Front mounted snowblower

[Messervey]

Hey Everyone my name is Nick and I'm new to the forum. I bought a 2008 9540 this fall as part of a snow removal business that I'm getting in to and this is my first tractor of my own. I find for all the residential driveways that I do, that this tractor lacks no power at all but I find it almost too big at times and the shifting is non stop. I am seriously looking in to the new l6060 for next season and I was thinking about getting the loader on the front with a snow pusher that I can back drag driveways and a blower on the back. OR, a front mounted snowblower.
I want to be able to do more work facing forward and that's my only reason for thinking front mount blower. My concern is that I do not know anyone running this set up and I feel there may be a good reason why.
What do you guys think.? Is it too much out front.? They look like you may need to do a three point turn to square up with the driveway.
Any input would be greatly appreciated!

 

[aeronutt]

For commercial work where you're out for hours on end, you'd get a bad kink in your neck with a rear-facing blower. If you mostly do residential driveways, the L6060 is too much machine. Sure, it's fun to clear the whole driveway in 60 seconds, but you would loose maneuverability with such a large tractor. It's also a lot of money. Consider a B2650 with a cab and front blower. You'd get much better maneuverability, a size small enough to do some sidewalks, and you'll still get the driveway done in 90 seconds. I might even suggest a BX, but they don't come with cabs.

I have used a snow blade on a Bobcat for commercial snow work and it works great, but driving over the snow to backdrag can result in hard-packed tracks that don't clear well. A box pusher also has those wings sticking out the front that prevent getting closer than about 3 feet from the wall with the blade. The blower solves those problems and hydraulic chute control lets you put the snow anywhere you want. It also means you don't have to worry about smashing up landscaping when you push piles of snow onto the lawn.

 

[tcrote5516]

Yea, a M series is just to big for most driveway snow removal. The B is a great choice for mid to long driveway's. If you deal with shorter or just tighter/technical driveway's and parking areas you cannot beat a bx. My BX literally has replaced my shovel. I can get it in any little area and clear it quickly. I even do my stairs with the FEL on float with a backdrag (stairs are made of stone). With a 4ft wide footprint there's no place you cant really cant go, heck you could clear a sidewalk and not damage the lawn.

 

[RCW]

Yeah - what these guys said.

Unless you're doing parking lots, which a snowblower wouldn't be suited for, I think you need to look for a smaller set-up.

 

[Grouse Feathers]

Guys I don't know, most snow removal contractors around here use pickup trucks with blades. I don't know of any that use an ATV. I think an ATV would compare to a BX and a pickup truck to at least an L. My BX does a great job on my driveway, but no way would I try and make money clearing driveways with it. Too much time per driveway to few driveways in a day and I couldn't compete with the pickups and blades. Maybe in a subdivision with lots of close small driveways, but then you have to worry and about dogs and toys. I think the market is for a L tractor mounted snowblower service to compete with the trucks and blades. I would not want to compete with the home owner with an ATV and blade or walk behind blower.

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

My choice would be a B HST or a small L HST, quick accurate maneuvering.

More HP does not have any real advantage to moving snow accurately in small spaces.

 

[08quadram]

I would say use a truck with blade and depending on sidewalks. Bx with blower

Sent from my SCH-R970 using Tapatalk

 

[sheepfarmer]

I dunno, if someone could invent a Zamboni like device for tight spaces filled with the frozen slop that cascades off the roof, I'd like one. What I had in mind was something that had teeth or an auger to scrape up the snow/ice, melt it, put the water in a tank and drive forward.

Yesterday after we had a foot of heavy wet snow, the roof cascade left 4 feet of the stuff between my two barns, blocking doorways. It was pick up a bucket load off the top, back up 50 yards to a place to dump it, turn around, blade out a chunk to clean it up, repeat. Over and over.

 

[aeronutt]

Guys I don't know, most snow removal contractors around here use pickup trucks with blades. I don't know of any that use an ATV. ....

I do commercial snow removal with a big blade on a 3/4 ton pickup. I only do business parking lots. Residential driveways are nothing but a PITA. I do my own and help out a few neighbors, but I'd never try making a living doing driveways with a pickup. I see some guys doing it with a pickup and a walk-behind blower doing 2-man teamwork. I've never seen an ATV doing anything other than sidewalks. The problem there is getting a good push. ATV plows are not heavy enough to use for backdragging so pulling snow away from the garage door is a problem. You also have to worry about scalping the lawn or smashing up landscaping as you push the snow onto the lawn.

I haven't seen a compact tractor with a snow blower doing driveways, but I can picture it working better than a pickup + blower team just because it's going to let you blow the snow harmlessly onto areas that you just shouldn't go with a plow and it doesn't require a second person to be there. Having lots of driveways close together (contract with HOA to do the whole neighborhood?) would be the best case scenario so you don't waste a lot of time transporting in lousy weather conditions.

 

[Grouse Feathers]

I haven't seen a compact tractor with a snow blower doing driveways, but I can picture it working better than a pickup + blower team just because it's going to let you blow the snow harmlessly onto areas that you just shouldn't go with a plow and it doesn't require a second person to be there. Having lots of driveways close together (contract with HOA to do the whole neighborhood?) would be the best case scenario so you don't waste a lot of time transporting in lousy weather conditions.

It depends a lot on the area, and the OP has never returned with any comments. Where I live 1/4 mile and longer driveways are common, so there are a lot of small contractors with trucks and blades. As you noted the contractors can't handle the transport of a tractor so he has to go with a truck. Works good until we have a year with a lot of snow and no place to put it. That's probably why homeowners who move their own snow tend to go with tractors and blowers. An area like Buffalo or the west side of Michigan where they get lake effect snow would be a special case, and a lot of different solutions to snow removal could work.

 

[Diydave]

I dunno, if someone could invent a Zamboni like device for tight spaces filled with the frozen slop that cascades off the roof, I'd like one. What I had in mind was something that had teeth or an auger to scrape up the snow/ice, melt it, put the water in a tank and drive forward.

Yesterday after we had a foot of heavy wet snow, the roof cascade left 4 feet of the stuff between my two barns, blocking doorways. It was pick up a bucket load off the top, back up 50 yards to a place to dump it, turn around, blade out a chunk to clean it up, repeat. Over and over.

That's where a skidloader comes in real handy...