pto snowblower size?

[number two]

If your tractor has a better selection of forward gears,perhaps an inverted pull-behind blower could be an option?
Good Luck!

 

[MinnesotaMorg]

I do not run chains, loaded rears with cast wheels

How much weight do you have total with the loaded rears? I'm still trying to figure out what the magic weight/width ratio for snowblowers is. Another thread seemed to say you want at least 5 PTO HP / foot of snowblower width.

What are your average snow events? 6" or 24" for example?

Each snowfall normally isn't enormous, its the drift that happens that really closes the driveway. I honestly couldn't tell you how much I get, but I'll attach pictures of one of the worst days last winter. GRANTED, this is the result of plowing for 2+ months and creating berms which just aggravate the drifting issue.

mud will cause you a great deal of headaches.

? what mud?

You have about 6,000 square feet +-, it is not all that much square area in the scheme of things. Are you using snow stakes or T posts to mark the area?

I don't plan on using anything to mark the area. I might get one stake to mark the fiber box near the road as its really the only thing kinda close to the driveway.

How many of the remotes are double acting??

I'll be honest, I had to look up what single acting vs double acting were hah. They are all double acting, do they even sell single acting anymore?

rotating impeller drum you would need to use all three remotes to be double acting and it requires requires 6 hoses.

I tried looking up "rotating impeller drum". I don't understand what you mean. My understanding is the auger and the impeller are driven by a gearbox connected to the PTO. Is there another style or additional component that can require a 3rd remote?
My current plan is:
remote 1: top link
remote 2: chute rotation
remote 3: spout adjust

 

[MinnesotaMorg]

perhaps an inverted pull-behind blower could be an option?

Sadly this is not an option with the drifts. Does anyone know at what amount of snowfall the inverted becomes impractical? Maybe it works even in 3 feet if its all powder?

 

[seville009]

I would definitely recommend chains on at least the rear tires. I have loaded tires and 4wd, but chain up every winter. Last thing you want to worry about when you're working in a snowstorm is getting stuck. Having chains on gives you added traction/digging/grip in deep snow. Gives me peace of mind at least.

 

[Captain Dirty]

OP had requested brand/size recommendations. I have only owned one PTO driven snowblower, a 78" Lorenz, with which I am well satisfied. The machine is heavy and stoutly built, both desirable attributes. A major difference between the Lorenz and most others is the augers. Rather than a narrow ribbon helix, the Lorenz has oblique, relatively flat paddles. These have proven to do well chewing into heavily packed, often frozen snow, e.g. the plowbacks left by the DPW, compacted roof snow, drifts. I have bent one hitting a cobble (rock) but was easily able to heat and beat it straight. I doubt that I could have restored a smoothly curved spiral if I had bent a helix.

Wet, slushy snow would clog the discharge chute, but I have had no recurrences since I lined the chute with UHMW PE (ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene).

Minimum width is wider than the tractor wheel width. Unless you are clearing large spaces great width may be a maneuvering disadvantage. Driveways are usually cleared with an even number of passes (out and back) so wider than a little over half the cleared width works fine for me. I also use the FEL to haul firewood and am glad I don't have a wider machine to worry about near the woodpile.

 

[metalbender]

For info on a rotating drum, check out the Schulte blower site. Good info there. Large and pricy machines.

 

[MinnesotaMorg]

wider than a little over half the cleared width works fine

This is kind of what I figured. I think Ill take a closer look at the 72" and 84" blowers. I initially was attracted to the 90" erskine because of the cutting height. But maybe I can find slightly narrower ones with a similar height.

info on a rotating drum

I went and dug up the info. I think the visual is important for people not in the know. Basically the impeller fan housing has 3 ejection ports that you can select from. The two on the sides are simply direct access with no chute, and the 3rd in the middle is the chute for more controlled ejections. The advantage like leonz said is when you're dealing with extremely heavy snow there isn't any angles for snow to get caught in. Here is the info from their brochure:

"A hydraulically operated rotating fan housing on the RDX-117 allows snow to be ejected out the left or right side of the fan housing. Delivering snow directly out off the fan blades aids in moving heavy wet snow and is more efficient when using in open areas. The center chute can be used to cast snow directionally as needed in confined areas."

 

[MinnesotaMorg]

Lorenz and most others is the augers

I'm for sure going to look at this style as well. I think I know of one neighbor that has a blower, the dual auger sounds so appealing for the drifts.

 

[PILOON]

Inverted or pull blowers need to be mounted on heavy tractors since the wheels must always make contact with the road bed.

Too light and you'll be compacting snow and the ride will become very rough, especially with wet snow.

 

[leonz]

You should also look at the Pronovost TRC models with the rotating impeller drum option which are the P800TRC, P860TRC, P862TRC and the P860-92. All four model widths fit within your Massey Ferguson 4707 tractors PTO horsepower range.