friend just bought a garden tractor with snow blade attachment

   / friend just bought a garden tractor with snow blade attachment #1  

scaredychicken

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Joined
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Location
Salmon Arm BC, Canada
Tractor
John Deere 160 (1988), Arctic Cat 400 ATV (2006), Kubota BX23S (2018), Jacobsen Super Chief 1450 (1969), Cub Cadet RZT S50 zero turn mower (2012)
Craftsman 247.27047

friend's.jpg

I've suggested that he join the forum. Is there any specific info that would be helpful to him? Resides in Nova Scotia, Can.

he has a snowblade and chains to go with it
 
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   / friend just bought a garden tractor with snow blade attachment #2  
Re: friend just bought a garden tractor with snow blate attachment

Is he new to the area? Not to be negative, but doesn't NS get 4-6 feet of snow a year? A garden tractor with a snowblade is useful only if a) he keeps up with the snow as it falls and b) has a big place to push it off the drive. It won't do much to a heavy or frozen bank of snow.
 
   / friend just bought a garden tractor with snow blade attachment
  • Thread Starter
#3  
Re: friend just bought a garden tractor with snow blate attachment

I agree with you tomplum

He's brand new to the area in N.S. - moved from BC (where I knew him) in October. Takes possession of the property in about 10 days. He knows that there is a lot of snow. He bought a small acreage, ...
so this morning I suggested that he perhaps needed a tractor (new or used - he knows that I have my sights on a Kubota BX25D-1 or BX23S, I need those options), but he can get something more basic for his purposes).
Then he told me that he bought the unit above ... Yesterday. Ugh - Oh well, that will be good for lawn maintenance. He'll probably decide to buy a real tractor after he notices winter ( :) )

We get a fair amount of snow here also, for a few months, but I don't think he's ever had a tractor. New experience for him.

cheers
 
   / friend just bought a garden tractor with snow blade attachment #4  
He’s going to need weight to go along with his chains if he wants to push any weight.
 
   / friend just bought a garden tractor with snow blade attachment
  • Thread Starter
#5  
this is exactly why I told him about this forum - he can learn a LOT from others
 
   / friend just bought a garden tractor with snow blade attachment #6  
If, and that's a big IF, he can push the snow into a bank the first storm, where does he push the snow the 2nd storm?

IMHO, a snowblower is much more effective in this horsepower range.
 
   / friend just bought a garden tractor with snow blade attachment #7  
Is your friend sure that Sears Craftsman is a garden tractor ?
All I have ever seen at sears were lawn tractors, with very light tinny frames.
How long a laneway does your friend, that thinks this will work, have ?
Hopefully he got a lawnmover attachment with it, so it won,t be a total bad purchase, and will be able to at least use it in the summer.
 
   / friend just bought a garden tractor with snow blade attachment
  • Thread Starter
#8  
Is your friend sure that Sears Craftsman is a garden tractor ?
All I have ever seen at sears were lawn tractors, with very light tinny frames.

I probably mis-wrote ... I used garden tractor (probably from the description that he gave me) - I believe that he bought the mower unit as standard equipment and added the snowblade and chains as accessories.

They take possession of the property this coming weekend.

I think that my choice would have been different, maybe he was convinced by the Sears closing-out sale ??? I think that a cheap 4x4 pickup and a snow blade package would have been my initial choice, then save for a tractor. Hopefully he will join us on this forum.
 
   / friend just bought a garden tractor with snow blade attachment #9  
I like your choice better as well.
With his set-up, I can picture the driveway getting narrower each time he plows it.
 
   / friend just bought a garden tractor with snow blade attachment #10  
I used a Deere X500 with a plow for about 3 winters in Michigan. One of these winters was pretty brutal. Here are some of my thoughts (some are duplicates as above)

  • You WILL need the chains.
  • You WILL need weights. At least 200 pounds.
  • You can NOT plow sidewalks. The snow builds up too much with nowhere off the sides for it to go.
  • On your first plows, push the snow at least 10 feet past the edge of the driveway. You WILL need extra room for later snows, and the garden tractor will not push snow that has 'set'.
  • I hope you have a differential lock. I used mine extensively.
  • If your street plow comes, get out there and plow the snow off the edge of the drive as quick as you can. If it sets, it's harder to get off.
  • Have a good shovel. There will be some things you'll need to do by hand.
  • Have a way to pull the tractor out of the snow. They do get stuck.
  • A large snowblower is far better performance than a garden tractor in this price range.
  • Plan on plowing often. Don't let it get more than 4" deep or it will turn into a chore.
  • A plow you can change angle on from the seat will be your friend.
  • Make sure it's an actual snow blade with a squeegee on the bottom and not a steel blade.
  • It is a lot of fun and you will have a blast. =)
 
 
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