Box Scraper Box Blade vs. Rear Blade for new yard.

[Farmacyst]

Newbie here. First off, sincere thanks to all your posts in helping to pick our first "real" tractor, even if it is only a SCUT. Learned a lot on with all the posts. Special thanks to VOOS for hipping me to Bechard's NH-They're good people. This is our first step up from a Craftsman LT-that little tractor did more than it was ever designed to do.
Finished a new house in December and will need topsoil and seed this spring. About 1-1.5 acres to cover with some gentle slopes (~15' rise over 300' --one 5' high X 65' retaining wall dead center in front of the house). Which is better to move all the topsoil we'll need with our TZ25? 4' Rear blade, 4' rear box blade, float it with the FEL? I've searched the archives, but haven't found a direct comparison. Lots of folks swear by the BB for grading yard and walks and RB for grading driveways and such. You know what they say about opinions, everybody's got one!

 

[TractorDale]

I just got in from working on my yard. I read everything here I could find comparing RB and BB's and decided on a 6' BB from TSC. It was a very good decision- astonishing how fast one can level a big area with a BB (and 4WD since I've turfs).

At first I was digging in too much then found some suggestions on tilting the unit such that the back blade is slightly lower than the from blade. Figure 8's with the blade floating and it goes quick.

dale

tc29da, bb, fel, bh, tiller, maybe a chipper for father's day.

 

[john_bud]

Box blade will be quicker and takes less expertise to use satisfactorily.

 

[Farmacyst]

TractorDale- When your say "tilting the unit such that the back blade is slightly lower than the from blade"-help me out. All of the BB pics I see have a blade only at the back and 2 side blades. What am I missing? Do you mean a moldboard inside the box and a blade on the backside? Can a TZ25 pull a 5' BB? My plan is to put about 2" of topsoil over the sand areas to give the seed something to grab

 

[Gordon Gould]

I am new here and reading with interest. I have the opposite question.
I have a 6' blade and a mile of VT gravel road to fix after mud season every year. A friend says I would be better off using a BB (he never used one).
It seems I am moving material across the road to fill ruts and recrown. Can a BB do this??
Thanks for any comments.

 

[inveresk]

Farmacyst, the box blade has two blades. They're both at the back and they're back to back. One points forwards and one backwards and which way the blade is tilted - forwards or backwards - determines whether the blade cuts or scrapes. How much it's tilted determines how aggressively it will cut.

Gordon, a bb can readily crown a road or form a ditch. You can tilt it to one side or the other using the 3ph extendable arm.

 

[B8FISH]

Most Box Blades have 2 blades at the rear--attached to the rear "plate". One cuts forward, the other cuts in reverse. If you tilt the BB so that the rear blade is touching the ground (not cutting) it will effectively smooth as you drive forward. If you begin to go in reverse it will be tilted down and take a very aggressive bite. This is where a hydraulic top link comes in handy to make these adjustments on the fly.

TractorDale- When your say "tilting the unit such that the back blade is slightly lower than the from blade"-help me out. All of the BB pics I see have a blade only at the back and 2 side blades. What am I missing? Do you mean a moldboard inside the box and a blade on the backside? Can a TZ25 pull a 5' BB? My plan is to put about 2" of topsoil over the sand areas to give the seed something to grab

 

[Z-Michigan]

If you were doing only the landscaping, I would consider a landscape rake. They move soil well (if reasonably dry) and prepare a good seedbed for grass seeding.

But, since you're in upstate NY, I am thinking maybe, just maybe, you will want to be able to move snow. For that I think a 5' rear blade (you want wider than your tractor) would be a good choice that can work for both the landscaping and snow moving.

Nothing wrong with a BB either, you will probably want both eventually.

 

[Farmacyst]

Great feedback. I knew I came to the right place. It sounds like the BB is probably the way to go. I have a front mounted snow thrower coming before next winter, so moving snow with the BB probably won't happen.
Any thoughts on a TZ25 pulling a 5' BB or should I stick to the 4 footer? 4 footer should just cover the rear tire tracks.
Can you cut a trench/swale with the two inner teeth lowered and the outer teeth pulled up? Might be more economical than buying a BB and a middlebuster/sub-soiler. Just need some swale to keep the melting snow running away from the house. Got about 6" last night that all but melted today and wasn't running away from the house in any organized fashion.
Thanks again for the feedback.

 

[Rich P]

If you're going to be planting grass, see if you can rent a Harley rake. By far the best attachment for grading and preping a seed bed.
Harley
-Rich