Land Pride grading scraper

rpraymond · May 26, 2009

This was just a quick trial yesterday. Added some new stone & leveled it all out. The scraper certainly made it quick and easy. I'll be experimenting more in the coming weeks. I was too excited to shoot a before pic!

Charlesaf3 · May 27, 2009

Willl said:
I might be out of the norm, but I'd rather have the 'before' driveway.

I like the look of the "before" driveway better too, but have found the "after" driveway is a lot easier to maintain with the tractor, whether it be snow, regrading, etc... so after it is.

I still don't have a grader as I can't quite justify it. I've found a york rake works surprisingly well though.

Charlesaf3 · May 27, 2009

Willl said:
I might be out of the norm, but I'd rather have the 'before' driveway.

I like the look of the "before" driveway better too, but have found the "after" driveway is a lot easier to maintain with the tractor, whether it be snow, regrading, etc... so after it is.

I still don't have a grader as I can't quite justify it. I've found a york rake works surprisingly well though.

mlevendo · May 27, 2009

rpraymond: Nice picture. The driveway looks great. I like the house and the big red barn. Nice looking farm.

rpraymond · May 27, 2009

mlevendo Thanks. The house was built around 1825 or 27 and I've only been in it for 25 years but believe me it didn't look like it does now when I bought it! Money pit for sure but we love it here.

Tom_H · May 28, 2009

mlevendo said:
I like the house and the big red barn. Nice looking farm.

Ditto!

rpraymond said:
The house was built around 1825 or 27 and I've only been in it for 25 years but believe me it didn't look like it does now when I bought it! Money pit for sure...

I have a real appreciation for people like you who invest in preserving American history, well done!

mlevendo · May 30, 2009

No buildings were on the 135 acres my wife and I bought but now we are finishing up our new house on the property. We had a pond dug in an area that was drained off by a drainage ditch that was put in by the local farmers many many years ago. Our future goal is to work with the DNR and Fish and Wildlife to do some native plants/grasses restoration of the land and then get it locked into a land trust as a native preserve. It's going to take a long time to do the restoration but it will be worth it in the long run.

Tom_H · May 30, 2009

mlevendo said:
Our future goal is to work with the DNR and Fish and Wildlife to do some native plants/grasses restoration of the land and then get it locked into a land trust as a native preserve.

BRAVO!!!

Tom_H · Jun 1, 2009

Well, I ordered a GS1548 today. The local Kubota dealer is one of the few who doesn't handle LP. Closest dealer to me was JD, who wanted $1165. Best quote was a Kubota dealer down in the delta about 40 mi. away at $1100. JD guy wouldn't budge when told of the lowest price, so I took the lower price. It should arrive in a week, but we'll be in Oregon relaxing and also looking for a possible retirement locations, though that is a good decade away.

mlevendo · Jun 1, 2009

I think I bought my GS-1548 for about $950 just over a year ago from a JD dealer. I have been more than happy with mine. My early 70s MF 180 diesel is a bit over the power specs but I plan on buying a CUT with Hydro in the future so I can send my wife out to snow blow the driveway on those below zero mornings.

Post some before and after pictures of your driveway. Don't let your wife know your having fun... just show her the incredible results.

rpraymond · Jun 6, 2009

Today I brought the B2320 w/grading scraper to my father's small car lot to level the potholes & redistribute the stone. It hadn't been done in awhile and has become a very hard surface. I dropped the scarifier shanks to the second lowest level and the cutting blades all the way down and went at it. I was very impressed with the results. After making three passes the surface was smooth and uniform. Next week he'll get a load of fresh stone and I can put a layer on top. The only problem is that I left my tractor there for the weekend!

My garage looks empty.

newtattoobob · Jun 9, 2009

After reading this thread I decided I could really use one of these grading scrapers. So yesterday I went to my Kubota dealer and we worked out a deal to order the 48 inch model. This morning the salesman called me and informed me that after talking with his boss they think that my BX1850 will not handle it. Now they are trying to talk me into the 60 inch model that I could put behind my L3400. I really would like to put the smaller one on my BX because the L3400 has a backhoe on it. What do you guys think? Thanks Bob

rpraymond · Jun 9, 2009

Bob, after using mine a few times I would say that I think the 48" might be too much for your Bx1850 in many situations. For smoothing stone on a fairly smooth driveway you might be OK but if you had to move a lot of material, especilly if you use the scarifiers, you may not have enough weight and/or power. But let someone with more BX experience give you their opinion. Hope this helps.

Tom_H · Jun 10, 2009

Bob,

I am on a vacation. My 48" should be sitting at the dealer, waiting for me to pick it up after I get back home on the 19th. I will give a report here as soon as I pick it up and use it with my BX2200. I imagine I am going to need ballast so there is more weight above the rear tires than there is combined weight of the scraper and pounds of resistance against it. Ag tires are going to be a big benefit. If there is too much resistance, scraping after a rain might be a solution.

If you don't or can't wait for my report, you could try the 48" on the BX, and if that doesn't work, put the 48" on the L3400. The problem with that is all the adjustments from the tractor being wider than the implement, needing to put wheels on one side off the gravel, having that side lower, etc. Too bad there isn't a way to offset the unit to one side the way some tillers and flails are done. Anyone know of a kit or adapter to offset a 3ph implement that is typically centered?

ChuckinNH · Jun 10, 2009

Are you, or your dealer sure that the 60" will cover the tracks of your L3400?

mlevendo · Jun 10, 2009

The 48" LP I have does not come close to covering the tracks of my Massey Ferguson 180. My MF is a early 70s 3 ton plus tractor. It does not really matter if it covers your tracks. I have a little grass on the edges of my driveway before it goes to the ditch slopes so I can just drive with my right tire on the grass so the grading scraper gets to the edge of the gravel. It's not a big deal like having a bucket that smaller than the wheel tracks or a rear snow blower that's smaller than your wheel tracks. It would probably work just fine on a the L series Kubota since the frame of the 48" grading scraper is over 50".
Wet material cuts better but does not flow as well so more will collect in the unit so it would take more horse power. When it is dry it may take a bit more to cut into the gravel but it won't collect as much in the unit and flows better so less horse power would be needed.

mlevendo · Jun 10, 2009

Probably more critical than covering the tire tracks of the tractor would be the width of the gravel on the driveway. My driveway is 12 feet wide but has grass on sides. The gravel is probably closer to 8 feet wide because I only make two passes, one on each side of the drieway with the 48" grading scraper. I do have my scraper adjusted to reshape/build the crown down the center of the driveway. Not to say that you could not make additional passes on a wider driveway with a smaller grading scraper. But if your driveway was only 8 feet wide and you bought a 60" it would be more difficult to get good results due to grading scraper being over sized.
This is just my experience using my grading scraper.

Tom_H · Jun 11, 2009

Mark,

I could visualize the tractor wheels being on the grass and the scraper on the gravel with no problems if there is no change in pitch between the gravel and the grass shoulder. If there is a change in pitch from the gravel to the shoulder, however, it seems that would put the scraper at a tilt and would require top 'n tilt (or at least tilt, either hydraulic or even manual adjustment on the length of the lift arm) to compensate for this change in pitch.

Is the grade of your gravel the same as the shoulder, or do they differ? What's your take on this if they are not in the same geometric plane (i.e. a grade/pitch change at the line of demarcation between gravel and grass)?

And Bob, are you still following all this discussion you just initiated? Any thoughts or feedback??

newtattoobob · Jun 11, 2009

Tom_H said:
Mark,

I could visualize the tractor wheels being on the grass and the scraper on the gravel with no problems if there is no change in pitch between the gravel and the grass shoulder. If there is a change in pitch from the gravel to the shoulder, however, it seems that would put the scraper at a tilt and would require top 'n tilt (or at least tilt, either hydraulic or even manual adjustment on the length of the lift arm) to compensate for this change in pitch.

Is the grade of your gravel the same as the shoulder, or do they differ? What's your take on this if they are not in the same geometric plane (i.e. a grade/pitch change at the line of demarcation between gravel and grass)?

And Bob, are you still following all this discussion you just initiated? Any thoughts or feedback??

I'm still following, I'm leaning more in the direction of the 48' because I'm thinking in most situations it will work on the BX and if not it will go on the L3400. My driveway is roughly 8' wide so I think 2 passes would work the best.