Ventrac or Atv?

[PrecisionS&I]

Looking at getting a sidewalk machine, most of the walks are 5' wide some 4'. What do you think is better for this a ventrac/steiner NO cab 48" straight blade or a atv with a 48" blade?

[DaveCN5]

Originally Posted by PrecisionS&I

Looking at getting a sidewalk machine, most of the walks are 5' wide some 4'. What do you think is better for this a ventrac/steiner NO cab 48" straight blade or a atv with a 48" blade?

IMHO,Which ever is more manuverable and has a tighter turning radius. I've never ran a Ventrac, so I couldn't speak for them. We have 5 quads with 60" blades and some times it can be tough to maneuver around. All you need is 1 idiot to pull to far over the curb and you're toast.

[RLM]

Your not comparing apples to apples (or even oranges for that matter). A Ventrac will be far more manuverable than a 4 wheeler. 4 wheelers are great for long walks, realitively straight, once you have tight manuvering they loose efficiency quick. However a 4 wheeler (400-500cc class) is probably less than 1/2 a ventrac or steiner. So its really a give/take thing.

[oldmankent]

Steiner or ventrac with a blower.

[Schuley]

Agree, comparing a ventrac to an atv doens't make sense. I have a ventrac and love it. It is a work maching, where an atv is more of a recreational machine. The ventrac is articulated, so way more manueverable, and it accepts a wide range of attachments for different jobs/seasons. Ours with full cab and a bunch of attachments was up around $30K. Atv with a plow will be what, $6-8K?
If it means anything, we don't use our atv for sidewalks anymore since we bought the ventrac...

[Dan85]

I'm going to be the odd man out here and recommend against a Ventrac. We purchased two units (used) and they were nothing but trouble - even after multiple trips to the dealer for warranty work. On a regular sidewalk, the larger ones are still apt to run over on the grass and the articulation didn't do much either.

I will admit, the blower did eat through some pretty nasty snow (when it worked). Also, the rotary brush worked the best for us - we never ran a blade. The cab heats up pretty quickly too, so no need to wear a jacket when you're operating the thing. Hearing protection is a must though!

During the summer, the Ventrac pretty much sat. We did purchase a 60" deck for it, but it wasn't nearly as fast as our zero-trun mowers. Plus, with the cab on it, it was much hotter. So, that might be something to consider too.

Another option is a front mount mower, such as a Kubota, with a push blade on it.