Snow Attachments First time buying a tractor: need opinions on what size and snow removal

[UpOnAHill]

Okay, so I haven't purchased the tractor yet and I need advice on two things: 1)what size tractor I should get and 2) info regarding a plow blade for it. (vs a snow blower or conventional plow truck)

Question #1: The number one reason for wanting to purchase a tractor at this time is for snow removal. We live on a big hill, the driveway is quite steep, it's at least 1/4 mile long and we live in central Maine (which = lots of snow!). I'm under the impression that tractors are less likely to break down than plow trucks and are in general a better investment. We will use the tractor for other things, such as mow the lawn (maybe an acre or two, wide open but hilly), remove brush and small trees, maintain drainage ditches... We've been looking at ~30HP machines, is this enough/too much?

Question #2: After seeing prices of tractors and front attaching snow blowers, we quickly learned that we cannot afford the $nowblower attachment this year and that our remaining options are a snow blade or a rear attaching snowblower. Is pushing snow with a tractor really much easier/better than with a plow truck? Is the front snowblower attachment that much better than a blade? And finally, are the rear attaching snow blowers a total pain? (I imagine they are)

I would appreciate any input! Thanks

 

[irvingj]

First, my tractor, a SCUT, sounds like it would probably be too small for your use, but I imagine it could do the job. I bought it primarily for snow removal, with plans to do other things as well.

Concerning snow removal: First of all, I don't believe anything beats a plow for speed. But -- plowing will always leave ridges, and eventually you may run out of places to put or push the snow. If you have all kinds of space, a plow is the way to go.

My driveway opens onto a dirt road, and ridges at the top definitely become a liability in the winter, as they obstruct vision. My driveway also tends to get narrower and narrower as winter progresses, if it's done with a plow. I opted for a blower, front-mount, for my little GC. It works extremely well for me. BTW- my driveway is also quite steep, but only about 250' long, plus a large area in front of the garage.

I never have any ridges. It will throw snow well into the woods, even across the road when I clear the top of the driveway and around the mailbox. And this on 23 HP, 18+ at the PTO. Yes, the blower was an expensive option, but I've never regretted it. I would definitely try to save up for it.

I've also found hat the little GC does an excellent job of mowing; I managed to find a used mower deck for it --as an experiment. Now, you couldn't pry it from me.

The 4WD is very helpful, not only for snow removal, but also for mowing on some of my steep hills. It's also amazing where you can fit a tractor this size!

 

[High Compression]

Welcome to TBN! First thing is first. I have been doing snow removal for over 10 years now professionally and really since I was old enough to drive a tractor. I have used trucks and other various equipment through the years. I will say that a truck does not and will not hold up to pushing snow like a piece of equipment. So in my opinion don't even consider a truck for this purpose.

Now, with that said. If you are only plowing your driveway, (not a big parking lot etc.) I would recommend a blade instead of a blower. The blade is faster, way less to maintain, and as you saw much cheaper. If the snow gets too deep, and I mean 3'-4' in one snow, then you might have to plow a couple times, but that's just more fun.:thumbsup:

Size wise, 30hp would be plenty for what you mentioned. You could even go smaller, but there are other considerations. Do you want a cab? If so, I would suggest the Kubota B3030 or B3000. They have a full cab, you can get a loader, snow blade, belly mower, rear finish mower etc. They are a great tractor and I have pushed though 5' drifts with my B3030 and my BX2660.

If you don't want a cab and you want a little smaller frame, the BX2660 is a great choice. It is 25hp, and will push snow like crazy. You can also run a 60" belly mower or finish mower with it no problem. Loader option etc.

Lastly, budget will be a determining factor. You will have to check current prices of course and deals. Kubota does 0% and a free loader on certain models. I believe I paid somewhere around $27k, for my B3030, Cab, a/c, heat, etc. loader, snow plow sub-frame and snow plow.
I think I paid around $15k for my BX2660, loader, snow plow sub frame, snow plow and a spreader.
Good luck! Happy tractoring! Do us a favor though, when you get your new tractor, you have to post pictures like a proud new papa.:thumbsup::laughing:

 

[Dmace]

I was going to recommend a 30hp tractor as well but since you mention lawn mowing then I feel a lighter 20+hp tractor like the Kioti CK20, Bobcat CT122 or similar would be better and cheaper. Plus the CK20/CT122 is incredibly strong for it's size, 1074lb capacity loader, 22hp/17hp pto, etc... If you didn't have room to push the snow to the sides, I would recommend a snowblower but with a driveway over 1/4 mile long it will take a long time to clear. Your better off with a good front mounted blade that can angle.

Check out Michigan Iron and Equipment's selection of front mounted blades that use the loader controls. They are a dealer that's on this site and have had plenty of very positive responses from other users.

 

[Deere Dude]

I have a JD 3720 with a FEL and rear blade. I just had to try it last year for the snow we had in Wisconsin. I was having a great time pushing and piling and moving snow around, until I found that having to push all the previous snows a long way from the driveway was a pain and took a long time. I decided after 1/2 of the year was over to jump on my X740, maybe 24 HP, and blow the snow with a 47"? 2 stage snow-blower. Once the snow is in the woods or 50 feet away, you don't have to worry about it anymore. Unless the drive has bigger stones always coming through the hard-pack, I would use a snow-blower.
For the time being in your case, I would get a x2xx series with with a front mount snow-blower. It should work with your lawn and the driveway quite well. I have a X740 that I wouldn't hesitate to tackle a 1/4 mile of driveway with, and it's a lot smaller than a x2xx series tractor, but I don't live in Maine and don't know how many inches you get all the time.

 

[wny770]

I live in WNY snow belt, and have had all mentioned. I now have a 30 HP CUT with a rear blower and FEL. When you blow snow, you only handle it ONCE! NO pushing back banks.... etc... Good luck trying to plow a 3' snowfall. Just my opinion, which may be worth less than 2 cents........:laughing:

 

[nybirdman]

What is the average snow-fall for your area?
My take on this:
less than 100"=FEL and Rear blade
100"-150" =Front Blade and rear blade
150" + =snow blower
Blowers are expensive,the fronts maybe twice the money,but much easier to use.
I lived/worked for ten years in Central NY,200"-300" per year,snow-blower country.I now live in northern NY and average 150",front snow-plow and rear blade.
You will need 4WD,FEL and 25-30hp.Tire choice....lots of reading here.My choice was R1's but I have a dedicated mower.

 

[leonz]

Okay, so I haven't purchased the tractor yet and I need advice on two things: 1)what size tractor I should get and 2) info regarding a plow blade for it. (vs a snow blower or conventional plow truck)

Question #1: The number one reason for wanting to purchase a tractor at this time is for snow removal. We live on a big hill, the driveway is quite steep, it's at least 1/4 mile long and we live in central Maine (which = lots of snow!). I'm under the impression that tractors are less likely to break down than plow trucks and are in general a better investment. We will use the tractor for other things, such as mow the lawn (maybe an acre or two, wide open but hilly), remove brush and small trees, maintain drainage ditches... We've been looking at ~30HP machines, is this enough/too much?

Question #2: After seeing prices of tractors and front attaching snow blowers, we quickly learned that we cannot afford the $nowblower attachment this year and that our remaining options are a snow blade or a rear attaching snowblower. Is pushing snow with a tractor really much easier/better than with a plow truck? Is the front snowblower attachment that much better than a blade? And finally, are the rear attaching snow blowers a total pain? (I imagine they are)

I would appreciate any input! Thanks

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________


About your dilema and snow removal;

Many members use smaller garden tractors for long driveways with and without the soft cabs as well.

If you visit the John Deere home page they have a selection guide that fits you to the size of mule you need have and the various attachments.

The simple two wheel drive garden tractors with rear weights and chains and snow blowers will move a lot of snow with little work and less money spent.

The last thing you want to do is push snow as it leaves snow banks that will drift in and this is big issue as the banks will freeze on you and your driveway will narrow because of it.

The upper range of garden tractors are 19-20 plus horse power and have lots of power for mowing and snow casting.

A small 42 inch blower and chains may be all you need but you may need to spend more time removing snow and would want the better soft cab from BERCO as they are very substantial in construction.

We had a 12 horse Original International Cub Cadet with a single stage
snow blower with rear chains and our driveway was steep and long and it never had a problem with snow removal.

I purchased a JD 19.5 horse lawnmower with weights, chains and two stage snow caster for just under $3,700.00 in March.

I have been very impressed with this John Deere and it has lots of traction when mowing as I left the rear weights on during mowing season and I have had zero issues with traction mowing my slopes.

It may be simpler to simply rent any equipment you may need to do the work you eventually wish to do or simply have it done as you may not be able to find the time to do these things or find the expense of attachments are simply not justified in many cases.

I would simply purhcase a garden tractor so that you have something to remove snow with this winter and then carry through the summer to see how well it works for you and you will be out less money the first year.


When you get into maintaining drainage ditches that is another animal entirely and the work is very involved with maintaining grades and minimising erosion.

Its better to simply live there a year with smaller garden tractor with a mower, snow blower, a dump cart and posssibly a monster cart from Tractor Supply to haul things and then decide how much work you really wish to do.

You need traction to mow and a rear wieght kit like the ones for the John Deere lawn mowers is an excellent way to get traction for mowing UP AND DOWN SLOPES if they are greater than 15 degrees only.

 

[UpOnAHill]

Thank you all for the input and specific recommendations. More things to think about...

After consulting Google regarding our average snowfall, it turns out we fit into the 100-150" range. I would have guessed much more! It sure seems like more, but the internet doesn't lie, right? :laughing:

We are specifically looking at a Massey Ferguson 1529 or 1526-- the latter being a brandnew model that isn't even in the manuals we got. The 1526 seems like it will be better for mowing b/c a belly mower will attach to it, but I'm afraid it will fall short in the snow removal arena (our driveway really sucks) and perhaps in other tasks around the property. At this point, I'm leaning more towards the 1529 since our primary task is to remove snow and mowing the lawn with the machine would be a secondary, less important task.

As soon as we make our puchase, I will post a pic like a proud mama

 

[crazyal]

I wouldn't even think of anything less than 30hp. What I would look for is something like a Kubota B3030 or the equal version of the Massy. I'll have to disagree with some of the others here, it's not the amount of snow you get but how many places you can put it. Also how big of storms you get.

I do a little more than you do and did it with a 2 1/2 ton dump truck with a 10' plow. While it did the job I would run out of room towards the middle of January and have to use the dozer to push the piles into the woods. Also unless you can be on top of it if you get a 3' foot dumping of snow you'll be fighting plowing it (with a truck or tractor). Snow banks quickly build up during those storms and you may run out of room before the snow is removed.

With a plow you have to think way ahead. You need to push it as far as you can out of your way at the beginning of the season. You'll want to have the places you can pile it ready to go and close enough so you don't have to try to push the snow down your driveway too far to the next point. On a hill finding places close enough together can be difficult.

A snow blower is slower. If your driveway has fist size rocks they will play havoc with a snow blower. You'll be replacing shear bolts unless you walk down your driveway and remove them before you get snow. With a snow blower the snow is gone, no piles to worry about. If you get 3' it's just going to take you longer but you'll be able to clear it. A rear blower on a long driveway is going to strain your neck, it'll be even worse if you have lots of turns.

If you think you may want a front blower in the future then you should decide ahead of time if you want the factory blower it may use a center pto (chances are if you get a center mount mower deck it'll need it too). Not all models offer it and the ones that do it could be an option. Get the option as most dealers will install it free on a new tractor. A rear blower may need a hydraulic remote to rotate the chute, again if it's not standard and you'll need it get it when you buy the tractor. Also if you are going to get a front mounted blower in the future then I would add about 5hp more as you loose a little when you go from a rear pto to a front pto.

They do may aftermarket front mount blowers that use the rear pto.

 

[ol'oilburner]

I've got a M/F 1529 with the synchro shuttle tranny and I run a 68" Meteor rear mount blower on it with no problems whatsoever. The blower has both hydraulic chute rotator and chute deflector which makes it very convenient to put the snow where you want it without leaving the seat. Unlike some, I prefer the rear blower so that I can still have my loader on the tractor if I need it for some reason, I find the loader nice near the driveway entrance where the highway plows have pushed in that wet salt saturated mush or around the mailbox as well. Good luck with your purchase and I hope my opinion and experience helps you..

 

[TGReaper]

Like O.O posted above I also find that the rear mount is ideal for my requirements.
My BX2200 has no problem power wise with a 60" Buhler/Farm King,and the hydrostatic control design allows sitting sideways for 3 or 4 hours in reasonable comfort.
Having the blower and the FEL on at the same time has many benefits.

TGR

 

[LD1]

I am never one to advise against buying a tractor, because they ARE a lot of fun and very handy.

BUT, IMO, a truck FAR exceeds a tractor for plowing, provided you dont get so much that a blower is required. IF you are just compairing a ~30HP tractor with blades/FEL to a truck, the truck is MUCH quicker and MUCH more comfortable, and MUCH more affordable.

I dont buy into "they dont last as long" or "wont hold up as well" logic. IF you buy an appropriately sized plow for the truck, only doing your driveway, you will have YEARS and YEARS of trouble free service. But as with anything, how the equipment is maintained and how it is operated make all the difference in the world. IF you abuse a truck, sure it wont last long. But if you abuse the tractor and fail to maintain it properly, it wont last long either.

And with the mowing, just like the plowing, the tractor isnt going to be the best or fastest. A ZTR is.

But as you probabally already know, getting a tractor is going to be MUCH more versitile on your property with the ability to do a vareity of things. Just understand that for your primary two tasks (plowing and mowing) it is going to be a compromise and you are going to give up speed for the ability to several tasks all on one machine.

 

[WayneB]

I use a Kubota B-7500 and have both a quick hitch snow plow and blower. Change over is really quick (less than 5 minutes).

I find it much faster to push the snow than it is to blow it. Anything less than 6" I will normally plow down the center and then change over to the blower and blow the snow off to the sides. My driveway is approximately 1000 feet down hill with a two curves. It is narrow so having snow banks can be a problem mid way through the winter. With the snow blower we still have banks but they are 25 feet away.

For a number of years I did this will a rear snow blower which is really slow. Have to do this in low gear and reverse so it takes time. I would be going slow enough that I could actually turn around in the seat and be on my knees steering with one hand so my neck would not get so sore from looking backwards.

As for horse power my tractor is like 20 HP and it has not been a problem at all. I would like to have a larger tractor, but cannot justify the cost and added fuel usage. I am a believer in 4 wheel drive though.

My biggest problem isn't the snow removal, it is staying ahead of the ice build up. Down here we will get sun mid day that melts some snow and then it turns to ice by night fall. I am now thinking of a sander to go on the back end it will work as a weight balance and also for sanding from time to time.

Bottom line is I would certainly recommend a tractor and the color would be orange or green.

wayne

 

[cast_and_blast]

Question #1: The number one reason for wanting to purchase a tractor at this time is for snow removal. We live on a big hill, the driveway is quite steep, it's at least 1/4 mile long and we live in central Maine (which = lots of snow!). I'm under the impression that tractors are less likely to break down than plow trucks and are in general a better investment. We will use the tractor for other things, such as mow the lawn (maybe an acre or two, wide open but hilly), remove brush and small trees, maintain drainage ditches... We've been looking at ~30HP machines, is this enough/too much?

Question #2: After seeing prices of tractors and front attaching snow blowers, we quickly learned that we cannot afford the $nowblower attachment this year and that our remaining options are a snow blade or a rear attaching snowblower. Is pushing snow with a tractor really much easier/better than with a plow truck? Is the front snowblower attachment that much better than a blade? And finally, are the rear attaching snow blowers a total pain? (I imagine they are)

I would appreciate any input! Thanks

I think you're in the ballpark in terms of the size tractor, you might be able to even go smaller (like the 2520 range in JD).

Yes, the front blower is that much better than a blade. Here's why:
1. You're moving the snow once.
2. You are moving the snow far enough away from the driveway that you won't have big banks build up.
3. You can keep the driveway 100% width easily with the blower.
4. Can only "push" so much with the blade, blower can eat through 2'+, no problem.

My advice: bite the bullet and get the front blower. It's the right tool for your job. Thank me later.

Scott

 

[joeyd]

I have a TYM 353 HST with a rear snowblower that I use for my 400' or so gravel driveway and helping with my 1/2 mile or so of private dirt road. It also is on a slope but I don't mind turning sideways on the tractor to do the work. HP is important but think of your other uses, weight may be needed too and that may mean a larger tractor. I would definately recommend 4wd and chains for the ice you will get. Eventually it will rain or melt then freeze over or you will have shady spots and ice. The steepness of your driveway will dictate how agressive you get with the chains. Good luck with your shopping!