Box Scraper Box blade, with hinged back....why?

agford4x4 · Mar 10, 2008

What is the point of the box blades with the hinged backs? How do they work thats different than a regular old box blade?

RobJ · Mar 10, 2008

So the single blade can go deeper, the hinged will float since it's really only there for pushing dirt in reverse.

Tig · Mar 10, 2008

A regular BB will trap dirt between the blades which reduces the bite as Rob described.

dirt ditch · Mar 10, 2008

Is the advantage of a deeper cut by a hinged back box blade worth the extra money? Would it take 2 passes with a fixed bb for 1 pass with a hinged back bb?

orezok · Mar 10, 2008

Is a deeper cut really an advantage? I find myself flattening out the box to make a thin cut or you just end up with a whole bunch of hummocks.

I also find that for finishing I angle the box to its maximum angle (no bite by the front blade) and it gives a smooth finish just like back blading with the loader..

RobJ · Mar 11, 2008

orezok said:
Is a deeper cut really an advantage? I find myself flattening out the box to make a thin cut or you just end up with a whole bunch of hummocks.

I also find that for finishing I angle the box to its maximum angle (no bite by the front blade) and it gives a smooth finish just like back blading with the loader..

It depends on how you are going to use it. While folks here like me mainly used it to smooth things out a little bit, move a little dirt from here to there, a BB might have been born around construction and home building sites. I probably saw my first one as a kid pushing fill dirt in a foundation of a home. Then while pulling it to cut out the soil for a driveway or sidewalk. Here you want it to cut down 6-8 inches or more to grade for the concrete. Then with that work done to drag and level out the yard.

Rob

john_bud · Mar 11, 2008

orezok said:
Is a deeper cut really an advantage? I find myself flattening out the box to make a thin cut or you just end up with a whole bunch of hummocks.

I also find that for finishing I angle the box to its maximum angle (no bite by the front blade) and it gives a smooth finish just like back blading with the loader..

The "best" boxes have rear blades that are either free swinging, or can be bolted down.

Also the deeper cut isn't the real advantage. It is a "better" cut as there is more of the box weight on the blade doing the cutting. So, it cuts better - especially in harder soils. If the rear blade were fixed, it would have some of the box weight on it - robbing that weight from the blade that is doing work.

Does that make sense? Another way to look at it is if you have 2 identical boxes with rear blades that can be fixed or free and one is fixed and one is free -- the free one will act like a much heavier box. Less skidding across the surface and more work done per pass. In some cases, the fixed blade box may do near zero work on hard soils like dry clay or compacted dirt.

It's sort of like a razer sharp chisel vs a merely so-so sharp chisel. They both do the job , only one does it better, easier and with much less effort. It's the difference between a professional carpenter and a hack like me!

jb

agford4x4 · Mar 11, 2008

I see.

Thanks for the replies. It sounds like for everyday use, a regular old box blade would do the trick. Well, for the amount im going to use it.

RobJ · Mar 11, 2008

agford4x4 said:
I see.

Thanks for the replies. It sounds like for everyday use, a regular old box blade would do the trick. Well, for the amount im going to use it.

I agree, I got this one for $350 out the door at the local COOP. 5' and works fine for me.

agford4x4 · Mar 12, 2008

Can someone tell me why i would want a box blade over a regular blade??

jake98 · Mar 12, 2008

I'm considering a box blade too. The scarifiers would have to be an advantage, as well as the side panels, over a regular back blade. I'm wondering if the side panels lessen the need for gauge wheels and sort of limit the dig in factor.
Jake

jake98 · Mar 13, 2008

agford, i don't know how to work the quote thing, nor do i want to, but i'm asking the same question, since we didn't get an answer.. why would you get a box? just so you don't have to get off and spin the blade around? i'm as fat and lazy as the best, but i dunno... jake

MtnViewRanch · Mar 13, 2008

agford4x4 said:
Can someone tell me why i would want a box blade over a regular blade??

If you are going to move dirt and control it. A box blade has what is called a controlled load. You scrape the dirt and and the sides allow you to take it some distance and disperse it. A rear blade uses a live load, always scraping new dirt as the dirt is always flowing off of one or both sides. Usually one side because normally you would have the blade angled so that the dirt can be controlled better.

So, because I don't know the specifics of your intended use, I can't tell you why you would want a box blade or a rear angle blade. My guess would be that for most general grading, most people use a box blade. Box blade is easier to get used to handling also.

That is the best explanation that I can come up with at this time. Maybe somebody else has a better one.

jk96 · Mar 13, 2008

i'm asking the same question, since we didn't get an answer.. why would you get a box? just so you don't have to get off and spin the blade around? i'm as fat and lazy as the best, but i dunno... jake

I wondered the same thing until I bought mine, now about the only thing I use my regular blade is for snow removal. If you are smoothing out dirt, the rippers will break up the dirt while the back blade catches it and smooths it. Also, if filling in ruts and holes in a drive for instance, the box traps extra dirt since its not lost to the sides like a regular blade and helps fill them. One other thing is that since most 3 pt tractors like mine have a floating 3 pt with no down pressure, a regular blade will often lift over humps and uneven ground where the rippers from a box blade break it up and the back blade smooths it. One pass over uneven ground with a box blade equals about 4-5 passes with my regular blade.

I was amazed when I first started using mine. I filled in ruts and leveled a 200' dirt road in 1/10 the time it would have taken with a regular blade and with a much better finish.

john_bud · Mar 14, 2008

In hard, dry or compacted soils the box blade usually does better. Couple of factors. HD box blades are heavier than equal width back blades. Also, you can lower the scarifiers and rip it up.

For moving gravel and other light duty uses the $400 box blade is ok. There seems to be a few people that have progressed from light duty stuff to more digging / ripping and the light boxes tend to bend up pretty bad.

You get what you pay for - but if you don't NEED it the el cheapo delux may do you just fine for a long time.

jb

agford4x4 · Mar 14, 2008

thanks guys! Thats exactly what i needed to know.

jake98 · Mar 15, 2008

They convinced me too.

john_bud · Mar 16, 2008

Spending YOUR money makes US happy!
jb

agford4x4 · Mar 17, 2008

I just picked up a used Woods HB72 from a guy in town.

95% of the paint is still on it, the blades are sharp, and it looks like it may have been used once. The tines are turned upside down and have never seen dirt.

This ought to do the trick.

troe · Mar 18, 2008

i have had my best luck with a rear blade that bolts solid, i tilt the box back on the rear blade and it picks up the inside blade so i can level out dirt, rock, and flatten everything out, if i want to cut a high spot down then i shorten my cylinder on the fly and it lowers the inside cutting edge and cuts into the rock or dirt and grades out the material. i can have a whole box of rock or dirt and tilt the box back, without raising the 3pt., and grade out all in the box. i have a 7.5 gannon high back box, it is very heavy and does a good job. just thought i would throw my 2 cent in.
have a great day
tom r