Snowblower advice needed

[Bentrac1]

Looking for a rear mount snowblower for my Kubota 3560 HST and need to to know what the appropriate size for my tractor would be. 66-74" I assume in that size somewhere. Don't want to be too big where it bogs the tractor down constantly but not to small either where it's narrower than the tractor. I'm sure many of you have been down this path already. Let me know your thoughts thanks!!!

 

[McMXi]

Looking for a rear mount snowblower for my Kubota 3560 HST and need to to know what the appropriate size for my tractor would be. 66-74" I assume in that size somewhere. Don't want to be too big where it bogs the tractor down constantly but not to small either where it's narrower than the tractor. I'm sure many of you have been down this path already. Let me know your thoughts thanks!!!

I run a Land Pride SB1574 behind the MX and it's a very good fit for that tractor. Kubota/Land Pride says that tractor PTO hp should be in the 30-60hp range for that blower.

It's my opinion that the hp ranges listed for any implement say something about how the combination will work over a range of conditions. If you're at the lower end of the hp range you'll have a good experience in easier conditions. If you're at the upper end of the hp range, you're more likely to have a good experience over a much wider range of conditions from ideal to much less than ideal.

I tend to run the snowblower at quite a bit less than 540rpm with the intention of reducing fuel consumption, and I've never had the blower bog down operating it that way. I would expect you to have a good experience running it at 540rpm in everything but the most dense type of snow.

 

[Bentrac1]

PTO HP is 28 on the 3560 so I kind of feel like the 1574 would be to big unless I'm missing something. Owners manual recommends nothing bigger than a 67" also. I see that Landpride makes a 64 inch, also farm king makes a 66 that looks pretty decent as well. Anybody own either of these with good results?

 

[woodman55]

A few inches wider that the wheels is what most people do.
Plus what I used to do on the first pass in hard going, was carry the blower 2-4 inches off the ground. This kept the blower weight on the drive wheels instead of the tractor having to push it along the ground. Plus it was a few inches less the blower had to move on the first pass.

 

[PHPaul]

I have found that the "required horsepower" is padded pretty heavily in most cases. I ran a 5 foot brush cutter very successfully with a 17 PTO HP tractor. IIRC, the "required horsepower" for that cutter was stated as closer to 30.

I suspect you'll find it'll run the 74 inch blower nicely except possibly trying to take a full pass in deep, wet, heavy stuff.

 

[McMXi]

I have found that the "required horsepower" is padded pretty heavily in most cases. I ran a 5 foot brush cutter very successfully with a 17 PTO HP tractor. IIRC, the "required horsepower" for that cutter was stated as closer to 30.

I suspect you'll find it'll run the 74 inch blower nicely except possibly trying to take a full pass in deep, wet, heavy stuff.

That was my point in an earlier post. Also, if the OP uses the "Kubota matched" feature on Land Pride's website, the 1574 is shown as being "matched" to the L series tractors. Obviously the safe bet would be choosing something smaller than an SB1574 that still exceeds the track width.

 

[Bentrac1]

I used the Kubota matched feature on their website and came up with the same results. Just don't want to oversize the equipment and be under powered. Like I had stated earlier my manual recommends nothing bigger than 67 inches for a snowblower so it's kind of conflicting. Appreciate the first hand knowledge.

 

[woodman55]

The power needed also depends on the snow. Is it lite and fluffy, or wet and heavy. Every snow fall will be different.

 

[Donystoy]

Since you have HST, any width wider than the tires will work. Your speed will be determined by the depth and consistency of the snow.

 

[MapleLeafFarmer]

PTO HP is 28 on the 3560 so I kind of feel like the 1574 would be to big unless I'm missing something. Owners manual recommends nothing bigger than a 67" also. I see that Landpride makes a 64 inch, also farm king makes a 66 that looks pretty decent as well. Anybody own either of these with good results?

I have a Farm King 660 (66") behind a Kubota L3301 both about a decade or more old.
They are sized matched very well.
Plenty of pto hp and I have pushed the blower harder than it can clear it throat to the point of snow coming over the top and the tractor has never bogged. I loose traction before bogging but our snow is generally no heavy wet as temps in Canada keeps snow on lighter side of sloppy wet.
The 660 is a budget blower but for the price its been flawless if you don't mind manual chute controls and chain drive.
I am on my first chain still and would still say it 99% as new.
I do run over a lot of things that a blower is not designed to handle like 10# frozen chickens and these can bring the auger or impeller to a quick stop. The friction clutch which uses 1/4" grade 2 bolts has always made sure no damage done.
I would recommend the 660 as a budget blower with no hesitation.
An upgraded 4 blade impeller used to be an option and I have always only used a 4 blade one so no comment on the 3's.
I have had blowers on tractors that have been too big and I would say it was never a problem with pto power but rather too big a blower gets to bit hard to manage / steer / guide around corners or in tight areas where precision is desired.

 

[Bentrac1]

Outside measurement of my rear wheels is at 72" so I guess 74" would probly be the best/appropriate option. Good point that I can slow down as much as needed with the HST transmission.

 

[bird dogger]

Outside measurement of my rear wheels is at 72" so I guess 74" would probly be the best/appropriate option. Good point that I can slow down as much as needed with the HST transmission.

If you're in the woods in the Bemidji, MN area..... I doubt you'll encounter much wind driven, hard packed snow drifts like we can get here in North Dakota open areas. You'll do well with anything just a little wider than your rear tread spread.

And like mentioned above, on the rare occasion that you might encounter some larger hard packed drifts you can open up the first pass by lifting the blower up and take partial cuts into the drift. Drive forward, lower and back into again, repeat until you're through the hard packed drift.

I had the same JD750 tractor as @PHPaul when we moved onto this farmstead. I put the 5 foot Lorenz blower behind it and the 17 PTO HP would struggle taking a full bite into hard packed snow drifts. But taking smaller bites while backing into, move forward, back into again, would get me through the hardest packed snow anywhere. Once through the main drift, just take as large a swath as you can with the HP you have. You'll have plenty of available PTO HP behind your tractor for 99% of your snowfalls.

Heavy wet snow won't throw near as far as the dry powder snow. You just adjust your methods for what ever conditions you're encountering on that day.

If you wanted to, you could also add a short "wing" to each side of the blower to get a little extra cutting width if needed or wanted.

If by chance your area does have alot of hard packed wind driven drifts, look at the "paddle type augers" on the Lorenz snowblowers versus the spiral cut augers most blowers have. I can attest to the ability of the paddle type augers on my Lorenz will chop through the hardest packed snow around while most of the spiral cut augers will struggle to cut into those drifts.

Edit: One of the other benefits of the 3PT blower..... you still have your loader available to help bust up any extremely hard packed snow if you absolutely couldn't get through it with your rear PTO blower. You'd do fine with the blower wide enough to cover your tracks with your setup!!

Now we need to get you set up with a wide, horizontal, non curved mirror mounted just above and in front of you for winter snow blowing duties!!

 

[Bentrac1]

If you're in the woods in the Bemidji, MN area..... I doubt you'll encounter much wind driven, hard packed snow drifts like we can get here in North Dakota open areas. You'll do well with anything just a little wider than your rear tread spread.

And like mentioned above, on the rare occasion that you might encounter some larger hard packed drifts you can open up the first pass by lifting the blower up and take partial cuts into the drift. Drive forward, lower and back into again, repeat until you're through the hard packed drift.

I had the same JD750 tractor as @PHPaul when we moved onto this farmstead. I put the 5 foot Lorenz blower behind it and the 17 PTO HP would struggle taking a full bite into hard packed snow drifts. But taking smaller bites while backing into, move forward, back into again, would get me through the hardest packed snow anywhere. Once through the main drift, just take as large a swath as you can with the HP you have. You'll have plenty of available PTO HP behind your tractor for 99% of your snowfalls.

Heavy wet snow won't throw near as far as the dry powder snow. You just adjust your methods for what ever conditions you're encountering on that day.

If you wanted to, you could also add a short "wing" to each side of the blower to get a little extra cutting width if needed or wanted.

If by chance your area does have alot of hard packed wind driven drifts, look at the "paddle type augers" on the Lorenz snowblowers versus the spiral cut augers most blowers have. I can attest to the ability of the paddle type augers on my Lorenz will chop through the hardest packed snow around while most of the spiral cut augers will struggle to cut into those drifts.

Edit: One of the other benefits of the 3PT blower..... you still have your loader available to help bust up any extremely hard packed snow if you absolutely couldn't get through it with your rear PTO blower. You'd do fine with the blower wide enough to cover your tracks with your setup!!

Now we need to get you set up with a wide, horizontal, non curved mirror mounted just above and in front of you for winter snow blowing duties!!

Not too often does it drift like it does west or south of here but my place is more open than most where a NW wind will drift my lane over. Thanks everybody for all the good advice!!!

 

[woodman55]

I rarely take full width cuts. I leave enough overhang to catch any snow that falls off the edge of the cut. That way the blower still catches all the snow.

 

[Donystoy]

I rarely take full width cuts. I leave enough overhang to catch any snow that falls off the edge of the cut. That way the blower still catches all the snow.

I do not have any option but to take a full width cut on my 4000-foot driveway. Only used the blower once all winter but it was after a substantial snowfall. I could have walked faster with a walker in some areas.