Befco grader/land plane WOW !!

[jenkinsph]

I'll just second the comment that Befco makes a good product. I have a BGS-84 (about 850lbs), and have been very happy with it. I use it for landscaping and construction (building pads) as well as road building and grading. Does a great job and is easy to use. As others have mentioned you can run it backwards to do a final smoothing. The main issue will be if you have rocks! Any rocks at the surface will likely be dug up and will need to be removed to get a smooth finish. I don't have any pictures of it in action, but here is one of it on the tractor. I have the scarifiers in the up position most of the time.

A couple of years ago when working out of Durango on the Animas river I dodn't even bring the landplane but I did bring my rock bucket. Man lots and lots of rocks with a little dust thrown in for good measure. Very pretty area though.

 

[94BULLITT]

How hard does a land plane pull? Is it comparable to a scraper blade or a box blade?

 

[catdozer]

How hard does a land plane pull? Is it comparable to a scraper blade or a box blade?

Depends on the type of material. For doing a driveway with stone it pulls very easy. Now if your in heavy loose soil it builds up and stops dead in your tracks. But overall I think it it pulls like a 1/4 full box blade

 

[MtnViewRanch]

How hard does a land plane pull? Is it comparable to a scraper blade or a box blade?

Lots of variables. My 75hp 12,000lb 4x4 tractor can be easily stopped with my 7 foot wide 1400lb land plane grader blade. If the ground is right and I just drop it to the ground with the position control all the way forward as so many say that they do, my tractor isn't going to go very far. Just like any implement, once you learn the adjustments that need to be done, it has amazing capabilities.

Someone asked if they can be used for other stuff than roads. and as Steve said, yes. And with mine if the ground is damp, I can move over 2 cubic yards of dirt at a time and when you are leveling out a large area, that sure does work well and a lot faster than any of my other implements. A lot has to do with the conditions that you have at that current time.

 

[94BULLITT]

Depends on the type of material. For doing a driveway with stone it pulls very easy. Now if your in heavy loose soil it builds up and stops dead in your tracks. But overall I think it it pulls like a 1/4 full box blade

Lots of variables. My 75hp 12,000lb 4x4 tractor can be easily stopped with my 7 foot wide 1400lb land plane grader blade. If the ground is right and I just drop it to the ground with the position control all the way forward as so many say that they do, my tractor isn't going to go very far. Just like any implement, once you learn the adjustments that need to be done, it has amazing capabilities.

Someone asked if they can be used for other stuff than roads. and as Steve said, yes. And with mine if the ground is damp, I can move over 2 cubic yards of dirt at a time and when you are leveling out a large area, that sure does work well and a lot faster than any of my other implements. A lot has to do with the conditions that you have at that current time.

I was asking because I am going to make one for the BX. I was undecided on a 4' or 5' but after I asked I kinda made up my mind on the 4' cause of its more compact size.

 

[mikehaugen]

I was asking because I am going to make one for the BX. I was undecided on a 4' or 5' but after I asked I kinda made up my mind on the 4' cause of its more compact size.

do you transport the bx the same way you do the riding mower? :laughing:

 

[94BULLITT]

do you transport the bx the same way you do the riding mower? :laughing:

Yes:laughing: I tried hauling the L4240 on my van but I did not work out too well

 

[jenkinsph]

I was asking because I am going to make one for the BX. I was undecided on a 4' or 5' but after I asked I kinda made up my mind on the 4' cause of its more compact size.

Bullit a 4' landplane is a full load for your BX, my z749 knows it is back there.

 

[coobie]

Been busy at work so little time to check this thread.IMHO it is all about and the weight and design of the befco land plane.My first run was on our road that was VERY DRY and it did great.I cannot wait to use it on out road when we have had a lot of rain.coobie

 

[CTMassey]

When i cleaned a lot to build on there were places I didn't spend too much time leveling. Because the land is a little steep, it was the back yard, and I focusing on getting grass to grow in other places it was just too rough to mow and became full of saplings and blackberries bushes. It was the reason I wanted to buy a brush hog. Last summer I used the GS to level it and rip all the brush out of the ground. It's now just part of the lawn and gets mowed and I need to find a new excuse to buy a brush hog.

thats the same situation i'm looking at, a steep back yard that got stumped and poorly graded.Its all crabgrass thats barely mowable with my walk behind so id like to regrade and plant seed,wondering if i'd have to scarify everything first or just run a land planer over it in the spring

 

[jenkinsph]

CTMassey
Not knowing where you live it might be best to wait until spring to plant as you mentioned, getting a little late and cool at night. My experience has been I get a better stand of grass if I till the ground about 4 inches deep or better. Since you are on steep ground erosion can be a real issue though, so dependent on your conditions I would try to choose a time when the low temperatures are about 40F overnight and 60F in the daytime and rising. More importantly I would recommend you do it when you have less chance of rain and use sprinklers instead to get the grass up and growing. Better to get the grass rooted before you anticipate heavy rains and subsequent erosion.

 

[crazyal]

I didn't use the rippers because I have lots of rocks and ledge. I'll I wanted to do was move the high stuff into the low spots. The blades themselves did all the pulling of the weeds/ scrub brush. Once I had a big pile I used the loader to scoop it up. Being as rough as it was the tractor would bounce as it drove across the ruts but the plane just glided across the top pulling dirt into the ruts. After a couple of passes it was smooth. This time of year anything that's dirt is going to stay dirt. There might be enough time to get seed to grow but you're taking a chance. That means it will be mud in the spring.

 

[CTMassey]

thanks guys, i'm planning on tackling the project in the spring, that way all the crabgrass/vegetation will be loose, not to mention I have to come up with the land planer!!

 

[crazyal]

The nice thing about the BEFCO is it's heavier than the Woods or Land Pride and has adjustable blades and has the rippers. Plus you can buy it on-line and for quite a bit cheaper than I found either the Woods or LP.

 

[TBarD]

The nice thing about the BEFCO is it's heavier than the Woods or Land Pride and has adjustable blades and has the rippers. Plus you can buy it on-line and for quite a bit cheaper than I found either the Woods or LP.

Yep - the weight isn't that much more than the LP as I recall, but adjustable blades and scarifiers are important features. Also the skids can be replaced should they wear out. I bought mine online and had it shipped for substantially less than buying a LP at list from the local dealer (sorry about that but it was nearly $1K less and saved me 150 miles of driving to the nearest dealer). Offloaded it with the tractor and forks.

 

[yelbike]

Yep - the weight isn't that much more than the LP as I recall, but adjustable blades and scarifiers are important features. Also the skids can be replaced should they wear out. I bought mine online and had it shipped for substantially less than buying a LP at list from the local dealer (sorry about that but it was nearly $1K less and saved me 150 miles of driving to the nearest dealer). Offloaded it with the tractor and forks.

What website did you buy it from? Would you share your price?

 

[TBarD]

What website did you buy it from? Would you share your price?

I ordered my BGS-84 from National Implement for $1400. Shipping was $530 (ouch) but it is 850 lbs. It shipped direct from the factory via UPS freight. Back when I ordered this there was another source in AZ that would have been cheaper, but I had time constraints on when I could be around to offload it.

 

[crazyal]

I think National is also Idaho Implement. I also used them. The shipping is much cheaper if you have a way of unloading it or picking it up at the depot. I don't know about Canada though.

I didn't find any valve for me in going with anything more than a 6' wide scraper (my drive is about 10' wide) so the wider ones could be different. But the BEFCO was over 100 lbs heavier than the 6' LP.

 

[LouieJunior]

I just ordered BGS-72 from a nearby dealer. My price is $1381 less discount of $101 -- or $1280. Add freight of $110 for a grand total of $1390. The shipping is from MFR to his dealership. I thought is was odd, but the total price was about equal to the Woods model, which I judged to be lighter, with fewer shanks. Coming in one week.

 

[elliottsmith]

Newbie to the forum. I've been wondering the same thing Bullitt. Been considering either a LP or Befco but not sure what size to get. All I have to pull it with is my Ford 8N and all I'll be using it for is my gravel driveway. Would like to get a 6' since that would be about right for the wheel base of the 8N but don't want to go buy something my tractor can't pull. I do pull a 6' finish mower a 5' BB and rear blade routinely with the 8N with no problems. Well, if the grass gets real high the finish mower can be a strain at times. Kind of thinking I might be better off with a 4' since my driveway is about 8' - 10' wide. That way I could make a pass down each side. Anybody have experience pulling these with an 8N? Thanks!!!

How hard does a land plane pull? Is it comparable to a scraper blade or a box blade?