Bought my first skid today

[WiscWoody]

I spent big today and bought my first skid-steer.... a 2005 Case 430 with only 294 hours on it. It’s pretty clean and I bought it from a guy that bought it new to use on his large country place in Minnesota where I used to live when I was back there. It came with a bucket and forks and I bought his 20’ Load Trail steel decked trailer too plus all the chains and binders for $23K, the biggest purchase I’ve made in a long, long time. But the good thing is- is that a friend of mine has some nice attachments like a earth auger, brush and log grapples and a backhoe that I can use if I get something that he can use at times, a good deal in my opinion.
Here it is-

 

[DodgyNomad]

Very cool. With the log grapple, you can conquer the world.

 

[Rob711]

Please tell me 23k for trailer, not both. Looks like clean machine, I'm on fence between skid steer or compact tractor.

 

[Ashful]

Please tell me 23k for trailer, not both. Looks like clean machine, I'm on fence between skid steer or compact tractor.

I would assume both. That’s a $4k trailer, unlesss there’s a gooseneck hiding out of view.

Congrats, Woody! Looks fun. Clean, one-owner machine, can’t beat that.

 

[blades]

ss vs compact tractor- both have their plus and minus points. Both are insanely priced on the used market.
one thing to remember in a ss you are stuck in side until you put what ever you have mounted on the ground ( with exception of JCB one arm bandits)
Tractors are made for pulling as such the front axles are a bit weak when lifting a load on the front vs ss , but you have the 3 point in back for heavy stuff, SS will dig better than a tractor with the bucket.
SS have very small under body clearance so one has to look at the terrain and jobs. It is some what easier to do maintenance on a tractor vs ss.
Ss blows tractor away maneuverability wise but at a cost to the landscape.
Most attachments for a ss are available in 3 point for tractor. You can brush hog with an ss but I would not recommend it. Vizability of surroundings is very limited in a ss in the more common configuration ( again with the exception of a few newer ss units out there)

just some notes from my experience.

Older 2 wheel drive tractors can be had at relatively decent prices that won't break the bank, units like a 8N and similar and pretty easy to work on. ( row crop units )

 

[Rob711]

Ashful your about right. You too blades, I’ve been looking at New Kubota prices to much. Don’t wanna go off on ss vs tractor. Lets not mention I only have .47 acre. Good luck with your new toy wisc

 

[7acres]

Nice purchase. I'm jealous!

 

[Medic21]

A good deal? Hell, that’s the deal of the century on a skid loader. A new 80hp machine would run not only twice that, you would be dealing with emissions and DEF. and only 294 hrs.

That machine around here would easily bring 30k without the trailer due to the hours and pre emissions. You could get 25k on trade.

Very nice!!

 

[salecker]

ss vs compact tractor- both have their plus and minus points. Both are insanely priced on the used market.
one thing to remember in a ss you are stuck in side until you put what ever you have mounted on the ground ( with exception of JCB one arm bandits)

You can get around being stuck inside...
Last year i had a piece of metal slide off a pallet,just over the fork backplate and took the window out of my S220 Bobcat.I took the door off till i replaced the window,it was on order here for a few months so during that time i was free to get out where ever the load was in height.I will be taking off the door again if i ever have to load or move a bunch of stuff myself.

 

[WiscWoody]

I would assume both. That’s a $4k trailer, unlesss there’s a gooseneck hiding out of view.

Congrats, Woody! Looks fun. Clean, one-owner machine, can’t beat that.

Yup it’s for both of course, I know a few skid owners around here and they said it looked like a good deal considering the low hours and light use on the machine. I put a few thousand down on it but I can’t pick it up until I close on the sale of my home on the 10th to get it, I’m looking forward to it and I was just looking online on how to setup a Draw-Tite Activator III brake controller since I’ve never used the one on the f-250 yet...

 

[WiscWoody]

ss vs compact tractor- both have their plus and minus points. Both are insanely priced on the used market.
one thing to remember in a ss you are stuck in side until you put what ever you have mounted on the ground ( with exception of JCB one arm bandits)
Tractors are made for pulling as such the front axles are a bit weak when lifting a load on the front vs ss , but you have the 3 point in back for heavy stuff, SS will dig better than a tractor with the bucket.
SS have very small under body clearance so one has to look at the terrain and jobs. It is some what easier to do maintenance on a tractor vs ss.
Ss blows tractor away maneuverability wise but at a cost to the landscape.
Most attachments for a ss are available in 3 point for tractor. You can brush hog with an ss but I would not recommend it. Vizability of surroundings is very limited in a ss in the more common configuration ( again with the exception of a few newer ss units out there)

just some notes from my experience.

Older 2 wheel drive tractors can be had at relatively decent prices that won't break the bank, units like a 8N and similar and pretty easy to work on. ( row crop units )

Yeah I was looking for a 4x4 JD 950 made by Yanmar for awhile but then I saw the Case SS on Craigslist and I didn’t jump on it right away thinking someone would buy it and I’d forget about it but it was still on the site 2 weeks later and with my house closing in only a week and a half I went and looked at it and gave him some down payment cash on it and I’ll pick it up when I have fun money to spend from the house sale.... on the 10th or 11th. My next big splurge will be a 36x60 pole shed with cement floor and a car/truck lift at the new place. I guess downsizing and getting off the lake has some benefits after all...

PS, I might keep my eyes open for a deal on a good JD 950 tractor or similar yet since I mow in the summer up here and I would like to have a brush hog for unkept lots that towns hire me to mow that are past their 15" grass height that they ordinance. By the time I get the order to mow them though the grass is often waist high but they pay good.

 

[blades]

6' belly mower gets me by on the fields ( rough cut not a finish type) Pole barn - looking to do that also - in that area I need a back hoe, so been looking for that ( footings for pole barn) still trying to make up mind on an arch or more traditional style. Leaning toward modified arch type. Not keen on the wood frame/pole types although it is quick to set the poles. Likely cost as much for the gravel, footing and slab as the building itself. ( ain't a concrete guy so that's a hire out deal)

 

[WiscWoody]

6' belly mower gets me by on the fields ( rough cut not a finish type) Pole barn - looking to do that also - in that area I need a back hoe, so been looking for that ( footings for pole barn) still trying to make up mind on an arch or more traditional style. Leaning toward modified arch type. Not keen on the wood frame/pole types although it is quick to set the poles. Likely cost as much for the gravel, footing and slab as the building itself. ( ain't a concrete guy so that's a hire out deal)

I’ll be anchoring the poles to the cement slab or not using poles at all- I might just frame the walls conventionally. I got a quote for a 36x54 4" cement slab for $12,000. That’s for the forming, rebar work, pour and finish plus the materials. Not bad compared to what I’ve heard from other areas I’ve heard prices for. Right now I use my 72" commercial zero turn on the fields, not ideal but it gets the job done but I hate not being able to see large rocks in new fields. I’ve been lucky so far- nothings been seriously damaged yet.

 

[Ashful]

Yeah I was looking for a 4x4 JD 950 made by Yanmar for awhile but then I saw the Case SS on Craigslist and I didn’t jump on it right away thinking someone would buy it and I’d forget about it but it was still on the site 2 weeks later and with my house closing in only a week and a half I went and looked at it and gave him some down payment cash on it and I’ll pick it up when I have fun money to spend from the house sale.... on the 10th or 11th. My next big splurge will be a 36x60 pole shed with cement floor and a car/truck lift at the new place. I guess downsizing and getting off the lake has some benefits after all...

PS, I might keep my eyes open for a deal on a good JD 950 tractor or similar yet since I mow in the summer up here and I would like to have a brush hog for unkept lots that towns hire me to mow that are past their 15" grass height that they ordinance. By the time I get the order to mow them though the grass is often waist high but they pay good.

Ive run the JD x50 series. Good machines for some uses, but not for me. The machine I ran had a non-removable loader and 4wd. With the x50 series manual steering, I was developing serious shoulder problems, maneuvering it for FEL work. Also, the manual trans get old real fast, for most types of work I do, esp. loader work.

I went one series newer, the all-hydrostatic 855, which gave me several advantages. The most important of these, for me, were:

1. Power steering

2. Removable loader that I can have off/on in 5 minutes. I remove it any time I use the machine for fertilizing, spraying, or seeding.

3. Hydro trans, no more constant gear shifts when clearing snow from the driveway with the loader, or moving mulch.

The only thing I gave up with the hydro is fixed known travel speed, useful while putting product on the lawn. The hydro has a cruise control, but no speedo. This hasn’t been much of an issue for me, though, I’ve developed a good sense of speed just from hours of practice.

 

[salecker]

Everyone says it's expensive to live in the North...
I can't believe how much money and time people spend growing grass they can't sell or smoke.
I have never had a lawn,and i hope i never do.I let nature provide the yard.

 

[Ashful]

Everyone says it's expensive to live in the North...
I can't believe how much money and time people spend growing grass they can't sell or smoke.
I have never had a lawn,and i hope i never do.I let nature provide the yard.

Different strokes for different folks. Heck, I hate OUR summer weather, no way I’m heading south!

 

[WiscWoody]

Ive run the JD x50 series. Good machines for some uses, but not for me. The machine I ran had a non-removable loader and 4wd. With the x50 series manual steering, I was developing serious shoulder problems, maneuvering it for FEL work. Also, the manual trans get old real fast, for most types of work I do, esp. loader work.

I went one series newer, the all-hydrostatic 855, which gave me several advantages. The most important of these, for me, were:

1. Power steering

2. Removable loader that I can have off/on in 5 minutes. I remove it any time I use the machine for fertilizing, spraying, or seeding.

3. Hydro trans, no more constant gear shifts when clearing snow from the driveway with the loader, or moving mulch.

The only thing I gave up with the hydro is fixed known travel speed, useful while putting product on the lawn. The hydro has a cruise control, but no speedo. This hasn’t been much of an issue for me, though, I’ve developed a good sense of speed just from hours of practice.

That’s all good to know as I’m just learning what’s good and what’s not on both skid steers and tractors- Thanks Ashful!

 

[WiscWoody]

Everyone says it's expensive to live in the North...
I can't believe how much money and time people spend growing grass they can't sell or smoke.
I have never had a lawn,and i hope i never do.I let nature provide the yard.

I like a large yard and up here in the rural area I’m in there’s lots of them and that works out good for my mowing business too and most of the yards I mow are second homes for people in the twin cities or the Chicagoarea. They either don’t want to mow when they come up or they aren’t here much and they want their lawns maintained while they’re away. The problem up here is that the mowing season is rather short here... only 5 months maybe more if your lucky.

 

[Ashful]

@Woody, the x55 series is Yanmar, same as the older x50’s. I think the 750 I used to drive has the same 1.3L 3-cyl diesel as the 855 I own now.

 

[ben94122]

You will love it! So many uses in the woods...

 

[WiscWoody]

@Woody, the x55 series is Yanmar, same as the older x50’s. I think the 750 I used to drive has the same 1.3L 3-cyl diesel as the 855 I own now.

I looked up the 855 today, it’s a nice tractor, you must have turf tires on your rig if you use it in your lawn just as I would have? You said you can take your loader off pretty fast, a neighbor has a Ford Industrial tractor and he said it takes him half a day to take his off or put it back on.

 

[Ashful]

Yeah, I’m running turf tires on all four corners. It actually had industrial tires on the front, when I bought it, which were hell on the lawn. So I switched them out for turf tires, and it was a little fun finding a turf tire rated for the loader weight, but they’re out there.

The turf tires work great for plowing and snow blowing on my asphalt driveway, as well as lawn work. I can don chains any time I need to go move wood in deep snow in the back yard, or head into serious mud in the woods.

They spec 2 pairs of wheel weights plus filled tires, when doing loader work, but I went the ballast box route over loaded tires, since I use this thing for a lot of lawn care. I can drop the ballast in the barn, and make the tractor light when the ground is soft, or pick up the ballast any time I need to do heavier loader work.

The loader comes off in about 3 minutes, with no tools. Pull two cotter pins, undo two hand bolts, install kickstands (stowed on loader arms), raise loader, put hand bolts into kick stands, lower loader onto kick stands, back away from loader, shut off tractor, disconnect hydraulic hoses (quick couplings), start tractor and drive away. Reverse process to reinstall.

I think the removable loader is going to be pretty common to anything x55 series (1986) or newer compact utility tractors. Permanently bolted-on loaders are mostly a thing of the 1970’s, and earlier.

 

[Medic21]

Yeah, I’m running turf tires on all four corners. It actually had industrial tires on the front, when I bought it, which were hell on the lawn. So I switched them out for turf tires, and it was a little fun finding a turf tire rated for the loader weight, but they’re out there.

View attachment 228417

The turf tires work great for plowing and snow blowing on my asphalt driveway, as well as lawn work. I can don chains any time I need to go move wood in deep snow in the back yard, or head into serious mud in the woods.

View attachment 228415

They spec 2 pairs of wheel weights plus filled tires, when doing loader work, but I went the ballast box route over loaded tires, since I use this thing for a lot of lawn care. I can drop the ballast in the barn, and make the tractor light when the ground is soft, or pick up the ballast any time I need to do heavier loader work.

View attachment 228416

The loader comes off in about 3 minutes, with no tools. Pull two cotter pins, undo two hand bolts, install kickstands (stowed on loader arms), raise loader, put hand bolts into kick stands, lower loader onto kick stands, back away from loader, shut off tractor, disconnect hydraulic hoses (quick couplings), start tractor and drive away. Reverse process to reinstall.

I think the removable loader is going to be pretty common to anything x55 series (1986) or newer compact utility tractors. Permanently bolted-on loaders are mostly a thing of the 1970’s, and earlier.

Sweet setup. I don’t have the land to justify it right now.

 

[sportbikerider78]

I have found that ss without tracks get stuck in about 3" of mud. They dig right in and get very stuck very quickly.

 

[salecker]

I haven't had any negative experiences with my S220 in mud.A couple of times i had to push myself out of a sticky situation,but it's dragging belly pan before it stops.Never been stuck with it yet,i am sure it will happen some day.
New tires maybe make the difference.