Snowblower Front or Rear mounted snowblower?

TurboSonic · Apr 25, 2003

Hello all!

I would like to get some comments on front and rear mounted snowblowers. One dealer is suggesting I get a front mounted unit so that I don't have to always look behind and the other dealer tells me that the rear snowblower is the way to go cause it's cheaper...
I'd like to have more info from the experts!

Thanks,
Sylvain

beenthere · Apr 25, 2003

They are both right. Now, you decide if you can afford the front blower for more convenience, or not.

I have a distant neighbor who switched from the rear to the front because he didn't like having to steer going backwards. He had to turn the front wheels into the deep snow to keep the rear blower going in the right direction. Didn't have that problem when he put the blower on the front. The steering wheels were right behind the blower.

John_Mc · Apr 25, 2003

I can think of two reasons to go with a rear snowblower:
1) price
2) you can keep your FEL on in case you need it to push back banks or break up chunks of ice/hard snow

The biggest reason for a front mount is that you can face forward while operating. How big a difference this makes to you depends on how long your driveway is. A couple hundred feet is no big deal (IMO) to do with a rear blower. A couple thousand is a royal PITA.

John Mc

frank_f15 · Apr 26, 2003

so many things determine which is best for each person. rear blower is less expensive, u can leave your fel on . front blower is easier to use. now for the determining factors
1) how much snow do u get? 2) how long is your drive? 3) how old are u? much easier to drive and look back when u are younger than when u are older.at least for me it is. /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif

TurboSonic · Apr 26, 2003

Hello,

Thanks for the info guys. My driveway is not that long, just around 150' so I guess I will get a rear snowblower and put the money saved on something else!

Sylvain

hayden · Apr 26, 2003

Sounds like the right decision.

I've got a long road (3000') and still use a rear snow blower, mostly because I NEED the loader to shove piles of snow around. For me, I had to have both on at the same time, so there was no choice.

Looking backwards is a pain, but after a while you'll get the hang of riding side saddle. The lower cost (probably half) is a nice benefit too.

rbargeron · Apr 27, 2003

Figured I'd throw this in to gum up the conversation. It is a rear-mount, pull-forward.

It works great - it's plow edges lift the snow even though the tractor has just driven over it.

This one was made by Snow Machines - others of similar design have been made by Erskine. Pronovost also makes a rear-mount pull forward model.

My neighbor has a 2500' driveway - his banks got too big to push back with his snowplow. With this rig I drove along with the FEL about 1' off the ground but sticking into the snowbank - the snow spreads down under the tractor and the blower comes along and launches it into the woods. Very effective.