? (in relation to the scope of work)
Is this just a "pick at it for years" hobby project that you intend to mostly be working the tree's & resulting logs, brush manually into little pieces to use your orange wheel barrow to move about? I'm not trying to insult you at all and I look forward to you hopefully posting pics of this beautiful spot you have and your progress, but unless this is a very long term project with a huge amount of manual labor (all good), I really think you are way off track with this discussion of a tractor that small. It's still going to be a fairly monumental task even with several different 7000# machines like a CTL and a mini ex within those weight restrictions.

This is the exact reply I was looking for! Am I pissing in the wind here? Seems like i'm getting more on track with the MX4800 size tractor so I am not fiddle farting around for ever. I have some time on my hands as my kids are only 2 and 4 right now but I would like to have the place cleared and a house built on it before they leave for college. So I do have some time but don't want to spend all of it clearing land.

Rustyiron · Feb 23, 2017

I am glad you took it as intended!!!:thumbsup:
Get as big a tractor as you can, then a pto logging winch.

AKRazn · Feb 23, 2017

aarolar said:
I have MX and I agree it would be many times better suited to the task than any B series and most all Ls except the grands I would think. That said if I was in your situation I would be looking at a nice mini x with a thumb for sure.

The problem I see with a mini X is one the cost for such a specific machine. Once the land is cleared I would like to build gravel paths, move rocks on the beach for a better landing move firewood from winter kill deadfall, get pallets forks to help unload the boat for when we start the construction on the house.

The other part of this equation is that when we do get ready to build the house I plan to hire one of the larger landing crafts and bring over the cabin package and a smaller excavator. My step father has a 14K # New Holland that I plan to bring over. I guess another option would be to take the trees down, save the stumps, brush hog everything out as best I can and then once we bring over the big landing craft and house materials we can use the Excavator to remove stumps, and dig footings, water lines etc.

Rustyiron · Feb 23, 2017

AKRazn said:
save the stumps, brush hog everything out as best I can and then once we bring over the big landing craft and house materials we can use the Excavator to remove stumps, and dig footings, water lines etc.

Good plan! Several years of the stump's smaller root's rotting off make a huge difference digging them out.

jeff9366 · Feb 23, 2017

Considering the pictures you posted, heavier would be better, but MX series is rugged and within your weight range ~~~ and not too big to learn on, although it will feel huge the first 20 engine hours, then shrink.

An HST transmission has max torque at the low end, and your tasks are almost all max torque, pulling tasks. I believe HST transmissions are less prone to repairs than clutch and gear tractors. I recommend HST over clutch and gear.
Clutch and gear tractors are for long implement pulls in cultivated fields. Read what others recommend:
gear Vs HST tractor - Google Search

PTO powered Logging Winch is an inspired suggestion. You can definitely winch yourself out of any bog, until the winch is submerged.

aarolar · Feb 23, 2017

AKRazn said:
The problem I see with a mini X is one the cost for such a specific machine. Once the land is cleared I would like to build gravel paths, move rocks on the beach for a better landing move firewood from winter kill deadfall, get pallets forks to help unload the boat for when we start the construction on the house.

The other part of this equation is that when we do get ready to build the house I plan to hire one of the larger landing crafts and bring over the cabin package and a smaller excavator. My step father has a 14K # New Holland that I plan to bring over. I guess another option would be to take the trees down, save the stumps, brush hog everything out as best I can and then once we bring over the big landing craft and house materials we can use the Excavator to remove stumps, and dig footings, water lines etc.

I agree it would definitely be a temporary use piece if equipment, bring it in push over and dig up stumps get the rough work done then sell it off and get the tractor for the finish work.

Musdalen · Feb 23, 2017

I sure admire your ambition and willing to invest one heck of a lot of sweat equity and hard cold cash. Sounds like a **** of a project.

AKRazn · Feb 23, 2017

So definitely sold on going with a larger 40-50+ hp tractor now simply because the tractor can get it's self unstuck if it happens, and the versatility seems worth it. have read into MX style Kubota's and they seem like a great tractor. I am not opposed to making a few runs to get the tractor and the implements out to the site.

I was also directed to look into LS tractors as they are an up and coming company and are where Kubota was years ago as far as price / value. Just talked to the dealer in Anchorage and got a good vibe from him. Was told $45K for a XR 4150 with loader and backhoe deliver to Kodiak. Going to also check out Kioti and New Holland Boomer's as there is a good dealer for both also in Anchorage.

IndyIan · Feb 23, 2017

I think a 4-5k lb tractor is the right size especially with a back hoe which gets you to 7k. I assume you could probably burn stumps out as well, during some part of the year? Not too dry but not raining all the time.
I'd look into wider front tires right from the start, my R1's are a bit narrow and can cause rutting when using the loader.

Cat_Driver · Feb 23, 2017

Years ago when I was looking for a new tractor someone mentioned a track skid steer. I though hmmmm, why not. It was the best decision I ever made. Don't let people scare you about maintenance. Actually There was more maintenance with my wheeled tractor because I always got flats that were costly and also cost me a day of no work while the repairs were getting made. Never got a flat on the tracks. I goy stuck more often than with my skid steer.Skid steer lifted twice as much as my tractor. Maneuverability can not be beat in a track skid steer, turning 180 degrees saved me more than I can count. Stability was a no brainer over a tractor. Bottom like if your a farmer get a tractor, for everything else a track loader is the only way to go.

Grandad4 · Feb 23, 2017

jeff9366 said:
PTO powered Logging Winch is an inspired suggestion. You can definitely winch yourself out of any bog, until the winch is submerged.

Agree with that. We used a PTO winch for several years and it was a great worksaver. These winches will have 150 - 250 ft. of line (depending on the brand), so you might even be able to build 1 or 2 trails on your 5 acres and pull trees to the tractor without going off into the muck. You'll be doing plenty of chainsaw work and you still have the slash disposal problem, but a winch does offer a good way to get the trees out without tearing the ground up so much.

Snobdds · Feb 23, 2017

AKRazn said:
The problem I see with a mini X is one the cost for such a specific machine. Once the land is cleared I would like to build gravel paths, move rocks on the beach for a better landing move firewood from winter kill deadfall, get pallets forks to help unload the boat for when we start the construction on the house.

The other part of this equation is that when we do get ready to build the house I plan to hire one of the larger landing crafts and bring over the cabin package and a smaller excavator. My step father has a 14K # New Holland that I plan to bring over. I guess another option would be to take the trees down, save the stumps, brush hog everything out as best I can and then once we bring over the big landing craft and house materials we can use the Excavator to remove stumps, and dig footings, water lines etc.

I know it's a lot of money for a purpose built machine, but I did what your doing and my mini ex got it done. The six way blade basically gave me a dozer to level ground. However I can't do without a tractor and sometimes you just need both. I moved an entire hillside to put my cabin back in the aspens, that's where the mini ex excelled. The smaller backhoe did a better job with the pylons because of the size.

4570Man · Feb 23, 2017

What is the budget here? A TLB like the Kubota L45 or a JD110 is pretty much unbeatable in in versatility and strength at that weight. But it'll take a chunk of change to get one. Both of those machines are slightly over your 7,000 pound limit by a few hundred pounds. Since you have 2 landing crafts I'd back the machine on and drop the backhoe and then haul the machine across on the other boat. Then return and get the other boat with the backhoe on it and back on and reinstall your backhoe. You could probably get them under the 7,000 pound weight by just dropping the FEL bucket but that doesn't leave much room for error especially if you haven't actually weighed the machine and are going by posted weight.

olPete · Feb 23, 2017

Cat_Driver said:
Years ago when I was looking for a new tractor someone mentioned a track skid steer. I though hmmmm, why not. It was the best decision I ever made. Don't let people scare you about maintenance. Actually There was more maintenance with my wheeled tractor because I always got flats that were costly and also cost me a day of no work while the repairs were getting made. Never got a flat on the tracks. I goy stuck more often than with my skid steer.Skid steer lifted twice as much as my tractor. Maneuverability can not be beat in a track skid steer, turning 180 degrees saved me more than I can count. Stability was a no brainer over a tractor. Bottom like if your a farmer get a tractor, for everything else a track loader is the only way to go.

Totally agree. As I said, maintenance is probably less up to 5000 hours and then some. I wouldn't go down the tractor route at all, at this stage, especially if the skidsteer was fitted with a 4 in 1 bucket, it would pull a lot of trees out in one or 2 days! Only downside would be to try to kit one out with a whole bunch of different attachments would prove expensive, compared to a tractor with same number of attachments.. but a 4in1 especially with tilt, and you've got a yardful in one.
You get pretty good at pushing yourself out of trouble with all that hydraulic muscle, with all the time saved you'd still be faster IMO.

mogwild · Feb 24, 2017

Reading this entire thread, I'm starting to wonder how much you could get cleared with 7000# of dynamite

This would be right at the weight limit:

Piston · Feb 24, 2017

I don't think a small CTL is the answer. Anything that weighs under 7k pounds isn't going to have enough hydraulic hp (psi and flow) to run any decent sized implements. I would rule that out right off the bat.

What about a Kubota L47? It's the new TLB which I believe weighs more than your limit, but the hoe weighs a good 1,500 pounds, and the bucket around 500 or so. You could take those off, and make two trips like mentioned previously. If you ordered it with high flotation tires or even just turfs, and carefully ran lower pressure in the tires, you would be able to use a light footprint.

I personally think that is the way to go.

mike69440 · Feb 24, 2017

Taking hoe and bucket off an M59 gets you just under 7,000 lbs, Just under. Buy used, these machines are tough.

ovrszd · Feb 24, 2017

mogwild said:
Reading this entire thread, I'm starting to wonder how much you could get cleared with 7000# of dynamite

This would be right at the weight limit:

Those trucks are very impressive and dependable!!!