For starters, I'd like to make money with it if at all possible. Right now I'm at a lawn service for $8 an hour. What attachments are the most useful for a one man show? What's the best way to learn how to use this thing? I'm taking this very seriously and don't just wanna be some jerk who's screwing around on a skid steer who has no idea what he's doing. At the moment I have no idea what I'm doing and would like to be at at least an intermediate level before I start lining up jobs. I don't want to sell this and blow all the money and still be making $8 an hour doing lawns. I would really REALLY like to make a business out of this. Any help is appreciated as I don't think I'm going to come across an opportunity like this in life again.
Welcome to the Forum Jsilv!:drink up For starters, what kind of skid is it?
Hey thanks! We're working with a 2003 CAT 257. Hopefully that's a real model number because the mechanics hand writing is hard for me to read.
Yeah that's a real model number. I am not familiar with the cat tracked skid steers, as I have always ran Bobcats. Our other members can chime in on the "in's and out's" of this particular model. Have you ran a skid steer before? If you haven't it's no big deal, we all started somewhere. Do you have some property or an area to get familiar with it?
Well, never ran a skid steer before. But I have my own yard (which is small) and my parents want their yard (slightly bigger) to have the grass torn up then soil added, then grass added. I figured doing that for free would be a good opportunity for me to learn. If nothing else I could practice with the controls a little. Ok, if learning the thing won't be a problem, do you have any idea what I should be focusing on as far as a skid steer only business? I can buy a couple of cheaper attachments so I could do a variety of work, not sure what attachment will get me the most jobs. I saw an ad on craigslist of a guy who had a skid steer and just listed his attachments and said he'd do anything for $50 an hour. I figured I'd do something similar, but I aught to know what people typically do with these things before someone kicks me off a job site for not knowing the basics.
$50/hr is dirt cheap up in my area. You wouldn't make much of a living at that rate. You're going to need a one ton minimum truck and equipment trailer to move the machine around for starters, and I'd do some reading on line on putting business plans together so you don't put yourself in a worse spot than you are. You will have to sum up your operating expenses and add the profit you'd like to make to establish your pricing. Be sure to include the value of the machine even though it was at no cost to you because at some point if your business is successful you will need to replace it. For the work you've described a 4 way bucket would be very handy, I use mine for a huge number of jobs. I also have a grapple rake that does a lot of work as far as brush and materials handling. If you have a big market for lawns, a Harley Rake is a great investment. Do you have any large farms nearby? If so, you might approach the owner and see if he has any work he might like done and work there a bit in exchange for fuel to learn the machine. It would help to have someone who has experience give you some tips to speed up your learning curve. Basically you have to develop a "feel" for the machine, it's not something that is easily described in text.
The Cat 257 is a good machine - especially in your area - it will do you well as you learn how to operate it. If you haven't run it yet or for very long, it would do you good to go thru this site for some of the basics : http://science.howstuffworks.com/transport/engines-equipment/skid-steer1.htm Also, read the Operators Manual for the machine ! The 257 is considered a Mulit-Terrain Loader (MTL) and has a 'soft' rubber track that is good for landscaping work and is best not used in harsh conditions - rock, broken concrete, etc. One word of advise - take care of your track and don't abuse it. Counter rotation and harsh pivot turns will severely shorten the track life. If you are in sandy soils in your area, you should not have much problem. After reading the site above, practice in an open area on controlling the direction, speed and loader functions by doing some simple operations like moving a pile of sand/soil frome one location to another, and then spreading and leveling some material. Finish grading by placing the bucket level and on the ground in 'float' mode while reversing (back dragging) will help you as you get familiar with the machine. Always carry buckets - loaded or empty just off ground level, and be careful moving the machine if the bucket is raised, until you learn the machine. Stay on level ground as well until you get comfortable with it. The MTL line is very good on slopes, just use caution until you gain experience. ALWAYS buckle your seatbelt. If you happen to roll it - you really need to be strapped in to minimize injury. While learning the controls, raise the bucket slightly off the ground (right joystick) then take your hand off the right joystick, and then drive the machine with the left joystick. This will keep you from trying to use the wrong joystick to drive with. When you get comfortable with the forward/reverse and steering, you can hold both joysticks and operate them simultaneously. There is a lot to learn and experience to be gained in your first couple of time using it, and everything cannot be described in one response. Start slow, and gain some more experience each time you use it. I have seen new operators get frustrated and confused at times. My recommendation to you is when that does happen, shut the machine off - get out - take a break - then go back and start again. Take your time, and don't hesitate to ask specific questions on this site as you proceed. After you get some time on the machine with the bucket, you can decide what type of work you want to do, and then decide what tools are recommended for that type of work. Most tools can be rented, more economically than buying them, until you really know which ones you want to own ($$). Good luck, and be safe.
You'll probably burn more fuel bringing the machine to and fro a jobsite than using it. Keep that in mind when pricing. Definitely have a friend who knows about these machines show you how to use and maintain it. It doesn't take too long in the saddle to get a handle on these machines. Don't roll one. Don't put yourself in a position to roll one.
Some really good advice in this thread... My area is very congested with houses, there's really not any farms, agriculture, or anything like that. Lawn care is HUGE. Is there a good way to tie this thing into lawn care? I think a good business plan would be to do as much with residential and commercial lawns as I can. Ripping up bad lawns, clearing brush, things of that nature.
Go slow, be careful. Remember what you might dig up could hurt you, power, sprinklers ect. Do you like lawn care? Might better sell skid steer and buy yourself some mowers and a truck, start your own lawncare that you already now how to do. Insurances is pricey especially for new guys, and don't ever lend it out, you will get it back broken if you get it back. Better insure it. Good luck with you new iron. Overworked
I have the 257B and feel it is a good machine. The folks here have given good info, the only thing I'd like to stress is the need for safety and insurance. The machine is fairly easy to understand and for the most part a joy to run. With that said it's easy to "become full of yourself" and make a mistake, seen it happen many of times. Understanding the operation of the machine is the easy part understanding the ground, spoils, mother nature is the confusing part. If you do start digging make sure there are no buried wires gas lines etc...(it's the law up here). One thing you'll want to make sure of is to keep those tracks clear. Keep them cleaned out and they'll last much longer. I also agree with Overworked, don't let every Bob Tom And Freddy use the machine. One of the biggest issue's with machines like this is multiple operators.
For example we charge $600 for first 5 hours, and $85/hr +/-$5 after that. It covers about 45 min from our shop. For pretty much anything, dirt, grub, rake, grapple etc. We don't get much call for anything residential, most of ours is homeowners with 10 acres-thousands of acres that need cleaning/fencing. We have one custom home builder that uses us on his new homes, to build pad, piers etc....that may be a route for you. We use the machine a lot for clearing old fences and put up new fences.