My experience as well. One 8 acre food plot in 65 acres of timber had everything from clay to sand.
I've got red clay that gets hard as a rock when it's dry; the rippers on a 5 foot box blade just scoot across the ground and hardly make a mark.
Something like this would probably work effortlessly. You could adjust the depth with the guide wheel.
http://www.everythingattachments.co...2-Inch-Single-Bottom-Plow-p/eta-plow-12-s.htm
http://www.everythingattachments.co...2-Inch-Single-Bottom-Plow-p/eta-plow-12-s.htm
How large of an area is it? You could use a sod cutter, cut the sod 2" deep, roll it up, remove it, box blade to grade and replace sod. Lots of labor in this but a nice final product.
well it is patchy as far as the area where the humps rise & fall but I'd guess 100sf or so total of sod that needs shaved off. I did not know what they use to cut sod so if I can rent it that might work.
On another note, how much is it to rent a skidsteer? I bet I could use the blade to remove the grass AND smooth the dirt some?
On another note, how much is it to rent a skidsteer? I bet I could use the blade to remove the grass AND smooth the dirt some?
100' is small for a skid steer. It will take you longer to learn how to operate it than it'll take to use this machine.
http://www.homedepot.com/tool-truck-rental/Sod-Cutter/SC-18HD/
http://www.homedepot.com/tool-truck-rental/Sod-Cutter/SC-18HD/
Thanks, The actual area I'd be operating in is several thousand sft but the "humps" that need cut I am estimating cover 100sft. there would be plenty of room for the skid steer to manuveur and I'm sure I'd go overboard and do more than I planned LOL...But I will take a look at the rental tool you sent, thx!
100 sq ft is only a 10'x10' area. You could soak the humps (thoroughly) with a garden hose one morning, and use a garden tiller and bow rake to work them down later that day (or the next).
Just a thought.
Just a thought.
I have moved allot of dirt around this place with a box blade. Put the rippers down and scratch up the sod as best you can then you can move it with the blade. If your rippers aren't digging in you need a bigger tractor or heavier box blade.
100 sq ft is only a 10'x10' area. You could soak the humps (thoroughly) with a garden hose one morning, and use a garden tiller and bow rake to work them down later that day (or the next).
Just a thought.
Yeah, I mentioned a push tiller as a question earlier in the thread; glad to have some validation on that. The area of course isn't perfect square and to feather it in right, I might have to do an area say 5-6ft wide and 15ft long...and that's just 1 part; I bet once I get going, I find that I need to do more to get optimal drainage. This is to prepare the ground to have a shed built over it. The shed will be on stilts and the water will drain under it from one side and then out the back via the lowest spot that also slopes down parallel to the house towards the back of the lot..
After thinking over my options using my existing tractor, I've come to the following conclusions:
- My tractor has no sleeve hitch and they cost $200 +. Most of the attachments for lawn/garden tractors require a sleeve hitch so I'd have to buy one and install it
- Lawn tractor accessories such as box blades, etc. cost $250 - $400 EACH, some cost even more. SO I'd have to invest $500.00 or MORE to get what I need to make my tractor work
- My tractor has a custom added hitch already installed that allows for a 2" ball and the std lawn tractor/ATV hitch. This would have to be removed permanently to install a sleeve hitch. Since I use the 2" ball to haul a few trailers around, this would be inconvenient and waste of the 50 bux I spent for the custom hitch to then discard it
- My tractor has a light-duty hydro tranny not really rated for ground-engaging (although as little as I wanted to do I figured I'd have tried it). If I made the investment and it worked "this time", I do not expect I could get away with using these accessories enough before I had tranny trouble to justify their cost
So that leaves me with this possible option:
- Rent & use the sod cutter to shave the grass off the high spots instead of using a tiller
- Then either hand rake OR
- Build some custom rake (weighted with 2x6 with nails or rake heads attached?) I can pull with the tractor to loosen the dampened dirt
OR do you think using a tiller in between the sod cutting and raking is a better plan??? I agree with Mac just a tiller and rake might work but seems like it would be much cleaner to cut the sod first???
I do not want this whole process to cost me much more than my time but I also don't own a roto tiller but considered buying one anyway for garden work so it would get used more than this one time if I did buy one. Thinking I can get one for $200 or less???
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