Snow Attachments Crazy idea - lawn roller for packing snow

[Mosey]

I'm wondering if it would be possible to use a lawn roller for packing snow to make a nice smooth hard surface for sledding? If it was filled up all the way, then it would be too heavy (and would sink down too much plus be impossible to pull up the hill). But, if it was only filled up part way (how much would have to be determined by experiment), then maybe it would work. I used my tractor last year to pack it down by just driving up and down the hill. It packed it down pretty good and improved the sledding quite a bit, but it would be better without the lug marks, plus it took a long time because I could only do a little at a time.

What could I fill it with that won't freeze and won't corrode a metal roller, but also won't do any damage to the soil and plant life if I drain it out on the ground?

 

[DocHeb]

I've tried something similiar when making ice rinks as a kid. I had problems with the snow sticking to the drum.

 

[MossRoad]

Windshield washer fluid maybe?

 

[BrettW]

fill it with the kids!, the can get out after your done and they will like the tumbling action!!!

 

[Boondox]

Funny you should mention that...

As part of our stone wall we have an old roller made of granite. It's about a foot in diameter and four feet long. Way back in the days of horse-drawn conveyances it was pulled behind a team of horses to pack down the roads and make sleighing possible. I've often thought about using it for the bobsled run. Instead, I use the rear blade to push the snow into mounds which will then be sculpted into banked curves. When the course is roughed out, I have a bring your own sled party. Usually after 30 people have made a couple of passes each, the course is packed and very fast!

Pete

 

[GaryM]

Instead of a roller, try this:

Take the hood or trunk lid from a car and hook it to your towbar. It already has a turned up edge like a toboggen, if you pick the right one. Put a few kids on board and head up the hill. Nice packed slead run. Not packed enough? Make a few more passes or get heavier kids!

Unless you make a ridged connection, I'd advise against letting anyone ride down the hill behind the tractor.

Back in the 60's we'd use a hood as a sled and pull it down the street behind a VW.

 

[justractors]

Back before there were the motorized snow plows most roads in Northern Michigan were rolled or otherwise packed down instead of being plowed.
This was expecially true of the lumber camp trails since most of the logs were cut down and stacked in the summer and then hauled out with sleighs pulled by horses after the trails were frozen and the snow was packed.
This does not pertain to the original question but is just one of those interesting tidbits passed on by my Grandfather long ago.
Bill