Mini skid at work

I got my Prowler mini skid a couple of weeks ago, but the grapple loader and stump grinder just arrived today. I immediately put it to use. I was having fun being the ground man. Pulling brush and loading logs was so easy. I also made me a power wheelbarrow attachment with a 10 cu. ft. tray I had. The wheel barrow frame got broken when it fell off the truck, but that's another story.

looks real good koa,moving wood isnt going to be so bad

Great hey, I got an Aussie version called Kanga.

I noticed your grapple bucket is mounted 90 degrees different to mine, probably better in one respect to feed the chipper but what if you want to pick up a really long log?

Mine's the other way, I pick up like whole palms etc, usually cut them to fit straight in a skip bin etc ... just wondering.

Awesome... what's the mat made made out of and what kind of grade can she move on... up stairs would be very cool... even if it couldn't handle a load on steps, just getting past them might be enough in many cases... We could have a lot of fun with that machine... how much for the whole package??? How much can it lift??? I AM inrterested.... Maybe I can't compete with the big boys and their toys on the monster front yard removals, but wqith that piece I could get the edge in the backyards..

Ekka,
I can change the position very easily. We are using it tomorrow so I'll take a picture of it in the other position. All you need to do is turn it by hand, no tools needed.

That seems like a good match for a dual axle dump trailer too... Doesn't have the height for loading dump trucks does it???

Daniel,
The mat is 3/16" reinforced rubber. I bought 75 ft. of it, 48.5 inches wide. The tracks on the machine are variable width, 34-43.5 inches, so it can easily squeeze through a 36" gate. I don't know what kind of grade it can climb yet. I haven't had the need to climb something real steep and I wouldn't want to with a big load. I wanted to buy 3/8 or 1/2 inch mats, but the hardware store here did not have any. It protects the lawn pretty good. I would love to have Alturnamats, but the weight and cost are prohibitive. The 75 ft. of 3/16 inch mats costed me $782.00. You could probably get it a lot cheaper. Freight to Hawaii really adds to the cost of goods here.

I bought a 2002 demo machine for $11,500. All my attachments are new. Grapple $1980, stump grinder $3200, pallet forks $475, multi purpose tool (rippers, tow hitch, lift boom) $500, and I got a trencher and 4/1 bucket new on Ebay for only $2645. Normally the trencher is $4100 and a 4/1 bucket is $2200. The 10K Brimar dump trailer cost me $3995 and shipping for all of the above was $4587.00. Compact Power is where I got the machine from and their website shows a list of used equipment for sale.

The dump height on the Prowler with a 4/1 bucket is about 6 ft. Yes, it would be difficult to lift over the side of a big truck. You will need to load from the back. My next item on my wish list is the mini articulated wheel loader by CSF. 38" wide, telescopic lift arm 9.5 ft high and dumping capacity of about 1500 lbs. Its their SL25 model. These will be exported to the US some time this year....it is European made.

Koa,

Sweet little machine! What is the lifting capacity? What engine does it have in it? Total hours on the machine when purchased?

I agree w/ murph, this machine could really give us smaller companies a one up on all of the big removal low ballers. At least in the back yard that is....

youll be suprised the 4in 1 buckets on these type and similar loaders is comparable to a bobcat bucket and they open real wide,i watched a really competent owner/ operator moving logs with a dingo loader it was suprising.we all need a loader that just needs fuel

i have a new holland ls 180 steer skid loader with grapple att. gees it tears the ground like a freakin plow .... im wondering if i should get rubber tracks for it ... it can lift a 30 inch dia. log 20 feet long and put it in a tall truck ...but its almost useless for residential work since it ruins turf so bad .... i like the looks of that mini ....dark

A NH LS180 is rated to lift 2555# (50% of tipping load) to 100" or 8'4". Probably the biggest reason you rip yards up is the skid steer steering combined with the 7193# of weight BEFORE you pick up the first thing. It tips around 5k pounds on level ground so I wouldnt think for it to be uncommon for it to pick up 4k pounds on a semi regular basis. That gives ya a total weight of around 11k pounds with a majority of that on the front tires, dont think rubber tracks are gonna help your cause too much.

Check out Alturna Mats, set them up in predetermined locations to turn on and put them in squeeze areas like when going through a gate your tires will wear out 2 strips of grass and any other place where you will constantly be going across the same grass.

TreeJunkie said:

Koa,

Sweet little machine! What is the lifting capacity? What engine does it have in it? Total hours on the machine when purchased?

I agree w/ murph, this machine could really give us smaller companies a one up on all of the big removal low ballers. At least in the back yard that is....

Click to expand...

The lift capacity with a 200 lb. operator is 640 lbs to dump height. I have the optional platform and side weights on mine, which increases the dump capacity to 750 lbs. The engine is a 24 hp Honda. Total hours on machine was just under 200. It runs great, starts instantly and no oil leaks.

I ran on dry grass straight with no problem and gentle turns can be made without ripping up the grass. I even did a few tight ones with minimal damage. A lot depends on the kind of grass you are operating on. I rented it out to a friend moving dirt and he did a dime turn on St. Augustine grass and there was no damage. Otherwise, lay out a plyboard or some mats where you will be running over the same spot or making turns.

I am interested in mini skids, but it will probably be next summer before I can afford one, if I chose to get one. This summers purchases have already been planned.

Doesnt hurt to look tooo much.

How much does your machine weigh? 1500-2k pounds?

The machine weighs 2228 lbs with the optional weights I have and no attachments. Standard weight is 2025 lbs. without attachments.

Nice peice of kit koa..i'm looking forward to seeing the stump grinder.

koa man have u tried the stump grinder yet, I am thinking about getting a mini with a grapple and stump grinder, but only if the grinder is productive. I would like to use it on some 30"+ stumps once in a while and i don't want to be their for a week.
thanks

I was supposed to use it tomorrow, but the control module I got with the unit was defective. The manufacturer of the module sent me a new one, I installed it, ran the grinder and the hyd. motor blew a seal. This is with no load on the cutter wheel. In defense of Terra Power, the parts in question are not made by them. The hyd. motor would not run forward, only backwards. Now it doesn't run at all and I haven't even put it to a stump yet. I would think that the assembled unit would have been test run before it was shipped out. I left a message over the weekend as to what happened. I'll keep you posted as to what transpires.

The grapple is really awesome. Definitely get that if you get a mini skid.

any news about your stump cutter attachment koa ??

Did not get the hyd. motor back from the shop yet. There already were two jobs that I was supposed to use it on, and the 3rd one is on Wednesday. I have to bring along my regular stump grinder, which means another truck. This is getting to be a hassle right now. The shop first told me they could have it fixed by the end of last week. I sure hope it gets done today so I can install it tonight. I'll keep you posted. I also got an email today from Griesback Equip., where I ordered my Gehl AL20DX. They told me it was ready for pickup on Friday, Yellow Transport is scheduled to pick it up today, and now they said my adapter plate did not arrive. I told them when I ordered the machine that if I could not run my mini skid attachments on it, then I did not want the machine. I do not want the plate "backordered" and then later find out it is no longer in production. I will wait to see what happens on that one.

i agree with ya koa why the heck was the unit not tested before it was shipped out