Tractor or Skidsteer

bja105 · #1 12/29/13, 06:19 PM

I can afford either a tractor with a loader, or a skidsteer. Which should I buy first?

My farm is 100 acres in Western PA. Half is wooded, 1/4 is fairly flat (for PA) fields, 1/4 is reclaimed strip mine, some very steep. I am currently borrowing a neighbor's MF 165 to mow my pasture. I have a big garden that I use a few old garden tractors in.

Initial uses for equipment:
Feeding 6x6 round bales to the horses, and soon cattle.
Making compost, using the next door neighbor's mountain of sawdust.
Mowing the pastures.
Dragging logs out of the woods.
Eventually I want to:
Get some clay or bentonite and fix my leaking pond.
Make my own round bales.
Dig post holes and increase my pastures.
Plow and plant my fields, both for feed and deer.

A tractor with a loader will do everything, but I think the skidsteer will do much better at the loader work, plus it has a roll cage. The sawdust pile is in a steep area, and I worry that a tractor will get stuck. Is a wheeled skidsteer any better with loads going straight up or down hill?
I can get a rotary mower for a skidsteer, but new prices are as much as I can buy an old tractor and mower for.
I can keep borrowing or buy the Massey Ferguson 165 for mowing and farm stuff.

I keep going back and forth, and I am so cheap, I hate to spend the money, but I need to do something. My back is sore again from rolling round bales by hand, and my shovel and garden cart don't make much compost.

DaleK · #2 12/29/13, 06:35 PM

Skid steers suck on hills and get stuck worse than most tractors. Get a tractor with a cab or ROPS

Gray Wolf · #3 12/29/13, 06:46 PM

Tractor.

You can adjust the wheel width on most tractors to be quite wide. You can add liquid to the tires and/or wheel weights too. This makes it more stable on hillsides.

Tractor attachments are more plentiful and cheaper. Never heard of a baler for skid steer.

Tractor will have more ground clearance.

Gravytrain · #4 12/29/13, 07:10 PM

Skidsteers are a great addition to a farm...AFTER you already have a tractor.

Silvercreek Farmer · #5 12/29/13, 07:22 PM

Skid steers excel in tight quarters. Sounds like you have plenty of room for a tractor!

jwal10 · #6 12/29/13, 07:23 PM

A tractor CAN do everything, a skid steer can not. Tractor, lower FWD utility model with a loader made for IT....James

Mike in Ohio · #7 12/29/13, 07:37 PM

I'll join the chorus of folks who say tractor. Highly recommend getting 4wd and a decent amount of horsepower. If you get loaded tires go with antifreeze rather than calcium chloride.

Mike

ATPFARM · #8 12/29/13, 07:53 PM

TRACTOR

bigjon · #9 12/29/13, 07:59 PM

utility tractor-loader-bale spear

Jennifer L. · #10 12/30/13, 07:08 AM

OK, I'm a big skid steer fan and I recognize all of the problems previous posters have mentioned, but you are talking about getting both machines. The order that you have listed for initial jobs points to skid steer first. You need a tractor for mowing, baling, and planting, but the rest on that list can be handled as well or better by a skid steer.

If you were ONLY going to have one machine, then I'd go for the tractor. But if you are going to have both, get the skid steer first. But I'm biased. I put as many hours on my skid steers as I do my main tractor.

davel745 · #11 12/30/13, 11:41 AM

tractor first

Darren · #12 12/30/13, 11:49 AM

As DaleK said, steep hills and a skid steer don't mix.

RonM · #13 12/30/13, 01:20 PM

Tractor with FEL.......

Awnry Abe · #14 12/30/13, 10:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mike in Ohio

I'll join the chorus of folks who say tractor. Highly recommend getting 4wd and a decent amount of horsepower. If you get loaded tires go with antifreeze rather than calcium chloride.

Mike

Mike,
Getting my rear tires filled is on my list of things to get done. What's the deal with calcium chloride?

OP: my vote is the tractor today, the skid steer tomorrow.

rambler · #15 12/30/13, 11:29 PM

Tractor, tho I understand the hesitation.

Tractor wins.

If you actually use a tractor loader, get the rear tires filled with calcium chloride. Antifreeze is lightweight, and toxic if it leaks as well as expensive. Many tractor rims have rusted away on tractors that are not used and maintained with CC. However if you use the tractor, CC is the best choice, as one fixes leaks, and maintains the machine.

Paul

Lazy J · #16 12/31/13, 07:32 AM

I don't see how this is even up for discussion. A skid loader can not accomplish the tasks set out by the OP.

Awnry Abe · #17 12/31/13, 08:16 AM

I started with a Kubota L5740 HST w/ FEL. On your list, I would use it for everything except mowing pasture, making hay, and large ground-engaging work. It is 50 HP but has serious weight issues. It can mow pasture with a smaller mower, but I wouldn't attempt our disc mower or baler for making hay. It could also handle ground-engaging work, but I wouldn't put it through it. I did find out that it couldn't handle a 9' no-till drill.

For the mowing & heavy work, I bought an older Ford 7710. Relative to the Kubota, it is big and heavy and handles all of the tough stuff I through at it.

The Kuboto with the FEL is skid steer compatible. I use a bale spear, pallet forks, and the bucket on a continual basis with it. I am going to buy a trenching shovel for it next. It is nimble and nice. With the HST, my brain doesn't have to make too many of my limbs operate at once.

Still, there are things and places I can't go/do with the either, and I am on the market for a skidsteer.

am1too · #18 12/31/13, 09:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bja105

I can afford either a tractor with a loader, or a skidsteer. Which should I buy first?

My farm is 100 acres in Western PA. Half is wooded, 1/4 is fairly flat (for PA) fields, 1/4 is reclaimed strip mine, some very steep. I am currently borrowing a neighbor's MF 165 to mow my pasture. I have a big garden that I use a few old garden tractors in.

Initial uses for equipment:
Feeding 6x6 round bales to the horses, and soon cattle.
Making compost, using the next door neighbor's mountain of sawdust.
Mowing the pastures.
Dragging logs out of the woods.
Eventually I want to:
Get some clay or bentonite and fix my leaking pond.
Make my own round bales.
Dig post holes and increase my pastures.
Plow and plant my fields, both for feed and deer.

A tractor with a loader will do everything, but I think the skidsteer will do much better at the loader work, plus it has a roll cage. The sawdust pile is in a steep area, and I worry that a tractor will get stuck. Is a wheeled skidsteer any better with loads going straight up or down hill?
I can get a rotary mower for a skidsteer, but new prices are as much as I can buy an old tractor and mower for.
I can keep borrowing or buy the Massey Ferguson 165 for mowing and farm stuff.

I keep going back and forth, and I am so cheap, I hate to spend the money, but I need to do something. My back is sore again from rolling round bales by hand, and my shovel and garden cart don't make much compost.

With a 100 acres you're really debating a skid steer over a tractor. Really?

Rookie Cook · #19 12/31/13, 08:19 PM

Skid steer's are great for close quarters and for short trips (a few hundred feet), any longer than that and the thing really beats a person up. Get the tractor first, with a loader bucket and forks; then other attachments as you can afford them. Tractors give a better view of the work area, and with the right cab will keep you comfortable in all weather conditions.

am1too · #20 12/31/13, 08:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rookie Cook

Skid steer's are great for close quarters and for short trips (a few hundred feet), any longer than that and the thing really beats a person up. Get the tractor first, with a loader bucket and forks; then other attachments as you can afford them. Tractors give a better view of the work area, and with the right cab will keep you comfortable in all weather conditions.

And if you buy a new one it comes with a roll bar.