Box Blade for my SCUT?

[dragoneggs]

Appreciate the comments guys. I already have a landscape rake and a heavy back blade so I am expecting that the BB won't be perfect solution with my soil/rock conditions but knowing weight is my friend here, it seems there are options. I will report back my findings soon hopefully. Day job getting in the way as usual.

 

[diesel85]

You ain't kidding on the day job... gosh, I wish I had the time when I was in high school and college... man the stuff I'd get done with my parents. I used to spend hours on my BX and not be in a rush. There'd be times when I mow the lawn slower than walking pace and stay like all day on the tractor. Aw, the memories with my BX. lol

Now I'm working 1 full time job, and 2 part time jobs, running my small business, and have a family... everything is rush rush... gotta be here, gotta be there...

Now it's like how fast can I mow the lawn without hitting anything or flipping the tractor over in a ditch. lol

The once used to be fun chores, are now annoying as heck.

Gotta love it... makes the days go quick.

 

[Steppenwolfe]

I have a SCUT (BX25D) which I love. Been using a back blade and a landscape rake for my grading and raking needs. Always wanted to try a box blade and still have the itch. We recently went in with neighbors and paved our joint access road so my need is less now, but I still have about 500ft of untamed dirt paths on my property.

Question: Will using a box blade to make 'roads' offer a big improvement over the two implements I have? The ground is glacial till meaning a lot of small to medium (cantaloupe) sized rocks in hard packed sandy loam soil. Not much clay at all. Opinions please.

You are right to mention the soil. Too wet, too dry and nothing works; just right, and a box blade works wonders. However, they don't much care for big rocks. You would do better there with a landscape rake. I use both on my paths through the woods depending on the need and conditions.

 

[GirlWhoWantsTractor]

Yeah thinking similarly, after reading a few posts on another box blade thread, I learned that 100lb per ft width might be ideal. I think mine is about 300lb or 75lb/ft. I will try it out and maybe play with sandbags before committing to deadweight that is maybe more permanent if needed.

My soil is very rocky and hard (not much clay at all but) glacial till... I am guessing the extra weight will help keep it from 'jumping' over softball sized rocks that are my best crop next to baseball and golf ball rocks.

My 550-pound BB still jumps over rocks that size (and I have plenty). I actually find the extra weight a mixed blessing for general driveway maintenance. Good for major resculpting/regrading though. But for smoothing I need a much lighter implement. You can remove the rocks from the top 4" or so by dropping the scarifiers first.

 

[dragoneggs]

Since we just had our long driveway paved that we share with 3 other neighbors I hesitated on getting a BB. But a used one in great condition was hard to pass up. The tractor and mower paths I have been carving need some work and I am hoping to regrading and rerouting with the BB.

My landscape plan on my steep hill is an evolution. Don't really have a plan and have been doing bits and pieces here and there. Terraces, paths... planting grass that is movable vs. weedwacking are all in the works. Long ways to go. Orchard trees are on my (wife's) list too.

As I carve away at my hill I just have to keep telling myself to move dirt up hill too. It is easier to move it down hill but my fear is the end result after years of playing in my big 'sand' box is I will have moved too much dirt down hill and make my property too steep near my house at the top! Don't know if my rambling is making any sense?

 

[GirlWhoWantsTractor]

Since we just had our long driveway paved that we share with 3 other neighbors I hesitated on getting a BB. But a used one in great condition was hard to pass up. The tractor and mower paths I have been carving need some work and I am hoping to regrading and rerouting with the BB.

My landscape plan on my steep hill is an evolution. Don't really have a plan and have been doing bits and pieces here and there. Terraces, paths... planting grass that is movable vs. weedwacking are all in the works. Long ways to go. Orchard trees are on my (wife's) list too.

As I carve away at my hill I just have to keep telling myself to move dirt up hill too. It is easier to move it down hill but my fear is the end result after years of playing in my big 'sand' box is I will have moved too much dirt down hill and make my property too steep near my house at the top! Don't know if my rambling is making any sense?

Trails and paths, the BB rules. Just drop it and ride along and every time, it gets better. Driveways are different, as you can end up with bare dirt instead of nicely sorted gravel real quick. Agree with a powerful tractor, def have a plan. Too easy to do a lot of damage quickly. I'm very good at that. I turned my garden into "the Battle of the Somme" in one afternoon and am still fixing it.

 

[dragoneggs]

A little update... finally got around to installing my box blade on my three point hitch. I purchased a Top-n-Tilt kit with rear valve remotes. So now I have some figuring to on where/how to mounts the remotes so I can work out the hydraulic line routing.

 

[DKCDKC]

I've got a 5 foot BB behind my JD CUT. I like the light weight for routine maintenance because it doesn't dig in. If I need weight, since if have the cutters up most of the time, I hook big cinderblocks on each of them, and maybe throw on a couple of hand-poured concrete blocks I use for tie-downs. But a big factor with any BB is the angle you have it set to... Pitched forward or pitched back. I don't have the remote for an adjustable top link, so I have to set it by hand as needed. Although it does work. I do have rocks in the drive frequently, so I push-pull them out with the ratchet rake usually on my FEL and shove them off to the side - then smooth over the hole with the BB. A rock ledge or two I'm to cheap to hire a big chipper for, so I just pile up gravel over them or bend the drive around them. With a mile long drive, I have some flexibility.

 

[Rock Crawler]

I use 400 lbs of oil well jack weights to make my box dig in good. I can easily throw a couple off if it's digging in to much. These are 40 lbs each, 5 on each side.

 

[check]

My 550-pound BB still jumps over rocks that size (and I have plenty). I actually find the extra weight a mixed blessing for general driveway maintenance. Good for major resculpting/regrading though. But for smoothing I need a much lighter implement. You can remove the rocks from the top 4" or so by dropping the scarifiers first.

Yes, I think I should try the scarifiers. I do have rocks in my driveway, and I am afraid I was too aggressive a few years ago and dug the driveway down too far so now it holds puddles. I have some fill that I have available to build it up again, but the fill has lots and lots of rocks. Slow work, since I need another person to remove the rocks before I can spread it after I dump it.

Dragoneggs, do keep us posted!