If you could only have one piece of land maintenance equipment...

[normaldave]

For you folks with remote or hunting property. If you could only have one piece of equipment to:
-mow
-cut/maintain trails
-light grade smooth dirt
-haul drag brush, small cut trees

What would you recommend?

Limitations:
-cost (lower budget)
-storage...would need to be transported for weather exposure and security.
-mostly woodland, with a few trails and old farm mining roads, possible small garden plot.

-I've been amazed at what I have been able to do with my 4WD and some creative and careful rigging. Pulling cut stumps, dragging brush etc.

-With that said, thoughts wander towards a trail (pull behind) mower. Anywhere I would want to mow, I can drive my 4wd for example. The mower from home would take forever.

-Would a small land plane work behind a 4wd?

I realize a tractor with the right implements covers most of the above, but that is out of budget for now, so there's the question.

Fire away...

 

[Red dirt clod]

I have a 6 foot land pride finishing mower pulled with a John Deere 790 4wd which I use for grass cutting native grasses in front of our house and also use it in the woods behind the house to keep unwanted vegetation down. I do things with it that’s it’s not designed for and for the last 17 years I have only broke one spindle hitting a stump. My fault for sure, I do have a Bush Hog but haven’t used it in 10 years,

 

[normaldave]

-shovel, mattock, garden rake...

 

[JustUs4All]

No fair. That's three pieces of equipment. LOL

 

[transfixer]

I have a pull behind Swisher Trail mower that I use with my 4wd ATV, works quit well for mowing forest roads and cutting trails through the woods or over-grown briar patches, cuts a 44in swath, uses swing away bush hog style blades, I've run over saplings 1 1/2 with no problem, up to 2 inches I just have to slowly run over it, but it will cut them down. basically if the ATV will push it over , I can cut it

 

[Big7]

I kept two, 3/4ac plots for about ten years with a walk behind Billy Goat and a 13hp rear tine Honda tiller rented periodically from Home Depot. After that first year breaking up, it gets pretty easy.

Had a 22in 6.5hp push mower and a Husqvarna 14in rear tine tiller with a 200 and something CC Briggs on it to keep up maintenance or plots, putting in strips down logging roads and mowing walking trails. Those belonged to me.
Prolly done got to old for that now.


My Uncle had 2 tractors and implements for use at our family farm before it sold.

 

[earlthegoat2]

I’m still youngish (40) and reasonably fit and my favorite item is a string trimmer with a tri blade attachment and pole saw attachment.

I can’t afford a tractor or anything like that. I cut a 400 yd trail for my Jeep with just a tri blade, small chainsaw (024 AVS) and glysophate. I plan on extending it a few hundred more yards in the future.

Imalso cut a lane for my 100 yd shooting range using the same method.

 

[specialk]

My tractor, disc, and bush hog gets used most....

 

[normaldave]

I’m still youngish (40) and reasonably fit and my favorite item is a string trimmer with a tri blade attachment and pole saw attachment.

I can’t afford a tractor or anything like that. I cut a 400 yd trail for my Jeep with just a tri blade, small chainsaw (024 AVS) and glysophate. I plan on extending it a few hundred more yards in the future.

Imalso cut a lane for my 100 yd shooting range using the same method.

Got the tri blade attachment for my Husqvarna straight shaft string trimmer. It is the boss. I also got the Troy Bilt pole saw attachment. Way better that I thought it would be. Patience gains lots of ground over time for sure.

This forum is chock full of folks who've been there, and done that, I'd hate to run off down an equipment rabbit trail without gaining wisdom from the crew here first.

Thanks much.

 

[normaldave]

I have a pull behind Swisher Trail mower that I use with my 4wd ATV, works quit well for mowing forest roads and cutting trails through the woods or over-grown briar patches, cuts a 44in swath, uses swing away bush hog style blades, I've run over saplings 1 1/2 with no problem, up to 2 inches I just have to slowly run over it, but it will cut them down. basically if the ATV will push it over , I can cut it

This was/is the direction I was considering. Thanks for the input.

 

[kmckinnie]

I don’t need nothing but a 4 wheeler then and that just to haul the game out. Too old to drag. Could clean it at the kill and carry out I guess.

 

[transfixer]

This was/is the direction I was considering. Thanks for the input.

They work great, but the price has almost doubled on them since I bought mine about 6yrs ago.

 

[Eudora]

Really good question here. My DR Field and Brush Mower is a BAD-mamajama piece of equipment. Twin cylinder Kawasaki never winces at anything. Also love my 4-stroke Stihl "weedeater" that takes multiple attachments like a tri-blade or polesaw. Sounds like a Ducati ! Both of these are used where the tractor can't go such as the slope on my fishpond or narrower trails to tree stands.

​

 

[mallardsx2]

I use my 7' landscape rake and my front-end loader the most. That landscape rake has saved me a lot of messing around. Thats for sure.

 

[madsam]

Helo

 

[Milkman]

You can keep trails clear while a pump sprayer and glysophate.

As for the work of creating trails and food plots you may want to consider either renting equipment or hiring it done.

 

[elfiii]

You can keep trails clear while a pump sprayer and glysophate.

As for the work of creating trails and food plots you may want to consider either renting equipment or hiring it done.

If you don't own a tractor and can't afford one your best bet is hire it out. The hours of back breaking work DIY with hand tools isn't worth it.

 

[RedHills]

I cleared a 10' wide fence lane around 10 acres with a straight shaft stihl with a metal "circular" saw blade and a chainsaw. (Back when I had more ambition and less sense)

 

[Glynr]

I bought a used John deere 950 with bush hog 20 years ago. Tractor ,bush hog and spring tooth plow you can do amazing things. Best money ever spent and worth more today than I gave for it.