Skid Steer Attachments Offer Endless Road of Options

Guthrie says paving contractors know that they have to compact before they pave. "If it's not compacted, it's not going to work," he says. Since compacting is not really an option, a compaction plate attachment can be a very valuable resource for both big- and small-time paving contractors.

Vibratory Roller
Another skid steer attachment that can be especially beneficial to a paving contractor is a vibratory roller. These attachments perform the same work as dedicated ride-on or walk-behind compactors - compact base materials and remove air pockets - but instead of requiring a separate piece of equipment dedicated only to compaction, the work can be done using a skid steer. This helps save time and money as well as transportation space, Moorman says.

If a contractor is looking to construct new pavement or make pavement repairs, this attachment is a good choice. It functions like a dedicated roller, but the vibratory roller is powered by the auxiliary hydraulics of the skid steer, Odegaard says. When the auxiliary hydraulics are activated, oil is sent through a hydraulic motor to power the shaker box and drum. With the Bobcat vibratory roller, a simple reverse of direction reverses the drum's direction as well. In order for proper compaction to occur the arms must be in the float position, he adds.

Bobcat offers two sizes of vibratory rollers, 48 in. and 72 in., and both sizes are available in either a padded or smooth drum. "Padded rollers are typically used to compact base materials that are very cohesive such as clay and heavy soils," Odegaard says. "Smooth drum rollers will compact base materials such as sand, gravel, and pea rock and also work well for asphalt patching jobs."

The Bobcat roller attachments offer free form oscillation to keep the drum in contact with the surface where the ground is uneven, rubber isolation mounts to reduce vibration transfer to the skid steer and the operator, and an offset drum design that allows the right side of the roller to extend past the skid steer to compact next to sidewalks, walls, or curb, Odegaard says.

Paladin Light Construction also offers a line of vibratory roller attachments for skid steers. The Bradco rollers come in eight models, four with smooth drums and four with padded drums. Both types of drums come in sizes of 48-, 66-, 73-, and 84-in. widths. They deliver up to 9,370 lbs. of dynamic force when operating at 20 gpm.

The hydraulic drives are isolated and protected to ensure maximum performance, and the steel drums have adjustable steel scrap blades between the frame and the drum to provide smooth and uniform compaction on the Bradco rollers.

Slot cutters
A slot cutter is an attachment for pavement repair. Slot cutters basically have two uses. First, they can be used on roadways or parking lots to cut out only a section of the asphalt or concrete that needs repair, rather than having to tear up the entire area. A slot cutter is also useful when repairing cracks. If a crack is not wide enough to accept repair material it can be widened or deepened with a slot cutter and then filled with the repair material. This way the crack repair will hold better, Guthrie says.

A slot cutter is a toothed-wheel, similar to a saw blade. Coneqtec/Universal offers slot cutters that can cut 7 in., 9 in., or 12 in. deep, each with a 3-in. cutting width.

The SSG-7 and SSG-9 have 20 teeth on their wheels, and the SSG-12 has 24 teeth. With the two deeper cutters, the SSG-9 and SSG-12, the minimum hydraulic horsepower required is 45 - compared to the minimum of 35 for the SSG-7.

Although Guthrie points out that slot cutters don't have much to them - basically just a hydraulic motor run by the hydraulics of the skid steer and the toothed-wheel - he does say a contractor has two options with the hydraulic motors: direct-drive motors or planetary systems. A direct-drive motor delivers the rated power directly from the motor. Planetary motor systems use a smaller motor with an extra gear box and gears to help produce the rated power. Guthrie says the Coneqtec/Universal slot cutters, as well as all of its other attachments, use a direct-drive motor system.