Flexible ground protection mats

evo

evo

Been here much more than a while
Location
My Island, WA
I’ve only worked around alterna style mats a few times, they seem great but heavy, rigid, expensive and durable. I’ve been using some scrap plywood I was given for the past few years and it’s done the expected job. What I love about the plywood is that it’s somewhat consumable, and easy to cut to whatever is needed. I’ve even bored some holes in them as needed for some specific task. Kinda like a Swiss Army knife, that can be used as airspade screens, ramps or whatever is needed.
My plywood supply is running thin however, and my biggest gripe is the rigidity. The corners seem to get caught in the mini tracks regularly and crunched up, also it sucks on uneven ground. Honestly I rarely deal with fine graded lawns but more so uneven forest floors, or areas with dips and bumps.
In my mind I think horse stall mats could be a perfect solution more so as ground padding than trying to create a rigid surface. I’ve messed up surface roots even with plywood sliding and pivoting.
Anyone try this?
 
I’ve thought about using stall mats, but I think they’re too flexible- they will probably act like no mat at all, and worse, they’re rubber, so your tracks will grab them and drag them around when you try to turn. Think drag strip, all the accumulated rubber adds traction for the cars.

I would go the Alturnamat route; they’re fairly rigid out of necessity to spread weight, but they will flex to the contour of the ground, straightening out when stacked on a flat surface again.

Surface roots will likely be damaged no matter what you drive over them, unless you bury them in soil temporarily.
 
There were at least two companies selling matts at Expo that were much different than the Alturna style.

I'm sure that TCIA would be able to connect you with the vendors
 
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Have some old rubber stall mats that have steel backing on them, possibly recycled from a screen or something - maybe can use them?
 
Chaplain242 said:
Have some old rubber stall mats that have steel backing on them, possibly recycled from a screen or something - maybe can use them?
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My old boss had a few lengths of old conveyor belt, about 3’ wide. We would use it wrapped around tree trunks when we knew we would be making a big pull to protect the bark. Another chunk has a piece of angle iron bolted to it with attachment points for a winching sled.
HEAVY but both worked well
 
Reach said:
I’ve seen these but never used them, might give you the flexibility you need without just sinking in the mud? https://www.slattrax.com/
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I came here to say stay away from them... They're brittle (broke pieces off every time they got used), and the way they're assembled they have fasteners that stick out proud of the surface of the mats (on both sides if I remember right). The roller that you can get for a bobcat, while decently functional, isn't really any faster than loading regular pads off a set of forks from a machine. And anything more than a REALLY gentle turn is a no go

Maybe if you were driving something like an avant or bobcat on them they would survive better... But a big truck is definitely asking for them to get broken. I see them being useful in a landscaping operation where you are into and out of a yard over multiple days, and these allow for easy/quick setup of straight line access to a yard, and you want to be able to remove them to preserve the lawn
 
theatertech87 said:
I came here to say stay away from them... They're brittle (broke pieces off every time they got used), and the way they're assembled they have fasteners that stick out proud of the surface of the mats (on both sides if I remember right). The roller that you can get for a bobcat, while decently functional, isn't really any faster than loading regular pads off a set of forks from a machine. And anything more than a REALLY gentle turn is a no go

Maybe if you were driving something like an avant or bobcat on them they would survive better... But a big truck is definitely asking for them to get broken. I see them being useful in a landscaping operation where you are into and out of a yard over multiple days, and these allow for easy/quick setup of straight line access to a yard, and you want to be able to remove them to preserve the lawn
Click to expand...
Appreciate the review. I wondered about the durability, looks like you’ve answered that one for me. Thank you!
 
evo said:
I considered the weight, but then realized I can just roll them up and carry them like a log in the grapple.
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All I can say is good luck rolling them. Best comparison is wrestling a greased pig. Easiest way is to grab them as they lay flat and crumple them with the grapple.
Another idea I just came up with is indoor outdoor rugs like in commercial buildings. They can be bought cheap and layered to whatever thickness you like.
 
Looks kind of gimmicky but I'm considering giving these a try, I can see them being multipurpose. hopefully not too slick, as I've shot out plywood from under the tracks a few times.
 
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