crawler loader

I need to clean up about 5 acres of spruce/poplar trees, that a plow wind knocked over and pulled 'em up by the roots.

due to steep access, and risk of puncture, I think a tracked vehicle would be best.

some of my trees are 30" at the butt.

I would limb and cut them to 16 feet or so, and cut off stumps, and carry/drag them up the hill for processing into lumber/logs/firewood, and a burning pile for the stumps.

the price of crawlers his pretty steep up here.
I like the idea of a loader to help with the moving.

There are occasionally some crawlers with Dozers or Loaders for sale within a couple hours.

Right now, I have seen an IHC175 for $10k, and an AC HD7(G?) for $4k

I know two things about crawlers... nothing and....   OK, ONE thing!


any reason I should stay away from an older HD7?

Rent or lease a good one.

The HD7 has a 3 cylinder Detroit Diesel. The HD7G has a turbocharged (4) cylinder diesel. The HD7G is a good and powerful machine when it is working and a money pit when it breaks. Find out which machine you are looking at and post the question again.

I own a 7G, I would make sure I wasn't buying a G-b series as they were mostly Fiat with Iveco engine parts for these are as or more scarce than for mine. The IH is a similar sized machine with similar issues. Rails are no longer made for either so if shot may last awhile or could be pin and bushing turned to stretch some life but still an expense. Cats are and will remain expensive so if can tolerate maintenance upkeep the older machines and obsolete machines can do as good a job. Primary concern is if they are already worn slick neither is a bargain even at the prices quoted.

Tracy Martin TN wrote: Rent or lease a good one.

I wish that were an option, but time would make it not worthwhile.
I need a machine for a couple years to do what I need doing.

shameless (ne) wrote: the poplar trees in my area have very little root systems to them, they can mostly be uprooted and knocked over with a 100 HP size tractor and a good rear blade. that's one way I did some of mine here, the other way was I hooked a cable from a 1 ton wrecker up about 8-12 ft above ground and just pulled them over, roots came out too. can also cut the spruce down, and take a back hoe out to dig the stumps. every farm should own a backhoe/loader!

my trees that I am going to remove, are either broke at 20 ft up, or pulled up by the roots, so need a way to lift the rest of the ball out of the ground.
I have a 160hp tractor, but worry about tire punctures. The only area I can access is quite steep, and has been pushed with a dozer, and bushhogged a few times to chop down the new growth. it was a right of way for power, but the lines/poles have since been removed.

I have been thinking of using cable and snatch block... but that would require some building of an arch/trellis??? to winch over to keep the cable off the ground.

darrel in ND wrote: Is the 7 that you are considering the one up by Saskatoon.....? Darrel

yup, that is the one I saw, that tweeked my memory of the work I need to do.

I could put a loader on one of my tractors, but the land is not conducive to tractors. I almost had to leave one down there when I first moved out there. Thank goodness it had a loader... I pushed myself back up.

nanuk wrote: Tracy Martin TN wrote: Rent or lease a good one. I wish that were an option, but time would make it not worthwhile. I need a machine for a couple years to do what I need doing. shameless (ne) wrote: the poplar trees in my area have very little root systems to them, they can mostly be uprooted and knocked over with a 100 HP size tractor and a good rear blade. that's one way I did some of mine here, the other way was I hooked a cable from a 1 ton wrecker up about 8-12 ft above ground and just pulled them over, roots came out too. can also cut the spruce down, and take a back hoe out to dig the stumps. every farm should own a backhoe/loader! my trees that I am going to remove, are either broke at 20 ft up, or pulled up by the roots, so need a way to lift the rest of the ball out of the ground. I have a 160hp tractor, but worry about tire punctures. The only area I can access is quite steep, and has been pushed with a dozer, and bushhogged a few times to chop down the new growth. it was a right of way for power, but the lines/poles have since been removed. I have been thinking of using cable and snatch block... but that would require some building of an arch/trellis??? to winch over to keep the cable off the ground. darrel in ND wrote: Is the 7 that you are considering the one up by Saskatoon.....? Darrel yup, that is the one I saw, that tweeked my memory of the work I need to do. I could put a loader on one of my tractors, but the land is not conducive to tractors. I almost had to leave one down there when I first moved out there. Thank goodness it had a loader... I pushed myself back up.

Timber wouldn't last here that long and be good. If it is worthwhile, let a timber crew harvest it, take the cash , buy a reasonable unit and finish it out yourself. Sell the unit when you finish. HTH Tracy