Grading Box Blade Question

[Joe1]

When not using the scarifiers, I don't take them off the box blade, I just put them on upside down. They add a little weight and are there if I want to install them in the middle of the job.

You can also use your front end loader to backblade and get a smooth finish. That takes practice as well.

 

[jbrumberg]

I agree with Partsman2 and would go with a rear blade for this project. Jay

ExpiditeMike:

I might add that you need both a box blade and a rear blade, and a PHD, and a RC, etc. By the way welcome to TBN ! The members of TBN love to spend everyone else's money and we all lie when we report how cheaply we got our attachments . Jay

 

[GEB]

Here's my thought...
Once I bought my BB I give my dad my rear blade.
The BB will cost more than a RB but once I started using the BB
I never found the need to switch them around, a BB is far more useful for me.
Besides my dad had no toy's for the tractor that I give him also.
My BB stays on the back of my tractor 90% of the time.
GEB

 

[ExpediteMike]

Joe1-You brought up another question that I should have asked. What kind of results would I get using the FEL in float to achieve a fairly smooth grade?

 

[john_bud]

Joe1-You brought up another question that I should have asked. What kind of results would I get using the FEL in float to achieve a fairly smooth grade?

You can fill the bucket all the way full, then put it in float and back drag. Diddling with the angle of the bucket to get best results. My guesstimate is that you can be 1/2 as effective as a rear blade with the FEL in float. Maybe more effective, I don't do it that way and haven't gotten much in the way of experience with that over a blade. I just do it to quick smooth the ruts out around a dirt pile. Most of the time, the BB is on the back and I use that. Works better for me.

jb

 

[RobJ]

For spreading gravel a rear blade would probably be best, but if I only had one tool I would use the BB. Remember the BB is really designed to move dirt. Fill up the box, drag it on the ground, then lift to spread in another area. There are of course limits on how far you can travel and all. But also as you move the dirt it will fill in voids alont the way. If you have an old road I usually keep the rippers where they are about ground level with the rest of the box. If I hit a bump that I want to smooth out the rippers will loosen it up, then it'll be leveled. As a final finish I usually drag a skid over the whole area with the ATV. Hopefully the high and low spots are mostly gone.

Good Luck. I bought my 5' KK copy (Texas Red) for $300 or $330 at the local coop. Really!! No lie.

 

[ExpediteMike]

here's another question from this tractor newbie. To spread/grade dirt what does a box blade do that dragging thedirt by backing the tractor with the bucket. I just started my first project and that is what I did. It does'nt look too good but did work. I am getting a box blade in the next day or two.

 

[dbdartman]

OK, rather than start another post about which BB to buy, or dredge up that 10-page post linked above, I'll just spill it all here.

I've got an older JD4400 (36HP). With it I mostly just cut about 5-6 acres of field that was formerly a corn/soy bean field, but I've been getting pretty proficient with the FEL at filling holes & general grading (the neighbors have stuck a few 4WD trucks, plus some ground is rutted pretty bad from building the house). Bought the tractor with a rear blade, back hoe, & front end loader (BH is a blast, but I've only used it twice; first to bury some cement mix bags that turned, then a couple weeks ago to dig out a few of the holes for the pole barn that just went up). After reading TBN for months now, I've finally decided I NEED a box blade, not only for filling/smoothing the ruts, but to smooth the edge of the property where it meets the drainage ditch along the road. This edge is where the county dumped the spoils when cleaning out the ditch, so I have to cut it high to keep from cutting dirt, plus some of it became overgrown & there are now 2"-4" diameter stumps in some areas of this ditch-edge. We've also cut a drainage swail from the back of the property to cut down on the standing water in the largest of the low spots. This swail is starting to silt up after less than a year, so it's going to need regular maintainance.

Add my novice standing as a tractor owner to the fact that I live in the wilds of New Jersey, where tractor dealers are few & far between, I become "easy pickin's" (already over-paid for a JD LX5 @ $1700) at the mercy of the few dealers that are here (Tractor Supply? Yea.... RIGHT! Maybe 2-3 hours one way!). It's nice to see what range a BB costs, so I've decided that spending up to $1K would be acceptable for a suitably heavy BB, but at the same time I don't want to throw money away on something that's TOO big/heavy. Anyway, I'm thinking a 60" or 72" wide BB would do the job (the 60" mower is about the same width as the tractor wheels). I'm also thinking I want to stay away from the "light-duty" pieces in favor of a medium-duty at the least (although I'm an accomplished welder/fabricator & could easily reinforce a "problem area" of a low-cost BB if need be).

So, knowing what I'm pulling it with, & some of what I need it for, I anxiously await your thoughts, opinions, & suggestions on a BB (that will likely kill the clutches in the 4400 that are not too good now, not looking forward to splitting that beast).

Or should I just bite the bullet & patronize the local JD dealer?

Thanx,
David

 

[ExpediteMike]

Hi there "dbdartman". Like the picture of your Dart laying down that patch of rubber. Our land also used to be a corn field. It is part of what was one time a very large plantation here in middle Tennessee. The ground must have been plowed and then overgrew with grass so it is real rough and unfortunately is holding a lot of water. Started filling some low spots with what they call in area CHIRT. Never heard of it until we moved here a couple of months ago. It is a reddish clay with fine sandy gravel mixed in but it does have some rocks up to baseball size. I spread the dump truck load (the truck got stuck delivering it and had to be pulled out by another truck) with the FEL and did a decent job but from what I can tell will need a BB to do a better job. Will be interested in what the other TBN members have to say about this.
Thanks, Mike

 

[RobJ]

here's another question from this tractor newbie. To spread/grade dirt what does a box blade do that dragging thedirt by backing the tractor with the bucket. I just started my first project and that is what I did. It does'nt look too good but did work. I am getting a box blade in the next day or two.

The BB will allow you to move dirt further away from the pile...in the box. By back-dragging you'll never move much dirt to far from the pile. It'll slip out of the sides. When you get a BB you'll understand.

Rob