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Flat land? How much logging? My wood lot has steeper slopes (rising 400') than a skidder can handle. I've used farm tractors, and messed up the front ends. Don't do enough logging to justify a skidder. My answer was an old industrial loader. Cheap and will do the job without complaining. And extremely versatile. They're AWD, heavy, and designed for loader work. They also rear steer, very handy if you've got a large log out front. Around here, almost nobody wants the medium-sized older ones. My Cat's 23k lbs, straight frame (not articulated) for better stability, and cost $6000 (plus tires and brakes) when I bought it from a small stone quarry. The 4-in-1 bucket can easily pickup a 30"x16' oak log end-on, without my getting off the tractor. A winch on the back would make it ideal, but I haven't bothered as I've got a serious truck winch. It's a lot faster, plus easier to handle logs than my crawler. Deas Plant guided my search from his wide experience with loaders. We came up with an ideal solution for me, cheaply.
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