Construction equipment attachments for land

Whether you’re taking out trees, grinding out mulch or grabbing debris, these 13 attachments will turn your excavator, skid steer or other construction equipment into land-clearing machines.

Worksaver's Sweep Action Tine Grapple sweeps debris into the bucket, where it is retained when the cylinder overcomes the spring pressure, causing the front rake to rotate toward the bucket in a sweeping motion. It is available in overall widths of 72, 78 and 84 inches. The SATG offers an open tine bottom with its sweep-in grapples, designed for handling demolition debris, rocks, brush, wood and metal. The sweeping action allows operators to pick up small materials without leaving the cab, eliminating hand cleanup, while leaving the dirt behind.

TRK Grip Rakes’ integrated hydraulic cylinders provide a strong grip on loads and spread the clamping force evenly across both sides. The ridged side can handle heavy ground penetration for pulling stumps, rocks and roots, and it can act as a log grapple. A standard mounting head allows for easy transfer of the grapple from machine to machine. A quick coupler allows mounting without hammering pins and installing a stiff arm. Other features include full dual cylinder hydraulic action and T1 & AR400 steel at all critical points.

Loftness’ Battle Ax mulching attachment for 7- to 15-ton excavators features a two-stage cutting chamber and direct-drive variable displacement piston motor. The Battle Ax is designed for right-of-way maintenance, land clearing and forestry applications. It is available in cutting widths of 41, 51 and 61 inches. The depth gauges on the 17-inch-diameter rotor prevent the attachment from engaging too much material at one time. Available tooth options are Quadco reversible knives and carbide teeth. Custom mounts are available for all makes of excavators.

The Clod-buster Topsoil Screener from Burly Attachments turns piles of dirt into ready-to-grade topsoil. The attachment's bucket pin points are designed to use the skid steer's power to quickly fill the ¾-yard scoop. The Clod-Buster's Hardox steel agitator shreds the clods so dirt can pass through the screener, providing a consistent grade of topsoil at a capacity of 50 tons per hour. After screening, the agitator rotation is reversed to toss rock and debris to the back of the bucket. Then, the hood is opened to discard rock and debris.

Solesbee's Blade-Mounted Dozer Rakes will fit nearly any dozer blade without customization, the company says. That's because the rakes have an extended upright with multiple holes to line up with the dozer blade when mounting. The company also provides all the pins and brackets needed for mounting. The rakes are made for land clearing, raking brush and piling trees and branches. They feature a C-curve design that rolls brush and debris, which makes it easy to windrow material while minimizing the amount of dirt pushed with it.

The BrushHound FX26 Defender Forestry Mulcher attaches to most compact excavators for use in property maintenance and clearing right of way. The serrated edge on the thumb saddle works with the excavator thumb to grap and remove debris. The cutting width is 26 inches. Cutting capacity is 6 inches. The mulcher has 21, 1-5/8-inch Quadco knives that are easy to change. The attachment requires 15 gallons per minute of auxiliary flow. Its hydraulic direct drive is designed to increase efficiency, power and torque, as well as reduce maintenance.

The Brushshark Tree Shear can quickly shear .5- to 8-inch-diameter trees and brush at ground level. It can handle any types of trees and brush, from cedar to soft saplings. Its low-profile shear plate design enables it to cut along fence lines and clear the bottom wire. It fits on skid steers and most tractors with auxiliary hydraulics rated at least 8 gallons per minute. The shears cut in both directions. Trees and brush up to 3 inches in diameter are sheared in a 1-second cycle. Larger material requires multiple cycles that are each about 1 second.

Blue Diamond's Heavy Duty Brush Cutter can mow down material up to 4 inches with a heavily reinforced deck, a ¾-inch blade carrier, and a tapered rear deck for improved material discharge and clearance. The deck was also made easier to clean, and thicker to handle high-stress areas. The land clearing attachment works on full-size skid steers and compact track loaders. The grease-filled drive is designed to be more reliable than oil and require less maintenance. A perimeter wire guard spools up wire so it can be accessed with wire cutters.

Bobcat gave its 70-inch forestry cutter 17 percent more mulching production when tackling hard and soft woods. The cutter's tube-style drum and spiral tooth pattern allow one tooth to engage at a time for smoother operation, requiring less horsepower. The carbide-tipped teeth on the rotating drum rip through standing trees, and trees on the ground can be processed into fine mulch and mixed into the soil. The cutter is designed for the company's T750, T770 and T870 compact track loaders and its S850 skid steers.

Kubota's 4-in-1 CB25 Combination Bucket turns skid steers into a combination bucket loader for loading, carrying and dumping dirt and other materials. Along with serving as a bucket, the attachment serves as a grapple and dozer blade and can be used in back drag operations. The jaw can act as a grapple to pick up rocks, branches and sticks. And when fully opened, the jaw can dig, scrape, level and backfill. The bucket is available in widths of 68, 74 and 80 inches. An optional spill guard adds bucket capacity and helps keep loose materials in the bucket.

The IMH Series mulching heads from Indeco North America are designed for land clearing, site preparation, invasive-vegetation management and storm-damage removal. The unwanted vegetation is returned to the soil as mulch. The mulching heads are designed to fit excavators from 5 to 50 tons and to use the excavator's auxiliary hydraulics. They are available in 10 direct-drive and belt-driven models. Components and bodies consist of Hardox steel. Features include single piece shaft, severe duty bearings and extra heavy-duty drum.

Geith heavy-duty grapples are made for demolition, recycling and land clearing. The grapples can handle heavy objects such as broken pavement, oversized branches and large boulders. They are designed for excavators weighing 3.6 to 52.2 tons and come in a variety of sizes up to 130 inches. The grapples feature abrasion-resistant steel, replaceable bearings in the main hinges, boxed tines with replaceable wear plates, and pin-protecting seals. They are compatible with both pin-on and quick coupler mounting systems.

Three free spinning blades attached to a 275-pound flywheel enable Virnig Manufacturing's V50 Brush Cutter to take down tall brush and trees up to 6 inches in diameter. The flywheel bounces off stumps rather than catching and damaging components, and the blades are reversible for longer life. Four widths are available in standard flow or high flow options. A dynamic braking safety feature stops the flywheel within 10 seconds. The cutter also features valves that protect the motor and the loader's hydraulic system from rocks and other objects.