40 Acres, Steep!, 1 Mile Road; Need Advice

[jeff9366]

I hadn't thought of the FEL snow pusher. Would be an opportunity to save some $$$ over a hydraulic snowblower.
Should I be concerned about damaging the road?

Not with a purpose designed snow box. For clearing snow from a one mile road i recommend spending for the purpose designed attachment, a snow box. You will get out of the wet and cold sooner.
Watch the videos in Post #10.

In this well done video, snow box cleared same area in less than half time of standard bucket.
VIDEO: BUCKET VS SNOW PUSHER - YouTube



If you elect to use the standard bucket supplied with your FEL you will want to install SNOW EDGES or EDGE TAMERS to protect your road. Standard bucket OK for 200 yards. Less than optimum for 1,760 yards.

VIDEO: tractor bucket snow edge - YouTube

 

[newbury]

Have you thought of rear duallies with chains?
Also - invest in a good winch set up. Get a ballast box filled on the top with gravel so you've got something you can spread on ice for traction if you start slipping and sliding.

 

[BAP]

If you have a mile long road, you aren’t going to like a snow pusher or snow box. They carry the snow and the only way to get rid of it is to keep turning to the side and dumping it. That gets old fast going that far. A angle plow works way much better going distances.

 

[Pugemasta]

Measured the slope with the inclinometer of a brunton compass (geology compass) using the eye sight. Should be accurate within a few % or so. Steep enough to be a concern.

Will keep IND-10 tires in mind, like being lower for sure.

Oosik: so glad to have some local advice! Im about an hour out of colville, closer to chewella. Spent a few days on badger lake this past summer, beautiful area. Will consider your advice carefully. Rear blade sounds like a solid, economical option.

LouNY: was talking to a co-worker today and he had a similar opinion. Suggested crawler tractor, but im not really seeing them on the market. I consider myself mechanicaly inclined, but have no experience with these types of equipment. Not necessarily opposed to multiple pieces of equipment, but it would be tough to go over 40k or so and don't want to be spending all my time wrenching. Will do some research and see what's possible with my budget.

Did not come across rear pull snowblowers in my research. Those of you that use them, how have you liked them? Best of both worlds?

Thought grand l would be too much. Any benefits other than greater productivity and center PTO? More stable?

Another user has suggested an LS XR4155HC, looks like a solid choice. Can't seem to find that post though.

Looks like I need to start thinking bigger, or going with a small used fleet. Although many of you seem to think the 5220 is a good fit.

Thanks again for all the advice. A lot to consider, off to continue researching.

 

[newbury]

If you have a mile long road, you aren’t going to like a snow pusher or snow box. They carry the snow and the only way to get rid of it is to keep turning to the side and dumping it. That gets old fast going that far. A angle plow works way much better going distances.

But I bet they work well in Florida!

 

[oosik]

Pugemasta - I just have a sneaking feeling that up your way - you will be seeing a LOT more snow than I ever get down here. Remember - use the 'ol noggin - not brute force. Be careful - be safe.

Badger LK is about four miles SE of me here - as the crow flies.

 

[jeff9366]

Looks like I need to start thinking bigger, or going with a small used fleet. Although many of you seem to think the 5220 is a good fit.

Branson 5220H seems entirely adequate. Enough weight and power for your road work. Narrow enough to get into the forest.

The core respondents on this site are tractor fanatics, myself perhaps included. I clock 300 engine hours per year on my single tractor.

However, the average residential user clocks eighty (80) engine hours per year according to industry surveys.

You will exceed that by some measure, but multiple powered machines require a lot of maintenance to keep operable, which slays operating time.

Find the right tractor. Learn how to operate it proficiently. Learn how to service it. Implements will keep your wallet light.

A single new compact tractor, tractor only, no implements, will cost you $25.00 per engine hour to operate over the long term, using OEM filters and fluids and contributing your wrench time at "0" value.

Multiple implements charged against tractor operation increases cost.

Dealer service increases cost.
(My local Kubota dealer bills qualified Kubota mechanic time @ $75/hour. $75/hour is low relative to the west coast and northeast.)

I keep careful records. My tractor costs me $35.00 per engine hour to operate. I fuel and grease. Dealer performs all other maintenance. I have numerous implements. I am old. That is what works for me.

 

[jeff9366]

Pugemasta - I just have a sneaking feeling that up your way - you will be seeing a LOT more snow than I ever get down here.

Yeah. Tell us about your snow.

 

[rScotty]

A mile of driveway road at a steep grade..... wow...

I think you have an unrealistic idea of what a tractor in the size of a LS XR4155H or 5250 can reasonably do. Don't get me wrong, you'll want a good 40/50 hp 4wd tractor with a loader for all kinds of chores. When you are living rurally in those mountains that tractor will be the most useful tool on your place. It'll become a friend.

But it's a stretch to be building a long, steep mountain road with it. A pathway maybe...but it's the wrong tool for making a road.

I can help, because I've done it. I own a couple old mining claims in the mountains here and built a crude road to them, but there are a couple of things I don't understand yet. Need more info..

Mainly I guess I don't undersand what the roadway looks like now. Have you got some pictures?? What kind of shape is it in? What kind of dirt/rocks/trees do you have? And very important: What's the percentage clay in your soil?
I'm asking because if all is roughly in the right ballpark then the machines you are looking at could possibly maintain that much road with the right attachments - although they are a little small to do it in the winter
Even so, it would put a lot of work on those small machines. If it is a roadway rather than a walking/biking pathway then you are better off hiring a dozer to do the initial road building. It would be much faster and cheaper and better. A tractor would take a long, long time to build a mile of steep road through a mountain forest.

Budget: since you consider yourself mechanically inclined - and are looking at new rather than used machines - then I would guess that budget is not a big concern. But you may have already found that for the mechanically inclined, the larger sizes of used equipment - larger farm tractors or commercial (yellow paint) TLBs - right now represents a great big "sweet spot" dollar-wise on the market. You can buy good used machines for 25% of new. Contrast that with the price of a new loader tractor!

Are there any legal restrictions on building that much driveway road in Wash. state? Sort of the same as the first question, I know. Here in the Colorado there are restrictions on how steep and tight a long driveway or roadway can be. The reasons have to do with emergency and fire access and the effect of drainage on the land below - among other things... Usually the restrictions take the form of minimum radius for turns, width, and how many feet of road can exceed a 5 or 6 percent grade.
luck,
rScotty

 

[crazyal]

When I was first starting out I followed the "put in a crown" advise. Stupidest thing I did and it's long gone. I crown is great on flat land but with snow and a steep driveway, no thank you. What happens is you will get snow and try to drive up the road (unless you plan on walking up hill for a mile each time there's a few inches of snow). You will have to spins your tires and unless you can stay in the dead center of the crown you are going to be in the ditch. If you own a tractor you can easily repair the road as needed to deal with any damage from rain. Secondly as water sheds off a crown it takes your gravel with it... into the ditch. It's much easier to drag gravel back up the hill than try to recover it from a ditch on the side of a hill. Finally, potholes don't form on a hill.

Almost any tractor in the 30 to 50 hp range will work for you. If get lots of heavy deep snowfalls then more HP will speed things up. Otherwise weight isn't going to be a huge factor as a lighter tractor just means you might want to add more weight. So I would pinpoint exactly what you want to do and what you are willing to do with rental equipment vs owning it (seams like your close). Then I would identify what type of front mount snow blower you want. For example, do you want the blower to be the same brand as the tractor so you can roll it into the financed price? Or would an aftermarket version be acceptable. Do you want to get a PTO powered blower or possibly a hydraulically powered unit that could attach to your loader?