'Feet' on rear blade

[ruffdog]

If you can drive on the first snows so you get a layer of packed snow, it then doesn't seem to matter much as the shoes will ride on top of that.

 

[redman135]

I think you would be better with a wheel. Skids/shoes will always dig in under the blades own weight in soft conditions.

 

[PILOON]

If you can drive on the first snows so you get a layer of packed snow, it then doesn't seem to matter much as the shoes will ride on top of that.

YEP !
That is my method, drive back and forth and compact that white stuff to form a base.
Works for me, but then usually after that first dumping the next 4 months are all below freezing .

 

[MMagis]

You need to reverse the blade on soft drives.

Like this. )O=o going this way =>

Exactly. Turn the blade around and you won't move one piece of stone. Shoes, skids, or whatever are a waste of time.

 

[the old grind]

I like the suggestion to turn the blade backwards on thawed ground. :thumbsup:

Would expect wheels to dig in too if not quite a bit wider than the 'button' shoes. One could maybe add some metal or make a wider, offset shoe/ski sloped (shorter) toward the pivot and pinned to rotate freely 360^, since steering movements might cause additional gouging. Imagine a round handled spoon with that handle bent to almost 90^ and set up to 'caster' to accommodate reversing too.

btw, I still use box blade exclusively for snow because the sides contain and compact snow over distance (like a pusher would) to be easier to pile w/FEL along the sides of the drive when too full to move any further. That said it digs into soft surfaces too much going in either direction & I don't have 'top' to tweak on the fly. Back-blading w/FEL to compact a base is tricky if the bucket lip doesn't follow the 'crown' contour too well.

I warned GP that I'll be checking in soon () hinting that I could use his welding expertise more than he'd ever need my machine shop. :laughing: We're experiencing similar frost/thaw cycles and have long gravel drives. Should have some leaf spring 'pieces' to model-up my idea. (Few inches wide and 6" or so long?) Now that notifications are back (for good?) you can chase me down to see if we put something together. tog

 

[3550hst]

I made my own "shoes"to keep the plow blade from digging in. They are pinned at one end for a hinge and pinned at the other for height adjustment. to allow for them to work at an angle, I used hard-facing rod build up the metal in the center. Sounds like work, but the hard facing is so hard compared to mild steel that you will thank yourself.

 

[JerryK]

What we use up here in Michigan is a split pipe that covers the actual blade cutting edge. You can split a ABS pipe on a table saw, then drive it onto the blade. Widen the cut on the table saw if needed. These plastic pipes may last up to a year or more, depending on how it is used. PVC works, but shatters easier. A long term solution is to buy a pre-split steel pipe. Several fabricator/steel supply shops sell either thin or thick wall pipe that they fab to put on commercial plow blades. Either they or you weld on a couple tabs, then bolt the tabs to your blade to keep them in place during the winter. With pipes, the smaller the diameter the more it tends to cut in more, and the larger the diameter the more it tends to ride on top. So you have to guesstimate the diameter of the pipe you need depending on the weight of your blade and the surface you are running it on. Cheap way is to just put on about a 2" PVC pipe and see how that does before spending big bucks on a steel split pipe. Then go bigger or smaller to your liking. I think the standard pre-split ones they sell here is 2" schedule 40 and 80 steel pipe. I just put a 2" schedule 80 on my little JD 420 54" last winter, after using ABS for years. I use the 420 to prep the drive for my snowblower early in the winter season... I also leave the pipe on year round most of the time. I have trails all over my property that I keep in good condition. In the fall I use the blade with the pipe to push the leaves off the paths. Works just like plowing snow. Once you get a build up of leaves in front of the blade that you decide you want to get rid of, you just angle the blade and push the pile off to the side. The pipe actually gets a layer of leaves kind of under it and the leaf pile itself does all the plowing, without disturbing the dirt hardly at all. You will be amazed how great this works.... LEAF PLOWING !!!