Privately owned ASV RC 30, maybe an RC 50, about 15 years old to get away from CAT ownership and quality with under 2k hours.
OR,
A brand new RC 40 made by the original ASV ownership- they've straightend out QAQC now they own their own name again.
I like the ASV track tensioning better than the CAT which uses a traditional grease piston, which basically allows it to loosen, and thats dumb, Same for Bobcat. Grease over a mechanical tensioner.
But, I am still guessing what he is going to do primarily. I *think* he is going to do some scrounging and sell/deliver firewood, and do some grading and fill work, driveways and culverts. For ANY of that, he doesn't need 75 hp and 84 inch buckets, and weigh in at 9k pounds, its just overkill. But he hasn't stipulated what he is doing yet, that I have seen, waiting on him to divulge.
If he's doing what I think, he can adjust the size of the log he wants to pick up and drop into a trailer. He can use a 1/2 ton to tow his trailer with the machine in it, he can use a 1/2 ton to haul logs in his dump trailer, but not both at the same time, and he wont with a 1 ton either..... If he's doing work for himself, he adjusts his effort to fit his time. If he is bidding work, he adjusts his price for his productivity and he gets the job or he doesn't.
I get people all the time stopping (following me until I stop somewhere) me and asking me how big my machine is, because they see its small, and they have a small access. I get calls from three different clearing guys every month to do a job they can't get their machine into. I can drive into glass double doors at the closed Kmart store someone is remodeling, and take out concrete rubble to the other end of the parking lot for the new plumbing changes under the slab. The list of tasks I have done BECAUSE the machine is 47" wide, is too long to list. Yet I can move a dump truck full of dirt almost as fast as a 75 HP machine if I'm backfilling a house stemwall the difference in time is negligible, and I am preffered, because I can truly get "closer" to the edge.
https://www.asvi.com/compact-track-loaders/rt-40/
I just don't see the problem with a rubber track over tire steer for what I want to do. Especially fir my first starter machine! Its the lowest hr used S175 pre imisions in the country! 246hrs! A new machine the same class is 65-70K by the time it get it here!
maybe if you could find a flat bed tow truck that would work to move your equipment. Plus it has a winch and you could load it up with logs, and run a side hustle towing service.
