The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Smallholding => Land Management => Topic started by: Cheterele on November 25, 2018, 10:13:38 pm
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Hello everyone, I have 15 acres of grazing and 10 acres of woodland to manage and it is getting far too expensive to get contractors in to do it for me. I was thinking of getting a quad bike to pull a flat bed trailer when tidying up the woodland and for doing all the pasture maintenance, such as the haorrowing. Problem is, our land is quite hilly and I am worried that the quad bike will not be efficient enough. Would I be better off getting a compact tractor? Or even a gator? I have to confess, what worries me most is that the quad bike will tip over easily! After a recent car accident I am a bit more nervous of machinery! I would be grateful for any advice.
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A quad bike has a better centre of gravity than a gator for use on hills. Maybe an old land rover defender would do what you want. Quad bikes are more convenient that a small tractor for manouvering among woodland unless you have wide tracks.
If you will be progressing to using a topper or any other machinery then the tractor will win. You can get some pretty powerful quad bikes nowadays that are over egging the pudding for most places.
Sensible driving should not tip over quad bike or tractor.
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Quad with good boots - you can jump off it easier and they normally just spin off until they hit the bottom fence and dont go through it. To be fair though I do use the defender on dryish day - they dont go well sideways mind and they dont give much notice before they go either. Same as tractors - you start going the wrong direction in a vehicle you cant abandon - your a passenger until it stops.
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I have 15 acres of hillside pasture and 3 acres of woodland. I use a quad for all my work. Just finished harrowing a field - despite the slope this is easy work on the quad - vertically up and down the slope in the steepest places. The chain harrow acts like a brake going downhill. Probably takes an hour per acre. I have a 500kg and a 750kg trailer for moving stuff around. I'd like a roller.
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We use quad with flail mower, harrow (both chain and tyned) and a roller on our Welsh slopes
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Sorry to go off topic for a second but could i ask where you guys n gals are getting the implements for the quads? I know some companies do forestry kit too.