I own an 80 acre ranch on a butte in Oklahoma. It's rolling hills - some canyons so steep they can't be walked - with sandy soil and native grass. 20 percent is covered in oak (post and blackjack) and 30 percent is covered in red cedar. I intend to remove most of the cedar leaving some so the place looks like a heavily harvested Christmas tree farm. If I'm able to keep my job next fall, I'll be stepping up the mechanization of the process with a CTL and I'm looking for suggestions. I'm fine with purchasing new but I don't want to buy more machine than I need. Though it'll see 20 hours a week for a few years, after that it'll be used to maintain the place. Beyond the tree removal, I'll be grading trails and keeping up the 2-3 acre pond with excavation whenever it's lowered with drought. I'm thinking tracks over tires to minimize impact that could cause erosion and give better control over terrain. Whatever I purchase, I'll never operate it on paved surfaces. I'm thinking a tree sheer would be a place to start with attachments along with a flail mower that would chew up branches smaller than 5". It strikes me that working the trees will kick up a lot of pollen and mold warranting an enclosed cab. I'd appreciate any suggestions or considerations on brands and models.
Help Support SkidSteer Forum:
i have an ASV RCV it is 86hp track loader. ASV has been purchased by TEREX. so the now TEREX brand has high clearance from the undercarriage to the ground which when clearing brush and trees is a real plus. (less likely to get hung up on the stumps.) The RCV which is not made any more is a vertical lift unit which i needed for construction. terex units have a high weight lift capacity. i would suggest that you check out TEREX, make sure they have service in your area as with any mfg. TEREX can handle heavy attachments for the horse power. what you are proposing will require a larger unit.
try quick attach, they make decent attachments.
skidsteer.ca
Well-known member
- Joined
- Jan 20, 2006
- Messages
- 3,853
How tall and what diameter are the trees and what are you doing with them once they are cut?
ctls have an advantage on soft ground or steep terrain but this advange comes with a heavy maintenance cost in tracks and under carriage. Talked to a guy with a T320 who just put 9700 into his under cariage at 1240 hours.You will want to be real sure you don't climb over too many stumps. bobcat introduced a steel track this year and may be something to conside for forest use.
Also I believe 5" material is a bit heavy for a flail mower from what I've heard, but have used a rotary cutter on 3 ish " minus with good results and cedar is not real tough. 5" stuff is getting close to grinder head time, something like the MF 548 http://baumalight.com/brush_mulcher.php.
Could you post some pictures of the land and more info on your plans.
Ken
ctls have an advantage on soft ground or steep terrain but this advange comes with a heavy maintenance cost in tracks and under carriage. Talked to a guy with a T320 who just put 9700 into his under cariage at 1240 hours.You will want to be real sure you don't climb over too many stumps. bobcat introduced a steel track this year and may be something to conside for forest use.
Also I believe 5" material is a bit heavy for a flail mower from what I've heard, but have used a rotary cutter on 3 ish " minus with good results and cedar is not real tough. 5" stuff is getting close to grinder head time, something like the MF 548 http://baumalight.com/brush_mulcher.php.
Could you post some pictures of the land and more info on your plans.
Ken
Tell us what dealers you have near you. I would recoment that you buy something that you can have service help when problems come up.
If you will be running the skidder hard I would stay away from the verical lift setups like the bobcat 773 or s185. look for the direct pivot point on the loader to the boom. this is a solid setup built for abuse.
Track machines are great to use but come at a very high maintance cost.
Tracks will help in soft soil conditions
4 tires = $800.00
2 tracks = $1600.00 + undercarrage parts if need be
If you will be running the skidder hard I would stay away from the verical lift setups like the bobcat 773 or s185. look for the direct pivot point on the loader to the boom. this is a solid setup built for abuse.
Track machines are great to use but come at a very high maintance cost.
Tracks will help in soft soil conditions
4 tires = $800.00
2 tracks = $1600.00 + undercarrage parts if need be
What I'll be removing will be exclusively cedar. The oak will stay. The largest chainsaw I own is a Stihl 260 Pro and it's more than enough for the trees I'm killing. I got one 24" diameter cedar down with my 192T but it took two passes. That size of tree is rare and some of those I'll keep as they're rather majestic...if they're males. I'm fine with using a chainsaw on the big stuff because, again there aren't that many. Most trees I'm cutting are well under one foot diameter and a 12" tree sheer is what I'm aiming at which would allow even a T110. I'm moving away from a flail; rotaries seem to be more flexible and lighter for a given capacity. Presently, there are no stumps and I'm cutting at ground level to keep it that way. Give me a minute to figure out how to post pictures.
It's farm country. I have New Holland/Case, Cat, Kubota et al. Sadly, the only Bobcat dealer near me is one hour away.
I created an album labeled "mrmiji" with five aerial photos. The dark green trees are red cedar, the round lighter green are blackjack and post oak and they get to stay. Near the pond are some cottonwood, black willow and sycamore that'll be controlled to encourage turkeys but discourage a coup d'etat.
It really looks like a good hunting area the now from the air.
That's the reason I purchased the place. During BP season, the mast fall on the west side makes a harvest from the blind over there virtually guaranteed. The problem is, by the time general rifle picks up the deer move to the east side and bed there. There's a wheat find that they hit at night and then cross through overgrazed fields to my place. My native grass is tall enough for cover and in fact most of the time I jump them accidentally it's in a clearer area. I need to get the red cedar out of the east side to improve the field of fire. Plus, on the east side that does drain into my pond is being robbed of water that could help keep the pond up.
