Do you actually plow snow with your UTV? for multiple seasons?

[milkman636]

dont know average.....but here are some pics View attachment 668881 View attachment 668882 View attachment 668883 View attachment 668884

That definitely qualifies as heavy snowfall. My biggest snow event of a winter will typically be 15"-18". snows of 8" to 12" are more common. I only remember a couple that have broke 20". Some years are milder, but in the last decade we've had two winters where we didn't see grass from December til April, and I've had 8' high piles in my snow dumps and 6 footers at the end of my driveways. But it doesn't come all at once, and it rarely gets over knee deep in the yard here. Do those big snows stick around for several weeks where you're at? or do you typically get melt between snows?

 

[PILOON]

Think physics.
To push a load the pusher needs 2 things.
Weight and traction.
You need the pusher to be heavier that the pushed load plus you need traction.
OK, add weights and chains on all 4 wheels and U can push a fair bit but then will the drive linkage be up to it?

I see UTV's handling minor snow events, like a few inches*-- but not major events**.

* those U can usually drive thru
**those you can't other than with 4WD (maybe).

I'm in snow country!
I've seen a few contractors try UTV's for light fast service but all changed their minds and soon returned to plow trucks or big tractors with highway gearing and blowers.

 

[milkman636]

HST transmission's are not the "cure-all" for UTV's and I personally wouldn't buy one.

HSTs are most efficient at low flow conditions. They are a trade off. The RTV has two things going for it for plowing snow: weight and the HST. My personal experience is that both are helpful in low speed snow plowing. The trade-off would be a huge drop off in HST performance at top speed, and the higher maintenance cost for filters and fluids.

Right now, the newest thing with wheels and an engine I have is 8 years old. So I've been trying to look at owners manuals for different equipment I'm considering to get a feel for maintenance. Frankly, I'm surprised at the amount of maintenance items listed on the RTVs. Its more than I expected.

 

[grsthegreat]

That definitely qualifies as heavy snowfall. My biggest snow event of a winter will typically be 15"-18". snows of 8" to 12" are more common. I only remember a couple that have broke 20". Some years are milder, but in the last decade we've had two winters where we didn't see grass from December til April, and I've had 8' high piles in my snow dumps and 6 footers at the end of my driveways. But it doesn't come all at once, and it rarely gets over knee deep in the yard here. Do those big snows stick around for several weeks where you're at? or do you typically get melt between snows?

Our biggest overnight snow event since i have been here was 48? Our snows generally stay throughout season, but not always. Last season it kept melting between snows, but didnt fully melt off till nearly april. Very long , but not an overly cold winter. During actual snow season, on average, we can get 4-6 a night so pretty easy to keep up with. I have quite a few neighbors that use atv plows and as long as they catch snowfall early, they do ok. But on large dumps, they really struggle. Seems like they never catch up. No one here has tracks on them.
In the past i have had to go clear their driveways with blower or plow. Especially when their driveways have narrowed down to width of atv.

 

[milkman636]

Think physics.
To push a load the pusher needs 2 things.
Weight and traction.
You need the pusher to be heavier that the pushed load plus you need traction.
OK, add weights and chains on all 4 wheels and U can push a fair bit but then will the drive linkage be up to it?

I see UTV's handling minor snow events, like a few inches*-- but not major events**.

* those U can usually drive thru
**those you can't other than with 4WD (maybe).

I'm in snow country!
I've seen a few contractors try UTV's for light fast service but all changed their minds and soon returned to plow trucks or big tractors with highway gearing and blowers.

My plan is to keep my current tractor setup and add the UTV/ATV capability for light and moderate snows, along with doing with the 300' of sidewalk duties I'll be picking up next winter. I also have kids that like to ride bikes and quads, and I have fun tailing along behind them. There's no one perfect product, I'm just hoping to find the one with the best chance of serving both functions and providing me the ability to carry a passenger or some other stuff too. Plow trucks and tractors aren't gonna do well on some of the places I plan to go with the UTV.

But then again, the whole point of this thread is to see if my expectations of being able to remove snow regularly on a UTV that can go 40 mph are realistic. So far it seems like we have several members doing it and I haven't had a horror story yet. So who's got one to share?

 

[milkman636]

We are quite happy with the Boss 6x6 and since its a working machine, has something the in box nearly all of the time. It also pushes snow quite well. Let us know what you end up with. :thumbsup:

Probably the next quote I'll get will be on one of these: Specs: PRO XD 2G AWD - Avalanche Gray | Polaris Commercial

It's like the ranger with a 4" longer wheel base and 7" longer bed, and 250 lbs. more payload capacity.

 

[Industrial Toys]

Moving any kind of real snow with a UTV is (in my mind) like having to eat Thanksgiving Dinner with one of those Plastic Take Out Food Sporks! First, you can "Probably" do it, until it breaks.

 

[ArlyA]

Moving any kind of real snow with a UTV is (in my mind) like having to eat Thanksgiving Dinner with one of those Plastic Take Out Food Sporks! First, you can "Probably" do it, until it breaks.

Can you tell us about your atv or utv snow pushing experience?? I've done both, and used our 6x6 to clear our yard and drive with. You couldn't pull that machine from my cold, stiff fingers. Will this machine work for the OP??? No idea!

 

[Industrial Toys]

I have friends that have destroyed their UTVs plowing snow. I have a friend who works in a shop where landscapers, apartment complexes, government take their wrecked stuff to get repaired. Believe me, I have heard the stories.

As for my Diesel Mule with the lift kit and larger tires. 4wd, lockding dif. Thing is about the most useless vehicle on the planet when the snow is beyond six inches or so. I require a vehicle that can (generally speaking) drive in any amount of uncleared snow. NOT have to make a cleared place first.

I also had a DIESEL 8wd, ARGO (factory prototype) with tracks. Also, snowmobile transmission. Again, such a recreational based machine just can't compete with heavier equipment.

 

[DIXIEDOG]

HST transmission's are not the "cure-all" for UTV's and I personally wouldn't buy one.

Same here except I'd have to say "I personally wouldn't buy one"... again. CVTs work very well I pulled my clutch apart on my 12' 825i to clean it up....all those years of plowing and the belt still looks great.

HSTs work well on tractors but for a side by side I'd rather have more immediate power response, in my opinion a properly tuned CVT gives better power delivery