i'm looking for something other than a bucket for smoothing grade to be ready for seed. so far at the top of my list is the loegering eliminator. anyone have any feedback on this? also was thinking of a land leveler like the bradco one. or any other recommendations?
The Vail x series looks like it does a good job. They have a good youtube video of it working.
interesting. that looks very similar to the bradco i posted above.
This one is similar in almost every way, to the one I like to use, the most. Because the cutting edges are horizontal, it is excellent at cutting off roots and sod, stripping sod quickly, and great at forward and back leveling... http://www.ebay.com/itm/like/322228963022?lpid=82&chn=ps&ul_noapp=true
If you are prepping for seed just bite the bullet and get a harley rake, its well worth the money and it does a way better job then a landplane does, and anyone worth a darn on a track loader can leave the ground looking perfect with one.
this is new construction, so i do backfilling and grading. not just seed. that looks awefully light duty....
Been backfilling/grading/seeding/sodding new construction for over 15 years, never needed a landplane yet, get a good tooth bucket, that will get you pretty much everything but the prepping for seed part. Oh and if your working in subdivisons with minimal grade change, a laser level can save a lot of call backs because you are holding water somewhere. A lot of areas I work in are very tight as far as elevations, being able to get the grade right on is the best way. What machine are you running?
I'm onboard with movindirt on this one. I use a power rake for seed prep and tooth bucket for pretty much everything else. There are a lot of gimmick attachments out there and a lot of them do the same thing differently. I guess it just depends on how many of them you want to bring along. I've been using a tooth bucket on my CTL for gravel driveway installs (with a stone topping) instead of a tractor and box blade. Same results...just a different way of getting there. One attachment I will be getting here shortly is a Roadrunner grading blade with adjustable blade depth http://www.roadrunnerblade.com/Skid-Steer-Models/ . I have a smaller / lighter version for my tractor and it makes re-grading long rural driveways easy peasy. It works great for arena work and puts a nice finish on topsoil too.
For those types of jobs I use a Bobcat scarifer if the ground is hard to loosen it up, and a FFC Preparator to prep for seed it levels, takes the rocks out and leaves a great finish.
I'm no landscaper but do put in a few yards, I've got a eliminater rake that I use even to finish grade with. A lot of times I'll rough grade a yard out and then rake it just to give it a nice look (probably more my OCD). For house lots and small yards it does good, but larger areas a harley rake will work better. I like the eliminater cause of cheap price vs expensive harley rake. Simple setup no hoses or moving parts to go wrong. Doesn't take up space on trailer, just throw it in bucket and go.
The one I have for my ASV RC 30 has hooks welded to the front, so you can hook a tooth bucket, to the leveler, like yours. I have both the leveler, and a HR, I'd say the leveler gets you to about 75% of what a HR will do...
Yup, toothed bucket and a Harley rake is the ticket. My rake is a Bobcat soil conditioner with power angle, there is no substitute for a professional looking and fluffed up surface for seed. They do really well at smoothing things out in the process and cleaning up the debris. Angling the rake does a good job at windrowing the debris. Rent one if you've never run one. They do a great job on dirt driveways also. I also just bought a Roadrunner grader, something I have had my eye on for a while. IMO it's the best thing out there for roads and finish grading, I haven't used it much yet though.
Best thing I've ever used for prepping for seedbed and final grades on houses is a Skeleton style rock bucket, I can break up clumps of dirt really nice. Teeth down, or bottom of bucket down front tipped just a little, the dirt just breaks up and sloughs over the edge while back dragging. Pretty nice. I have one of those Roadrunner graders JNB was talking about. Makes my pads and arenas really nice, also cuts down time.
Do y'all have the wheel kit for the roadrunner blade? I have one for my tractor and bought a skid steer plate to weld on it so I could use it with either machine but didn't know how it would work on skid without the wheel kit so haven't done it yet. Definitely best blade for straighening up gravel roads.
I have the wheel kit, it helps to stop the grader from digging in once it gets some weight on it when material builds up. I'm sure it would be less important as machine size grows. It also helps to pick up the attachment when going over a depression to drop the material into the depression rather than dipping in and digging into the far side of it. All things that could be dealt with without the wheels, just makes life easier and gets it done quicker.
That pic must have the fellars stumped hmearth.:falldownlaugh
I'm kinda amazed to see a quick attach mount on that smudge bar. Don't you guys usually just grab 'em with the 4n1 bucket?
Hi john I did once but i think grabing themis a waist of time. I'll spend a month with only the smudger bar in front of me it's the only one i found that make doing levels easy And cover large amount of ground. It's also made me a lot of money without a fancy price tag
well, you guys might laugh, but i bought this ratchet rake. used it today and it works really great. it's faster and way easier than using a harley rake for seed prep. http://www.ratchetrake.com/ it looks like this and just attaches to bucket edge.
You'll find a lot of uses for the Ratchet Rake. I actually have a 72" HD model for sale on cl right now. The straps get hammered, but they can be replaced with a couple of short chain sections and a ratchet boomer on each side. Got it Hock. I need to make me one of those deals. Looks pretty handy.
I can email you the size as it took mee a few goes to get it right. It might sound crazy but ive been thinking about building one that can tilt side to side.