Hi, this is my first post, here goes...
So we purchased a large piece of property a while back and at the time made equipment purchases based on our needs of just starting out and needing machines to do our daily chores.
We own 170 acre property that's about 70 acres of pasture with 30 or so horses and another 100 acres in trees/forest. At the time an MX 5660 SUHD was a good option for loader work and it has the capacity to handle large square bales which is nice. The tractor has been really nice and it's getting close to being paid off, leaving potential funds for another machine.
Next we added an RTV 1100C and ditched the Polaris ATVs for doing chores and daily work. It's been great I wish that we would have done this sooner. I was driving around spraying weeds in the cab today thinking how much easier it was not to be spraying this much space on an ATV.
The farm ranch chores are going good with the tractor and the RTV but lately I've been really wanting to work on mowing, clearing brush and/or mulching areas for replanting.
Option 1
Use the tractor somehow...
Get a grapel bucket and a PTO driven brush cutter. I like this option because it could use the 60 hp tractor we already have. I am concerned about getting around with this long of a rig out and about in the woods etc. We also have some decent sloping terrain in areas.
Option 2
Spend money on a new machine...
Buy an SVL when the tractor is paid off and use the high flow head to run nearly any style cutter I want. I like this option because the land is suited to this type of cutter, however the price tag of the machine and cutter is large. I'd likely find a lot to do with the machine to help the tractor, but this would be another significant expense.
Option 3
Rent?
Rent a machine to cut and do the work. Unfortunately nobody rents skid steers with mowers or mulchers in my area so we'd be talking a large tracked mulcher when I want to clear and open up areas. The price is 4,600/week to rent, not sure if it's worth it to rent vs own?
What do you guys think?
So we purchased a large piece of property a while back and at the time made equipment purchases based on our needs of just starting out and needing machines to do our daily chores.
We own 170 acre property that's about 70 acres of pasture with 30 or so horses and another 100 acres in trees/forest. At the time an MX 5660 SUHD was a good option for loader work and it has the capacity to handle large square bales which is nice. The tractor has been really nice and it's getting close to being paid off, leaving potential funds for another machine.
Next we added an RTV 1100C and ditched the Polaris ATVs for doing chores and daily work. It's been great I wish that we would have done this sooner. I was driving around spraying weeds in the cab today thinking how much easier it was not to be spraying this much space on an ATV.
The farm ranch chores are going good with the tractor and the RTV but lately I've been really wanting to work on mowing, clearing brush and/or mulching areas for replanting.
Option 1
Use the tractor somehow...
Get a grapel bucket and a PTO driven brush cutter. I like this option because it could use the 60 hp tractor we already have. I am concerned about getting around with this long of a rig out and about in the woods etc. We also have some decent sloping terrain in areas.
Option 2
Spend money on a new machine...
Buy an SVL when the tractor is paid off and use the high flow head to run nearly any style cutter I want. I like this option because the land is suited to this type of cutter, however the price tag of the machine and cutter is large. I'd likely find a lot to do with the machine to help the tractor, but this would be another significant expense.
Option 3
Rent?
Rent a machine to cut and do the work. Unfortunately nobody rents skid steers with mowers or mulchers in my area so we'd be talking a large tracked mulcher when I want to clear and open up areas. The price is 4,600/week to rent, not sure if it's worth it to rent vs own?
What do you guys think?