Hi Everyone,
Since I never saw or heard feedback from anyone on the site on this attachment, I thought I would write down my experiance while it is very fresh in my mind.
I placed my order on JohnnyProducts.com for their Johnny Plow Sr snow plow for the Kubota BX Series. The plow arrived in four weeks as promised in three boxes via UPS. The packaging was excellent. (Being a Logistics person by profession I found this something to praise considering the packaging of most things I see).
The whole unit tips the scales at between 170 and 200 lbs so it isn't a super HD unit like the Kubota dirt/snow blade and hitch but they don't profess this to be a big dirt mover. It will move some dirt if need be but it is really a snow blade in my book. The plow width is 60 inches.
The instructions had some blips in them. There were upgrades to the hardware that weren't revised in the instructions and the pictures included could have been a little bigger and better defined. If you are NOT a handy person, you would need help installing this unit. All the hardware and units with this plow are quality and the finish should thwart the elements for awhile. Black only! No colors and they say right on the site.."don't ask". :< )
After attaching the pivot mount to the blade it was time to tackle the hitch itself. There are two different kinds of hitches for the BX based on the model and age of your tractor. Mine is a BX1500 so it took the old style. The adapter hitch for my older BX takes the place of the mower deck front hanger lever. This I didn't know and leaving this hitch on will make removing the mower deck a bit harder verses the drop and go factory hanger. The hitch will not interfere with the front end loader so it can stay on all the time.
Once installed I connected the hitch to the plow and made my hose connections which JohnnyProducts marked exactly which color connectors to attach to. It was a little over two hours to this point going slow and steady making sure it was done right and by the book. (With some trial and error).
Fired the tractor up and ran the control valves to raise and lower and pivot right and left until I got the air out of the lines. Next I had to add nearly three-quarters of a quart of Super UDT2 to bring the hydraulic level back between the lines. Took the tractor out and ran it through the loops again. This time putting down pressure on the plow. It will lift the front tires off the ground a few inches.
In Summary: The Pros:
Much less expensive than the Kubota factory setup. This is especially true for we older BX guys that can't even find the OEM plow hitch anymore for our tractors and when we do, they are asking between 600 and a grand just for the hitch! (insane)!
Good finish, pretty sturdy and quick to move on it's pivot points. Hardware appears to be quality stuff. Nice heavy cutting bar. Great down pressure and a good deal of height for moving around. Comes with a one year warranty.
The Cons:
I'll miss the factory mower deck hanger.
Instructions are tough to follow but make sense ONLY after it's installed!
Only comes in black.
Not for dirt in my opinion like the factory blade.
It hangs out well in front of the tractor so it takes up more real estate when/if your hauling it from point A to B.
The skid pads look a little cheesy but time will tell if they hold up. Looks may be deceiving.
Everything delivered to my door from their Wisconsin location was just under 1500 bucks.
Time will tell how this works out and how it does season after season. I put this together and installed it on the tractor with a record high of near 95 degrees today in Central PA so I won't be using it in any drifts soon. I'll post up how it does when the white stuff comes.
Johnnyproducts LLC also has a few accessories for this unit including wings for each side of the blade to increase the width of the blade beyond 60 inches. They have a plow flap for the top of the blade and edge markers as well.
For initial quality and function, I like what I bought. I'm satisfied. I'll like it more if it plows snow well and holds up year after year.
Since I never saw or heard feedback from anyone on the site on this attachment, I thought I would write down my experiance while it is very fresh in my mind.
I placed my order on JohnnyProducts.com for their Johnny Plow Sr snow plow for the Kubota BX Series. The plow arrived in four weeks as promised in three boxes via UPS. The packaging was excellent. (Being a Logistics person by profession I found this something to praise considering the packaging of most things I see).
The whole unit tips the scales at between 170 and 200 lbs so it isn't a super HD unit like the Kubota dirt/snow blade and hitch but they don't profess this to be a big dirt mover. It will move some dirt if need be but it is really a snow blade in my book. The plow width is 60 inches.
The instructions had some blips in them. There were upgrades to the hardware that weren't revised in the instructions and the pictures included could have been a little bigger and better defined. If you are NOT a handy person, you would need help installing this unit. All the hardware and units with this plow are quality and the finish should thwart the elements for awhile. Black only! No colors and they say right on the site.."don't ask". :< )
After attaching the pivot mount to the blade it was time to tackle the hitch itself. There are two different kinds of hitches for the BX based on the model and age of your tractor. Mine is a BX1500 so it took the old style. The adapter hitch for my older BX takes the place of the mower deck front hanger lever. This I didn't know and leaving this hitch on will make removing the mower deck a bit harder verses the drop and go factory hanger. The hitch will not interfere with the front end loader so it can stay on all the time.
Once installed I connected the hitch to the plow and made my hose connections which JohnnyProducts marked exactly which color connectors to attach to. It was a little over two hours to this point going slow and steady making sure it was done right and by the book. (With some trial and error).
Fired the tractor up and ran the control valves to raise and lower and pivot right and left until I got the air out of the lines. Next I had to add nearly three-quarters of a quart of Super UDT2 to bring the hydraulic level back between the lines. Took the tractor out and ran it through the loops again. This time putting down pressure on the plow. It will lift the front tires off the ground a few inches.
In Summary: The Pros:
Much less expensive than the Kubota factory setup. This is especially true for we older BX guys that can't even find the OEM plow hitch anymore for our tractors and when we do, they are asking between 600 and a grand just for the hitch! (insane)!
Good finish, pretty sturdy and quick to move on it's pivot points. Hardware appears to be quality stuff. Nice heavy cutting bar. Great down pressure and a good deal of height for moving around. Comes with a one year warranty.
The Cons:
I'll miss the factory mower deck hanger.
Instructions are tough to follow but make sense ONLY after it's installed!
Only comes in black.
Not for dirt in my opinion like the factory blade.
It hangs out well in front of the tractor so it takes up more real estate when/if your hauling it from point A to B.
The skid pads look a little cheesy but time will tell if they hold up. Looks may be deceiving.
Everything delivered to my door from their Wisconsin location was just under 1500 bucks.
Time will tell how this works out and how it does season after season. I put this together and installed it on the tractor with a record high of near 95 degrees today in Central PA so I won't be using it in any drifts soon. I'll post up how it does when the white stuff comes.
Johnnyproducts LLC also has a few accessories for this unit including wings for each side of the blade to increase the width of the blade beyond 60 inches. They have a plow flap for the top of the blade and edge markers as well.
For initial quality and function, I like what I bought. I'm satisfied. I'll like it more if it plows snow well and holds up year after year.