need to build a dozer style blade for my skid steer

[Cantoo]

Rio, have you considered a root grapple instead of a dozer blade? I mean the nearly vertical back tine ones where the tines are about 9" apart and have the grapple arms to gather material. It would work good to rip into the soil and spread fairly decent. You could fabricate a steel blade to fit over the tine so it would be a dozer blade. Maybe an old snow blade would be the right angle and fit on pretty decent. And the grapple would be handy for moving brush out of the way. I think you will have more use for a root grapple than a dedicated dozer blade.

 

[Rio_Grande]

I have a root grapple and it is awsome. Never go to the woods without it. But I have a hard time getting the topsoil, over burden up with it. Once the trees and the topsoil is gone it makes short work out of any remaining brish. The dozer style blade for the skid steer just isint going to be heavy enough to cut roots and the like. I did some research today and 3/8 plate with the brackets and the like will run me around 600 to build that is with no swing, just mounted solid to the front of the skid steer. I would build it where it could be modified later. Unfortunately I dont think it would be any better than what I have with the bucket and the tooth bar.

 

[Cantoo]

I once made a snow blade for a forklift using the side blade of of a road grader. I bought the blade at an auction for $50, it was expremely heavy and I'm sure would take the abuse for a skid steer. Head to your local dozer and heavy equipment yards and check out their scrap pile. Don't be afraid to use something narrow, it will be alot easier to dig with than something wide. Just like using a tooth bar on a loader bucket.

 

[swick1]

Another problem with the skid steer dozer concept is that most of the weight is at the rear instead of the middle, making it harder to dig heavy. The arms also flex causing the edges of the blade to dig in too much. A bulldozer is built very rigid for this reason.

 

[Ken45101]

Another problem with the skid steer dozer concept is that most of the weight is at the rear instead of the middle, making it harder to dig heavy. The arms also flex causing the edges of the blade to dig in too much. A bulldozer is built very rigid for this reason.

Interesting perspective from an engineering standpoint:thumbsup: They don't build dozers for lifting, do they? The do build skid steers for that purpose. I guess from that perspective, even a 955 Cat wouldn't do a dozing job as good as a real dozer.

 

[swick1]

If design weren't a compromise we wouldn't have so many fun toys!

 

[swick1]

How is the blade coming?

 

[slowzuki]

I've got an 8 ft tilt/angle/offset blade on my MF right now. The tractor weighs something like 12,000 to 14,000 lbs. Even in 4wd with the front and rear diffs locked, it doesn't take much of a cut to stop the tractor in its tractors. Its definitely not a bulldozer. I can see why the blade has a 250 hp tractor rating on it.

 

[Rio_Grande]

no more progress at this time. I have been doing the work w the tooth bucket.

 

[charlz]

The skidsteer specs are pretty close to those of a Sweco trail dozer which we use all over in the mountains, desert etc.

SWECO Products

These perform pretty well, certainly not like a larger dozer but for trail building they do a good job. Is there that much difference in the wheelbase/tracks that the skidsteer with blade wouldn't do as well? Obviously the 6-way blade helps.