A300 Handles Farm Chores Smoothly and Easily

A Bobcat A300 all-wheel steer loader has made farm work much faster and easier for Glenn Johnson.

After a day of seeing patients and mending broken bones, orthopedic surgeon Glenn Johnson heads home to his 42-acre lakeside farm near Bemidji, Minn. That’s where he tackles his second job which includes raising draft horses—Belgians and Clydesdales—and riding horses—Quarterhorses and Saddlebreds.

A Bobcat® A300 all-wheel steer (AWS) loader has made farm work much easier and faster.

For example, when Johnson hauls manure and firewood he has to cross a large lawn and asphalt driveways and parking areas. That’s where the A300’s four steerable axles pay off. They allow him to make smooth turns.

“I can turn on turf without tearing it up,” he says. “Also, when I’m operating on asphalt, all-wheel steering reduces tire wear and eliminates damage to the asphalt on hot days.”

At the same time, if Johnson needs skid-steering for quick, easy maneuvering in tight spaces, he can simply press a button to change steering modes.

Operation of the machine is easy and convenient with features such as state-of-the art, low-effort joystick controls and travel speed options. “Using the joysticks is second nature,” Johnson says. “They’re so easy to use and you can rest your arm on the padded seat bar.” The choice of travel speeds—inching to maintain high torque at very low speeds when maneuvering in close quarters, a low range for normal work and a high range for travel.

A300 all-wheel steer (AWS) loader

Johnson uses his A300, purchased from Northwest Mechanical, with several different Bobcat attachments. The bucket, for example, makes easy work of cleaning the horse stalls and other areas of the barn and hauling manure.

At times the A300, equipped with an industrial grapple, teams up with the draft horses for logging work. Johnson and other members of the local harness club use their horses to drag logs out of the woods when clearing land or harvesting timber for poles and firewood. The horses haul the logs to a landing where the A300 uses its 3,000-lb. rated operating capacity, vertical lift path and the grapple to stack or load them onto trucks. Johnson also uses this attachment to lift and carry large bales of hay.

The AWS unit shines as a worksaver in other ways, too. Johnson uses the A300 with the Brushcat® rotary cutter to make trails through his woods for hiking and horseback riding. The tiller attachment mixes manure into the soil to prepare the family’s large vegetable garden for planting, while pallet forks move feed and supplies for the horses and sled dogs.

The Power Bob-Tach™ system saves time and effort by allowing Johnson to change attachments without leaving the cab. “I never thought I’d appreciate it as much as I do,” he says.

He also likes the A300’s enclosed cab with heating and air conditioning. “It keeps the bugs and dust out and, no matter what the season, I can work in comfort.”