Land Pride grading scraper

[Jaylegger]

Ok guys thanks, this is what I would consider compelling evidence to stick with the 48" unit as I often grade when the ground is damp due to the relative ease of breaking through the surface. With luck the 48" will at times be too much for the tractor then I'll never have that nagging thought to try the larger one. As consolation at least the 48" offers the highest weight per foot of blade at around 109 pounds per as opposed to 102 :thumbsup: .

Thanks to all.

 

[MtnViewRanch]

Ok guys thanks, this is what I would consider compelling evidence to stick with the 48" unit as I often grade when the ground is damp due to the relative ease of breaking through the surface. With luck the 48" will at times be too much for the tractor then I'll never have that nagging thought to try the larger one. As consolation at least the 48" offers the highest weight per foot of blade at around 109 pounds per as opposed to 102 :thumbsup: .

Thanks to all.

Once you get it and use it, please come back and give us a report on it. Good, bad, if it is too small, pictures using it. I'm sure we would all appreciate it.

 

[Jaylegger]

Once you get it and use it, please come back and give us a report on it. Good, bad, if it is too small, pictures using it. I'm sure we would all appreciate it.

I'll definitely be doing that. That's of course assuming I don't do something stupid like purchase the 60" just to prove you guys correct. In that case you may not here from me.

 

[irvingj]

Jaylegger, Ive been thinking about it for over a year, and I just plunked down $1299 for a DR Power Grader in the 60" size. I'll pick it up when weather permits, most likely within the next few weeks; if you like, I can give you feedback on that machine after I've used it.

In going through old records, I've found that I've been spending between $300 and $700 every three to five years on driveway maintenance; hopefully, the DR thing will take care of that....

I went with the 60" because my driveway's about 12' - 13' wide, and I'm thinking the GC should be able to handle it OK. Anyway, the check's in the mail!

In the future, I'm also planning to bring in a lot of topsoil to replace the sand in my lawn for some major landscaping, and it should prove useful there, as well-- I hope.

 

[ManAtArms]

Just to chime in here...I used to have a DR Power Grader, then bought a GS1560. The GS1560 is much more capable, heavier, more aggressive, and is WAY more heavy duty. The DR would be good for a very small tractor or ATV. I can pull the GS1560 behind my M59 and it holds up fine. The only thing better than the Landpride for driveway maintenance is a Harley rake, but they cost 6 times as much.

Just a guess, but I would think you would need about 40 horse to pull the 60" unit with the teeth down, another alternative is to not lower the teeth all the way and make more passes. Also I think this will also depend upon how heavy your tractor is and how hard the ground is.

-Mark

 

[irvingj]

Thanks for the input, ManAtArms. My tractor is small, driveway's not in horrible shape.... That Land Pride unit is heavier, I can see that. I'm hoping I don't need something quite so heavy-duty.

I'm also keeping in mind the 6-month return policy DR touts, should it not prove effective. Time wil tell.

 

[ManAtArms]

Thanks for the input, ManAtArms. My tractor is small, driveway's not in horrible shape.... That Land Pride unit is heavier, I can see that. I'm hoping I don't need something quite so heavy-duty.

I'm also keeping in mind the 6-month return policy DR touts, should it not prove effective. Time wil tell.

irvingj,

The DR unit is nice light duty unit. If you have a good base of crushed stone or dust it will work very well.

Weak spots include the tow arm assembly (watch for bending when you turn) and the scarifying teeth, as they can get knocked out of wack if you hit a nice subsurface rock. The towing arm has a shear bolt. It works well, and I would recommend you buy a 5 pack so you have them.

The only other issue with it is the weight...you can only put so much weight in the plastic box. Again, if you're dealing with a nice surface that needs to be touched up, or dragging a ring, it works very well, but it just can't put the down pressure on the ground like a 3-pt. grading scrapper can.

As you mentioned, the good thing is that DR has an excellent return policy, so if you have any issues you won't be stuck.

Good luck and enjoy!

 

[irvingj]

Thanks. I'm hoping it will be just about right for the job.

When I built the house 24 years ago, the driveway went WAY overbudget-- it's quite wet here, with underground flow, and even some springs upslope about a half mile.

Fortunately, the VT gentleman I hired to do the excavation convinced me not to skimp; for the 200' main part of the driveway, he had 360 tons of 5" stone brought in, topped by another 145 tons or so of what we call "crusher run." It was very sound advice, and I'm glad I listened to him.

It has held up admirably over the years, but does require work every so often to fill in the inevitable ruts that form due to water from heavy rains.

Here's what it looks like when not covered in snow or ice (like today....:

 

[Gordon Gould]

Jaylegger - Your getting good info here. But I had a thought - I believe Land Pride makes a version of the GS1560 without scarifiers for less money ( Alas it is lighter but you could add wt ) anyway you could use your trusty boxblade for the scarifier passes and then switch to the GS1560 to finish up.
Just a thought.
Also the GS1560 has so many adjustment points: Blade depth, scarifier depth and number of scarifiers down, plus with your top link could lift the blades so you were just running the scarifiers. You could always make it work by picking the right day (conditions) or trading off the number of passes you make. But if you wanted to be fast about it on any given day go with the GS1548. Good luck.

 

[ManAtArms]

You should have no problems using the DR power grader on that driveway. However, if you wanted to dig down 4" and then smooth the surface I would say you need a grading scraper.

-mark

Thanks. I'm hoping it will be just about right for the job.

When I built the house 24 years ago, the driveway went WAY overbudget-- it's quite wet here, with underground flow, and even some springs upslope about a half mile.

Fortunately, the VT gentleman I hired to do the excavation convinced me not to skimp; for the 200' main part of the driveway, he had 360 tons of 5" stone brought in, topped by another 145 tons or so of what we call "crusher run." It was very sound advice, and I'm glad I listened to him.

It has held up admirably over the years, but does require work every so often to fill in the inevitable ruts that form due to water from heavy rains.

Here's what it looks like when not covered in snow or ice (like today....: