Rear blade decision

[Fallon]

I have a heavy Gannon box blade & decent but narrow LandPride LPGS. Not to mention FitRite TnT. I can't say I have many answers on what works, but what I can say what is lacking. Subscribing to see what others have to say.

TnT makes the box blade work better but the side link really has no effect on the LPGS. Messing with tilt really has no effect on either impliment helping put a crown on a driveway. I've been contemplating picking up a back blade just for crowning driveways. Possibly a lighter cheap blade as I can rip & loosen with the other impliments.

Only something with angle on the blade can roll material to the center of the road. The angle on the LPGS blades does nothing for lateral movement of material.

For now I just do a herringbone pattern down the driveway with really short pulls. Usually with the LPGS. The low blades on the LPGS don't move a lot of material in this scenario, especially compared to the box blade, but its enough. Then I come back & smooth lengthwise while keeping the crown. Its slow but gets the job done for now.

 

[Bigpuddie]

6 months ago I paid $820 for my new EA 6 way deluxe (6') scraper blade for my 32HP tractor.
In my opinion:.... Not a whole lot of money...."well spent"

No disrespect intended, but that is a toy compared to a RB96.60. A 30 hp tractor wouldn't move it far

 

[Tractor Seabee]

IMHO I would first take my box blade with scarifiers and loosen up the soil. You can crown your road with the box blade by lowering one of your 3 point lower links. If it is red clay that will work better. Then you can take the scrape blade to it. In my experience red clay is difficult to scrape with a blade without first loosening it up.

Get as heavy a rear blade that you can afford. The heavier the better. A good rule of thumb is 100# per foot of blade for heavy duty. This is a general rule and not set in stone. I inherited my dad's old Super Rhino 8 foot blade. It weighs 760# according to Rhino's literature, has cat 1&2 hitch, a 3" king pin, and is rated for a 120 HP tractor. I consider it heavy duty.

You can always add weight. I use suitcase weights for that. The 50# increments allowed tailoring. You, might also consider gauge wheels or skid shoes. They (LP) make a blade that has pin adjustments for vertical tilt also, I have one like that. Saves crawling in the dirt to adjust pins or turnbuckles. In hard material there is a tendency to jump over hard sections. I could never master a box blade and was always messing with the spoil accumulation. Casting spoils to the side is a lot easier.

Ron

 

[oosik]

Hello - I have a mile long gravel driveway that has just enough sand, clay and volcanic ash mixed in that it sets up like concrete after the spring wet season.

I started out with a Land Pride rear blade - RB3596. Fantastic for winter snow plowing. Would not even scratch the driveway after it dried out and hardened. The Land Pride weighed 565# and I have FitRite hydraulic top link.

Sooo - sold the Land Pride and bought a Rhino 950 - 96" & 1100 pounds. This new unit will cut my hardened driveway like a hot knife thru butter.

I find that a 96" rear blade is just about right for offset plowing of snow and cleaning ditches. My tractor rear tire width is 80" - outside to outside.

The new Rhino RB will pull material out of my ditches - pile it up in the center and help build a crown. Rear blades are not an easy implement to learn but will do surprising good things on a driveway.

If you are serious about a rear blade - - weight is your friend - my Rhino is 138 pounds per foot. I recommend a rear blade as heavy as your tractor and pocketbook can handle.

 

[dragoneggs]

Following along here and learning. I have a rear blade that isn't doing enough for me and my trail making/grading. Just bought a used box blade and decided to invest in a top and tilt system from Fitrite Hydraulics (a member on TBN). Waiting for its arrival. Fit Rite Hydraulics - fitritehydraulics.com

My problem is I am cutting trails into a side slope an cannot change the slope relative to my wheels. Hoping the tilt will be the holy grail.

 

[oosik]

I cut into a bank on one of my outback trails. I only have hydraulic top link. I gave the lifting rods all the angle adjustment they could safely handle - it was a slow process but I was able to cut a flat and level tail across about 100 feet of angled side bank. The trail is about 6 to 7 feet wide.

Honestly - if the angle of the bank I was cutting across had been much greater - I would have found another place for the trail. I don't like cutting new trails with the bucket on the FEL and I don't have a crawler dozer.

 

[dragoneggs]

I cut into a bank on one of my outback trails. I only have hydraulic top link. I gave the lifting rods all the angle adjustment they could safely handle - it was a slow process but I was able to cut a flat and level tail across about 100 feet of angled side bank. The trail is about 6 to 7 feet wide.

Honestly - if the angle of the bank I was cutting across had been much greater - I would have found another place for the trail. I don't like cutting new trails with the bucket on the FEL and I don't have a crawler dozer.

That's my problem. I don't have much choice on slope and it is steep. A risky proposition as it is. I cut and fill some to the downside to make a wide enough path without creating to high of a bank on the high side.

My FEL with a piranha tooth bar is a great digger but I have to turn around and use my backhoe to help flatten it out to get my bucket to 'plane' properly. This is a pain because there is no turning around.

BTW... you are up early! I'm in Singapore headed for bed!

 

[rbtjr]

We have the 84" EA Xtreme Duty Six Way scrape blade (with the skid shoes and side plates, although we haven't used either the shoes or the side plates thus far). We haven't used it much but really like it. It's very well made, very flexible and IMHO far superior to the prior 6' scrape blade we had and sold.

 

[oosik]

Dragoneggs - if I had to do it again - I would probably try it a different way. Angle the rear blade and BACK into the slope. Drop the rear blade and pull forward. I know it would be a PITA that way - but your tractor would always be working on level ground - more or less. The ground that the rear blade just cut level would be the ground your tractor would be sitting on. At least this sounds good "on paper" - hard to say how it would work out there in the real dirt.

Up early - its hard to stay in bed when my ten month old Chocolate Lab thinks its time to play. If I don't get up - he is up on the bed doing high jumps. Thank God for afternoon naps. Well - sleep well.

 

[Timm250]

Look at the Industrias America blades. They are very heavy duty and reasonably priced.

Look around before buy because depending on the area the are crazy differences in the prices.

The have a Facebook page with pictures of their equipment.

I bought new model 165, 10' blade with 2 hyd cylinders for $2600.