Let's talk driveway material. Just under 1/2 mile long.

[NorTracNY]

Re cycled asphalt would be my choice.

In my area it is even cheaper than crushed stone and has the advantage of re gluing itself under hot sun and then sheds water.
Eliminates the need for annual grading as well.

Same recommendation here. We had crushed originally as the OP had. About 12" deep. After 15 years it needed a little repair and the installer recommended recycled asphalt. I looked at my neighbor who had it done many years ago and had mine done also. Very happy with it, but do it in the summer. It also is cheaper in my area. I think you should contact local people for the best recommendations for your area.

 

[Firemanbuck]

What kind of traffic on your driveway? Id suggest at least 6 inches of 3/4 crusher run crushed limestone. If you have heavy truck/equipment go at least 12 inches with geotextile fabric underneath. Pack it well. If you want it looking real smooth wait a year and put 1 inch of 1/4 crusher run crushed limestone on top and pack it again. It will feel like a paved driveway at the end.

If you go the 12 inch thick route and crown the top for good drainage you will never have ruts, only need to touch it up with the tractor blade in late spring.

OP reported 12 inches of base which is holding up well. There's no need for a geofabric unless there's soft soils or wet areas you need to bridge.

 

[Streetcar]

I've used both limestone and crushed concrete for my driveway and the crushed concrete is night and day better then limestone. Limestone breaks down, it's a soft stone. I don't have any experience with shale, but if it's a soft stone, it will wear out over time. Concrete seems to hold up with heavy traffic without any sign of wear or need of maintenance. Just like limestone road base, it crushed to a variety of individual sizes, including fines, and once compacted, it's solid!!!

Quality of concrete verses limestone is regional. In Ohio limestone is heads and shoulders above the concrete

 

[skipmarcy]

Quality of concrete verses limestone is regional. In Ohio limestone is heads and shoulders above the concrete

Crusher run is also very regional. This past summer I recoated my driveway/parking area after building it 14 years ago. I looked at crusher run from a place 30 mi. east of me and it had wayyy too many fines in it - not near enough rock and the rock was inconsistent sized. Luckily I had a local hauler that kept some in stock nearby so I could go look at it first. At this same time I had a neighbor down the road getting some from a place 30 mi. north of me that was the perfect shape/size rock and perfect amount of fines for my use. I got about 250 tons of it and it has performed beautifully this wet winter we're having.

 

[nyone]

All crushed stone is regional. Here we have mostly bluestone. Quite hard and didn't breakdown. 3/4 minus is called item 4.

We do have shale here too but that stuff is terrible for a driving surface. Breaks down to quick.

 

[ovrszd]

This is a very regional topic. I'd pay little attention to advice from anyone like me, 1000 miles from you.

You don't need a base, you've already proven to have that.

It seems you just need a light top coat to get you our of the "mud". Talk to the locals and see what they use.

Lastly, you have to face one glaring fact. You now live on 1/2 mile of gravel road. Your vehicles are going to get dirty. Your garage, if you have one, is going to get messy. That's unavoidable unless you are willing to spring for a paved road??

I live on 1/2 mile of crushed limestone. Drainage and maintenance are a constant.

 

[flusher]

I had my 20 ft wide x 330 ft long driveway installed in 2005 with three 2" thick lifts of crusher run with watering and rolling each lift. No problems at all. Only maintenance was spraying the weeds along the edges.



Good luck

 

[ovrszd]

Nice drive Flusher. Looks like it has great drainage!!!

 

[jjp8182]

If you want/need to control the mix of gravel sizes, using the same my neighbor does be an option to consider; spreading a fixed-size gravel, and then spread/work in manufactured sand.

Which is probably also the better option if you plan to stockpile any material for future use.

Growing up in MN, my grandfather stockpile a bit of crusher run at one point, and after trying to scope out of the pile after it'd been sitting for a winter he never did it again. While we eventually managed to break it up, the pile had interlocked and setup similar to concrete in the outer 4-8 inches.

Which is one of the reasons crusher run can be great for driveways, since it by default will be a blend of sizes (from 3/4"-ish down to stone dust), but that blend of sizes can also cause difficulties due to just how well it may interlock and compact into a hard surface. A surface by the way which would need to be broken up in any areas that need to be repaired/refilled in the future to fix ruts and potholes.

If you're interested in higher level of detail the US Federal Highway Administration has a publication on constructing and maintaining gravel roads which provides more information than most homeowners will ever want/need: https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/construction/pubs/ots15002.pdf (one of things I've stumbled across over the years, and figure is worth a read since it's publication made with tax dollars)

 

[techman]

Our driveway is 6/10 of a mile long, with a slight grade over about 500'. After the house was completed (back in '88) we put down 500 tons of 2B modified. Was pretty good initially but after a few years I would end up putting about 5 tons of additional stone to fill pot holes and washed out areas (I ended up having a supply pile that I replenished every couple of years). Freeze/thaw and heavy rain were the main culprits. Also the Kubota mounted snowblower also took its toll on the stone and the blower (several shear pins a season) with the stone. Eventually we saved up and paved the drive which was a wonderful change year round.

After completion of my geo system I had about 5 tons of screenings (stone fine material) left over. We have a second driveway path, not much used, that has a significant grade. I had initially put down stone on that run and then needing to get rid of the screenings. I spread them on several hundred feet of the alternate drive, over the stone that was there. After driving over the screenings to pack them down, they became very solid and almost concrete-like as a surface. It is now 15 years later and I can say that despite the steeper grade, there are no ruts or pot holes in the area covered with the screenings. Still hard packed and a smooth driving surface.

Paul