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[Sluggo]

I fed a boiler for one year without a skid steer.  It was fine until I bought a bobcat t190 track machine.  I couldn't even imagine doing it without one anymore.  Of course it makes it easier but it's the shear volume of wood I can pull in a day that blows your mind.  With a bobcat,winch,and grapple you can pull and stack 15-20 cord in a day with time left over to drink some cold ones and admire your pile.  I have both and a bobcat is worth 20 times more than a tractor.  Everything is so much faster and handier you will not be disappointed.

[ben]

We've got a JD 317 skid steer, Its wheeled. Works great especially with tire chains but rips sod up if you need to do much work on the lawn. We have a snowblower, backhoe, winch, splitter, forks and bucket for it. I use it for pretty much everything. Lifts much more than its rated capacity too. Not great in deep mud or deep snow though with the wheels. Wish it was 2 speed, our bush lane is pretty long.

In liberty
Ben

[aries9245]

I am on my second skid steer my first was a bobcat 853 and recently bought a cat 246 there are certain limitations to skid steers but like others have said get yourself a set of tracks to go over the wheels and you can pretty much get through anything... I still have a loader also kubota that I find to use more often

[justinb]

Sounds like I need one....let the search begin

[rt014]

I'm intrigued by this thread as I know a piece of heavy equipment is in my future.  Until now, I assumed it would be some type of tractor with attachments.  Please tell me more about what makes a skid steer different from a tractor and what some of the relative advantages and disadvantages are versus a tractor.

I'll be doing lots of skidding, but didn't want to spring for a full blown logging skidder.  Figured a powerful enough tractor would give me that capability, plus all the attachments to groom a food plot and everything else.  Right now I use Yamaha Rhino 660 for all those chores, but you have to cut fat trees to 10' or less sometimes to pull with the Rhino.

[tawilson1152]

I've got both and can't see how a skidsteer is better for dragging logs out of the woods. More clearance, better traction, easier to get on and off and with a skidsteer you are dragging backwards, unless I'm missing something here. Skidsteer and grapple is great for moving logs around the landing and clearing the land. If I had to have just one piece of equipment I think I would have to pick a tractor. I'd go bigger than the 40hp I have to handle the grapple. And lots of times its nice to be out either mowing or tilling and having a loader on the other end.

[mlappin]

I've got both and can't see how a skidsteer is better for dragging logs out of the woods. More clearance, better traction, easier to get on and off and with a skidsteer you are dragging backwards, unless I'm missing something here. Skidsteer and grapple is great for moving logs around the landing and clearing the land. If I had to have just one piece of equipment I think I would have to pick a tractor. I'd go bigger than the 40hp I have to handle the grapple. And lots of times its nice to be out either mowing or tilling and having a loader on the other end.

Weld a couple of eyes on the rear of the skid steer and hook the log to that, our tracked skid steer has more push/pull than our backhoe. Bobcat 864, backhoe is a JD400.

[justinb]

My woods are thick and full.  My little john deere 855 gets through my trails, but a larger tractor would not.  Im hoping a skid will maneuver through my woods and still have a lot more power than my tractor. 

[fsuftball]

i use my john deere 6300 with a 640 loader, lifts 2000lbs. i wouldnt do without it.

best part is the forks. i pick up logs waste high and then cut them, keeps saw out of the dirt.

[Sluggo]

If you have to choose between a skid steer and a tractor,the skid steer wins hands down.  I will tell you what I tell my dad (full blown tractor man) if you think a tractor is even remotely close to a skid steer you just don't know how to operate a skid steer!  I have a bobcat t190 track machine with a farmin501 winch and a 6' dual action grapple.  I can cut trees 170' away into the woods,drag six at a time,and I mean full 100' oak trees and then grapple them to a waiting trailer or right I front of the woodstove.  Skid steers have all the weight in back meaning they can lift allot more.  Movements are also much smoother,faster and more controlled.  Anything you can do with a tractor can be done with a skid steer much faster,easier and safer.  Cost of a skid steer is more but once you learn how to run one you will see why.

[Jwood]

Not true sluggo some guys have said they like their tractors for putting in food plots and what not. If just used for wood then yes a skid steer is probably your best tool. Any person on this site can operate a skid steer a 10 year old can operate one!

[mlappin]

If you have to choose between a skid steer and a tractor,the skid steer wins hands down.  I will tell you what I tell my dad (full blown tractor man) if you think a tractor is even remotely close to a skid steer you just don't know how to operate a skid steer!  I have a bobcat t190 track machine with a farmin501 winch and a 6' dual action grapple.  I can cut trees 170' away into the woods,drag six at a time,and I mean full 100' oak trees and then grapple them to a waiting trailer or right I front of the woodstove.  Skid steers have all the weight in back meaning they can lift allot more.  Movements are also much smoother,faster and more controlled.  Anything you can do with a tractor can be done with a skid steer much faster,easier and safer.  Cost of a skid steer is more but once you learn how to run one you will see why.

Yes and no, and I'm not trying to be argumentative, but a skid steer isn't always fastest, we have a yard bucket on our loader, skid steer might go a little more than half a yard at best, loading fertilizer, feed, etc is faster with the loader and if you don't have a cab skid steer then anything that slops out of the bucket could end up in your lap including poo. For handling hay I can carry two 1000 lb bales on the front of the loader and one on back with the three point, can carry two with the skid steer but if you have any distance to drive the loader wins out again with much higher ground speeds. For tight spaces though or doing something that requires very good visibility the skid steer wins hands down, get a tracked one and it will go where a front wheel assist tractor will just tear it all to h*ll.

[Rscott]

I have to agree that tractor vs skidsteer is only decided by intended use to yourself.

 Pulling and pushing power, my farmall 300 will pull both a t190 and a 259b3 backwards and forward all day long. But definitely wouldn't in soft ground.  Where tracked machines Excell.

 I have a full hydraulic loader on my farmall and it lifts, moves and drags logs just fine.  But doesn't have cab heat or radio!

  Skidsteer wise, tracked machines are the way to go. Attachments can be done from in the seat and number in the thousands. But the farmall still gets used where tracked machines would be to small or under powered.

[juddspaintballs]

For my property, a tractor makes more sense.  It's hilly and open.  I have fields to mow, ground to work, and fences to put up.  While all of those things can be done with a skid loader, it's easier on a 51 HP tractor.  My FEL has a skid steer quick attach, so I can make use of skid steer attachments and I have the third function hydraulics so I can do just about any of the powered attachments too.

The big kicker in tractor vs. skid steer is a PTO.  Skid steers don't have them.  A PTO driven brush hog or field mower will be more efficient than a hydraulic version.  PTO implements are usually significantly cheaper than hydraulic versions (i.e. post hole digger).  For implements that have to run a long time, PTO wins out because a hydraulically driven implement will eventually overheat the fluid without an added cooler. 

I came home today to 10" of snow and my house is on the top of the hill.  After driving up the driveway (AWD Volvo with real snow tires), I drove my tractor to the bottom and pushed the snow UP the driveway.  Sure, a skid steer could do that too, but having a tractor sizable enough to do that is significant.  I don't have chains for it, either. 

Since I can only afford one machine right now, it's definitely a tractor.  I don't have woods to navigate, just about 30' deep of trees along 2 of my property lines.  My big tractor wouldn't navigate woods too well, but at nearly 6000# and R1 Ag tires, the woods would flatten pretty easily too   The FEL is good for lifting 1800#, so it has the capacity of most smaller skid steers anyways.

Don't get me wrong, I'd love to have a skid steer.  The funds don't allow it at this time, and I really want a Takeuchi when I finally get one.  One day...

Tractors vs. skid steers: they're two different machines.  Their functions can cross in a lot of applications, but one is not better than the other in all applications.  Earth moving and heavy lifting will almost certainly always be a skid steer application, but working the ground and the hat tips to a tractor.  Both can move logs either by skidding them or via a grapple.  The benefit of a tractor vs. a skid loader for moving cut/split firewood is that I can put the wood on the FEL and the 3 pt hitch to the tune of about 1.5 cords at a time. 

[Jwood]

For my property, a tractor makes more sense.  It's hilly and open.  I have fields to mow, ground to work, and fences to put up.  While all of those things can be done with a skid loader, it's easier on a 51 HP tractor.  My FEL has a skid steer quick attach, so I can make use of skid steer attachments and I have the third function hydraulics so I can do just about any of the powered attachments too.

The big kicker in tractor vs. skid steer is a PTO.  Skid steers don't have them.  A PTO driven brush hog or field mower will be more efficient than a hydraulic version.  PTO implements are usually significantly cheaper than hydraulic versions (i.e. post hole digger).  For implements that have to run a long time, PTO wins out because a hydraulically driven implement will eventually overheat the fluid without an added cooler. 

I came home today to 10" of snow and my house is on the top of the hill.  After driving up the driveway (AWD Volvo with real snow tires), I drove my tractor to the bottom and pushed the snow UP the driveway.  Sure, a skid steer could do that too, but having a tractor sizable enough to do that is significant.  I don't have chains for it, either. 

Since I can only afford one machine right now, it's definitely a tractor.  I don't have woods to navigate, just about 30' deep of trees along 2 of my property lines.  My big tractor wouldn't navigate woods too well, but at nearly 6000# and R1 Ag tires, the woods would flatten pretty easily too   The FEL is good for lifting 1800#, so it has the capacity of most smaller skid steers anyways.

Don't get me wrong, I'd love to have a skid steer.  The funds don't allow it at this time, and I really want a Takeuchi when I finally get one.  One day...

Tractors vs. skid steers: they're two different machines.  Their functions can cross in a lot of applications, but one is not better than the other in all applications.  Earth moving and heavy lifting will almost certainly always be a skid steer application, but working the ground and the hat tips to a tractor.  Both can move logs either by skidding them or via a grapple.  The benefit of a tractor vs. a skid loader for moving cut/split firewood is that I can put the wood on the FEL and the 3 pt hitch to the tune of about 1.5 cords at a time.

Well said I agree to your posting 100%