putting in a road

[oldbones]

My kid got a logging job that will require him to put in some basic skid roads. He's got a 4wd tractor. The ground is up and down and his machine may not be adequate for the task.

I've told him to hire someone to put in a couple of skid trails. Or rent a piece of equipment.

What's the best too? A small dozer. A small excavator? The mini excavators all seem to have rubber tracks. Can they handle road building in the woods.

Thanks.

[g_man]

I run a tractor in my hilly woods and use a 70 hp 14000 lb (small) dozer to make tractor roads. Before I got the dozer I was very limited to where I could go. I am just learning so can't say whether this is the best tool or not. It probably depends on what your site is like.  But so far it has worked for me. I can show a few pics of what I have done. Basicly I try to make a fairly flat surface for the tractor to run on which for me means moving a lot of rocks and filling the holes



 

Some times the rock is bigger tan expected like this one



 

Here is a cut and fill on a side hill



 

Pushed a hole thru a stone wall



 

This is where I am cutting now



 



 

Don't know if this helps. Hope it does alittle.

gg

[shelbycharger400]

Can they handle road building in the woods.

Its not about if they can handle it,   its weather the machine can handle the operator.

You can dig ditches with a shovel, or  an excavator, or dozer,ect,  its all what the operator knows, and takes care to take the time the machine needs to do its job.
beatin a machine, it wont last long.

now if you have to move a 2 to 3 foot stump,  might be better to build a road over it instead of digging it out.   Dozers are best for building roads!   tractors are best for pullin and haulin. ect ect. 

[thecfarm]

Is the job worth it? The equipment might cost $500 to rent,I have no idea,spend a day putting in roads,how much wood not being moved to the yard is lost? That is a dollar amount too. I have a tractor that I use on my land. but any roads improvement is mine to use for years on my own land.

[Maine372]

ive never "built" a skid road. I let the ground and my machines abilities plan the route. ive built water crossings and planned a path to get to them. we use dead wood to corduroy really wet areas and sometimes snow in the winter to stiffen things up. just pulling wood doesn't necessarily need a road built, pulling wood by it over and over is what polishes it into a hiway.

now a truck road is a different story.

[Holmes]

 I use my 12,000 lb mini excavator with rubber tracks in the woods a lot. I am reclaiming  horse cart paths in my woods by removing the trees and stumps.  Dig around the big trees and push them over and just push over the small trees.   A mini can do the job but it will not get done quickly.  The stump holes need to be filled in , then there are the boulders that need to be relocated. It took me around 12 to 15 hours to do about 1/2 mile of path. I can easily drive my tractor on the path now.

[oldbones]

thanks.

Gman, in your pics, the ground looks relatively level, but it sounds like you've got some tough terrain. A dozer probably would do the trick.

I've seen a skilled operator in an excavator do slick work in my own woods. As i noted, i was concerned about the rubber tracks on a mini--do they hold up in the woods?

I told my kid he would quickly repay the cost of having the work hired because he would be so much more productive. He's got about 100 cords and 30000 board feet to get out, mostly low grade stuff.

At the moment, he's determined to do the road work himself.

[mad murdock]

You will prolly want a cat for that job(putting in skid trails)

[BARPINCHER]

thanks.

Gman, in your pics, the ground looks relatively level, but it sounds like you've got some tough terrain. A dozer probably would do the trick.

I've seen a skilled operator in an excavator do slick work in my own woods. As i noted, i was concerned about the rubber tracks on a mini--do they hold up in the woods?

I told my kid he would quickly repay the cost of having the work hired because he would be so much more productive. He's got about 100 cords and 30000 board feet to get out, mostly low grade stuff.

At the moment, he's determined to do the road work himself.

The excavtor/ dozer  issue I would say comes down to operator skill and cost.  A mini ex could do it but I would not want to make a habit of it.  Drive lugs tend to get loosened up in a forest setting pretty easy.  IF he doesn't have much experience it would probably pay him to have someone do the first few while he watched and took mental notes.  The cost of renting a unit you aren't familiar with can be high let alone figuring it out on the fly.  And if he tears the rental up by running a track off or something you can kiss a big chunk of profit goodbye.
It would take a 315 CAT ex  little bigger with a good op to match pace with a D4 size dozer if you wanta production comparison.  A mini ex is exactly that.....

[snowstorm]

if your doing it this winter you dont have much time. once there is frost a dozer is useless unless its really big. d5 or 6 and up. excavator is the way to go at least a 25000lb machine. frost teeth help a lot. moving dirt in the winter is very hard on equipment. just getting it on an off the trailer can be an adventure. my excavator takes winters off. even with an excavator any more than 6" of frost is gonna be tuff.......been there done that

[g_man]

So far I have only operated my dozer where the going is pretty easy. I am still working on my first 100 hrs. But even from my limited experience I would agree with your thinking that productivity is increased. The rougher the site the more you gain.
With a good road things go smoother, easier on equipment, less nerve racking, and safer/easier to pull a bigger hitch. In rough terrain a stiff framed 4wd tractor only has two diagonal wheels on the ground. The  two drive wheels are sort of  floating unless you are standing on the dif lock, but then you can't steer with the brakes. Having a flat tractor road under you makes a world of difference.
This is just my opinion from experience gained running a small tractor in my woods. Everyones equipment, site characteristics, and personal makeup is different so it doesn't apply everywhere .

[deastman]

I have to agree with snowstorm and barpincher, an excavator is the way to go and a 315 Cat or 160 size would work great but i wouldnt go any smaller than a 120. I've built lots of woods road, both summer and winter roads, with my Cat 180 and D7 and the dozer works great on a cut and fill where you have to push the material any distance. If the ground is rocky or has some frost in it the excavator will do alot better. The size of excavator would also depend on what width you are building your trails as the smaller the excavator the less room you need to swing the boom around, its very frustrating to work an excavator and not have enough room to work and have to keep the boom from hitting trees. If you are building small, narrow trails and the ground is not rocky or frozen you could probably get by with a small rubber-tracked excavator, it would take longer and stability would be a problem on steep or hilly ground