Snow blade or blower

[fruitcakesa]

I have plowed snow on my wooded, twisty driveway and my dad's short steep one for 25 years with a GMC p/u with an 8 foot Fisher MM plow. Worked great with lots of maneuvering, backing and filling to get all the nooks and crannies.
Well the old Sierra is headed out to pasture and I now have the 4630 to take over.
Having never plowed snow with a tractor or blown snow with anything, I thought I would get your opinions as to pros and cons of both to help me choose.
I lean towards a plow only because thats all I have used for snow removal
but I want to know your experiences with either.
Thanks
Andrew

 

[meanjean]

Buy another truck and swap the plow over. You will miss heat, windshield, comfy seat.
This will be my first winter moving snow with a tractor and I'm dreading the fierce weather.

 

[Jimmysal]

I went with a blower. Here's why:

Price - I already had the Kubota, so it came down to either a plow or blower for the tractor. A yard truck and plow combo would have been too expensive. Plus pronovost gave me a sick deal.

Flexibility - The blower lets me keep my FEL bucket on the tractor in case I need to move a snowbank or move firewood in the winter.

Volume of snow moved - I'm sure someone will debate me on this. I live in the mountains in VT. We can get a few feet of snow while I'm at work, so I needed something that can clear a decent depth of snow in one pass. Furthermore, the blower will throw the snow well clear of the sides of my driveway, preventing me from building a snow canyon, and reducing driveway damage from runoff in the spring.

Power/speed - I have a B1750 that clocks in around 20hp. I have 1/4mi driveway to deal with at about 10 feet wide. I'll also have town trucks leaving me a nice pile at the side of the road. I figured that the light weight of the tractor and the angle of the plow would make things a little dicey on a steep icy hill from sideways forces. Add to that that I have an HST, so I can creep into a deep pile of hardpack and let the blower do the work.

I'll just remember to have a pocketfull of shear bolts when I go out in the morning.

As far as freezing my a$$ off, I ski and/or snowboard almost every day in the winter, even in single degree weather. So, no biggie here.

Plus, it throws crabapples about 100ft in the air and 50ft onto my lawn.

Ask me my opinion in 6 months, and it may be different, but my reasoning seemed pretty solid before and after I handed over my cash.

 

[fruitcakesa]

Buy another truck and swap the plow over. You will miss heat, windshield, comfy seat.
This will be my first winter moving snow with a tractor and I'm dreading the fierce weather.

I have a factory heated cab so comfort is not an issue.

 

[dusty-t]

I have a blower and a blade on my B8200. A simple straight 5ft blade right on the quick attach. And a 4ft blower stretched to 52in. Most of the time the blade works a lot better than the bucket but it is only 2min to change anyway.

 

[fruitcakesa]

So the blower counter balances the blade?
I still have to deal with that as well as traction.

 

[dusty-t]

Yes to a certain extent the blower counter balances the blade the same as a weight box or loaded tires. It means more weight for traction. But when you get in a position where you would like the snow to be 50 ft away, you turn around and use the blower. The blade and blower compliment each other. There are places you can put snow with a blower that you couldn't with a blade, but on a straight run the blade is faster than the blower. Dusty

 

[meanjean]

Here in Manitoba we've dealt with -40 farhenheit.
A factory cab sounds nice.
Maybe I can fashion someting the the clear glass found in hockey rinks...

 

[dusty-t]

Meanjean ,I visited Thompson in feb a long time ago and i know what you mean. The wind doesn't go around you it goes through you. The front and back windows on my cab are glass but all the rest are lexan. It is not heated but it gets a bit of air from the engine that keeps it tolerable and keeps the windows clear. Dusty

 

[traildust]

Here in Manitoba we've dealt with -40 farhenheit.

Holly CRAP

 

[stuart]

Not that it really matters, but if you do the math, -40 Celsius and -40 Fahrenheit are the same.
Either way its too cold to be outside for any length of time.

 

[traildust]

Not that it really matters, but if you do the math, -40 Celsius and -40 Fahrenheit are the same.
Either way its too cold to be outside for any length of time.

I seriously don't know how you selective hardcore people live in temp's that are deadly. Add even the slightest breeze to those nasty temp's and it's all down hill from there. Very brutal!

 

[meanjean]

It gets pretty ridiculous some times.
Cold weather really does a number to the mileage you get in your vehicles.
My car nets roughly 525kms on 60 litres of gas in the summer.
Barely 400 in the winter
Almost done insulating my garage, that's where the tractor stays this winter.

 

[traildust]

It gets pretty ridiculous some times.
Cold weather really does a number to the mileage you get in your vehicles.
My car nets roughly 525kms on 60 litres of gas in the summer.
Barely 400 in the winter
Almost done insulating my garage, that's where the tractor stays this winter.

I never thought about the loss in mileage for those temp's. But after all it makes plenty of sense as the engine can't even get any where near operating temperature.

On my coldest winter nights I might see +20 F and that's fricken cold to me. I couldn't imagine in my worst nightmare being outside on a tractor another 60 deg's lower than that

 

[L4740]

I'm with Dusty-T, a blade/blower combo. I have lived in Minnesota my whole life and for the last 12 of those years out in the country. I have used everything I could come up with for moving snow. Buckets, blades (both front and rear) blowers (both front and rear) And yes, with and without a cab. By far the best combo that has worked for me is the set up below. I use the blower for the bulk of the work and the blade for pulling the snow away from the OH doors and steps. The rear blower was nice, but my old neck just couldn't take the twisting any longer and the visibility at times was poor to say the least. Know, no more neck strain, always nice and warm, listening to my favorite tunes. If your budget will allow it, go for the blower. Either front or rear. Then either add a blade or use your bucket in combo with the blower.

 

[skeets]

Mama they are using the Sword again,, Have you any idea how hard it is to run around on 2 wheels inthe snow??? And that HD is too heavy to just pick up or maybe Im just gettin old.

 

[traildust]

Mama they are using the Sword again,, Have you any idea how hard it is to run around on 2 wheels inthe snow??? And that HD is too heavy to just pick up or maybe Im just gettin old.

Skeets, put the sauce down buddy

 

[meanjean]

I have the blower/bucket combo as well.
Only 2 wheel drive though, worried about how it will handle in the snow.

 

[L4740]

I have the blower/bucket combo as well.
Only 2 wheel drive though, worried about how it will handle in the snow.

With onlly 2WD, if you haven't already, get yourself a good set of chains. For snow and ice I prefer the double ring chains, but opinions will vary.

 

[meanjean]

I recall a post which said chains did not work well on rice tires.
Can anyone chime in?
Where's a good spot to buy chains?