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New guy with some questions for ya

IHI

Member
Joined
Feb 8, 2006
Messages
14
Location
Waterloo, Iowa
Occupation
general construction
Hey fellas, buying a skidder has been on my wish list for awhile, on one hand because we rent them sparatically throughout the year, usually borrow them in the winter to load salt or sand salt into our spreaders for snow biz. Right now i'm a small general contractor mainly servicing residential clients with interior/exterior home renovations covering anything from decks to full scale room additions and anything else home related, though the thing i sub out and pay upwards of $60-80K a year for is cement work so every year at tax time when i'm paying attention i think jeez, would it be worth buying equipment, hiring the men and keeping it in house? and then battle with the thoughts of more insurance, more work comp, more headaches with more man power, etc...added payments for more equipment.

So without wasting too much time i'm getting more serious about buying a new or used but in good shape skidder. I'm torn between Case since that's what i've grown up running and am proficent with personally, or Bobcat since it seems you cant drive a block without seeing white...and they have close dealer support which is why i think they're popular..i just hate foot controls as i'm not a pro with them...so still undecided on make/model

My MAIN question, after rambling, what else could a guy like me do to help this machine earn it's keep? We dont use them often enough with our current work scope to make it pay for itself, but as i get older i want/need to venture into some different territory and have always had a love for equipment since a kid, but who do you talk to to get work for these things to keep the hour metering clicking over and making it pay for itself? what types of work do you guys do with them as far as attachments? How did you market that aspect?-just call up a few guys to let them know you have this or that and can work with them if they need it? My juices started flowing when i spoke with my plumber who just bought a new S185 and has been buying attachements like crazy. He told me he can make in one day in the machine what he typically makes in two plumbing, but it's all with attacments and subbing himself out to whomever.

Is it better to buy or lease? With all our trucks i take them to the grave so with the skidder i expect the same thing. Who offers better financing banks or equipment lenders? I breifly talked to my banker and let him know i may be buying some equipment in the future and he was all for it since we're debt free other than the house simply because i hate payments and i've been too scared to make this large of an investment not knowing how i'll make it pay for itself consistantly..winter time with plowing, no problem..but what about summertime? Auger attachment for sure since we rent mini's all the time to do this work for us, i really really want the GPS grader blade since i think that "could" have market potential??

Sorry for the long scattered post, i know i want a piece of equipment and know it'll help out when we need it, but what to do with it the rest of the time is my question and delima right now???

Thanks guys, please ask/say whatever so i can try to help you get a better take on what i want and where i'd like to go with this....

josh
 

657bsplitter

Member
Joined
Oct 24, 2008
Messages
17
Location
fontana california
Occupation
57 hand
I have a 843 bobcat with a 911 attatchment (back ho) its like mid 80s it is awesome i use it for everything its older but a gooder it has an isuzu diesel an example i welded a ball on the front and it is the best for moving trailers i moved a 60 foot temp trailer with four axles only had 2 good tires other 6 were flat i moved it three blocks for my neighbor for your first one buy a used one you can find a good one cheap right now until you know you want to have one perm you can find one for about 3000,00 to 5000,00 in good working condition good luck
 

657bsplitter

Member
Joined
Oct 24, 2008
Messages
17
Location
fontana california
Occupation
57 hand
O ya buy a good trailer for a bobcat when i first got my skid i was putting it on my buddies car trailer i got half way up the trailer and it picked up the rear of my buddies f250 quad cab 4x4 diesel and it started rolling down the street and when i backed off the trailer was so tweeked only one of the two axles was touching the road skids are very heavy.
 
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