Driveway grader

[coachgrd]

I just purchased one of these driveway graders from Home Depot:

Handozer 42 in. Dirt and Gravel Drag for Lawn Mower-D3.5-MG - The Home Depot


I have a 180' driveway that requires pothole filling 2-3x a year. This implement had a 4.6 rating out of 5 in 50-some reviews. Looks like it may not be as good as the DR power grader, but the reviewers speak well of it as a good alternative to the more expensive DR.

Any of you have experience with one or one similar? Going to be pulling with my Kubota 1870.

 

[airbiscuit]

I would consider a landscape rake. (Even better if it has gauge wheels)

 

[Ford850]

I haven't seen them before, but that looks like it would work on my gravel drive as long as it wasn't too dry. It looks like a pretty good fit for the BX1870.

 

[BrokeFarmerJohn]

If this little drag works, can't beat the price, those spikes don't look like they will last long.

 

[boggen]

having the gauge wheels to lift it up and down. *thumbs up* to feather out the gravel BUT
TractorData.com Kubota BX187 tractor information
you have a cat 1 3pt hitch. a box blade, rear blade, land plan/grader scraper. 3pt hitch versions might be less hassle and easier on your muscles and less hassle backing up and turning around.

the scraficers / teeth up front. not so sure about. you may have issues getting them to dig in. more so it looks like unit is not that heavy. so more issues getting them to sink in. the angle of the teeth. i question some as well. with drag harrow i have, i can adjust the teeth angle. to help dig in or not dig in. and looks like even more issues of the teeth digging in. even with a box blade, the scraficers tend to have a ripper point that adjusts better so they can dig in better. but the spikes on this unit. *shrugs*

the tooth blade on rear. seems more of lack of weight of unit. and trying to to get the blade to dig in some.

 

[coachgrd]

having the gauge wheels to lift it up and down. *thumbs up* to feather out the gravel BUT
TractorData.com Kubota BX187 tractor information
you have a cat 1 3pt hitch. a box blade, rear blade, land plan/grader scraper. 3pt hitch versions might be less hassle and easier on your muscles and less hassle backing up and turning around.

the scraficers / teeth up front. not so sure about. you may have issues getting them to dig in. more so it looks like unit is not that heavy. so more issues getting them to sink in. the angle of the teeth. i question some as well. with drag harrow i have, i can adjust the teeth angle. to help dig in or not dig in. and looks like even more issues of the teeth digging in. even with a box blade, the scraficers tend to have a ripper point that adjusts better so they can dig in better. but the spikes on this unit. *shrugs*

the tooth blade on rear. seems more of lack of weight of unit. and trying to to get the blade to dig in some.

They do recommend using a brick utop the unit, preferably one where the cavities are filled with concrete, so I'll be doing it. That being said, if it doesn't do the job, I'll be taking it back to HD. I'll report my findings!

 

[phiferpharm]

I have the DR Power Grader and am putting it up for sale as soon as I figure out how to use letgo. I tried it for a dirt driveway and it was useless.

 

[airbiscuit]

I have the DR Power Grader and am putting it up for sale as soon as I figure out how to use letgo. I tried it for a dirt driveway and it was useless.

Make one of these ...

 

[Uncle Lar]

I've got an 80 yd driveway that hadn't seen new gravel for years before i bought the place, had potholes and high center. Bought the handozer, added 2 concrete blocks. pull with old riding mower without the deck with tire chains. works fine, does take a LOT of laps. And keep the grass poisoned. Works best after a rain. The neighbor thought I'd put down new gravel.

 

[coachgrd]

I've got an 80 yd driveway that hadn't seen new gravel for years before i bought the place, had potholes and high center. Bought the handozer, added 2 concrete blocks. pull with old riding mower without the deck with tire chains. works fine, does take a LOT of laps. And keep the grass poisoned. Works best after a rain. The neighbor thought I'd put down new gravel.

Thanks Uncle Lar, good to know. Curious though, what do you mean "keep the grass poisoned"?

 

[PILOON]

Many moons ago we made a drag similar to what Airbiscuit demonstrates in his video.
Ours had 3 'blades' with the angles designed to counteract side motion. (like 2 at 20 deg and the opposite 40 deg).
Worked like a charm and we dragged with an old Willis jeep maintaining 3 miles of gravel/dirt road for 10 years.
The results were as good as what our city now achieves with a $200,000 grader!

Not wanting to pull the bumper off of our Jeep we tied the 2 pull chains thru 13" old tires that acted like shock absorbers.
That road served 50 cottage owners and suppliers so fairly well traveled but we would only need 3 maintenance runs a season.
Hills were our main problem as that would get corrugated fairly easily but now today re cycled asphalt solves the problem as it tends to glue itself back under hot sunlight (now city's problem).

Have to add with steel being only $$ outlay the "drag" cost peanuts compared to any purchased equipment and IMHO dis perhaps even a better job than much pricier rigs.
Pulling at slow speed moved heaps of material and for a finished look we'd simply drive faster as that scattered all the loose material to a fine finish

 

[Thomas]

Also would lean more toward land rake but w/fold down grader blade.

 

[Uncle Lar]

Thanks Uncle Lar, good to know. Curious though, what do you mean "keep the grass poisoned"?

I meant keep the grass and weeds from growing up thru the gravel. It always comes back, keep it down.

 

[coachgrd]

I meant keep the grass and weeds from growing up thru the gravel. It always comes back, keep it down.

I see. Thanks for the clarification.
Gary

 

[coachgrd]

Ok, so I had a chance to use the Handozer and I came away pretty impressed. It's not the most complicated implement, but I found a slight learning curve does come wth it.

I've actually used it twice and after the first time, I was a little disappointed. I did not realize though, as I was putting it away, that I had not tightend down the spikes very well, as they were no longer at a uniform depth. This would explain the uneven look after my first attempt. On trial #2, I made sure to tighten the spikes as tight as I could get them and they held well for second go round. I then adjusted the back rake to it's lowest setting.

The results for round 2 were much, much better and it truly does look like I brought in several loads of 2B gravel. This thing dug in and ripped up gravel I laid down 10 years ago and have not seen for years. The back rake smoothly spread it out, evenly distrbuting it over the driveway. My driveway was hard as concrete in places and the Handozer ripped up up like a warm knife thru butter. It also eliminated a center hump that had built up.

My only complaint would be that I had get off the tractor and put it in to the transport setting (spikes/rake off the ground) when I reached my concrete pad. You're supposed to be able to just pull the cord and lift the spikes off the ground temporarily then drop them again by releasing the cord. Doing this did not raise them high enough and I did scrap the concrete a couple times until I just begain dismounting and putting it into transport setting. This slowed the process down getting off and on the tractor.

All in all, it does a very impressive job. I would make sure to tighten everything down very tight, as the grading process is pretty violent and anything not secured will certainly come loose. I also added weight, as suggested in the manual, in the form of a concrete block with the cavities filled with cement.