Rear Blade Rear Blade quality

[woodstock]

Which every blade you buy make sure it has a built in stand. This will make storage safer and hookup easier.

<font color=red>Winnipeg, Manitoba</font color=red>

2001 BX2200 (50 hrs)

 

[Wheeldog]

Terry,

I'm planning on buying a blade soon, to move snow around this Winter, and I've got a couple of questions about what you said:

<font color=blue>Especially if you have a paved driveway. Once you set the depth of the blade with your rocker shaft, the blade is "fixed" for a certain depth. If the front tires hit something hard, the blade will be driven into the driveway - scraps and gouges. </font color=blue>

First, I had assumed you'd put the 3-point in float when you blade snow. Are you saying that you don't do that?

What do you mean by 'if the front tires hit something hard' - can't really picture what you are talking about.

I'd also like to hear what other people think about plowing snow on paved surfaces and whether they use skid shoes or not . . .

Thanks.

Rob



<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1>Edited by Wheeldog on 11/01/01 06:58 PM (server time).</FONT></P>

 

[Anonymous Poster]

in the market for a rear blade myself---leaning towards KK heavy duty. Very heavy, with the best looking moldboard support i've seen in a medium/heavy duty blade. Check it out on the kk website - click on the PDF file.

As far as mark up by dealers-- I have two Woods dealers in spitting distance. I went to one & priced an RB72 -- $478.

Next day went to other dealer -- he quoted $387, both new. When I asked him how he is selling for a lot less than the guy 15 minutes away he said, "I'd love to charge list but I won't stay in business" Kicker is, the cheaper guy moves much less inventory.

Morals of story - Dealers don't sell for a loss; list price is nowhere near the dealer's cost; and there is always someone ready to deal.

Real kick in the butt - I'm not a fan of Woods implements.

As far as the guy who said implements in his part of the country are more expensive. In some industries manufacturer's set list price as a maximum price, regardless of geography so their equipment stays competitive in the market. If you have a local dealer boning you because he's the only game in town, I would call the manufacturer, they might be very interested.

Just to spite the guy I would pay a little freight and buy online.

 

[snowman]

I'm curious about that comment regarding the paved driveway too.

I purchased a Woods RB60 ($405 includes 7% tax) this summer mainly for snow removal on my paved driveway. It does not have shoes available for it (if I wanted to put them on, I'd have to drill holes in the blade).

My intention this winter was to simply drop and drag it on the driveway, as I want it to scrape up any hardpacked snow and ice that I can't get with my front mount blower. In other words, I wouldn't want shoes for snow removal on the pavement, as the shoes would not allow the blade to scrape it.

I don't think that the blade will scrape or gauge the pavement, as it will always be in contact with the pavement to begin with (versus riding on shoes and maybe coming across a rise in the pavement that is between the shoes which the blade would then "top off", but I don't think that would happen unless there was a huge amount of force).

It may be a different story if you're working on old pavement with alot of patches or potholes; in that case, the blade without shoes may catch on the edge of one of the patches or holes and then rip it up.

 

[woodstock]

Before the BX, with my old JD 316, I removed the shoes on the snowblower and allowed it to scrape the asphalt driveway clean.
This worked real good and after the first time blowing 1/2 a yard of gtavel on my neighbours lawn, he doesn't ask me to blow out his driveway anymore to save his back for playiing hockey.

<font color=red>Winnipeg, Manitoba</font color=red>

2001 BX2200 (50 hrs)

 

[DaveM]

<font color=blue>"Let me know how the blade and skid shoes work out"</font color=blue>

Will do! Hopefully, that won't be for a month or so. /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif

I haven't seen the skid shoes either but am trusting they will be good since they're made by Tufline. I'm hoping they'll help me from clearing all the gravel off the driveway along with the grassy crown and spare some of the grass in the yard. I might not know the answer until next spring though. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

Dave

 

[gerard]

I plow a combination of older blacktop and gravel + I push the snow onto my lawn. For that reason I can't use the blade without shoes unless I want to have no grass in the spring, a lot of gravel where I didn't want it, and a lot of torn up blacktop. IF you have a new, perfectly flat driveway and are NOT going to push onto your lawn, you can get by without shoes. Personally I think they're well worth the cost and it gives you the option. (I also had to spread about 100 yards of sand 1.5 inches thick on an 80 x 200ft area for a horse arena. I set the shoes 1.5 inches high and the place looked like a pool table when done. Try doing that without skid shoes!)

 

[TerryinMD]

Wheeldog,

What I mean by hitting something hard is that if your front roll over some frozen snow a couple of inches thick the front end will lift up and push the implement down if it is set at a particular depth.

Now I show my ignorance of 3pt hitchdom (newbie, be somewhat kind). I can float my 3pt hitch? I don't remember reading about that in my JD 4100 manual. Now that doesn't mean that it doesn't exist, I haven't stumbled on to it or had it explained to me. Woo-who!!! Something else I can do? /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

A neighbor plowed my drive last with a rear blade and he scrapped off some of the driveway sealer. So, I know that things can happen. Also, my driveway has bumps and dips and D9 track impressions. It is not your tradional driveway. It was done with road millings which were rolled. Millings are the waste when they grind down asphalt roads with those big machines.

Hope this answers your questions.

Terry

 

[Wheeldog]

Terry,

Well, I may be confusing myself here. I had thought that you'd set the toplink to get the correct angle of cut for the blade, then just drop the 3ph down so the blade was fully resting on the ground (plus a little extra to follow any dips, etc.). In truth, I think the 3ph is always in float, unless you have a setup that has down pressure (and none of the compacts do, that I know of). That's partly why I asked you about hitting something with the front and having it force the blade into the ground - I think that happens to some extent, but not as if it is rigid.

After I've gotten through typing all this, my final statement: Never mind! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

Take care.

Rob

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Rob,

If you have new, smooth, flat blacktop... you could get by without the "skid-shoes"...until...

The ground freezes, covered with snow, underground heaves...a part of blacktop bumps up or buckles {sight-unseen... under the snow} and as soon as that moldboard hits that spot... the blacktop peels back like a banana peel.../w3tcompact/icons/shocked.gif

Of course, all this time, you're happily going forward, not seeing any of this occur until you glance back and see black snow... /w3tcompact/icons/crazy.gif

I tend to look at skid shoes like a shear bolt... cheap insurance.../w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif