well just my 2 cents here
BUT before you start thinking about buying a machine, I would strongly suggest looking into what LEGAL requirements are needed to have to do snow removal
any permits, and insurances you MUST have, and are you willing to deal with insurance claims<
as NOT Knowing what is under snow, can lead to a bunch of damage fast
so making sure you have right insurance and permits can be a BIG deal with legality and liability on your parts, and out of pocket costs
I'd be sure I knew these costs first before buying a machine
NEXT< how do you plan to move the machine from job site to job site? as again, not all cities allow you to just drive to them!, and if allowed to drive to them, what legally must be on the machine, (turn signals, flashing lights, and so on)
as if not able to drive the machine to job sites, that means you also need a truck and trailer, and again, when doing work for a business, you then enter possibly into needing a a commercial license on either drivers lic or , just a business lic to operate in your area's/or even permits needed
pending weight of machine and rules in your area, a CDL may be required!) plus again the proper insurance! as there is a difference in being a private person and a business doing work! and if you CAN drive machine from job site to job site, remember skid steers don't go very fast, two speeds is better when having to travel often in the, but even then, there still slow,
5 or 7 miles an hour, is a slow ride to get some place 10 miles away,
thus why so many trailer them to sites, or leave them at sites
(this is why many tend to use front end loaders these days, as they can travel much faster and handle snow jobs faster pending size of things)
SO< NOW<
if after this stuff you STILL want to do snow removal, I would start talking to some of the folks that plow in your area and ask them what regrets or advantages they found over the yrs, be surprised how many might offer advice to a new guy, all the more so if young and they see you want to go down the road, and could share info, to maybe save you some failures, they maybe learned the hard way over there yrs!
THEN< if you still are interested, as for a machine, I'd stick with brands that have GOOD dealer support in your area, and you
ll learn this by again asking around, not all dealers are the same, some down right suck, and some are great,
knowing what brand have the best support, is a big deal when snow is falling and your broken down, to get you back to making money!
size of machine, I would say it depends on if you plan to large parking lots, or smaller one's,. private driveways or side walks?
too much weight and over all size of a machine can be a down fall in tight places
just as too small a machine can be an issue
so it will sort of come down to what you think will be your most common job to do, to maybe pick a machine
and also, the size of the plow, you plan to use too
Tires IMO< work better than most tracks, and pure snow tires on them make them work even better, add traction devices like chains or studs and even more so, but both chains and studs can damage the ground used on, so, pretty driveways can get damaged and you getting sued come spring time! !~ haha!
there is a lot more things one can say here about snow removal as a job, skid steers are good at times, but so are pick up trucks and front end loaders,
the type of job you do MOST , honestly, tends to pick the best machine for the job
Hope this offers you some food for thought and gets you seeing and finding out details you need to know things before buying things!
