Box Scraper Is a box blade a good idea for my needs?

[coolslug]

Hi gang,

I just registered here and this is my first post. I'm very happy that I stumbled upon this great tractor site and I look forward to learning more about tractor stuff here.

We have a hobby farm with 8 acres of pasture and 10 acres of woods with a mixture of evergreen and deciduous trees. I bought a new Kioti 45 hp tractor with FEL and BH. I've been learning how to operate the tractor this winter moving snow around (had plenty of that here this winter). I have used the BH to dig post holes.

I want to make trails in our woods for my wife to ride her horses on and I also want to level some of the horse paddocks and prepare a new garden. I have never used a box blade but have read here that many of you like to use this type of implement for many different uses. Will a box blade be okay to use instead of a tiller? Can I also use it in the woods or will it get stuck on roots and fallen branches as I try to scrape out some trails?

I've read here that it is good to have the BB the same width as the tractor. Is that correct? Do you think a box blade is the best attachment to get for what I want to do? Also, is it really as hard to learn how to use as some people say?

 

[John_Mc]

Where a box blade shines is in moving/grading soil/gravel etc. The more crud there is mixed in (large rocks, branches, roots) the tougher it is to get good results, and the more work it is. If you are trying to spread or regrade the soil on your trails, it should work fine. If you are thinking of using it to grub out good sized roots, you've got your work cut out for you (but then a tiller isn't going to do that very well either). I've used a box blade on my own woods trails with good results in some areas. In others, the toothbar on my loader or the backhoe were what it took to get the job done.

I've always heard, and my own experience backs up, that you want your box blade to be a little bit wider than your tracks. I don't know how wide your Kioti is, but I'm guessing a 6 footer would be a good match for it. I've got the same size on my 33 HP New Holland TC33D. I do OK with it, but a bit more HP and weight would be nice in some instances.

It's not that a box blade is terribly difficult to use. It just take ssome practice to get the feel of it... when to use the rippers, and when not, how much to lengthen/shorten the toplink to dig in or to smooth things out, etc. It's one of those things that you just can't "get" without some seat time.

John Mc

 

[Texas Dodge]

I have a 6' BB with my L3400 and yes it does take some seat time. I am getting better at leveling out the high spots as well as smoothing out the drive way.

 

[kvmapr]

I've been using my new box blade for about a month, and I can't imagine living without it now. I've used it to level the floor of my pole barn, carve out a new road running across a 10 degree slope, and bust up turf in preparation for tilling a new garden.

No, I don't think a box blade will give a well prepared seed bed to plant your garden, the way a tiller would. But neither would a tiller help you to move soil, build paths, and level out areas you want to flatten.

The outside measure of my tires is 60 inches, and my box blade measures 72. The extra 6 inches on both sides are very useful for carving out areas of soil that are beyond the reach of my tires. Working without that extra width would make some of what I've already done, a real challenge. And the fact that you can "bull doze" loose soil with the box blade, running in reverse, is a nice feature, too.

As someone said in a different post on this site, between a good FEL and a box blade, you can move a lot of dirt.

 

[mikim]

I've had and used my bb for several years ..I wouldn't be without it. Add an hydraulic toplink to it ...it makes all the difference in the world when trying to operate a bb. I was amazed at how much easier it was when I added mine.

 

[jbrumberg]

coolslug:

Welcome to TBN ! I agree with the previous posters. You really would benefit with the addition of a toothbar on your loader bucket and you really want a boxblade slightly wider than your wheel width; especially if you are going to be working heavy, claybased, rocky, and rooted soil. Jay

 

[N80]

I think a BB is one of the most versatile tools you can hook to a tractor. I think it is perfect for making new trails. It won't pull up big stumps, but you have your BH for that. But when starting new work, you shorten the top link and drop the teeth down to their lowest setting. This allows the teeth to rip and then the blade digs into what the teeth have just ripped up. Once you get the area/trail roughed in, you progressively lengthen the top link and raise the teeth up a bit to smooth everyhting out.

A BB does not make a good tiller. But, in a pinch, you can angle it way forward and set the teeth all the way down and it will dig 2-4 inches down. I've done this for food plots and it works okay. But as mentioned it does not make anywhere near as good a seed bed as tilling, plowing or disking.

Bottom line, you will find a BB very useful and in ways you haven't thought of yet. You really can't go wrong with a decent BB.

 

[pitt_md]

I used my BB for all kinds of things. Keeps my gravel drive looking like new. I had an area that I wanted to put a 60' round pen in but it was sloped. I used the FEL to dig into the hillside and BB to move around all the dirt until I had a really nice level 60' round pen.

 

[Bird]

Like mikim, I sure did like the hydraulic top link when using my box blade. It really made me do a better job faster.

 

[coolslug]

Thanks for the responses folks!

I will take John Mc's suggestion and get one that is a bit wider than my tracks. I am going to be looking at a seven foot box blade tomorrow where I bought my tractor from. A 7ft wide trail would give plenty of room for two to walk side by side together and plenty of room for a horse ride.