Martin meteor sb75

[liberty2701]

I am waiting on delv of a new Kioti Dk50 se HSt tractor. The dealer wants to sell me a new MM sb75 3pt blower for $3100{dealer claims 3900 normally). The weight on this blower is 750lbs. It seems to outweigh all other brands of the same size by quite a bit. I seen some good and bad comments out there. Is this something I should jump on. Thanks

 

[kco]

I'm not sure of the price but the SB75 is likely basically the same as my Meteor SB75 P/T (pull type). I have had it three winters and am pleased with it. It gets a fair amount of use since I regularly clear 4,000' or so of driveways. I think it is a very tough snowblower. But I did manage to put a small bend in the auger this spring when it hit a rock on a neighbour's driveway. I still need to fix that before next winter. I don't think it was any failing of the blower. The shear bolt broke as it should but I think the way the rock temporarily lodged between the centre auger support produced huge momentary stress. It also bent the very thick auger support and I could see where the rock must have been on the housing. I have broken the auger shear pin a couple of other times with no damage.

It is a good blower. The basic price July 2011 (with $129 manual chute rotator) for my SB75 P/T (which is more expensive than the push-type) was $3,788). Adjustable skid shoes added $119 and the hydraulic(instead of manual) chute rotator added $598. So my total was $4,505 before taxes. I seem to recall that the push-type equivalent was about $700 cheaper.

For my situation a pull-type or a front blower was all I considered because of the driveway lengths. So your first step should be to decide what type of blower you need. When researching mine I found it easy to get LIST prices from the manufactures, and I found the dealers stuck close to those prices.

One thing....it is good to order a blower in early summer to ensure delivery for winter. Even though ordered in July, mine just made it for snow season. To a lesser extent the same is true for tire chains.

 

[HillStreet]

I have had my SB51 for 4 years and it works just fine. It is a push type.

Many comments and concerns about the Meteor have talked about the gearbox. Some folks have had broken shafts on gearboxes that were a real expense and problem. I do know that two types of gearboxes were used; 1-1/4" spline input shaft, and a 1" keyed input shaft. The splined shaft has not had any problems that I can recall.

I recently changed my gearbox oil and stripped the plug-- my fault. I am in the middle of that repair now but I expect to have it done pretty soon good as new.

 

[Ed L]

I had one for a few years, sold it due to issues with my back.

Overall it was a decent piece of equipment. I did add extra holes for the spout, the factory ones either threw the snow down or launched it **** near vertical. I thought it should've thrown the snow farther also.

I would buy something else next time.

Ed

 

[The Fred]

I have a 2012 SB75. It is a very robust unit. My only complaint is that it only blows snow 28 feet. Yup No BS that's it; I measured it a few times and that's at FULL throttle (570 RPM). I would not buy another just for that reason. My next blower better launch snow at least 100 yards

Fred

 

[lubepimp]

I'm still shopping for a tractor. The Kioti dealer, who has me looking at a DK40SE suggested the SB75 to me, saying I would want it's width for the turn in my driveway. I'm a little skeptical that the 40hp will handle it...any thoughts?

 

[kco]

It will easily handle the SB75. I have the 75" pull-type on my DK35SE HST and it handles it well. You would not want a smaller blower with that DK40.

 

[HillStreet]

I'm still shopping for a tractor. The Kioti dealer, who has me looking at a DK40SE suggested the SB75 to me, saying I would want it's width for the turn in my driveway. I'm a little skeptical that the 40hp will handle it...any thoughts?

The MK Martin site has a specification table that says the recommended HP for the SB75 is 50hp. An ad on eBay says the SB75 should have 50hp for efficient operation.

 

[kco]

The MK Martin site has a specification table that says the recommended HP for the SB75 is 50hp. An ad on eBay says the SB75 should have 50hp for efficient operation.

I had the same concern when I bought my SB75 pull-type. My dealer assured me the DK35SE (27.5 hp PTO) would handle it, which it does. The DK40SE @ 32.5 hp PTO will easily run it. The fan blade size and number has as much influence on power requirement as the overall width. Compare the hp requirement with others such as Lucknow, Erskine and Normand. They give different hp requirements for similar blowers.

My clearing typically less than 12" of fairly dense snow. I believe your area may get deeper snows. If a snowfall is very deep you can just go a bit slower.

 

[lubepimp]

I had the same concern when I bought my SB75 pull-type. My dealer assured me the DK35SE (27.5 hp PTO) would handle it, which it does. The DK40SE @ 32.5 hp PTO will easily run it. The fan blade size and number has as much influence on power requirement as the overall width. Compare the hp requirement with others such as Lucknow, Erskine and Normand. They give different hp requirements for similar blowers.

My clearing typically less than 12" of fairly dense snow. I believe your area may get deeper snows. If a snowfall is very deep you can just go a bit slower.

It was the spec sheet that I saw which caused my concern, and when I questioned the dealer he said the DK40 would have plenty of power without issue. But it's always better to get real-life referrals! Thanks kco.

 

[lubepimp]

I contacted MK Martin through their e-mail address on the website and they confirmed that the DK40 will handle it. They also gave me MSRP which is lower than what the dealer quoted me

 

[kco]

Check that the prices are for the same thing. There is a base price and the chute rotator, adjustable skid shoes, etc.

You could also check other dealers. They can order it in Kioti orange. By ordering early I got free shipping as the dealer combined it with other orders.

 

[lubepimp]

It looks to be the same unit, and now that you mentioned shipping that cost would appear to be the difference between the dealer and manufacturer! Good news is the dealer is being straight

 

[kco]

It can be very expensive depending on location. However it can go to zero if the dealer combines several orders. Mine orders blowers in late summer and combines them with other equipment from the same manufacturer or affiliated brand. MK Martin makes other implements under the HLA name.

 

[lubepimp]

I move quite a bit of freight so I'm sure that's what the difference is, but thanks for the head's up. I'll be sure to ask if he can wait until there are other orders...be nice to save a few pennies to go towards diesel.