[Stuck in NH]

Hi All!

A little background..

I have 80 acres in NH, try to picture the ocean on a day with 12 foot seas...
now imagine the waves are granite ledge. cover it with dirt so that just the peaks of the "waves" poke out,
add trees that fall over when they get to be 40-50 ft tall and you've got what i call "home"

I would like to clear several acres of the property for asthetic reasons & I like to mow grass

The acreage that I want to clear averages 25-50 large stumps per acre, a mix of oak, pine and hemlock.

A few years ago, I bought a kioti 30hp tractor with a woods backhoe. I found it to be severely disappointing for digging stumps. I sold it & took a break for a couple of years.

I think I have narrowed down what I would be willing to buy, But I'm still open to suggestions.

Plan A-
2004 JD 110TLB with 4n1 bucket & thumb on 'da hoe, 3 pt arms & boxblade.

Plan B-
Used skidsteer 10-12k & used mini excavator 20-25k, makes & models to be determined by whatever I can find.

Plan C-
Keep the money in the bank & keep saying "I wish I could dig those stumps out."

I do also need to keep my 800 ft gravel driveway maintained & plowed in season.

This equipment will be "lent" to neighbors occaisionally.

I am partial to the Deere because of excellent dealer support 5 min from my house, & my family has always owned deere equipment. My grandfather still runs his JD350b, & his JD 100 lawnmower (that is 43 years old) daily.

Thanks for any ideas
-Stuck

[Bill Schwab]

The best way to clear stumps is to cut the tree about 3-4' above ground and get a Caterpillar D-8 to push them over. they will break right out of the ground roots and all. From the sounds of the space, you have pleanty of room to do that, and the weekly rent will be somewhere around $2,000.00 and that should be delivered.

As for the driveway maintained and plowed, a good used skid steer would work, as would an older Jeep CJ-5 that you would not even have to plate. You can find CJ's all over with plows well under the $12,000, unless you really want a skid steer around your property just in case you need one.

[dan deutekom]

Contract out the stump clearing to a company with the right size hoe or dozer and then get yourself a small tractor, skidsteer or plough truck to take care of the drive.

[cutntrim]

I agree with subbing the stump clearing out, and I would put a plow on my own personal vehicle if it were only my driveway. Then again, I like trucks, and would own one even if I weren't a landscape/snow contractor.

[Paul]

I use a JD 450 dozer to push stumps, it's a little small but it can do the job.