BXpanded snow plow?

[chrisott]

I just looked at the link to this product (Dec 29, 2010) and there are no reviews on it. I bought the Kubota frame and snow plow when I bought a BX24 in 2006. I miss my front end loader in the winter, though, for moving stuff. So I was thinking about this set up, too. Maybe I will fashion a set of forks to drop over my snow plow so I can move the 90-gallon trash container to the street and move wood around.

 

[BXpanded]

Thanks for the comments...I was hoping someone would have had some actual experience with this product....guess it's not a big seller.

Actually, it's selling well. Many of our customers don't frequent TBN. Also, since the snow season has just started, many have had little chance to use their equipment.

 

[bellweather]

Good to hear that it's selling well. I would love to read some owner reviews and see a video of one in action (atually plowing snow under tough conditions). How recently was the product introduced?

 

[BXpanded]

We introduced it mid-winter last year. We were able to give it a good work out with the unusual weather (record snowfall) last year, but weren't able to get everything together for videos. Here in North Carolina, it's pretty tough to get a good snow and a video operator together at the same time. We had hoped this last storm would give us that chance but it didn't work out. We had everything arranged and we got a pretty substantial snowfall, but it all melted from the roads.

 

[timswi]

After looking at that setup, I'd say that the price isn't out of line. Looks well thought out and appears to be high quality...A bargain compared to the $2500 I paid for the power angle for my RTV.

My only concern would be the stress on the lift arms etc...I suppose I you behave, that wouldn't be too much of an issue.

Good idea...

 

[jdonovan]

Tractor people are famously cheap.... Uhhh I mean frugal.

The thought of paying anything for any implement is too much =).

That said I've got one of BXpandeds plows.

I like it a lot.

I've only used it in one storm so far (4") and it made a major difference in the time it took to clear my 600' drive. Set the angle to 15 to one side. Made one pass down to the main road and then turned around and drove back to the garage and I was done. That same job would have taken me 30 min with the loader due to constant need to empty the loader.

I've got a rear blade, but with the BX if you've got more than a few inches of snow you run out of ground clearance moving forward. Using the BX blade to get 90% of the snow, and then the rear blade for the final scrape seems to work quite well for me.

The county saw fit not to plow the neighborhood roads this storm, and only that big state road was plowed. So I used my little plow to open up the road out to the state road. (probably 1/2 mile). The BXpanded blade plus rear blade made short work of it... and we were down to bare pavement the next day before noon. The rest of the neighborhood had snow pack on their street for 2 more weeks.

The only problem I've seen with the blade is there is not quite enough resistance for the blade sliding on the bucket. I've got the chain&binder tight as I can get it, but it still allows the plow to slide left/right on the bucket. The chain and binder combination that came with mine seems to be of a length that leaves me just between too loose and too tight to close the binder. I may look into replacing the binder with a screw type that would give a bit more adjustably of tightness.

All in all a HUGE improvement in my ability to clear snow... absolutely worth the cost in my world.

 

[BXpanded]

Hi JDonovan, Glad you like the blade. We appreciate an objective view of our products.

There is a provision to adjust for the "not quite tight enough chain" that you mentioned. The hook on top of the bucket has 2 holes for the bolt to the binder. These holes are 1/2 chain link different. If you move the bolt to the other hole it should take care of the not tight enough, too tight, situation. It's a one time adjustment that takes about a minute. Once set for your bucket, it shouldn't need to be adjusted again. We've added a note to the recent version of the instruction sheet.

We tried to consider all the operating conditions that might be encountered. Freezing rain, blowing snow or outside storage can render any ratchet or strap type system inoperable, so we disqualified those. We decided on an all steel binder that works in any weather and doesn't depend on ratchets or screws. Since operating temps might be 30 below zero, we felt it was important that the blade could be installed quickly even with heavy gloves or mittens even when all the mechanisms might be covered with ice.

Happy New Year!
Harry

 

[GeorgeKG]

A couple of questions about your experience with the bxpanded blade:

Did you have any problem steering the tractor while plowing? It seems like a blade that far in front of the wheels would shove the front end around.

Is your drive paved or gravel? If gravel, any problems tearing things up?

Thanks.

Tractor people are famously cheap.... Uhhh I mean frugal.

The thought of paying anything for any implement is too much =).

That said I've got one of BXpandeds plows.

I like it a lot.

I've only used it in one storm so far (4") and it made a major difference in the time it took to clear my 600' drive. Set the angle to 15 to one side. Made one pass down to the main road and then turned around and drove back to the garage and I was done. That same job would have taken me 30 min with the loader due to constant need to empty the loader.

I've got a rear blade, but with the BX if you've got more than a few inches of snow you run out of ground clearance moving forward. Using the BX blade to get 90% of the snow, and then the rear blade for the final scrape seems to work quite well for me.

The county saw fit not to plow the neighborhood roads this storm, and only that big state road was plowed. So I used my little plow to open up the road out to the state road. (probably 1/2 mile). The BXpanded blade plus rear blade made short work of it... and we were down to bare pavement the next day before noon. The rest of the neighborhood had snow pack on their street for 2 more weeks.

The only problem I've seen with the blade is there is not quite enough resistance for the blade sliding on the bucket. I've got the chain&binder tight as I can get it, but it still allows the plow to slide left/right on the bucket. The chain and binder combination that came with mine seems to be of a length that leaves me just between too loose and too tight to close the binder. I may look into replacing the binder with a screw type that would give a bit more adjustably of tightness.

All in all a HUGE improvement in my ability to clear snow... absolutely worth the cost in my world.

 

[jdonovan]

Did you have any problem steering the tractor while plowing? It seems like a blade that far in front of the wheels would shove the front end around.

None.

The blade is able to float w/o the loader in the float position, so the tractor doesn't lift its front wheels.

Is your drive paved or gravel? If gravel, any problems tearing things up?

Gravel. No problems with tearing things up. There are a few spots on the drive that were much higher than the surrounding area that I hadn't taken care of this summer.... well they have been leveled now.

I don't consider that tearing up as I really DID want them leveled out.

 

[GeorgeKG]

jdonovan,
Thanks for the info. One last question - what would you estimate is your install/removal time for the blade?


I'm on the fence between the BXpanded blade and the Kubota manual blade. Cost difference is only $200 but Kubota unit requires removal of FEL. I like the idea of quick change between blade and FEL since I don't know in advance what snow conditions will require.

None.

The blade is able to float w/o the loader in the float position, so the tractor doesn't lift its front wheels.



Gravel. No problems with tearing things up. There are a few spots on the drive that were much higher than the surrounding area that I hadn't taken care of this summer.... well they have been leveled now.

I don't consider that tearing up as I really DID want them leveled out.