I wouldn't work on the gravel drive until after the frost is out and the high moisture in the gravel had a chance to drain away. Otherwise, I would expect something akin to mud.
Working the gravel before the bone-dry summer time is a good idea. I would do as the county tends to do with gravel shoulders, that is work it up after a good 1/2 inch or so rain. Then after working it up and spreading it evenly (mixing the fines in with the loose stones), tamping it down firmly before the surface dries out. Waiting too long to tamp it will just leave loose gravel on top, and they will skoot off to the side after a time with traffic. Tamping is done (by me) by driving the car back and forth until every bit of the drive is pressed down by the wheels. Any rain before tamping will wash off the fines and packing will not happen. Any appreciable drying (i.e. waiting to tamp until the following day or even later that same day) will cause drying and you will lose the benefit of the fines in packing the drive tight. Getting a good mix of fines and stones is not easy without the right equipment, and the best is a grader (better control of depth and better distribution of gravel mix without 'bumps' added. The worst piece (IMO) is a gravel rake. I don't know how a box blade will work but I would think not being able to angle it would mean a lot of uneven bumps across the drive. I would expect the box blade to be similar to using a bucket on the FEL. I like to back drag for final smoothing with my 7' snow plow blade.
