Whose Boxe Blade to get & What Size?

MMH · Mar 1, 2011

I will be needing a box blade for a bunch of different tasks: clearing area to build stone base for driveway & pad, excavating moving spoils away for a house addition, etc.

First of all, I'm not sure which size. My tractor is a Kubota B9200. It's a compact tractor & weights about 1700 lbs. The outside dimension from one rear wheel to the other is 55". The tires are pretty good size 12.4-16. So at the very least I would think that I want a 60 inch blade. But, would I be better off w/ a 66" or 72", or would these just be too big for my tractor?

Next, I'm not sure on which brand. Tractor supply has the CountyLine 5' for $579. Everything Attachments has the United brand for $499 & King Kutter for $714. Shipping is free for Everything Attachments & I would not have to pay tax. The King Kutter looks beefier, but it does cost more.

Thanks!

Gary Fowler · Mar 1, 2011

You need to be able to cover your wheel base so I guess you need a 5 foot blade. I dont think I have ever seen one in anything other than even foot sizes but they may make one. You can pick up some good buys on box blades on craigslist. I just saw one on Houston Craigslist (Gannon 6 foot with manual or hydraulic retractable scarifiers for $575. This is the premier brand of box blade. Although this one is much larger than you would need, I just sited an example of what can be found. There isnt much to wear out on one and most of the SCUT / CUT ones havent seen a lot of action. With a 5 foot blade, you wont be able to pull much dirt at one time before you run out of traction. I have a 6 foot on my 7000 pound 72 HP tractor and it will stop it in its tracks if I hit a root, large rock sometimes even hard soil if I have the scarifies socked down as far as they will go.

jdonovan · Mar 1, 2011

I agree with Gary, you need to cover the tracks, so 5' would be the size to get.

With only 22 HP, you don't need, or really want a super heavy box blade. I would expect the county line would serve general use needs. I've got a BX22, 22hp, and it is about 1800 lbs, and when my 4' blade gets a good bite I spin the tires. Your tires should give you a bit more traction, but with 25% more blade width, its going to be net-net fairly similar.

I really think a 72 is probably too much for your machine.

MF 1532 · Mar 1, 2011

Gary Fowler said:
You need to be able to cover your wheel base so I guess you need a 5 foot blade. I dont think I have ever seen one in anything other than even foot sizes but they may make one.

I have a Bushhog SBX65 (65'') , I really like it , well built and heavy .

Ford tractor · Mar 1, 2011

jdonovan said:
I agree with Gary, you need to cover the tracks, so 5' would be the size to get.

With only 22 HP, you don't need, or really want a super heavy box blade. I would expect the county line would serve general use needs. I've got a BX22, 22hp, and it is about 1800 lbs, and when my 4' blade gets a good bite I spin the tires. Your tires should give you a bit more traction, but with 25% more blade width, its going to be net-net fairly similar.

I really think a 72 is probably too much for your machine.

I agree that with a small machine, you need to get a smaller box. They do make 1/2 foot increment boxes, but only in the higher end units. You may not be totally pleased with the boxes that you can pull. You're probably looking at a 5' box in the 350-400 pound range as being about all you
handle unless you have dry fluffy soil.

That 6' Gannon box with hydro scar bar for $575 is a total deal. It's probably a 3500-4000 new.

SixHoeBob · Mar 1, 2011

A good box blade has the hinged rear blade. The hinged blade allows it to dig going either direction. You won't find one at TSC, and it will cost more than the TSC model.

Ford tractor · Mar 1, 2011

SixHoeBob said:
A good box blade has the hinged rear blade. The hinged blade allows it to dig going either direction. You won't find one at TSC, and it will cost more than the TSC model.

True, but he only has a 1800 pound tractor with 22is hp. Most swinging tail boxes will be too heavy for his machine.

If you do get a swinging rear blade box, get one that has the ability to also fix it in place. That's important for when you want to smooth on the final pass.

tlj87 · Mar 1, 2011

Last spring, I bought a new 84" United Box Blade ($650) for my Ford 3000 gas. It works well on flat ground, but pulling uphill anything except loose material, I loose traction. A 72" would be a better fit for my machine, but it wouldn't extend past my rear tires.

I am happy with the quality of the box blade and recommend it for the price. I suggest a 60" model for your machine.

Marveltone · Mar 1, 2011

Ford tractor said:
True, but he only has a 1800 pound tractor with 22is hp. Most swinging tail boxes will be too heavy for his machine.

This is what I use on my 22 hp Ford 1510 with good results. It's from Tarter gate: 5' Heavy-Duty Hinge Back Box Blade, Weight: 461 lbs.
The big differences are, I'm running anywhere between 500 (empty) to1200 lbs (w/FEL) more weight than the OP's tractor, which is a huge difference, I'll admit; but I'm also running on turfs, so that may make up for some of the weight discrepancy. So far, I've been able to handle it quite nicely with the rippers fully engaged. OTOH, I think we all forgot to ask what kind of tires are on the B9200.

Tires vs. weight???

If you do get a swinging rear blade box, get one that has the ability to also fix it in place. That's important for when you want to smooth on the final pass.

Very true. Mine has the hinged back, but it doesn't have the ability to lock in place... yet!

Joe

CompactTractorFan · Mar 1, 2011

I think United is supposed to be a good brand.

SixHoeBob · Mar 1, 2011

I built a leveling board that clamps under the BB. My Arps model 350 is six feet wide. The steel reinforced leveling board is seven feet wide. At each end is a "Ski" to keep the BB from digging in. It works very well for smoothing new lawns.
My system works well on 35 hp. tractors.

MMH · Mar 1, 2011

SixHoeBob said:
A good box blade has the hinged rear blade. The hinged blade allows it to dig going either direction. You won't find one at TSC, and it will cost more than the TSC model.

What will the hinged rear do that a dual blade (one for going forward & one for going backward) box will not? Most of the box blades that I have seen have two blades. I do see hinged blade boxes for more $$$.

Ford tractor · Mar 1, 2011

Marveltone said:
This is what I use on my 22 hp Ford 1510 with good results. It's from Tarter gate: 5' Heavy-Duty Hinge Back Box Blade, Weight: 461 lbs.
The big differences are, I'm running anywhere between 500 (empty) to1200 lbs (w/FEL) more weight than the OP's tractor, which is a huge difference, I'll admit; but I'm also running on turfs, so that may make up for some of the weight discrepancy. So far, I've been able to handle it quite nicely with the rippers fully engaged. OTOH, I think we all forgot to ask what kind of tires are on the B9200. Tires vs. weight???

Very true. Mine has the hinged back, but it doesn't have the ability to lock in place... yet!

Joe

The 3 most important things to make tractor traction are weight, weight and weight ! :laughing:

MtnViewRanch · Mar 2, 2011

MMH said:
What will the hinged rear do that a dual blade (one for going forward & one for going backward) box will not? Most of the box blades that I have seen have two blades. I do see hinged blade boxes for more $$$.

The hinged rear blade floats allowing the front blade to cut more material because it is not held up by the rear blade. I know that you can tilt the front to get the back raised up so that it no longer drags, but when you do that you have altered the angle of the front cutting edge and moldboard from the optimum cutting angle that it is designed to work at. Same sort of thing occurs when people tilt their box to get the rippers to dig in deeper, they are changing the designed angle that the rippers are supposed to be at to get the best results.

Mechanos · Mar 2, 2011

Sorry if I'm hijacking the OP's thread, but I thought it would be silly to make a new thread asking the same question. I have a 37hp, 2000 lb. (unballasted and w/o FEL) with a 59" track width, 4WD, R1s front & rear. I was leaning towards a 60" box blade as I think that's all I will be able handle traction wise. This just barely covers the track width of the tractor, but I'm just not sure I will have enough traction to pull a 72" box blade.

What do you guys think?

MtnViewRanch · Mar 2, 2011

Mechanos said:
Sorry if I'm hijacking the OP's thread, but I thought it would be silly to make a new thread asking the same question. I have a 37hp, 2000 lb. (unballasted and w/o FEL) with a 59" track width, 4WD, R1s front & rear. I was leaning towards a 60" box blade as I think that's all I will be able handle traction wise. This just barely covers the track width of the tractor, but I'm just not sure I will have enough traction to pull a 72" box blade.

What do you guys think?

Forget about a 72" box, your tractor just does not have enough weight.

jdonovan · Mar 3, 2011

Mechanos said:
I was leaning towards a 60" box blade as I think that's all I will be able handle traction wise. This just barely covers the track width of the tractor, but I'm just not sure I will have enough traction to pull a 72" box blade.
What do you guys think?

No way you have enough traction to really work a 72" blade with that machine.

I just read the manual on my M59 last night... max rear scraper blade they recommend for that machine is 72", and thats an 8000LB machine with 59 HP.

MESSMAKER · Mar 3, 2011

I have a slightly larger tractor with a 60" HD United BB. It is just fine. The Countline has a better design for ripper adjustment. You have to get down and dirty to pull the cotter pins on the United, or at least the ones I have seen. I would shop by $$. Either would be fine. At 1700lbs, you will not be able to generate the traction it would take to put tons of stress on the unit. Don't spend a fortune when you don't need to.

jimgerken · Mar 3, 2011

I have read in many threads on this site over the years, where guys will helpfully suggest that you HAVE to cover your tractor wheel tracks with the boxblade. My experience differs.
I bought a 48 inch boxblade for my first CUT, a JD 4100 with 21 Hp. It was wide enough to cover the wheeltrack, and the tractor handled it fairly well. I added weight to the boxblade to help it bite in. I probably had the only 48 inch boxblade that weighed over 700 pounds. I ran that neat little 4100 for several years, did a lot of boxblade work, then sold the 4100 and bought a JD 2520. The 2520 has 26 Hp, and weighed half again as much as the 4100, and was about half a foot wider than the 48" boxblade, which I kept. I started thinking that I was going to have to trade up the boxblade because you know "you have to cover your tracks with it". But while considering it, I started using it 'cause it was still a very effective loader counterweight, and I needed a boxblade. And I noticed something. It really didn't matter that it was narrower than the tractor for the landscaping work I was doing because you remove soil in layers anyway, and it turned out to be a big advantage that it was narrow when simply being used as a loader counterweight. So I kept that little BB. Two years later, because I bought 80 acres of farmland and had heavier work to do, I traded the 2520 for a JD 3720. The 3720 has 44 Hp, weighs a bit over 4000 pounds ballasted, and is 66 inches wide at the back with wheel spacers. Its almost two years old now. And you know what? I am still using that original 48 inch boxblade. Its still heavy enough for effectiveness as a counterweight since I added a whole bunch of wheel weights to the back tractor wheels. And I can pull that small BB like mad with the power and traction I have. Last year I made an asparagras bed. That requires first digging a trench a couple feet deep. I used the boxblade, and it dug real well until was down most of the way and then I couldnt put it any lower because the tractor would not drop into the trench 'cause of course the tractor is wider than the BB. Thats the first time I had any issue. A wider BB would have made the trench too wide anyway, so I would have had to find another way to make the trench if I had a wider BB. Other than that one job, my experience doing driveway maintenance, building site prep, stump removal with scarifier teeth, waterway creation, ditch creation, and similar jobs, all work fine with that same little BB that is now 18 inches narrower than the tractor pulling it.
On the other hand, if you are buying a finishing tool, like a landscape rake, then by all means get one that is wider than your tractor tracks even when fully angled. But the Boxblade is certainly not a finishing tool and in my opinion and experience over 5 years and two tractors that were bigger than the BB I own, you do not need to cover your tracks with a boxblade. In fact, its better if it is smaller and heavier, cause that way the psi on the ground is higher and it does more work, and it always works better as a counterweight if it is as small and heavy as possible.
My 2 cent's worth, good luck.