How about a tractor thread.

[UnSafe]

Clearing in and around selected trees is a big task. I'd run a brush hog through where you can (just for acces), then drag a trailer in, start chainsawing whatever you don't want, load and remove. Bucket load or drag the big stuff off with a chain. There's going to be a big ass burn pile. Wait for a safe day and start it at the downwind end.

Once the rough cut is done and you get a better idea of the land and drainage, you can box blade it out. Tines only at first, to snag all the roots and brush (more burnables), then use the blade to smooth out the dirt. Plant shade grass seed to hopefully assist in weed and erosion control.

It's a continuous process that'll add to your tool/equipment collection- Good quality gas pole saw, chain saw(s), hand loppers/ pruners for the little stuff, heavy duty string or blade trimmer, tractor with loader, box blade, brush hog type mower, etc$$$.
Might consider renting a larger/ heavier tractor or backhoe/ loader with a jaw type loader for the initial work. Then. A 30-40hp tractor can be used to maintain it. I'd avoid a dozier, they push too much dirt with whatever else they tear up and it'll take forever to burn off a huge dirt/ stump mound. The tractors tend to lift and drop objects which, once piled up, can be burned, pushed together and burned again, leaving only ash and lost tools.

Have fun, it's worth having a nice treed area that you can actually use.

In edit. Few things are more frustrating than an unreliable tractor. Be careful if you're considering an old or beat up tractor.

 

[Fatboy Joe]

My brother has a Mahindra 6510 that he bought brand new last year. I spent 8 hours dragging a 12ft brushhog in March and actually enjoyed the ride. He has a small lawn mower to get around some of the trees around our camping spot. But for the fun of pushing over trees, that would be the CAT DC3 dozer...

 

[soonerbulldog]

I'm going to hit up Tulsa New holland and the deere dealership along 169. I dont plan on getting sold in to a brend new one but want to see what they offer on the used side. Most of the clearing I'm doing is the smaller trees and underbrush so maybe I need to stay on the sub compact side. I def need something to pull stumps and logs out of the woods.

 

[SoonerP226]

I'm going to hit up Tulsa New holland and the deere dealership along 169.

My grandpa used to talk about Enlow's there at the end of the Turner Turnpike, and I'm pretty sure he liked them, but my dad doesn't seem to like them very much (but it has been almost 20 years since my grandpa died, and probably about that long since my dad would've last dealt with them).

To get an idea of pricing, you can take a look here:
http://www.tractorhouse.com/list/li...ll&CTRY=usa&ST=Oklahoma&SO=8&btnSearch=Search
That search is limited to sub-40hp tractors in Oklahoma. I'd skip over the "auction" and "featured" sections, and go directly to the "general" section, which starts on page 2 of the listings. You can also tweak the search parameters at the bottom of the page.

 

[soonerbulldog]

I have no experience w/a backhoe, it just isn't worth the extra expense for me because I seldom need to dig anything. I have some stumps I could dig out w/one but it's easier to just cut it off at ground level, pour some Torodon on it & let it rot out or if it's where I want grass to grow, rent a stump grinder & take it out. Where I live there are a lot of rocks, some big, like the size of a truck bed, some not so big, like a small wheel barrow. I'd use the L225 w/the blade to push them around where I needed them or wrap a chain around them & drag them. With the loader, just scoop them up & put where needed. A few months ago I had about 7-8 dump truck loads of dirt to level out & fill in for a shed I'm going to build. I started w/the L225 & blade & started dragging dirt. Back up to the pile, lower blade & pull. Repeat till your neck is stuck looking over your right shoulder & it hurts to turn your head straight. New tractor, pull up to pile, lower loader & pull dirt to make a ramp so I could drive on top of dirt piles. Blade on back, loader on front, get a load in the loader, lower the blade & pull dirt as you're driving to relocate dirt in the loader. Took about an hour to do w/the loader & blade what it would take all day w/2wd & no loader. If I had to sacrifice in order to get in the price range I could afford, I'd pick 4wd over horsepower. The L225 is only 24hp but I have a 6' section of railroad iron across the front to hold the front end down. It will literally climb a tree or dig to China before it says quit. I've used a 4' roto tiller & it handled it no problem. The shuttle shift is new to me but I'm getting used to it, if you're using the loader a lot & need to be fairly precise or where there's a lot of forward and back, the HST is the way to go, cost is a little more but won't wear out a clutch, the shuttle shift is an in between, you can shift on the go w/o using the clutch & has a lever by the steering wheel for forward & reverse, sort of like a forklift. If you work on a slope and have rocks that are hidden under tall grass, I'd recommend getting the tires filled w/ballist, it adds weight to help keep the tractor "planted" and if using the loader helps keep the backend on the ground.

What brand is this l225?

 

[dennishoddy]

The greatest tool you can ever own for moving brush with a compact tractor is a debris fork. I looked at this one, and built my own for less than $100. We have lots of trees in the yard, and with high winds they are self pruning. I can lay this implement on the ground, drive around and collect it all without getting off the seat. Make a run to the brush pile and get some more.

http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200586891_200586891

 

[RustyW]

What brand is this l225?

Kubota.
The link is a tractor link I found somewhere on one of my searches. Horsepower isn't everything.
http://justacarguy.blogspot.com/2013/12/whats-important-in-pull-contest.html

 

[Oklahomabassin]

That is pretty neat Dennis. Grapples are really handy on skid steers, but those forks work pretty good on a front end loader.

 

[dennishoddy]

Thought about building a grapple attachment to put on there, but it works so well without one, that I didn't. Amazing how much work that thing does.

 

[UnSafe]

The greatest tool you can ever own for moving brush with a compact tractor is a debris fork. I looked at this one, and built my own for less than $100. We have lots of trees in the yard, and with high winds they are self pruning. I can lay this implement on the ground, drive around and collect it all without getting off the seat. Make a run to the brush pile and get some more.

I want! I've been hand loading pickup bed loads of branches and brush, then driving down to my burn area and unloading for years. Repeat 6-10 times in a day and my shoulders are done. Pushing piles with the bucket works sometimes, but only for short distances.

Have any more pics of the one you built? Basic drawings? Looks like a great fall project.