Driveway grader question

[DuckHunterJon]

Just an update to this post. I removed the chains, and put in ridgid angle bracing. I also lowered the cutting edges 1/2" below the skids. It works like a charm! OK, I don't know how the factory ones work, but this does a beautiful job. I lowered it down, and with in 3 passes, the driveway was looking great. I did find that it moves a ton of gravel if it's not packed yet, but most of the time I will be using it on a packed surface. I'm very happy so far with it. Here are a couple updated pictures. I still need to finish the welds, weld in some gussets, and get some paint on it. I have had a quart of JD green kicking around since I touched up my bucket hooks. Should look good when done. Thanks again for the advice!

 

[bcp]

I did find that it moves a ton of gravel if it's not packed yet...

One article I saw said you can control the amount of gravel it carries along by changing your speed. If it is picking up too much gravel, then drive faster.

My grader isn't built yet, so I can't test that comment.

Bruce

 

[Gordon Gould]

Glad to hear it is working out for you. :thumbsup:
It is always nice to see an update - thanks.
New gravel is tough because the skids don't float on top of the soft gravel. The blades pull them down in so it takes a deep bite. On mine if I lengthen the top link I can make it less aggressive. Yours may act different but you might try changing your TL length longer and shorter to see what it does.

 

[crazyal]

I have a Befco grader and the blades are adjustable. It's a basic setup. The angled steel the blades bolt to is welded to a flat piece of steel that has slotted holes and the whole thing bolts to the side plates. They were adjustable from flush to sticking down about 1 1/2" but I modified it so they now go from about 3/4" higher to 3/4" lower. It wouldn't be hard at all to make yours adjustable too.

 

[3238dpw]

Crazyal, could you post some pictures of how this setup works on your grader? I looked at their website and it wasn't clear.

 

[crazyal]

Each side has three bolts. The angled blade holders are welded to a rectangle piece of steel on each side with slots for the three bolts in them. To adjust the blade height you just put blocks under the side rails on flat ground and then loosen the bolts and the blades will drop down the thickness of the blocks. Or if you want the blades higher then put the blocks under the blades.

 

[orezok]

On my grader if I run a chain for a top link the big problem is when I hit anything solid, like a rock . The back of the grader kicks up violently because there is no Top Link to hold it down.

Slip a piece of pipe which is shorter than the chain over it. It will still float but if it kicks up, the pipe will act as a solid link.

 

[jenkinsph]

Just an update to this post. I removed the chains, and put in ridgid angle bracing. I also lowered the cutting edges 1/2" below the skids. It works like a charm! OK, I don't know how the factory ones work, but this does a beautiful job. I lowered it down, and with in 3 passes, the driveway was looking great. I did find that it moves a ton of gravel if it's not packed yet, but most of the time I will be using it on a packed surface. I'm very happy so far with it. Here are a couple updated pictures. I still need to finish the welds, weld in some gussets, and get some paint on it. I have had a quart of JD green kicking around since I touched up my bucket hooks. Should look good when done. Thanks again for the advice!

Looks great so far:thumbsup:

Looking at the pics I think you might want to consider moving the blades forward a bit so that you have about eight inches or more skid trailing the blades. With the top link you can adjust the trim of the skids to cut aggressively (short) or lightly smooth over the surface (lengthen) even with the blades set at 0 depth. I use the landplanes primarily to smooth lawn areas and they work great for this.

Here's pics of a 48" and 96" landplanes I built.