Skid Steer?

[RGardner]

Been thinking about getting a skid steer for use around the farm. I would appreciate any input as to what brands are preferred, experience with them, things to watch out for, etc. Also what do you think about tracks vs wheels?

 

[Boomer II]

ASV makes a pretty cool track skid steer, I was considering one before I got my tractor. http://www.asvi.com/index.cfm

 

[mcoleman]

My local rental place sells Kioto or something like that skid loaders and they are powered by Cummins. They appear to be heavier than some of the common brands out there.

 

[RobertP]

ive got a bobcat 751 that is pretty decent. i put the metal tracks over the tires because you will ruin yards with just tires. but i would perfer rubber tracks.

 

[Todd T]

rubber tracks are the way to go and have far superior traction over tires.

 

[michaelRitz]

CAT, . Tires or tracks, it is up to you. Tired skid loader are a little cheaper but less traction and tear up ground a little quicker but around the farm would be great. Grading ground, making yard, ultimate traction etc. tracks are the way to go. Just my experiences

 

[ToolManTimTaylor]

I seccond the 751 or even the 773. for medium duty the 8 series can work just as hard as a New holland td 65 loader for comparisons sake . Some newer units out there have electro-solonoids that you juuust cannot finnesse like th standard hydro units. You will know right off the bat when you give it a try the vague feel is very apparent. Some say you can't tell . . Whoah then you sure you are qualified to run it then? :-laf

 

[Sojourner]

Bobcat is the firstest and bestest, with a forty year track record. Bobcats take a whippin' and keep on going. A buddy of mine dawgs his harder than any piece of equipment I've ever seen beat up on. He's downright mean to it, I've never seen such hard abuse.



Case also makes a fine skid steer.

 

[bmoeller]

We have several Case loaders around. 1835C (a POS), a 1840 and a new 40XT. The 40XT is the eaiest to work on. The cab tilts up out of the way for most things. The hand throttle is harder to get your hands on that the older machines.



The Deere 240 loaders are really nice, but hard to see the corners of the bucket. Arms are in the way. Have the best lift ability and stability, compared to what we have. So do the Bobcat 7753.



An old Bobcat 543B sized machine is a nice compact unit for tighter areas.

 

[rubberneck]

Not sure what you will be doing, but another thing to consider is the type of lift pattern. The vertical lift path loaders tend to reach higher and maintain the bucket level (or close) throughout the lift path. Tracks would be really nice as when it gets sloppy the extra traction would be nice not to mention they tear up the ground less. Oh yeah, i agree about the electro solenoid thing. they just dont have the "feel" My concrete guy had a new T300 bobcat last year when he did my foundation, man was i drooling over that thing. Another nice thing about the tracks is that he could cross over trenches without disrupting them much at all where as no way i could even cross them with my wheeled skid steer.

 

[RGardner]

The main things I will be doing with it are to clear some trees (cedars and russian olives), dig ponds, and load and unload hay from semi's. I think that I need the ability to handle up to a 2000 lb bales of hay from the top of a semi. This help with the suggestions?

 

[Sled Puller]

We've only ever bought one & it's been around five years now. We manufacture an attachment for skid steers ck!

I'll bite, what is it you make?

 

[BILLVO]

The main things I will be doing with it are to clear some trees (cedars and russian olives), dig ponds, and load and unload hay from semi's. I think that I need the ability to handle up to a 2000 bales of hay from the top of a semi. This help with the suggestions?

I have run most brands of skid steers and worked on them,As for what you want to do,A Case or New holland would be best all around and ease of service can't be beat. but the New Holland is a very large machine. Gehl also makes a rock solid machine. When shopping look for ones with 2 Spd travel speed and a must to go with that or as an option is the boom float option that puts the boom cylinders in an accumulator circuit to smooth the ride out. Takes the bucking out of the machine while traveling with it. After running a machine with it you won't even want to get in one without it,especially if you spend a lot of time in it.



Happy shopping

 

[D Canevari]

For operator comfort,customer satisfaction,and dependability I like the cat skidsteers.

 

[PToombs]

I assume you mean 2000lb bales? Then you need a big machine, Case 95XT, big Bobcat, ASV. One New Holland I worked on needed a special jack that bolted to the roof and the bottom to tilt up the cab. Track machines lack traction in the snow if plowing or pushing, not enough psi on the ground, so they spin easy. Driving or carrying is ok. I work for an equipment dealer, so I get to run different stuff, see how it works. My . 05!

 

[DBogo]

at work we just got a deere CT322 tracked skid steer it will move the 2000lb bales just fine we use it around the farm and on jobsites its much nicer then the wheels

 

[Bloomy]

I know we all have opinions so here are mine. I have run a fair number of brands. The first being the case 1845's and 1840's. Subpar hydraulics and extremely slow wheel speeds. They improved them with the xt series. Bobcats from 753's on up including T190's,200's and 300. The bobcat wheeled loaders rank very low on my scale. Ok hydraulics, but poor stability. No complaints about the T series. Tracks have benefits such as stability and low psi to float across really soft stuff, but there are situations where tracks are not the best option. Cat are ok, but like any good Cat equipment underpowered to preserve longevity. John Deere were great when they used New Holland as their manufacturer. Not bad now, but not as good. That brings me to my choice. New Holland. Without question they are the most stable wheeled loader out there. The NH I have will go places on grades that I would never have attempted with any other wheeled loader. Picking capacity and stability are easily better than machines of equivalent and larger size. Now, I have not used many 'new' models. The ASV's are ridiculous machines. Not a skid steer. These are small track loaders. The takeuchi machines are exceptional as well. Find a price range and enjoy shopping.



Thomas

 

[rubberneck]

FWIW, I have a new holland also and would agree that is very stable compared to other units i have tried but i believe that is do to the fact that it has a longer wheelbase. This is good most of the time, but can be a problem in real tight areas. It also has a larger lifting capacity and is a vertical lift path loader which makes loading trucks nice. Its old and wore out, but keeps going and going and going.

 

[cmills]

skidsteers

We have a 262 Cat and it has been an excellent machine but it only has a little over 1000hrs on it. I have ran Case, Bobcat, and Gehl and would have to say I like the Cat the best, The Case was all but wore out so it wasn't really a fair comparison, but I think it just comes down to personal preference and dealer availability for service and warranty work if needed.

 

[RGardner]

What experience have any of you had with the add on tracks that are available for the wheeled skid steers?