Best Mini Skid Steer for tree work

[superjunior]

I haven't tried the vermeer 800 but the ditch witch sk650 is definitely more powerful that the vermeer 600. I feed my bc1800 chipper with the sk650 and it keeps up quite well. Was consistently feeding 8" diameter x 30' tall ash trees through it yesterday and sometimes two or three at a time and the sk650 is able to drag/lift/feed just fine but occasionally, it does stand on it's 'toes' as you say. I'm just used to it.

As for tracks, I just installed a set of Prowler narrow turf tracks on my 650 - smooth ride and very easy on the turf. No so good in mud though - got stuck a few times but that was in a really mucky area and when I got stuck, boy did I get stuck! Had to use the 763 and long tow straps to pull it out.

Love that sk650 machine.

AP

is there a couterweight kit for the 650?

 

[2treeornot2tree]

is there a couterweight kit for the 650?

Its called your fat a##. Just eat 2 6 pack of creme dounuts a day and you will have all the counterweight you need.

Been getting alot of jobs that i could be using a mini. I started checking out mini skid loaders. Called vermeer today. There 800 series machine is over $30,000 for a new one. I almost swerved into the ditch when he told me. You can get a pretty nice full size loader for that price. I am working a deal on a ramrod taskmaster with tires and a gas motor with 700 hrs on it for $5000.00. Its not the exact machine i want, but i dont use it everyday so i can make do, and its a hell of alot cheaper. Gonna get a bucket, forks, and a root grapple for it.

 

[flushcut]

Well, all I can say is that the 800tx is one hell of a machine. I ran mine for six hours today, picked a 50' 20" sugar maple off a deck (using blocks), loaded and chipped two 24" (dbh) elms, and loaded sixty feet of 32" red oak log in six footers.

 

[2treeornot2tree]

I am not saying its not a great machine, but for that much money you could buy a articulating loader that would pick up a heck of alot more weight.

 

[flushcut]

I am not saying its not a great machine, but for that much money you could buy a articulating loader that would pick up a heck of alot more weight.

Sure, but at increased ground pressure as well which was a a major concern for me. It's kinda like the coke or pepsi thing as long as it is not a lawn mower.

 

[arbor pro]

Well, all I can say is that the 800tx is one hell of a machine. I ran mine for six hours today, picked a 50' 20" sugar maple off a deck (using blocks), loaded and chipped two 24" (dbh) elms, and loaded sixty feet of 32" red oak log in six footers.

Is the 800 that much more productive and powerful than the ditch witch sk650 to justify the additional $10k pricetag? I've never operated the 800 so am truly curious if it's that much better. Also, can you get the 800 in a narrow 36" configuration to go through gates?

AP

 

[treemandan]

i had a dingo wide track, worked great in the summer time, in the winter the drive wheels packed with snow and pushed the tracks off

Yeah! But if you can get the machine up the tracks are easy to put back on. Also if you tighten them up it helps to keep them on. I hate to take mine out for snow.
Only other problem with my WT 425 is dirt and chips pack in between the main plate and the lifting arm pivot point. I routinely dig it out to avoid damaging the pivot holes.
I clean my machine, it needs it now. I take out the gas tank, battery, and covers and flush all the crap out.

 

[treemandan]

So I as mentioned before, I got Vermeer S600 with Vermeer grapple try out. I'd like to share my experience.
I had pleasure to operate all sorts of machines, earth moving huge excavators, drills, crashers, loaders, off-road trucks etc. but never such a small thing.
My first impression was WTF. Small and awkward.
Here are some words I can put together after:
fast, maneuverable,
ground speed is very fast, nice turning abilities, smooth and not jerky even I did some sudden moves on controls.
powerful,
I feel even over powered by Kubota engine.
easy to use, easy to control
controls are right in-front, very comfortable positioned, resting bar is good support for hand to rest.
fast to get filling
easy to learn for person without any operator experience. I gave to try to all my guys, some of them never operated any think before.
Compact
can fit on my trailer sideways leaving more space for other ships-and-giggles

Conns:
too light
with average bundle of branches Im feeding chipper (BC1800XL) the machine constantly standing on "toes" or i'd say front portion of track.
too slow to feed chipper
since I cant pickup much, chipper process faster then I can feed/load. I can blame my unexpired as well.

So my verdict is - I need to try S800. It is heavier and much more lifting capacity with out sacrificing ground pressure.

Yes, that added weight of the grapple changes things drastically especially on uneven terrain.

I am just using forks ( built lighter than stock) and if I want to drag I use a strap.

 

[2treeornot2tree]

Been pricing attachments for a mini skid loader. They all seem to be just about as expensive as full size skid loader attachments

 

[flushcut]

Is the 800 that much more productive and powerful than the ditch witch sk650 to justify the additional $10k pricetag? I've never operated the 800 so am truly curious if it's that much better. Also, can you get the 800 in a narrow 36" configuration to go through gates?

AP

I have not run a DW so I am not sure and it is not 36" gate friendly but for me that is not an issue. I think you could put narrower tracks on it to get it through a gate but probably sacrifice ground pressure. I went with the 800 because there is dealer support nearby.

 

[MarquisTree]

Vermeer dropped off a s650tx last night. Brought it over to my house and ran it for a ffeww hours.
Wow, very nice machine.
Vermeer has DW beat hands down on control ergonomics, and operator comfort.
30 seconds on the machine and I felt like I could brush my dogs coat with it.

Highlights-
control and comfort, the semi enclosed operator platform makes rough and uneven terrain. Very easy to deal with.

Very fast in forward

Fuel tanks more protected then on the DW

Concerns-

Ground clearance (only 2.2" less then DW but noticeable)

Power, while it did everything I wanted it still bogged drown when using multiple functions didn't notice that at all on the DW (Vermeer has 8hp less)

Serviceable, seemed much more cluttered under the hood then DW.

Cost ($6k isn't much to worry about over the life of the unit but still a minor consideration considering how well both units preformed.

Going to bring the DW out on Monday and put it side by side with the Vermeer

 

[bassman215]

Vermeer dropped off a s650tx last night. Brought it over to my house and ran it for a ffeww hours.
Wow, very nice machine.
Vermeer has DW beat hands down on control ergonomics, and operator comfort.
30 seconds on the machine and I felt like I could brush my dogs coat with it.

Highlights-
control and comfort, the semi enclosed operator platform makes rough and uneven terrain. Very easy to deal with.

Very fast in forward

Fuel tanks more protected then on the DW

Concerns-

Ground clearance (only 2.2" less then DW but noticeable)

Power, while it did everything I wanted it still bogged drown when using multiple functions didn't notice that at all on the DW (Vermeer has 8hp less)

Serviceable, seemed much more cluttered under the hood then DW.

Cost ($6k isn't much to worry about over the life of the unit but still a minor consideration considering how well both units preformed.

Going to bring the DW out on Monday and put it side by side with the Vermeer

How did your comparison of the Vermeer s650tx and the dw sk650 go?

I ran both at dealerships today and really liked the Vermeer better.

We are going to demo them both later this week or next at a job site to compare.

I REALLY liked the Vermeer controls better but didn't get a chance to test out power on anything.

 

[squad143]

You have to wonder why Ditch Witch is staying with their lousy controls. Maybe Vermeer holds a patent or something on their joystick layout.

Arbor pro, a while back, weren't you talking with DW about a retrofit control kit? What happened with that?

 

[arbor pro]

You have to wonder why Ditch Witch is staying with their lousy controls. Maybe Vermeer holds a patent or something on their joystick layout.

Arbor pro, a while back, weren't you talking with DW about a retrofit control kit? What happened with that?

That was Boxer. I really don't mind the ditch witch controls at all. no harder to control than the vermeer IMO. The Boxer controls, on the other hand, are horrible. They were looking for a retrofit for theirs to make it into a joystick but I haven't seen or heard anything.

I agree that the vermeer 600 controls are very comfortable but the power just didn't compare to the ditch witch 650. Since the controls on the sk650 are satisfactory to me, i choose the ditch witch over the vermeer based on power and performance. If you put the ditch witch 650 up against the Boxer 532dx, I would choose the ditch witch over the boxer for the controls and hydros. I would like to try out the new vermeer 800 sometime. If it came in a narrow configuration and matched the power of the sk650, it might be the new top runner in the mini skid arena. Vermeer knows how to make equipment - but, then so does ditch witch and bobcat and toro. They all borrow engineering from each other. It comes down to personal preference and what's the priorities are for each individual... power, lifting capacity, torque, ergonomics (controls), price, etc. For me, it's power, then controls and ditch witch wins over vermeer when both those are weighted equally. If it were ergonomics, then power, then vermeer might just have the upper hand but, as I said, I don't mind ditch witch controls at all. If you steer with your left palm as you're supposed to, that machine takes no effort whatsoever to control. I could see if someone was trying to use one hand on each steering lever how that might be horrible but then that's not the right way to do it...

AP

 

[MarquisTree]

Bought the DW today.

Very noticeable power advantage on the DW.
much better access to the engine.
I was disappointed because I really like the Vermeer controls. But the Vermeer stalled over and over again where thee DW just powered thru

 

[MarquisTree]

Most are comparing the dw650 to the Vermeer 600.
we had the DW 650 against the Vermeer 650 and the Vermeer still fell short on the power end

 

[bassman215]

Most are comparing the dw650 to the Vermeer 600.
we had the DW 650 against the Vermeer 650 and the Vermeer still fell short on the power end

So did you decide to buy the DW?

Edit: sorry I didn't see your comment above about buying the DW. Was reading on my phones tiny screen! Thanks!

 

[squad143]

Thanks for the correction Arbor pro.

I was considering upgrading my Thomas to a used Vermeer, but from the comments may look into the DW.

Deevo is looking into the two units, may just wait and see his thoughts.

Was going to swap skidsteer this summer, but have run into some unexpected expen$ives this month. So, maybe over this winter. -lots of time to look around the states for one.

 

[Pelorus]

I like the track controls, and the loader joystick on the DW-650. The control for the aux hydraulics (grapple) I find a bit of a PITA where you have to lift that metal stop out of the detent before you can activate the control. I unscrewed the knob to remove that sliding metal weight to eliminate that extra procedure, but then whenever my foot hit the pedal, or if my right hand bumped the lever (while daydreaming in la-la land), things happened when I didn't want them to. This won't make any sense to anyone who hasn't operated a DW. I dunno how other mini skid manufacturers have designed their aux. controls as I haven't tried any others.

Completely satisfied with ground speed and power. The tracks are murdererous to lawns.

 

[MarquisTree]

So did you decide to buy the DW?

Yes we bought the DW 650 last night.
another factor was the DW is twice as fast in reverse then the vermeer