Buying a New Ditch Witch Mini Skid Steer? (Watch This First)

[@Roberto_DeLeon]

CAT needs to stopping messing around and make minis

[@Overfl00d]

Tigran, I was going to purchase a Ditchwitch, but now that you are telling us of all these problems, I think I will go with Bobcat or Vermeer.

[@ryanhurley1322]

Look at Kubota i promise you won't regret it

[@rsidhu5396]

Go with bobcat they’ve been making them for years and have proved there capabilities

[@alecg5429]

I've used the Bobcat and I liked it.

[@jamesnm21]

@@ryanhurley1322 Kubota is no better than anyone else with customer service.

[@chriskarsseboom2200]

Bobcat attachment sucks. I own a Ditchwitch 800 and it’s problem free 200 hrs

[@treedubya]

Been running the DW SK 1050 for over a year. We've done grading, loading, ran it through the woods clearing fallen timber, load and unload brick and block. Its a beast. Never had a problem.

[@josephgarel1992]

Every has your parking break got stuck? Ours is now with 40 hours total runtime.

[@treedubya]

@@josephgarel1992 no!?! Thats crap. I would consider checking the switch and circuit for corrosion since it's electric. But, now that I think of it it has stuck but if you go back and forth a half inch it should come out. The other thing is I think it's just a pin that pops out and blocks the drive wheel from turning. It's possible you bent it in transit on a trailer. Hope that helps 🤷‍♂️

[@misav9862]

Was literally in the process of buying a new sk1050 next week, until I just watched this video. Thank you for your honest opinion.Goat gang hear I come!

[@truelandscape]

That’s why I got a Vermeer CTX 100 😂😂😂

[@High-Flow-Drainage-Solutions]

I demoed a vermeer 925tx recently. I loved it. Has yours been durable.

[@Wolfmann99]

@@High-Flow-Drainage-Solutions 925 is a beast for it's size running good so far

[@jacobd7838]

You should try the mini bobcat mt85 if I need one when mine goes down they always rent one out for me

[@kyesniper]

Now that the mt100 is out, I'd never recommend an mt85. The sealed undercarriage makes it worth every penny.

[@juliuslorz4794]

Vermeer’s treated me very well. They keep lots of parts stocked to prevent downtime.

[@gamerfarms9362]

i have had really bad luck with vermeer

[@marklance033]

Ditch Witch Executive: "Go to caterpillar then🥴" - Customer service is dead.

[@monayousef2544]

I have a 10 year old DW750... was thinking about upgrading until I saw your video. I've never had a problem with this machine.... I think I'll keep it for a few more years. Afterword's, I'm goin to Bobcat. Thanks for your video!

[@keith-kalfas]

Love it.

[@workingmanrondoyle3287]

Looks like Ditch Witch is going to have to drill a hole in the hydro's drive motor shaft and install a castle nut with cotter pin should correct this issue.

[@danieldmytriw3276]

Believe they did this now . My sk800 has none of these issues. Maybe a California thing lmao. We have castle nut and it's fine. Recommend ditch witch idk why he's hating .

[@jorgemartinez724]

I have my Ditch which machines and to this day they work very well for me, I didn't buy them new, I bought them used, but they work perfectly thank God

[@andrewpederson9190]

Over the years of working in the landscaping field I have fond that alot of companys use cheap quality parts low grade steel and I am talking pins for the arms plow blades sprockets that's why I use bobcat 1. You can get parts eazy 2 they have mobile mechanics 3 they have hundreds of machines on site and they always have a rental. 4 some of the best customer service I have ever experienced on top of that they have there shit together 😜. BOBCAt for life.

[@ryanhurley1322]

Look at the New Kubota SCL 1000. They are worth their weight in gold. I personally don't own one but buddy does and so does his dad. They said they absolutely love them and prefer them over any ditchwitch even the 850. Also from experience Kubota has always got my and their equipment fixed ASAP. Obviously living in AR the shop may very but I promise you should take a look T. Great video

[@user-kn1rg2br4h]

The Kubota SCL 1000 Can only lift 1000 pounds, the Ditch Witch sk 3000 lifts over 3000 pounds. The cat also lifts over 3000 pounds.

[@kyesniper]

@@user-kn1rg2br4h That isn't even a comparison though. The Kubota fits through a 36" gate the sk3000 is the same size as a full size skid steer. That's like comparing a 1 ton mini excavator vs a 5 Ton lol. It's also 1000 lbs using a 35% tipping weight. It can easily lift significantly more than that

[@julianbautista2666]

Vermeer is the champ, my little 725 is 5 years old, nothing but maintenance and it is very comfortable and practical

[@TigranGertz]

nice man!

[@98fishingfool]

Coming from someone who works for a toro/kubota dealer. It doesn’t matter how good the quality is on the machine. It doesn’t matter if it’s dingos, SCL1000’s they all have issues. The biggest part is the people assembling the machines don’t give a damn about doing their job

[@willthomas1803]

I worked at ditch witch as a welder during the times Toro took over and recently quit. Quality control is a joke there now. Welders are left to figure stuff out for themselves because the QC and engineers plans are so poorly drawn lol. I told my dad who was thinking of buying a mini to buy something else.

[@JamesFord-hp8wf]

As a technician of 12 yrs at DW I can say you are right. The parts are junk due to 99% of the parts that come from vendors that go on the machines are made in other countries. The chassis and all other parts that are welded together at the factory are the 1 % good. All the older sk350 sk 500,sk 650 sk750sk752 were built with USA parts from the vendors. We may have had 1 or 2 have problems. I literally had a customer bring in a sk650, and the sprockets and tracks are worn out, but the Eaton- Char-lyn Motors are still good(made in the USA). If we could get good quality USA made parts again like we had years ago this wouldn't be an issue. Contact your Senators and vote for people that want to make America the country it once was.

[@jaimeescutia1137]

I am switching back to Vermeer for sure!

[@clacal2005]

I live near Perry, OK where Ditch Witch is located and guys who have worked there decades say it’s not the same place. Bottom line profit is the absolute priority. When you put employees and parts second, the bottom line will suffer and so will the company in the long run.

[@RT440Robert]

So I live in Washington this might not apply to California. I was told at a dealer (not ditchwitch) the reason why they don't have parts on the shelf is because if it sits too long they will get taxed on the part again. So they have to ether keep parts in a different sate that doesn't do that or get it from the manufacturer.

[@samstheman7633]

A little abrupt T ditch witch makes a amazing 800 or 850 lots of issues with the bigger models with small issues very easily fixed, my ditch witch dealer fixes these issues on each model, they re route hoses fittings and lines and such , before sales , they told me if their mechanics did not adjust the machines before delivery to customers they would be falling apart, I got 200 hours on my 800 no issues at all

[@vincegarza3701]

Great video!! Maybe it's time to go with Vermeer??

[@JoseRodriguez-rq6qw]

Thanks for the info T...always love watching your videos!

[@awwtizm4160]

i got a 2019 1050 because of you and both sides of my drive sprokets broke it needed a new starter and the pin broke all with less then 150 hours and less then a season of use

[@misav9862]

Was literally buying the same one next week, this video and your comment just changed my mind

[@angelqb23]

Bought a brand new sk1050 about a year ago . Very powerful machine but it’s been in the shop 4 times already, and ditch witch dealer always find any excuses not to cover repairs under warranty. I don’t recommend it .

[@ZR1Terror]

I’m glad I read your comment because I am debating between an SK800 and the MT100.

[@thegingerlandscaper3549]

I’m having similar issues with Vermeer too

[@FloridaTurfPros]

We were getting close to pulling trigger on a ditch witch... Going Vemeer now 💯

[@HenrySimar]

That’s what happens when you go through drive-Thus lol

[@dannygonzales2528]

They F U at the drive through.....

[@scn102]

Hey tigren . Was there a follow up video etc.. looking at getting one now in 2023 .. yay or nay ? Thx

[@expandingedge7562]

Try the new Kubota SCL1000; looks pretty dope.

[@dustinpadama4347]

That looks like a badass machine 100%

[@stevenbarts330]

We had the exact same problem with both an sk850 and it's replacement 1550.... Lots of problems with ditch witch and swithed back to Toronto dingo

[@stevefrazier2214]

My ditch witch dealer isn’t a yanmar dealer...cost me $1000 to ship it to nearest yanmar dealer for free/warranty work. I have a 1050 with 800hrs. The bogie/ hubs will loosen and destroy bearings, if you don’t check them regularly.

[@TailoredOutdoors]

Honesty is tops T. Sucks to hear negative feedback on ditchwitch but it is what it is 🤙

[@helixfoundationsystems1315]

Brandt tractor sells and services the ditch witch along side John Deere and the service is absolutely perfect

[@GardenGateLawn]

Stay on them.! I had a sk600 that was a lemon. It had several issues in the first 200 hours. After going back and fourth they finally brought me a new machine and switched them out.

[@juanheraz7347]

Bobcat s70 is the ticket! Beautiful machine.

[@GardenGateLawn]

@@juanheraz7347 I owned a bobcat s70 for 5 years. A ditch witch or any stand on mini skid is way more versatile in my opinion.

[@juanheraz7347]

@@GardenGateLawn sounds like you don’t know how to be productive!

[@GardenGateLawn]

@@juanheraz7347 lol can you read? I said nothing about productivity… I said it was more versatile.

[@Ironsightuser]

Just bought one and moved 85k lbs in 2 days and already ready for pavers to install

[@tannersmowingandmorellc496]

Same thing happened to the local rental place in town with their new Ditch Witch SK800! The axle had actually sheared right off on both sides within 50 hours of each other. Central Minnesota

[@Granddesignlandscape]

I’m with ya brother, I have 2 1050’s one is 2 years old and has had zero problems in 800 hrs, my new one has broken 5 left front spindles and had a major hydraulic leak from the control valve. Love the machines, the new is not the same though

[@kirshkeener3522]

I work for a small company. And we have the 1550. We literally beat the hell out of that thing. Not a single problem. Maybe it's your operators. Could be influence from cat.

[@rsidhu5396]

Bobcats the way to go

[@ryanhurley1322]

I prefer the Kubota over the bobcat

[@ozoconstruction5307]

Same thing happened to my sk1550 after 50hrs sprocket/ drive wheel. All bolts on left side snapped. Probably gonna invest into the tools to do the repair on site my self cause that was one week with no production since all locale rentals were out…

[@workingmanrondoyle3287]

Ha Tigran, contact your local Vermeer dealer and ask to demo the Cts-160 mini skid. I just bought one over the Ditch Witch Sk 1550! If you do it and they come through for you. Please make a demo video of it. Good luck bud.

[@RickyTheDon]

I run Vermeer stump grinder and nothing comes close imo. Zero issues

[@justpalms9978]

Our local ditch witch dealer sucks here in central florida. I've heard of guys getting parts sent from Georgia dealer instead.

[@juancarlosmarquez3886]

Thanks for sharing this! Im in the bay area as well, and heard bad things about ditch witch even tho I follow you and see you advertise ditch witch a lot, I had my doubts. Ended up buying Vermeer Ctx160. 50 hours so far and its been great. No problems at all. It’s a beast for it’s size.

[@DaltonsLawnLandscape]

has service improved since making this? Looking at purchasing one

[@davebishskier]

Sounds like you need a Vermeer. I have a Ctx160. Love it. Besides that run all cat. They’re service is second to none!

[@TigranGertz]

CAT’s are top tier

[@jeffhill2975]

Sacramento in the house. I was looking at ditch witch, but now I’m going Vermeer

[@MR-wp4oy]

It looks like the hub is missing an end cap with a set screw/bolt the center looks to be threaded for another bolt to retain the nut that is already on there.

[@stevesmith-wc2gb]

Vermeer also has small loaders like that

[@TigranGertz]

Does he

[@ozoconstruction5307]

Ended up having 3 break downs all due to the tracks. I’m at 300hrs- ready to trade in and upgrade to something that’s built better

[@TigranGertz]

Nice man

[@hahah2804]

Check out kubota 5' reduced to 3' excavator. Will definitely come in handy to finish fast in small spaces

[@thewhiteknight02]

Toro bought exmark, boss plows, snowrator etc. nothing but problems and price increases.

[@aj12271]

Kinda makes me wonder if quality control has gone down the shitter since Toro bought them out 2 years ago. Sadly, it's common when a company gobbles other companies up and grow too fast, quality suffers.

[@alexgibbs1886]

I use to do Utility during and we used ditch witch it would brake down every few days and it was 30/20

[@clayreaves4522]

Mr. Tigran, first time long time. Been watching your videos from afar for awhile. We're up in Washinton State. We have 3 DW 1550s and had one 850. Funny (or not) the most recent 1550's sprocket broke off the exact same way after 50 hrs or so. They sent the wrong bolt too! Cheers

[@TigranGertz]

im on the 3rd run lol....

[@clayreaves4522]

They still the best mini skid. 🏄‍♂️

[@paulwhite9848]

Do you use San Leandro caterpillar I think it’s Peterson cat

[@MrNghialy]

Hi. I ready want a Vermeer tcx100, do you have any experience about that machine??

[@TigranGertz]

I would suggest watching video reviews on the machine.

[@OE7V7]

I was just getting ready to buy one. Thanks T

[@percymendoza4053]

Was looking into ditch witch living in Cali... guess Vermeer or Bobcat it is 👍🏼

[@korbinroth6234]

Vermeer all the way get the 160 my guys beat the piss out of our 2 160s and all we have have to do in replace the tracks got 1600hours on one and 2800 on the other and Vermeer’s warranty is the best

[@lilchavi8935]

Yo T it’s ight bro I understand how people wanted you to wait days weeks or even months and, that makes you loose money it’s tough. But your a hard worker man just keep up the good work 💪🏽💪🏽🔥

[@_starbuckle_8144]

This made no sense

[@TigranGertz]

Hahahaha. 0. But we good.

[@hulsey19750]

Go buy a mini loader like a giant brand no more tracks that don’t last. This is coming from a ditch witch owner. Also very little turf damage large lift capacity with faster ground speeds

[@dpd16790]

you should head over to kubota and pick up one of their new scl 1000 machines...

[@hhprogressiveconstruction1140]

So are you going to try out another brand .

[@wadafruit]

Thinking of a Vermeer CTX 100 for me or a Kovaco since I want to badly go electric. Maybe one day mean green mowers will make a skid or mini skid thats electric. Their electric zero turns are FIIIRE. Check them out.

[@6bt_str86]

I do like those ... Quite "Zappy"

[@AarontheGreat89]

I just bought a Vermeer bc 1500 wood chipper within 6 hours the machine was leaking oil. Come to find out they gave me a machine with a cracked block

[@TigranGertz]

oh wow, that's not good

[@4.0gpa44]

Vermeer is junk, at least I've been told.

[@rickstech9771]

I think I heard you right when you said that 1550 cost 50-60k?

[@ozoconstruction5307]

Mine was 60

[@workingmanrondoyle3287]

It mostly depends on the area and dealer you buy it from.

[@lehelparsons6059]

One word.. rent. Rent machines on a month to month basis. $1500 CAD per month here for a ditch witch. One was throwing a track repeatedly and sure enough the track was damaged. Had another one the next day. Find a good rental company. Let them have the headaches. Sure you pay a bit more, but you don't have the maintenance costs or nearly as much downtime. Plus for the day that it was down he sent me a mini ex for a day at another job for free!

[@jesuslovesyou8280]

Love your videos Tigran. Many blessings & Love to you and your family.

[@willa3635]

Get your Money T !!!💸

[@ThatsRightLawnCare]

I hear it's a common issue. Had it happen with the SK800.

[@formdog9861]

bobcat took thepiston right off thebrand new machine and put it on mine while i waited

[@arkansasaviation5299]

This is where rentals shine. Reach out to your local rental equipment store.

[@eduardordz208]

There’s an updated kit for the 1550’s to solve the problem with the motors, the kit contains a two new track motors with different metal on the shafts and with a different nut and it shouldn’t come off after that. I done quite a few of those updates. If your machine falls under the vin, then they should cover it for free. And, there’s also updates for the smaller ones as well.

[@TigranGertz]

Oh wow, didn't know that

[@powellcustomconcrete3705]

That new Kubota supposed to revolutionize the ride-on Game 💪🏽

[@rileyshane78]

No warranty?

[@TigranGertz]

There is

[@benmiller5003]

You should try out the bobcat mt100

[@alvarorarias]

Has anybody tried the Bobcat MT100?

[@dmlandscapedesignllcatlant8093]

My tx1000 has NEVER EVER gave me a problem other than it leaks from every hose

[@dannygonzales2528]

All parts made over seas ....Keep yur head up my friend

[@gilc7626]

Couldn’t be San Jose Pd they never show up unless u in Almaden. Lol

[@TheTimTalkShow]

John Deere is the best customer service and always there to fix problems right away

[@TigranGertz]

I agree, I like the customer service

[@TheTimTalkShow]

@@TigranGertz Thanks for the videos. You helped me tremendously. Got licensed Bonded and Insured.

[@TigranGertz]

@@TheTimTalkShow get in goat gang. Game changer goatgang.net

[@mtorresg10]

Bobcat mt85 the best. Simple, parts available everywhere, and reliable.

[@scottmcherry]

Maybe it's you area ditch witch. I have had nothing but great service, reliability, and great service from ditch witch. For instance I bought 1 cat and the cat dealer by me was very slow to fix any issues. They want to service the bigger clients like the school busses and dte trucks. I sold that cat as soon as I could and would never buy one again.

[@bensmith1685]

I have an 850 and I thought I got a lemon too from all the issues...

[@bobojr456]

My theory: new model and untested design AND it's been engineered beyond its capabilities. I would expect systematic continuous problems if you have so many problems so soon.

[@charlesbourgeois9029]

I want the kubota but can't find one smh

[@lukeshurtleff9770]

Bro. If you got a lemon I got a rotten grapefruit. MY 1550 with 1400 has had almost 40 down days from failures. and my new one threw both hubs before 40hrs. We in the BDWG aka: broke ditch witch gang

[@newlawnottawa7354]

Vermeer cx160 👍

[@dmlandscapedesignllcatlant8093]

Vermeer is good amd the toro dingo is good i like my tx1000 and tx100

[@Brandon-dn6kr]

I was looking at getting one but with that poor customer service in a fast working industry na

[@nealbell1888]

Damn man. I just got a quote for a 1550 after watching your first video about it. was looking into buying one very soon. Now I’m hesitating😂

[@samstheman7633]

The 800 is their most reliable machine , the 1050 and 1550 have slight issues

[@perlitahammond2604]

He might have a lemon, but there’s plenty of good reviews.

[@justingreene9724]

Your a big baller trader that crap in for a kubota scl 1000 !!

[@chrisfoy928]

I had a similar problem with my SK 750 with horrible customer service, no management, parts nightmare, poor communication, and my regional manager told me I was a boldface lier. Never again will I purchase a ditch which!

[@John-yg3xk]

Tigran, how do I message you directly?

[@TigranGertz]

Https://facebook.com/tigran.gertz

[@RJSteineke]

Boss snow plows were great till toro took them over and now everything has gone down hill. Sounds like toro is the problem here.

[@sjpm-e7253]

Try’ a wheel barrow mate

[@mike99ify]

My SK1050 gives me heartburn 🙃

[@robertgdunnjr206]

Grab a Bobcat!!!😁

[@Kangg04]

I bought sk 800 after I wathced your videos.

[@6bt_str86]

But how do you Really Feel Tigren?? ✋😄(Never owned any of them , good luck boys!)