marne

If finances are the main focus, the perspective is wrong. No doubt you can make a fortune when self employed, but it's more a question of who you are. Not everyone is a good employee and so not everyone can handle beeing self employed, it's more like a lifeline you (have to) follow. There are shades of grey, but you will know which kind you are, when doing one or the other. If you just do it for the money, the chance of failing big time is very high, you need a motivation that comes from your heart and soul.

Another vote for the 3.0 iveco engine, whether it's in a Ducato or a Daily.

These popping 10 inchers can be scary. On my 3t plant trailer, I went with maxxis cr966 after a delicate moment with bursting rubber. The are reinforced and have more layers than others, in addition they are stated to carry more than their rating, downside: they cost like 50% more than others.

On one of my protos helmets, I use peltor X5 muffs. If you have the wishbones, they are plug and play.

Got a no name one, fabulous invention. Comes out, when one of those tiny batteries in small machinery is gone after 2 years again. In one machine I've even skipped out replacing the battery because it's used so rarely and the lithium jump start works so nice. Only thing that's a little annoying is, if you want it to serve you a while: keep out of the of heat and cold - exactly the conditions I have in 3/4 of the year in my vehicle. One reason I procrastinate upgrading to battery powered equipment.

I had approx 1000 hrs of experience on a 27hp belt and as it was time to upgrade, I demoed a 50hp hydraulic, that had maybe 70% of life left in it's teeth. It took less than 10 minutes to realize, that it will be a minor upgrade, if at all. But this was 6 or 7 years ago. In theory I think it may make sense if you have 70hp+ on the pump. In addition what always puts me off was the thought of the mess you will have when something in the high flow hyd bursts, several gallons gone in seconds, horrible bill for you from the shop and from the customer for decontamination. Those low hp hydraulic machines focus the rental market, where no maintenance is king and nobody cares if the work is done in one day or a week, while week pays out better. Slow wins the race for rentals.

I run a dual axle 3t plant trailer on a regular basis. It has those tiny 195r10 wheels which makes it an excellent tow because of the weight being so close to the road. On the other hand as stated, they sink fast and I actually got stuck once on a 4" curb, while trying to pull the trailer perpendicular across it. The Shogun pulling it, sat on dry tamrac in 4L and rear diff lock activated. The wheels where just too small to climb the 4". The shogun was spinning all 4 wheels as if it was on a redneck drag race. Wood beam helped here. Buy the good tires like the maxxis CR-966, I had a Chinese tyre pop at 40mph on a healthy road driving straight line with only 2.4 tons loaded. Scary. Good luck

Cute unit, they stated, there's very little loss due to special components, hard to imagine. I guess, only a demo will tell. What would be even more interesting is the price. In the recent past, they offered rediculous tags. If I should guess, I would say 28-30k, which is pointless regarding the price of a used predator 38, which is narrower and offers 150% the performance. One thing to admit, it's really lightweight.

Stefan, your Predator seems to be a super reliable fellow and it's nice to see it's still with you. If I remember right, you already replaced the engine once. Next step would be a paint touch up I guess :P. There where a few 252s with 4k and more hours, some Carltons with 5k+, which is more than enough for a stumpy. I'm pretty sure your 38 has joined the high-miler-club as well, has it crossed the 4k mark already?

I would like to add to all the good points stated above, that I would never go back to a push unit. It needs more sterling, but never looking like a clown on a wet slope or on dirty ramps is priceless.

I've had a two cylinder diesel killing several batteries due to vibrations within one year. Switched to a marine style battery which was labeled as vibration resistant, problem solved. To answer the initial question: Yes vibrations can kill a battery.

When doing arb stuff, you very likely will have more filters and oils to change than just a truck offers. So at least fuel, oil and air filtration should be on your agenda. I'm doing this since 2 decades and never heard a quote for basic stuff since then. To be honest, I'm shocked about these prices. The world went crazy meanwhile. The main reason I started doing it my own was the hassle around it, not the money which was reasonable at this time, like 40 for an oil service. I hated making an appointment which fits both partys, bringing the car to them, asking someone to pick me up and bring me home, having that vehicle not for one or two days and finally finding someone, who was able to bring me back to the garage during their opening hours. In the end, 2 hours where gone easily, no car, someone you due a beer for driving (ok, beer with friends is good) and yes, for that trouble you have to pay in addition. Even if they sometimes had a spare car for me, I couldn't use it like my own fully equipped vehicle, or it just was not able to tow. Hassle. So make up your workshop, visit youtube and save all the trouble. 🍻

If they where available new today, I think you would face something like 30k. Ask your Ditch Witch dealer for the current price of a new R300, then you'll understand. DW, I think make the most rugged minis out there and you got a serious steal Sir. The five litres per hour appear when running something like a tiller wot, regular loader work is more like 2-3. Congrats!

I use a drillcone from time to time but always feel, that the few logs are not worth the expensive machine hours of the mini. This is the only reasonable use I see if you have a yard you can mess up: https://youtu.be/KVffHmpSPOs?t=395

If the blec stone rake is what other know as power box rake or harley rake you will do fine. Make sure it's halfway dry. You will get a fabulous seedbed, they shine on mini loaders. Done it countless times with excellent results. They are outstanding at levelling but half an acre will take 1-2 days on a mini. If you only want to loosen 1 inch in 1 pass you're gonna be fast. A walk behind may work for loosening the soil but bad for levelling an area that size. Only use a stone burier if there a lot of stones and debris on top, other wise, like dumper stated, avoid it. Levelling afterwards is plain pain. Anyway, they have their place. Don't go too deep with a harley rake in your case, the first inch is good to go.

Honest and professional, thank you very much. The only way to defuse risks. And as you described the situation, it very likely could have happen to me and many others I guess, especially the added up stress and unexpected topics on jobsite. I know this very well, especially the blown over stein guards, which I still rate high, heavy and solid. Anyway, your baby has a Dad, the only thing that counts. Have you any kind of accident insurance jumping in?

It takes my breath read this horrific story and glad to hear you survived and they where able to tinker your leg in some way, at least you can keep it and maybe some hope: Many year ago, my leg was smashed and the doctors told me I could be happy I can keep it but it will be disfunctional my whole life. The good news, they where wrong and it recovered in over 10 years to about 90% of it's previous state. I hope the same for you, give it time and courage. But like in aviatics, talking about possible problems and errors is the safest way to handle danger. For sure shutting off the wheel is most important and honestly so many thanks for bringing it back on top, like you, I'm guilty a thousand times but never again. Even shutting off may not be enough, as there for example was a case in which the switch from an electric clutch went (wet) bad and in idle cough the operator, who was walking backwards in the wheel, that was intended to be off. Another grinder once said: On velociraptors and stump grinders, never turn your back. As English is not my native language, I hope you don't get me wrong, I ask in full respect. But can you guess or reconstruct what actually happened in the seconds before you got in touch with the wheel? I hope your recovery will go on fast and you can slide back to everyday life soon. Enjoy the time with your baby you have now even with pain, but not daily chasing money. Your still here and those days and years with your child are unique in life, you have them exactly once and they never come back.

I couldn't agree more with the previous posts and would like to add: It's so damn satisfying do something in the real world and to finally be free. Don't do it for money. Do it for your soul. It's possible to have a killer income but more likely you'll just survive on a solid base. I don't regret my choice over 10 year ago. No way I ever want to push mice again across the board all day.

I'll take my honda anytime over the km130. 35ccm is the one to go. Love it.

I use their (Dolmar) backback blower since 2017 and it's been excellent. The fuel lines broke both but otherwise no complaints. Super easy to start, gobs of power, sips fuel, literally no smelly fumes. The engine sound is much more pleasent, not screaming. No oil consumption between annual changes. If it breaks down today I would buy another in a heartbeat. Oh one downside: left it 2 weeks lying on the wrong side. Oil flooded the air filter, that was a mess. Could imagine that smaller units may suffer from this if not used weekly and just been thrown around.

Stephen, could you please name the attachment on the third pic? Never seen it before. Many thanks Marne

How many hours has this engine on the clock?

22mpg, around 11L/100km. When cruising in summer maybe 26mpg around 9L/100km. Heavy towing with tarp on huge trailer like 17L/100km. Tipping trailer with mesh guards and some Chips are like 13L/100km.

Shoguns are reliable highmilers. The only thing you got to get used to is their never ending drinking problem. In the end it's just 1 or 2 litres more than the competition, for that you trade a low entry price and in general very little repairs, which save on the other hand. It took me 3 years to finally fall in love with mine, wanted to sell it several times. But once I finally realized how poor the alternatives are, even when buying new, I knew it's a keeper. Fabulous towing and family car. 60 second shogun vid, worth to watch: https://youtu.be/lwec1YcqmSo

200 for a throttle cable, their customer service definetly wants to be avoided! Holy moly. States, that machines with proprietary parts have to be avoided as well.