Gravel driveway maintenance

[joshuabardwell]

I'm lucky that I can adjust my top link from the seat by reaching around back. I know where the max angle is, and set the stop nut there. Then at the end, to lessen the angle of attack for smoothing, back off from the nut by a certain amount (eyeball it). Over time, I bet you'll know where/how to set it by eye.

I could probably reach the top link from the seat if I raised the implement, but the weight of the blade is enough that it requires some muscle to turn the link. I have found that there is a sweet spot where the box blade is perfectly balanced, and I can easily turn the link. I raise or lower the lift arms until I see the tension come off the top link retainer pin, then adjust the link until it gets tight again. Move the arms. Adjust the link. That way I'm not wearing out my forearms torqueing at the link.

 

[94BULLITT]

I could probably reach the top link from the seat if I raised the implement, but the weight of the blade is enough that it requires some muscle to turn the link. I have found that there is a sweet spot where the box blade is perfectly balanced, and I can easily turn the link. I raise or lower the lift arms until I see the tension come off the top link retainer pin, then adjust the link until it gets tight again. Move the arms. Adjust the link. That way I'm not wearing out my forearms torqueing at the link.

That what I did. Adjust some pick it up then let it down and adjust more, the same works on the sidelink. I have to do this on the bx but the implements are light. It needs a tnt.

 

[Mechanos]

I made an adjustable side link out of a rachet binder with a folding handle. Makes adjustments quick and easy.

 

[troutsqueezer]

I maintain about two miles of gravel road. I use the BB most of the time. Occasionally I have to move gravel from the side back to center and I attach my Land Pride grader blade for that. As nice as the grader blade is to use, it does leave a rather tall windrow on one or both sides of the blade depending on whether you are moving gravel from one side to the other or have it 90 degrees to the tractor. In either case, you must make one or two additional passes to smooth the windrow. The box doesn't do this.

 

[pwright]

I made an adjustable side link out of a rachet binder with a folding handle. Makes adjustments quick and easy.

That's clever!

 

[pat32rf]

Don't have a box blade but do have about 300yds of hilly gravel driveway, so I made a "blade" which is a 3x8 foot rectangle of 4" angle with a bit (500lbs) of extra weight added, plus a few cuts and angles. It gets towed on a section of chain so it can be angled to drag the loose gravel back to the center, maintaining a crown on the road for better drainage.
Once I spend an afternoon in the spring getting the driveway in shape it stays pretty good for a few years as long as I get a good growth of green holding things in place. I will touch up the odd spot with my bucket, filling potholes, etc but if I don't mess with the grasses and weeds in the center, the track stays pretty good.
In the winter I am careful not to take too much of the base off so there is a frozen layer of ice all winter that I drop a bit of sand on.
I'd sooner be working out back than continually fixing my driveway......

 

[pwright]

Sounds very similar to a land plane. Any pictures?

 

[RedHawkRidge]

I use a landscape rake, because it's the only "tool" in my box. It's not the best for moving/leveling road gravel, because it separates the rock from the sand and clay components -- after a few passes, it pulls the rock along while leaving the fine stuff. Pretty soon you have a lot of rock in one area and precious little in others. A rear blade or BB would avoid that, although the rake (especially with gauge wheels) will level it out nicely.
jim

 

[Ron JD670]

One issue that I don't know how to solve is how to keep gravel from spreading off the side of the driveway. If I had a rake or a grader blade, I could pivot it to the side, to pull material towards the center. I wonder if I could cock the box blade slightly to the side with the sway bars to approximate that effect. Would that even do anything, since the material can't fall out the side of the box?

Another issue with the box blade, that I forgot to mention, is that it just left the big pile of material at the end of the run the pile out and made it harder to pick up and spread back out again after the leveling had been done.

I did not read anything about angling the box made and it does not appear fro the photos there is much crown to the road so water runs to the edges and does not puddle. If you angle the BB with the side link so it is higher on the side towards the center the BB will tend to leak gravel to wards the center especially were there are deep ruts. The side panel should keep material from going to the outside as noted earlier.
I like to do the outside first because it is easier to move to the center again assuming there are ruts. This also this tends to be dirtier gravel. Then I level the BB and move the some what cleaner center gravel out to the ruts covering up the outside gravel in the ruts. Someplace a picked up a chart showing a road crown angle of 4" over 7'.

As for the piles when doing the sides I go up one side and then back down the other so the angle on the BB Is angled to move gravel in towards the center going and coming. Dumping piles as needed as I go. I the use the FEL to back drag and level piles pulling at an angle the towards the center of the road. This may not be by the book but it works for me. I also ha a tooth bar to reduce wear a tear on my FEL edge. It appears the pros us the BB to doz the piles going backwards but I still don't have the skill or neck and back for it.

Here are some other resources I found when I got started.

Best wishes
RoN

Check out You Tube Search under
"Using a subcompact tractor to ______"
The following one is good.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yoc2Mf5yRZI&sns=em
Also check out
Wilsonoutdoors

How To - Tractor Land Plane - Gravel Road Maintenance - YouTube

Also there are some very good threads on here on TBN see if you can find these two.
Beginners guide to using a box blade
Rear Blade: How to grade a driveway

 

[joshuabardwell]

I did not read anything about angling the box made and it does not appear fro the photos there is much crown to the road so water runs to the edges and does not puddle.

Regarding the crown, both sides of the driveway are on quite a slope, and it seems to me like a crown would be undesirable in that case. The left-hand side slopes to the "outside" across its entire length, rather than having a crown in the center. The right-hand side is more or less flat, but also quite downhill. This causes water to run down it and make ruts, which I haven't exactly figured out what to do about yet--other than re-dress it before the ruts really get started. There really isn't much of anywhere to direct the runoff to is the problem. The "island" in the eye of the driveway's loop is higher up than the driveway, so directing the runoff toward the left-hand side and on downhill into the field isn't an option. Unfortunately, the driveway is the lowest point on the right-hand side for most of its length, so the runoff is going to go down it. It's just a question of where. If I had my druthers, I would slope the right-hand drive to the left slightly (the "eye" of the loop) and put a runoff ditch lined with large rocks. Then I would put a culvert in to allow that to pass under the left-hand side of the drive. and empty out somewhere near the front of the property. But there are a lot of other projects ahead of that one on the to-do list.

The other problem I have with the right-hand side drive is it is so steep for most of its length that it seems like it would require a pretty substantial side-slope to overcome the water's desire to run downhill to any significant degree. No?