New land owner looking for ?

[pat80flh]

Howdy folks, I have bought my dream retirement property, 33 acres of forest in the foothills of the Allegany mountains. The house is rehabbed and we're full time, need to get to work on the land.
The property was a family junkyard. Local legend has it that they pulled 130 cars from the property before i bought it. It shows. The back field is barely able to be walked in, the ruts and depression are almost knee deep in places. There are piles of old tires scattered throughout the field. I can see that the barn was built and driveway were built on top of old junk, there are odd tires and car frames poking out of the bank. Plan is to transport the tires there, cut them up, and bury them in fill.
There are also old logging trails throughout the property that I'd love to clean up. There's an old barn I need to demolish, and 10 old tractor hulks, some Allis B's and old McCormicks.
I'm also poor, or at least value conscious. Retired auto mechanic, but I don't know squat about tractors. I'm kind of torn as to what to buy. I can see the need for a backhoe/loader. There are a few around in the 6-10k range, mostly old Case or Massey. But I'm also considering something newer, more expensive, that I don't have to fix. Like maybe this?
https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/349304110807438/

 

[Vlach7]

I had an old backhoe, loader, full-size, and it was very nice to get heavy work done with that but you gotta fix them and work on them when they break down. That’s why I got rid of it and got my L 47TLB so I have the three point hitch also for scraping the field and my dirt road so you got lots of considerations to do if you’re going to end up with two old tractors or one newer one, And also there is always the consideration of renting a tractor for the smaller or brief jobs that the tractor is made for. That’s the problem with the old Baccos is they usually are not made for three point hitch where I just use the front bucket for the scraping , in the past, now I have the luxury of a newer tractor that has three point capability.

 

[D2Cat]

Maybe a 40-50 Hp tractor with a toothbar on the loader and a grapple. Would be quicker picking and piling tires and steel items.

 

[Runs With Scissors]

If I were you, and that legend is true, I might consider something with tracks instead of tires.

My daughter and SIL bought something similar and the very first time he used it, he found a sharp piece of metal in no time and my 23 hour tractor had to get the tire repaired.

I just bought some of that Kubota Tire sealant last week, so this weekend I'm gonna give it a whirl, so I suppose that's an option too.

There are lots of "moving parts" to your actual question though.

And as usual, and most importantly, is the "budget vs needs/wants" .

As well as "cash vs finance"

Then there is the "cab vs no cab" thing......

Sounds like a lot of work though, so a bigger TLB might work?

Maybe an MX?

 

[skeets]

I have to agree with RWS, if what you say it true then tire loss is probbly a very good point and expencive. One other thing you may think about, and like you I am rather frugal with my dosh. Look around and see if you can find someone to come in, that has the right equipment to clean things up get rid of the trash and haul it away, and maybe level out the land. Is it going to be costly most likely, but inthe long run it will be done and you havent torn yourself or anything you own up.
Just MHO

 

[GreensvilleJay]

If you can clean up access to the A-C B's they WILL SELL !!!
Can you not recycle the tires ??? I hate to hear about buried stuff, especially tires.
It took a guy over a YEAR to cleanup the 50 year old car scrap yard and that was with pros coming in. One guy ?, it'll be a decade or two of dedicated work....you'll ALWAYS fine 'bits and pieces'. tracks sound like a great idea.Maybe a 'skid steer' ??

 

[Runs With Scissors]

I don't know much about it, but another possibility to avoid flats from errant metal doo-hickeys, would be having a tractors tires filled with foam?

 

[Trapper Bob]

I have been traveling that road. I bought an old farm. I have an aerial photograph taken in 1961 that showed the property with row crops fence to fence. I purchased the 242 acres in 2017. It was overgrown with trees (the kind with thorns), farm equipment left where it quit. Trash, tires, implements used for erosion control.
I set my budget for tractor & attachments and bought the biggest & best I could afford. Like you, I wanted to work on the land, not the tractor & gear (why I bought Kubota & EA). I was able to find a local farmer (with heavy equipment) who wanted to lease the tillable acres. I took machine time instead of cash for the lease. I filled the tractor tires with sealant & got to work. Anything too big for my equipment was done by my farmer friend.
I contacted the local NRCS/FSA office for advice/help (help=$$$) and they were very helpful with both. I’ve done a lot & still have plenty to do (my retirement fun).
It kind of depends how far you want to go. If you want all the old items gone. I believe you need something with steel tracks & HP if you really want to move/remove those steel frames poking out of the ground. I also agree that you should not judge all that trash, could be many treasures sitting ther

 

[Trapper Bob]

(Finger hit POST REPLY)
there. Find an old tractor club/dealer or scrap guy. You may not get many dollars for it, but removed from property is worth it (what I did).
Do your research & have a plan for the ground. NRCS/FSA can help with this.
Most important, be patient, good deals on tractors/attachment do not happen often. Have the cash ready & move quick because you are not alone in your search.
Good luck, anything you do will be a step towards your dream.

 

[pat80flh]

Thanks guys you've given me a lot to chew on. I happened to take a load of scrap metal to the recycler and turns out he was the one who hauled the cars off. He told me about trying to pick up an old Plymouth that was packed to the top with old alternators, and the car just disintegrated around them.
And I hear y'all about hiring someone, but the tires are a problem. I had a guy offer to come in, stuff the old barn in a dumpster, and scoop up the tires, but I'd have to pay to have the tires recycled. He said $5000 a day for a him and another operator, but $6000 a ton for tires, to pick them up and take them to a recycler.
There's another guy down the road who does excavating, he's much cheaper, but ain't touching the tires. It's NY state so don't expect things to make sense. The county I used to live in accepted tires at the landfill if the sidewalls were cut out. Down here, forget it. If you buy a years subscription to the transfer station, you can get rid of 4 tires a year.
So I'm looking at pulling the tires out a few at a time. I've got a plan. There are piles of tires scattered all over the property, which incidentally is an old oil field from the 1920's. I'm looking at this a s my retirement project, it'll keep me out of the bars. As a retired mechanic, the place just felt like home, and I want nothing more than to clean it up. I may even apply to the government for a medal.
The terrain is hilly and rough. The guy at the junkyard agreed that a tracked vehicle would be the best bet, so that's where I'm going to start looking.

 

[trial and error]

@pat80flhi hear ya on the part about NY and their over regulation/not much making sense. Tires in ny are a major chore and expense to dispose of. Others have made good suggestions tracks are probably a good idea.

 

[GreensvilleJay]

It's NUTS that NY doesn't have a 'tire recycling' program considering the number of envrionuts in that state.
Maybe start hauling them out,close to roadside,in a semi organized line, then see about a service organiziation (scouts ? ) that might haul them to recycler(if he pays ), so they can make money ?
The 'trick' to property management is deciding WHERE to put stuff for EASY access. Obviously 'like' stuff goes in same pile.
BTW don't get rid of all the scrap.Sort it, some stuff you'll need later...BTDT..sigh. Get $50 for a load then 3 days later WHERE did i put that perfect piece of steel I need NOW ??????? grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

 

[jimh406]

Other than cleanup, what do you plan to do with the land?

That will make a big difference on what to buy. If you shoot or plan to get into it, maybe the tires can be part of a range backstop.

 

[Motion]

I hope you did a Phase I environmental site assessment prior to purchase. Will you be on community water or private well?