Grader blade or rake

[Dcf1999]

Skid steer

well that makes sense now lol

 

[Fallon]

Skid Steere Quick Attach. It's the standard attachment option on almost all skid steeres. It's standard on most premium tractors. Economy tractors often have pin on buckets that take a lot of time & swearing to swap. SSQA takes 60-120 seconds to swap from 1 impliment to another. JD & a few others have quick attach standards that are different from SSQA (but also offer SSQA options).

I welded a 3pt quick hitch to a SSQA plate. The lower hooks on the 3pt QH are the mount point for the crossbar on a truck plow.

 

[paulfun9]

Unless you compacted that trench in 4" lifts, it will be settling for a year or 2 as others have said. Running over it with a wheel helps, but not nearly enough.

Personally i sold my back blade. I built a SSQA snow plow & got a box blade. Those do more than the back blade ever did. I could see a place for a rake in my lineup though.

Funny but for me its the opposite. My box blade has sat idle for years but the use of a good heavy rear blade with gauge wheels has been a constant for everything but driveway maint. For the driveway maint I use a grading scrapper.
I think one of the biggest problems people have with rear blades is they are unwilling to pay the price for one with any weight to it or options. Having once had a lightweight rear blade like most I see being tossed in favor of the box blade I can understand why so many don't fully understand the benefits of a rear blade.

 

[Dcf1999]

Lol it seems like everyone is partial to either a box blade or rear blade. They love one and dislike the other. I have a gravel driveway in northern WI that needs to be redone every year or two after plowing season. I'll probably try to learn (and become proficient) with a rear blade and rake for the driveway.

I know a lot of people will say that the box blade works great for that (and I'm sure it does) but it's a lot of money to be used every other year to clean up the driveway. Plus it's not that long of a driveway. I can see me using the rear blade more than a box blade for things around house (I.e. I need to pitch the ground away from the house better than it currently is). I know someone with a box blade that I may borrow just to try out, if I like it, I may wind up with one...

 

[jeff9366]

I think one problem people have with rear blades is they are unwilling to pay the price for one with any weight to it or options. Having once had a lightweight rear blade like most I see being tossed in favor of the box blade I can understand why so many don't fully understand the benefits of a rear blade.

Certainly true but I will expand on your statement: Three Point Hitch mounted ground contact implements rely on WEIGHT for effectiveness. Specifically, WEIGHT PER UNIT OF WIDTH. Effective ground contact implements take 85% to 90% of tractor's power and traction to pull, loaded.

Explaining this to tractor neophytes so they 'get it' is difficult. And, certainly, heavy costs more than light.

 

[Dcf1999]

Certainly true but I will expand on your statement: Three Point Hitch mounted ground contact implements rely on WEIGHT for effectiveness. Specifically, WEIGHT PER UNIT OF WIDTH. Effective ground contact implements take 85% to 90% of tractor's power and traction to pull, loaded.

Explaining this to tractor neophytes so they 'get it' is difficult. And, certainly, heavy costs more than light.

It makes total sense about weight. Just for curiousness ... How much should a 6' rear blade weigh then?

The other question is, would my machine (JD 2305) be able to handle a blade of proper weight or would it not have enough power to fully use it (heave blade fully loaded)?

This is all very good learning...

 

[bcp]

...would it not have enough power to fully use it (heave blade fully loaded)?

This is all very good learning...

Remember that it doesn't have to lift all the dirt in front of the blade when you lift the "fully loaded" blade, just a tiny bit of the total it is moving.

Bruce

 

[tman1020]

I have a rear blade a rake and a box blade. They are all useful and each has its own benefits I have used all of them on multiple tractors. From what you have stated I do not think the rake is the tool to use for the job and I have never used gauge wheels on a rake. Most rakes I have seen are Springtooth design which means when they hit something hard or large they spring over and are best for light debris and very loose soil. When I have a grading job to do I am either going to use the straight blade or the box blade or move up to a finisher but that's a whole other story.

If you're only going to buy one attachment for now I would make it a straight blade. And get one that can be turned completely around so you can drag it backwards to finish off things. The only time I use my rake is if I'm cleaning up a bunch of sticks and twigs removing small rocks from a finished grading job or just touching up a driveway.

 

[paulfun9]

It makes total sense about weight. Just for curiousness ... How much should a 6' rear blade weigh then?

The other question is, would my machine (JD 2305) be able to handle a blade of proper weight or would it not have enough power to fully use it (heave blade fully loaded)?

This is all very good learning...

Some years back before I got the grading scraper, my neighbor asked me why it seemed I could fix my driveway (about the same size as his) with so much ease and so much quicker? My answer was very to the point! "Your box blade and rear blade added together don't match the weight of my rear blade alone" This finally struck a bell deep inside him and the next year come spring time he had a nice new at least Medium duty blade from Landpride.

My rear blade weighs in over 1000LBS his medium duty blade is probably closer to 700LBS and he seems to be much more pleased with the results of almost doubling his weight compared to his old blade. I wish there was a simple answer to how much it should weigh but in all honesty it depends on the intended use and the type of dirt your working with.

 

[jeff9366]

It makes total sense about weight. Just for curiousness ... How much should a 6' rear blade weigh then?

I cannot speak to angle blades.

But Box Blades are not effective in my Florida sandy-loam until they are 100 pounds per foot of width. The Box Blade I use now, a Bush Hog (brand) Rollover Box Blade is 125 pounds per foot of width. If you have clay/gravel or other tough soil you would likely want 150 pounds per foot of width.