Antique Farmall Snow Blade Shoes/ Skids

[flgudmusic]

Hi folks,
I'm posting here a'cuz this IS a snow removal forum, but I'm asking about really old plow parts.
I've acquired a Farmall 200 (1955) as my very first tractor and am now on a mission to use it in the great white north, aka 'lake effect' area along the shore of Lake Ontario.
I've pushed, plowed, lifted, piled, sno-blown, tunneled through, melted, kicked, cursed, actually been stuck in while walking, shoveled from roofs(as well as buried in, falling from said roofs), AND ahem.... 'wrote my name in', 'marking my territory' in mega snows for my entire life and now am gonna add an antique farm tractor w/ a 6' front mount blade to my arsenal of snow battling shtuff to clean my driveway etc.
I'm kinda hoping someone here has seen this type of basic plow shoe/ skid from way back in the day. I've 1 broken piece and 1 bent out of shape shoe/ skid that I need to replace. Hopefully some old time hardware store or tractor shop may have some OEM's or someone will recognize it & be able to explain the shape I need, in order to maybe have a local fab shop make me some. I'm including a pic.
Thanx for any help anyone can share. Pat aka flgudmusic

 

[Fallon]

1 question... are you worried about doing a perfect restoration or just making the thing work? Not sure who can help with the first part, but most of us could provide help on the 2nd.

All a skid shoe does is hits the ground & keeps the blade from hitting the ground. It's a large surface, generally with some rounded edges (think ski tips or an upside down mushroom). Generally you want to be able to adjust the shoes so they keep the blade off the ground at various heights, depending on how soft the ground is & how deep the shoes sink (or to remove them or put them all the way up so the blade scrapes the ground).

Random google search for plow shoes that looks appropriate


Random result from the same google image search that isn't as relevant


Those photos look vaguely like the ski variety as opposed to the mushroom variety photographed above. Really there shouldn't be much functional difference, mushrooms deal with the blade being angled a bit better than fixed skis. I assume you just put a bolt or 2 through the holes into the plow so the feet hang below the plow. Those may or may not be mangled, that might be the way they are designed. If they are bent a sledge hammer (preferably with some heat) can probably bend them back enough to mount up. Skid shoes get beat up, their job in life is to grind on what is basically really large grit sand paper & unsurprisingly, they wear out or get mangled.

Skid shoes aren't precision devices at all & will usually work fine slightly mangled or re-engineered with get 'r done hillbilly engineering.
Can you post photos of the blade & how the shoes might mount?

 

[farmeratheart]

Hi Flgudmusic,

I'm doing this from memory ... My Dad plowed snow with a Farmall 200 in the 60's,70's, and 80's. We lived in Guilderland, NY so did not get the relentless snow of you all in the snowbelt. The shoe that you have pictured in your post appears to be the correct shape. I know that Dad used to break a shoe occassionally because they would wear so thin in that sharp V bend. He used to plow quite a few paved driveways for the neighbors. He had a friend with a welder piece them back together and add more weld from a harder rod to essentially make the shoe thicker around the point of the V. I always remember the problem with this plow being that you couldn't raise it very high off the ground- maybe 10 inches. The banks can easily get out control ...

Good Luck.

Frank

 

[DaveOmak]

I added some home made shoes to my back blade... Had them bent at the local machine shop.. Welded up supports and mounted to the bolts that hold the wear plate... the blade height is adjustable by turning the top link.. It's a minor adjustment but allows to tweak the cutting depth...