Box Scraper Box Blade Used as Ice Resurfacer?

[tommu56]

The fire house I use to run with would flood the ice on the canal would use my ice auger(ice fishing) to drill hole in ice.
Build a dam around hole with the chips left over let it freeze a couple of minuets put the pump in and pump away even a submersible would work with a short pipe to surface and an elbow and another pipe to spread it out.

Just keep chipping the hole open, it took us hours to get the hose out that froze in the hole once!!

tom

 

[peterc38]

Just wondering how you know when the ice is hard enough to hold the weight of the tractor?? I would be a little leary....

Maine Nature News - Relative Lake and Pond Ice Strength Chart

 

[keeney]

Knowing when the ice is thick enough:

Watch the other vehicles on the lake. If they are bigger than your tractor and not going through, then you are good to go.

Also wait at least two weeks from the last reported vehicle through the ice.

Also, drill a hole with an auger and measure. Its about 10 to 12" thick on the lake I was on which is good enough for 6000lb turcks, should be OK for my 1800 lb 4100.

Also, I made sure to stay over shallow enough water (less than 4') that should the ice break: A: I would not drown / freeze. B: I could reach with a tow strap from shore to retrieve the tractor.

- Rick

 

[streamin]

Knowing when the ice is thick enough:


Also, I made sure to stay over shallow enough water (less than 4') that should the ice break: A: I would not drown / freeze. B: I could reach with a tow strap from shore to retrieve the tractor.

- Rick

That is good advice..

 

[jimgerken]

Keeney, I have thought about this before also. I think you are on the right track. I would think that the boxblade would be the greatest starting point. I would look into having the forward facing blade of the boxblade sharpened up real nice, and maybe keep it for only-winter use after that. To the top of the bb, you add a spray tank, of maybe 60 gallons. There's plenty of structure to mount it to on the bb frame, pc of cake. It can then gravity flow to your towel drag system out the back side there. and you can remote the valve to turn on the water, mechanically or route the hose close enough to reach the valve from the tractor seat. Now, add your front-mounted rotary broom on the quick-tach on the front of your 4100, and its the perfect package. The only thing you are missing is the mechanicals that auger and store the ice chips in a big tank. so instead you must pull off the ice with the boxblade every few rounds to lift and dump. If I lived on Lake Z., I would have this setup. My wife loves to iceskate, and my buddies and I ice-race our atvs out there.
Since I don't live on the lake, I made this half-pipe building attachment (see attached photo), to make runs on our sledding hill when the snow gets deep enough.

 

[MikeD74T]

jimgerkin, How about some pictures of your half piper in action or the results. I'm building a sledding hill thru the woods for my grandsons that has a couple of turns that could use some banking. I did some skeleton sledding at the old Lake Placid bobsled track in the 80's. You just can't beat a good sledding hill. MikeD74T

 

[Tig]

Yeah Jim, start a new thread and give us some pics. I'd love to see how the the run.

 

[DirtHauler]

Instead of a box blade why not use a 3 pt. rear blade with a gauge wheel?

 

[Northstar9126]

I wonder if you will have enough traction. I know that a real Zamboni uses studded tires with four wheel drive. You might be OK if you only shave off a paper thin layer.

 

[MikeD74T]

keeny, I'm not sure that you actually want to do that much scraping. In the 60's the local Kiwanas maintained an outdoor rink beside our elementary/HS. It was in a sand lot with wood sideboards, regulation hockey rink sized. Rink closed at 430pm and was shoveled by teenagers with scraper type shovels. Then the attendant would flood the rink with a hose with just enough to get a smooth water layer & melt the "snow dust" left behind. It seemed important that he just flowed the water smoothly as be backed toward the maintenance shack, kind of placed the water rather than flowing it forward. Used a smooth nozzle rather than a spray. Ice would be nearly 12' thick by the end of the season. I think the only reason to scrape any more than that would be to prevent excessive ice depth, unnecessary on a lake. When I refereed a youth hockey league on indoor rinks I noticed that the zamboniis left 1/32 or less of water. Usually didn't even fill in all the skate marks in one pass. This was probably also to ensure enough freeze time before the next group. Unless there's enough water to melt the snow it will make weak ice, another reason why zamboniis pick it up. MikeD74T