Re: (ET) Ground up ET build

[Greg Curran <gcurran323 gmail com>]

Hey everyone,

Thanks for the replies! I would've responded sooner but I've been bogged
down with work and wanted to give your comments the response they deserve.

Larry, I live in Massachusetts so I have to make it through some tough
winters (though the last 4 or so have been almost non-existent). My dad has
a 40V Ryobi electric snow blower, he owned multiple gas-powered Ariens
snowblowers before this, and absolutely loves it. He says it blows all of
the Ariens snowblowers he's had in the past out of the water. That said,
it's a walk-behind unit and the part of his driveway that he clears is much
shorter than what I'd be snowblowing. I'm definitely a jack-of-all-trades
kind of guy (partly because I'd rather have one thing to maintain that does
a lot of things somewhat well than many things to maintain that each does
their own thing very well) and in this place the Elec-Trak shines.

William, thanks for mentioning the Jeep. The CJA2 is something I looked at
in the past and it also shines in the jack-of-all-trades space, though
there doesn't seem to be a huge number of people who still use Jeeps for
heavier agricultural use. Additionally, the Jeep's body makes adding a
front-end loader, which is a bit of a must-have for me, much more difficult
than with the Elec-Trak.

As it stands, the easiest way to get up and running would be to buy a new
Massey Ferguson compact or sub-compact tractor and go from there. The
easiest way to get an electric tractor with a FEL would be the Soletrac.
The harder, but less expensive, way to get a heavy-duty electric tractor
with an FEL would be to buy a 20 year old MF, rip out the engine, and
convert it to electric. The cheapest, both in terms of the initial purchase
and the ongoing cost, would be to restore a classic Elec-Trak. If I wanted
to save a lot of time, while still going the electric route (which I do), I
could go with the updated Elec-Trak out of MO (it also has flat footrests
which, although they might be slightly less comfortable, might be nice as
it gives more room for implements to move under the tractor).

Wavetech, to your question about the website being safe, I'm not sure but
I've never had a problem with it that I'm aware of. I've also emailed with
the gentleman who makes them and he gave me a lot of useful information
about the tractors.

Ken, I think I saw a video a while back of someone with a 2-stage Bercomac
that was run by an E20 drive motor. I don't recall if he mentioned what his
run time was but it looked great in terms of moving snow in the short video
I saw. I remember the Electric OX from back in the day. I don't recall how
heavy duty it was but it was an interesting design. I'd never say no to ZTR
as long as I wasn't sacrificing anything major for it. 48V is definitely
the direction I'd want to go in if I started from scratch as there would
likely be many more options for components due to the golf cart industry.

Paul, Tim, Will, Ben, and David: You all make really good points about
earth moving being more suited to much larger tractors. Being a guy that
really only wants to maintain, and store, one tractor, I'll likely rent a
more industrial-sized tractor when I need to move the big stuff. If I'm
being smart that day, I'll probably just hire someone to do it for me (not
looking to end up in the ER, or the ground, by working above my
ability/knowledge level).

Ben, I think it was your restoration/build that I saw a while back on this
thread. You did an amazing job with that and I'm sure we all appreciate you
sharing pics of the whole process (I know I do). Your front-end loader
looks like it's a blast to use.

Jim, thanks for the offer. I'm not in the market for an E12 right now, as I
might go for the updated build in MO, but if that changes I'll definitely
reach out.

Right now the two most likely candidates, given all of my criteria (size,
multifunctional, weight, electric-powered, able to support a FEL, cost, and
ease of use), are the updated Elec-Trak from the guy in MO and the CJA2
(which I'd convert to 48v electric).
Pros of the Elec-Trak vs. the Jeep:
E20 is significantly smaller (a little more than half the length and around
18 inches less in width) which makes it much more usable and easier to
store.
E20 is half the weight so it won't compact the soil as much and I can
always add wheel weights, implements, or a weight box in the back if I need
more weight. Having that versatility is nice.
I have experience using Elec-Traks.
It was originally designed with a FEL in mind so it will likely be much
easier to add one.
Great community of owners (had to throw a shout out to the group after all
the great responses :) ).

Pros of Jeep over Elec-Trak:
Depending on modifications, street legal (though these things are death
traps on the road so I'd rarely do this) and quick to get around 5+ acres
when not using ground engaging implements.
Tons were made so spare parts, and reproduction parts, are plentiful.
CJA2 was marketed for ground engaging implements (this is a fantastic clip
to watch if you want more info: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TnU1vrsJkwE
I really like how old Jeeps look and have considered converting one to
electric drive for some time now, so it would be a two birds with one stone
kind of deal and I wouldn't have to store and maintain multiple vehicles.
The Jeep has four-wheel drive. This could be very useful in the conditions
I'd likely encounter (also this would likely be useful with a FEL).

That's all I've got for now. Thanks again for all of the responses, it is
much appreciated as I navigate the decision making process on this. If I
missed anyone please accept my apologies as I tried to mention/respond to
everyone that replied. I'll keep you guys updated as things develop on my
end. If I end up doing a ground-up build or restoration, I'll send out
updates/share pics of the progress.
Best,
Greg

On Sun, Aug 7, 2022 at 11:09 PM David Tiefenbrunn <davidtief comcast net>
wrote:

> On 8/7/2022 11:07 AM, Ben Carter via Elec-trak wrote:
> >   I agree with Bill. The work involved in clearing 3 acres of land 
> > seems
> far in excess of an E20's capabilities.
> I agree also.  I built my own house, literally.  Started by clearing the
> land, which is mostly flat.  I used a number of machines over the time.
> I made deals where I would do a repair, [like rebuild a cylinder or
> replace a couple hoses] then get to use it for a week +/- .   One was a
> Dynahoe 190.  When I also found out it was for sale, I bought it.  It is
> more powerful than any I had run.  It also cost less and was less worn
> out than the others.  I have moved rocks half the size of a small car.
> Knocked 17" diameter at the base trees down with the hoe, which also
> removes the stump, in about 15 minutes, with more control than
> chainsawing them down the "normal" way.  For clearing 3 acres, I can't
> imagine using anything smaller.
>
> Dave
>
>
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