Snow plow ? Beginner

[Indiana haymaker]

Though I've had tractors most of my life, I've never had or used a snow plow. I'd like to get a plow for my L3301 quick attach but also would like to use it on my pickup occasionally swapping back and forth rather easily.
Is there an adaptor or way to do this without a bunch of bolting/unbolting to move it from one to the other?

Forgive me if this is absurdly simple. As I said. I've never had a snow plow but moving to Vermont and getting a huge circular driveway paved this year has my 60 year old back and push behind snow blower cringing as winter approaches.

Thank you,
Lenny

For what its worth, I have been plowing snow for 30+ years, I prefer to plow with some sort of 4x4 vehicle, Jeeps are great, but my suggestion would be to put a decent used plow onto your truck, that way you are inside a heated vehicle and you have the option to plow other places instead of just your property with your tractor. I also plow with my FEL and I have a 7 ft snow blower for my tractor if I really want to get wet and covered in snow.

 

[LouNY]

I have a front blade for the SSQA, it works good when the driveway is froze up hard, when it's thawed and soft not worth a damn. The bucket with edge tamers works better on softer ground or the back blade run backwards.
The pull type blower works real good 99% of the time and places.

 

[varmint]

As you can see from my avatar photo, I have a 78" Horst Welding plow (SSQA) on my L3400. It worked for me (I say worked because it's been some years since we had any snow here). The comments about sticking out are correct. I mitigated the pushing effect by putting some 2" Kubota spacers behind the rear wheels, and I have chains for all four tires, but I'd only use them in "real" snow storms. I have one rear remote which works fine for angling the plow.

In Vermont, you might have regular snows that we would term blizzards, so I'd go for a plow that will be just as wide as your rear tires, when angled, of course. I've used the bucket and a rear blade to move snow, and the plow is so much better. If I just had a cab...

 

[Bobrown14]

Get a snow pusher for your tractor. Keep your pu truck in the shed. Yer welcome... hope you have a cab !!

 

[RobertEH]

I have a JD Quick hitch with a 60” plow. Gravel drive so I took a 2” schedule 40 pipe 60” long and made a slit in it the width of the blade on the bottom. The blade rests on the inside bottom of the pipe and I drilled holes all the way through to hold it on. Works amazingly well. Moves the snow but the round pipe bottom doesn’t grab the gravel. Very little gravel cleanup in the yard come spring.

I just gave this a try. I used the black 2" pipe from Home Depot (not sure if that is schedule 40 or not...) definitally works well and keeps the blade from digging into the gravel driveway. I tried it on float and the gravel seems to be doing a number on the pipe. am I not using a durable enough piece of pipe? Or is it best to not use the plow blade on float? Or perhaps I need a bit of an ice base built up first...

Here is the setup (pipe is just sitting on the blade - wanted to try it before I drill thru the cutting edge and put in the bolts.):

 

[LouNY]

A pipe will keep your cutting edge from digging in. Gravel and sand or dirt will wear a pipe out fast.
You have less then a 1/4" wall on the pipe, most cutting edges are 1/2" thick steel and look at how fast they wear.
Float will put considerable weight on the edge. Once you get a frozen layer on a driveway you won't need the pipe unless it thaws again. The wear will be reduced once it froze also.

 

[JJT]

I don't plow before the ground is frozen and/or I have a layer of packed snow/ice on the drive. Otherwise I move too much gravel.

 

[shooterdon]

I don't plow before the ground is frozen and/or I have a layer of packed snow/ice on the drive. Otherwise I move too much gravel.

I do the same. But I have a flat driveway and two pickup trucks. Unless I get more than 4" of snow, I do not plow/blow.

I plowed a lot more when I had a Mercedes with "all season" tires and low ground clearance. I came close to getting the drive paved. Deer totaled the Mercedes, so problem solved.

Folks that have significant grades and/or curves to negotiate might not be able to deal with a layer of frozen snow/ice.

 

[chim]

"Float" can be a whole lot different for different equipment. If it's a rear blade, the weight of the blade plus the minimal weight of the 3-point arms will be pushing down. A front-mounted blade on its own frame - as opposed to a loader-mounted blade - would again have blade and a little frame weight. A loader-mounted blade using the float setting of the FEL would have substantial weight from the FEL frame added to the blade, unless the FEL is slightly raised and the blade is suspended with chain.

 

[LD48750]

I tried the pipe thing and found that PVC doesn't work for me.
Light gage pipe is just as bad.

Ended up taking the cutting edge off my plow & replacing it with angle iron.
Bolted through the holes for the cutting edge.
Works like a charm.

Length of angle iron on the tines of the york rake works too.
Can plow path across the lawn without any damage to the grass.