What to look for in a Skid Steer.

[CyberCop]

Looking to buy a Skid Steer.

Main purpose is to clear property. Going to leave the nice hard woods but have a couple of groves of smaller pines, some maybe 10 to 12 inches, then around some of my larger trees, some popular and pines 15 to 20 inches.

Want to push over as much as possible to burn. Don't mind digging up maybe a few.

Some of the property is sloped pretty good. More like a hill side.

I am thinking something with tracks, but have no idea beyond that. This will be my first skid steer.

What HP should I consider and any other options that may come in useful?

I know a auger for posts, but what else?

Thanks.

 

[Lineman North Florida]

15-20" trees you might be better off with a mini ex with a thumb

 

[4570Man]

An excavator is better suited for taking out trees. A skid steer with a stump bucket will work as long as it’s dry enough to get traction. If you proceed with that plan the bigger the better. But an excavator is by far the best option.

 

[CyberCop]

After some research, I think I was thinking too outrageous. Just really don't want to hire someone just to take down the bigger ones.

I do have a L3540 with a backhoe to help out with the bigger trees, but not really comparable with a excavator.

 

[5030]

15-20" trees you might be better off with a mini ex with a thumb

Or a stump grinder. They make them for mounting on a skid loader instead of PTO driven, they are hydraulic run.

A mini ex is gonna cost you appreciably more than a skid and the use is somewhat limited as well.

 

[4570Man]

Or a stump grinder. They make them for mounting on a skid loader instead of PTO driven, they are hydraulic run.

A mini ex is gonna cost you appreciably more than a skid and the use is somewhat limited as well.

Not true. I paid a notable amount less for my new KX040 than I did my 75-3. I wouldn’t buy a 40 for taking down 20” trees either. It would work especially for poplar trees but a 20-30k pound machine is more suited for that work.

 

[4570Man]

After some research, I think I was thinking too outrageous. Just really don't want to hire someone just to take down the bigger ones.

I do have a L3540 with a backhoe to help out with the bigger trees, but not really comparable with a excavator.

A skid steer with a stump bucket would beat the heck out of the tractor backhoe. A large frame CTL with a stump bucket actually works fairly well it’s just not what I would buy to do the work.

 

[airbiscuit]

How many acres?

 

[jk96]

Tracks for stability. For clearing, the larger you can afford the better. The zig zag pattern for tracks are amazing for traction in dirt, mud ,snow, and hills. Your going to want a stump bucket, grapple, and heavy duty brush cutter. High flow would be preferred for the brush cutter but you can still do some decent work with standard flow. There are a lot of times I'm running standard instead of high flow on mine unless tackling larger trees. Now with the larger machine I have I usually just use the tree puller for trees 5 to 8" and cut the smaller stuff. Stump bucket for for the large stuff.

 

[CyberCop]

How many acres?

A little over 5 acres