Box Scraper Should I get a 60" or 72" Box Blade?

[clarksvilleal]

I have a Kubota B2910, 30 HP (22 at PTO). I need a good grading tool, and the Box Blade seems to be the grading tool of choice among many on this forum.

This box blade would not be for driveway maintenance, rather mainly for general grading and leveling chores, including creating shallow drainage swales.

Would a 60" box be more suitable or a 72", both in terms of my tractor HP, but also when I want to use it to create the swales? I worry that the wider box might be a liability for this particular task. And I wonder whether the 72" scraper would be too much for my Kubota B2910 to handle.

Also - a supplier in my area is advertising new Woods BSS60 60" scraper for $820, and the Woods BSS72 72" scraper for $865. Are those good prices? And given the small difference in price, the BSS72, if my tractor can handle it and if I can cut swales with it, would seem to be a much better buy. Never having used one I need some guidance before shelling out hundreds of bucks for a good one.

 

[Steve C]

I have a Kubota B2910, 30 HP (22 at PTO). I need a good grading tool, and the Box Blade seems to be the grading tool of choice among many on this forum.

This box blade would not be for driveway maintenance, rather mainly for general grading and leveling chores, including creating shallow drainage swales.

Would a 60" box be more suitable or a 72", both in terms of my tractor HP, but also when I want to use it to create the swales? I worry that the wider box might be a liability for this particular task. And I wonder whether the 72" scraper would be too much for my Kubota B2910 to handle.

Also - a supplier in my area is advertising new Woods BSS60 60" scraper for $820, and the Woods BSS72 72" scraper for $865. Are those good prices? And given the small difference in price, the BSS72, if my tractor can handle it and if I can cut swales with it, would seem to be a much better buy. Never having used one I need some guidance before shelling out hundreds of bucks for a good one.

I think the 60" would be a good match for your tractor. I am pulling a 60" with my little 2425, and you have a much better tractor than I do.

I do have to put it 4 wheel drive every once in a while if I completely fill it to overflowing. I have ag tires, so I think it helps with the traction a little. This is a link to a link to my latest box blade project.

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/...tout-inexpensive-box-scraper.html#post1797801

 

[JDGreenGrass]

For swales I would recommend the blade.

I am working on a drainage path now and I am using a 6' blade on a 24hp tractor. Works great for working both sides of the "swale" and I am getting a fairly smooth finish with the blade. I do finish the ground off with the rake but the blade will go as shallow or as deep as you wish. Your 3pt. hitch should have an adjustable so that you can work it at angles as well, though the Woods scraper probably has an angle blade.

I can't comment on the box blade. I have a gravel driveway that will be getting some attention in the next year. I think I can rebuild my driveway with the blade and the bucket and the rake.

If you get the box blade let us know how it turns out for you.

Also, I would suspect 7' attachments would "fit" your tractor nicely. My tractor is 54's wide and both my blade and rake are 6' wide. (72"s)

How wide is your tractor.??

 

[clarksvilleal]

For swales I would recommend the blade.

I am working on a drainage path now and I am using a 6' blade on a 24hp tractor. Works great for working both sides of the "swale" and I am getting a fairly smooth finish with the blade. I do finish the ground off with the rake but the blade will go as shallow or as deep as you wish. Your 3pt. hitch should have an adjustable so that you can work it at angles as well, though the Woods scraper probably has an angle blade.

I can't comment on the box blade. I have a gravel driveway that will be getting some attention in the next year. I think I can rebuild my driveway with the blade and the bucket and the rake.

If you get the box blade let us know how it turns out for you.

Also, I would suspect 7' attachments would "fit" your tractor nicely. My tractor is 54's wide and both my blade and rake are 6' wide. (72"s)

How wide is your tractor.??

The tractor is about 55" wide at the rear wheels, outside edge to outside edge. I have turf tires with good tread, reasonably aggressive for turf tires, and 4WD.

 

[dex3361]

Go with the boxblade not much wider than your wheel width or regular blade a foot wider than your wheel width so when you angle it it still covers your wheel width. A box blade has the ability to break up ground with the rippers and can be a bit more aggressive. I have both and they each have their uses.

 

[Steve C]

I have a Kubota B2910, 30 HP (22 at PTO). I need a good grading tool, and the Box Blade seems to be the grading tool of choice among many on this forum.

This box blade would not be for driveway maintenance, rather mainly for general grading and leveling chores, including creating shallow drainage swales.

Would a 60" box be more suitable or a 72", both in terms of my tractor HP, but also when I want to use it to create the swales? I worry that the wider box might be a liability for this particular task. And I wonder whether the 72" scraper would be too much for my Kubota B2910 to handle.

Also - a supplier in my area is advertising new Woods BSS60 60" scraper for $820, and the Woods BSS72 72" scraper for $865. Are those good prices? And given the small difference in price, the BSS72, if my tractor can handle it and if I can cut swales with it, would seem to be a much better buy. Never having used one I need some guidance before shelling out hundreds of bucks for a good one.

If you are tearing up sod the box blade is by far the best tool for the job. You can drop the rakers, rip out the sod, drag it to where you want it. Raise them up and get the profile you want then go back to your sod pile and scrape it back on top. Run it over a couple of time to pack it down and you are done. I am very pleased with the amount of material I can move with my 5 foot box blade.

 

[Carykong]

Woods products are expensive and well built. You can find a 5' boxblade at half the price you quote for a Woods. The boxblades under $450 are lighter duty but plenty strong for a tractor under 30hp.

 

[Leon Wittner]

My L2800 does fine pulling the 72". Buying one that is wider than your tractor tire width makes it easier to get close to object without scraping your rear tires and covers your tire tracks.

 

[clarksvilleal]

Woods products are expensive and well built. You can find a 5' boxblade at half the price you quote for a Woods. The boxblades under $450 are lighter duty but plenty strong for a tractor under 30hp.

Thanks for the input, Cary.

I learned that I can now get the 60" Woods BSS60 blade for $725. That's still higher than $450, of course. I want something that will last longer than me, and I've heard that extra weight of a heavier-duty box blade is desirable. The BSS60 is 514 lbs. But I'll have to give it some thought as to whether it's worth the difference.

 

[JDGreenGrass]

A 60" blade isn't wide enough.

As stated, if you angle the blade it will not cover your tracks.

A 60" Box Blade just barely covers your tracks.

IMO, you will be happier with at least 72" attachments.

 

[clarksvilleal]

A 60" blade isn't wide enough.

As stated, if you angle the blade it will not cover your tracks.

A 60" Box Blade just barely covers your tracks.

IMO, you will be happier with at least 72" attachments.

OK, I didn't realize you would use the Box Blade on an angle. If that is a problem, Woods makes a 65" blade. Perhaps that might be a good choice. That gives me about 12" more width than the tire tracks (actual tread-on-the ground width is only about 53-1/2").

 

[Beavis]

I have a 32hp tractor and use a 65" woods box blade; wish I would have got a 72". The 65" fills up fast and the tractor has plenty of hp to move more.

 

[Steve C]

OK, I didn't realize you would use the Box Blade on an angle. If that is a problem, Woods makes a 65" blade. Perhaps that might be a good choice. That gives me about 12" more width than the tire tracks (actual tread-on-the ground width is only about 53-1/2").

Box blades are not used at an angle. A 60 inch blade will cover your tire tracks. I will sometimes spin my wheels pulling my 60 inch if I fill it and am not using the 4 wheel drive. I don't think my tractor would pull anything larger. It holds a lot of material, probably twice as much as the 48" box blade that was next to it at TSC. With adjustable rippers you don't need any weight to get good results. My parking area was recycled asphalt that had been compacted for several years. My 7 foot sdandard grader blade wouldn't even scratch it. My box blade dug in and ripped it up and moved it without hesitation. I also used it to level an area for an above ground swimming pool. The ground was full of tree roots. The rippers tore them all loose and permitted the area to be graded. A standard grader blade will just ride on top of the roots.

The pictures show the material I stacked up pushing the box blade in reverse. I pulled the blade to rip the material loose and then backed into it to stack it. This was driveway material that I moved a couple hundred feet. My old barn had doors and driveways on the south and the north side. My new barn only has a door on the west side so I had driveways that went nowhere. I removed the recycled asphalt for future use and replaced it with dirt so I can grow some grass in those areas.

 

[ovrszd]

Knowing that someone will speak up and tell how easily they pull theirs, I'll say I pulled a 60" with my B2910. It pulled it easily in loose material. But when cutting heavy material or using the rippers it was all my tractor wanted. I'm not sure my tractor would have dragged a fully loaded 72" box blade. But I guess you can always carry it a little and never fill it with heavy material. But then what would be the point??

 

[Steve C]

Knowing that someone will speak up and tell how easily they pull theirs, I'll say I pulled a 60" with my B2910. It pulled it easily in loose material. But when cutting heavy material or using the rippers it was all my tractor wanted. I'm not sure my tractor would have dragged a fully loaded 72" box blade. But I guess you can always carry it a little and never fill it with heavy material. But then what would be the point??

That is a very good point. I would rather just let it drag and do its job the way it is designed to do. Anytime I have tried to carry it a little in low traction situations it ends up leaving humps and bumps all over the place that have to smoothed out with additional passes. I have AG tires that are almost new (80 hours), and I run them a little low on air pressure. I think I have just about as much traction as it is possible to have with a little tractor. I am pretty sure that I am at the limit of what works with my 2425. When I get into the tree roots it struggles a little and I need to use the 4 wheel drive. I could have bought a 72" box blade for only $50 more than the one I bought. Since I am a true bargain hunter I really had to resist the urge to get the bigger blade. After using the 60" blade I am glad I bought the smaller one. It is the best $199 I have spent on attachments so far.