Skid Steer Loaders are a better choice for finish grading in confined areas rather than Skip
Loaders. However, for finish grading to specification, a very high skill level by the operator is
still necessary. Two types of skid steer loaders are being used for finish grading in confined
areas. One mounted on four rubber tires, and one mounted on rubber tracks. Both have the same
problems moving material into the proper place to meet specifications, without the help of hand
work.

• Most of these types of machines use their front loader bucket for moving the material into
place, and unless the material is dirt, sand or fine granular composition, segregation will be a
serious problem without adding water to the material, adding extra expense to the grading
process.

The operator, positioned behind the front edge of the bucket, has difficulty seeing exactly
where the cutting bit is placed for starting the grading pass while going forward. The
operator is required to make many passes to move the material into the proper place for
meeting the grade specifications. Most of the time hand labor has to finish the grade surface.

• Some operators prefer to do the finish grading while moving backward so they can see the
placement of the bucket cutting edge. Even though the operator has better visibility than
while grading forward, this grading configuration causes the worst material segregation,
substantially reducing the surface quality of the grade.

• Skid Steer Loaders grading forward or backward, with the bucket, cannot adjust the side-toside
angle of the cutting bit, so multiple passes are required to shape the grade into the proper
job specifications. Hand labor with shovels and Lute rakes are usually needed to finish the
job.
• Some manufacturers produce a Blade attachment, replacing the bucket on Skid steer loaders,
which eliminates the use of the loader while the blade is attached, the vehicle becomes a
single purpose, grading machine, which in essence is the same as a smaller motor grader with
all the problems that go with it.

• Some Skid Steer Loaders, with a front-mounted blade attachment, have a blade, which is
adjustable up and down on each side, and pivots on a vertical axis, and is supported by a
front axle that is center pivot mounted. This geometry causes the combined vehicle to
perform exactly like a small motor grader, which is hard to learn to operate, has poor blade
visibility and twice as many adjustments by the operator for a desired blade depth setting.
There are two main reasons why the operator requires additional adjustments. The blade
(moldboard) is supported at the front by a pivot mount at the center of the vehicle front axle,
also at the back, by an adjustable device (Hydraulic Cylinder), mounted inboard a substantial
distance from the outside edge of the cutting bit. When the operator makes a depth
adjustment on either side of the blade, the opposite side will move in a reverse direction
which requires an additional correction by the operator. This geometry also causes operator
difficulty by causing the moldboard and rear support of the vehicle to spiral into the surface
when grading, unless the operator makes a counter adjustment. These two reasons, plus
visibility problems, is why it requires plenty of training and experience for an operator to
become proficient enough to do precision grading, especially in confined areas.