Treetom15

Thanks mate, I know I’m aiming for something that won’t do the same as a 2.7t machine, but I’m hoping it will be a stepping stone so long as it’s useful to begin with! I was after a mini skid steer originally so I’m hoping this will be more efficient.
 

I’ve asked Hywel to see what he can find, he’s a hell of a nice guy! Very helpful so I’m sure he will come up with something but I thought it never hurts to get opinions from people who run them themselves. 
 

Are there any machines out there that DONT come with a long dipper commonly?  I’ve seen a couple of Doosan DX19’s that look good for the money, sany seemed about the same bracket. 

Thanks mate, that was basically what I was after! 
 

I can’t afford new, and don’t want the overhead of finance with a machine that may not come out every day. I’m looking at 2nd hand e19’s that come in around 10/12k, but obviously I need to make sure they have a short/regular dipper.

Towing a 3.5t rig would be a lot of extra load for my vehicles as we’re doing up to 2 hours each way some days, so the lighter weight would be a big bonus. 
 

It’s basically a bit of a demo for me-if the machine is a godsend and I quickly realise I need bigger, then so be it. If not, I haven’t spent £25k plus to try it out. 
 

I know the e19 would never match up to an e27, but as a stand alone machine how do you find it @doobin? 

Again, another rambling……

On from the skid steer idea, after chatting to a few people my way who run both I’ve decided a digger makes more sense for the workload/type, plus they are similar money and more versatile! 
 

I’ve got my heart set on a 1.8/2t machine, that will go on my 2700 plant trailer (weighs 600kg) and has vari tracks for access. I know 2.7t machines will move more but the lower weight/versatility is more important to me currently (plus they are cheaper)

Does anyone out there run the smaller bobcat e19 or e20 as an arb digger, or a machine if a similar size-if so how do you find them? I did try trawling the arb digger thread but ran out of concentrate……..

1 hour ago, Mark Bolam said:

Klou supplied it with bollard and capstan mate.

That Microbull hydraulic capstan does look handy.

You can achieve the same effect by backing up the machine though, although not always ideal.

That’s a beaut! Do their grabs fit on other machines or just the WQ’s?

1 hour ago, Haironyourchest said:

Ali claims to be selling mini skids, mini diggers, mini loaders and mini telehandlers for under a grand, free delivery. This can't be real, right? 

It almost makes you want to try one, how bad can they be for that much?!😂

19 hours ago, Mark Bolam said:

I’ve only got a bucket as well as the grab Tom.

My Klou grab has a ball hitch and lowering bollard on it, which are both really handy.

That’s exactly what I’d like, the idea of a bollard is ideal-did you fabricate that yourself? @AHPP I can’t believe they’re no longer stocked either, a chap near me has one and loves it

14 hours ago, Mark Bolam said:

The thing is Tom I decided I wanted a machine that I could use on as many jobs as possible.

We can whistle up Telehandlers etc.

on the big farm jobs, and the amount they can shift is unreal.

My WQ is a dwarf in comparison, but it’s the best choice for me.

You can’t get a Telehandler through a 3’ gate!

Remember the grab adds about 85kg.

 

Ball hitch on mine means it can take the chipper places that were a no-go before.

 

Basically I’d say go for the biggest machine that will fit your business model.

 

You’re welcome to come down and have a play whenever you want.

 

That’s pretty much exactly what I’m looking for. The small size is more important than the raw lifting capacity, as I haven’t got a timber trailer to take stuff away so I’ll always be limited by trucks & trailers! 
 

What other attachments do you run on yours mate? That’s impressive what it’ll lift with the grab! If I’m down your way I will certainly take you up on that!

After looking at the options I think I’m most suited to something along the lines of a Worky Quad/Sherpa/MicroBull-simply because it will go in the back of the tipper, and the lower weight/cheaper cost is a big bonus!

@Mark Bolam I seem to have it that you own a WQ? Pros/cons? I know there’s a TON of threads on the mini loaders, what’s the general consensus? I’d like something I can potentially run a few attachments on, maybe a topper/mulched in the future-is that feasible with these small units?

And lastly….anyone selling a decent 2nd hand one?😂

7 hours ago, Stihl123 said:

watch out for Avants

i have a 2017 Avant 520

1700 hrs when i brought it, i paid just over £8k plus VAT

no attachments 

 

and no, it wasn't stolen 

That is basically exactly what I’m after-if I could spend 10k plus vat (ish) I’d much prefer to take a gamble on an old machine 

4 hours ago, Mark Bolam said:

Compact Loaders UK, Frank Alviti @Dave Alviti and Will at Stag Machinery at Dereham are probably all worth a phone call.

I’ve tried frank, just waiting on a reply👍 I’ll look into the others cheers! 
 

I completely see why they rarely come up second hand. Clearly a buy right buy once job

Who would any of you guys recommend speaking to regarding a good second hand machine? They’re not massively common on eBay etc, and I’d rather buy second hand from a reputable source if possible 

6 minutes ago, Mick Dempsey said:

Ah, so clear felling under and around lines as opposed to ‘siding up’?

Exactly, a bit better than the usual powerline horrors if that’s possible😂

16 hours ago, dumper said:

Look at Cormidi can’t fault mine just fits in transit 

That looks the business! It’s ok weight wise in the tipper then?

23 hours ago, Mick Dempsey said:

I don’t own a skidsteer but apart from Vermeer, I’ve heard good things about  Ditch Witch. 
 

Can I ask what is resilience utility?

It’s felling on utility networks (powerlines) to make them “resilient” to storms/trees falling and causing damage, just a larger volume of timber to move!

@Mick Dempsey @Joe Newton any anyone else who uses one/has experience of these machines: 

Which brand/type would you recommend? It’s for a large amount of resilience utility work, so would be for moving/stacking timber and moving brash. 
Key requirements would be sub 1t weight, capacity to run a grab (and maybe a mulcher in future), ideally go up ramps into my 4x4 tipper to save on additional trailer. 
 

Id be looking 2nd hand, I know you can get good finance deals but I’d rather buy good quality used, outright. 

@Joe Newton ideally it would need to be under 1000kg weight, so in theory it could be transported in the back of a tipper-hence the microbull or similar thoughts. I’m guessing Toro Or Vermeer would be somewhere top of the list? 
 

@Mick Dempsey I was mostly looking at the size of any potential machine, which sort of drew me towards the cheap ones. I do like the look of the MicroBull, it’s hard to find a good compromise between size and lifting capacity. Or something that will run more than 1 or 2 attachments 

I’ve seen a huge increase in these cheap imported skid steer loaders doing the rounds, usually Facebook etc. They seem incredibly cheap for what they are, has anyone actually bitten the bullet and tried one? I know what they say, buy cheap buy twice etc, but for the occasional big job loading timber would they do the job? 

On 04/08/2025 at 17:40, Mark Bolam said:

They were excellent with my Transit mate, and I know @Treetom15 was very pleased with his 4x4 conversion.

100% recommend, like Mark I’ve told plenty of people to call them. The more tipper conversions I see the more I appreciate how good a job they did on mine, proper nice guys too.

4 hours ago, dumper said:

Try safety culture app easy to write own sheet to do exactly as you want and also include pictures

Cheers, I’ve actually just downloaded the app so I’ll give that a try-looks like it’s free if you don’t need it too fancy either?

Cheers Andy, it’s more aimed at a way of documenting the daily checks and keeping a record of it. I’ve been doing similar to yourself which works well, but unfortunately not in the eyes of auditors from larger contractors 🙄 

As above, I’m looking to simplify daily vehicle & plant checks. I’m struggling to find a decent app that will do a mixture of plant and vehicles/trailers, we aren’t running many vehicles but keeping it all on paper is a bit of a headache (plus they ALWAYS get lost!) 

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

7 hours ago, Logjam said:

Isuzu DPF issues were on earlier 2.5l engines. My understanding is that the newer 1.9l engines don't suffer the same, with usual proviso that they get a decent run occasionally to clear the system. Was also told they will be using a new 2.5l engine 'soon' with similar emissions & fuel consumption to the current engine. Have recently purchased a 2024 Dmax crewcab, so far so good.

To be honest I’d be looking at something around 2015/18 as I can’t afford a brand spanker, so I would probably fall into the age of issues? I know you can have the DPF removed and remapped, but could be an issue with MOT later down the line 

I’m looking for a pickup mewp to use on a utility contract, and it looks as though it’s basically a toss up between an Isuzu Dmax or Toyota Hilux mewp (don’t mention defenders!) 

Has anyone here had experience running either long term? I have a Hilux tipper that is amazing, but the Isuzu trucks are cheaper for the same boom/miles. I’m aware that some Isuzus have DPF issues? Any input much appreciated! 

I can’t speak for the others, but my Hobbs has been a game changer. A bit more lifting capacity would be great, but it will lift small/medium branches and the pretension for bigger lumps makes a huge difference. Main plus is it’s super easy to explain to different ground staff, I’ve used mine with plenty of different groups, and within a few goes they’ve pretty well sussed it