Rear blade?

ramman666 · Oct 14, 2019

Hi I am in the process of getting a rear blade 60in land pride è¿*B1560 I am curious if it is what I need or just falling into sales gimmicks.

I am going to be installing patio15x10, walk way 25x5 and fire pit area roughly 15x12 all with pea stone. Also In the winter I will be using the FEL for snow removal and figured a rear blade would be good to finish it/clean it nice after the bulk is removed.

Am I thinking correctly for leveling the 3 areas and for snow removal? Would the rear blade do damage to my new driveway? (Paved driveway) would you recommend doing something to the blade or a specific pitch for it to avoid damage?

Thanks for your help

chim · Oct 14, 2019

There are much bigger and heavier rear blades than I have. None of mine would cut into dirt or even move it much, but they'd all spread gravel. There have been two projects that required cutting into and moving earth. One was when a couple hundred tons of old volleyball court and "yard" was relocated (used FEL), and the other was re-grading an area of roughly 150' x 50' to make it slope in the opposite direction (used box blade and FEL).

A 5' rear blade was my only snow weapon for 10 years. It did my 300' driveway, another just like it and a few shorter ones. Mine never damaged blacktop. It does sorta scrape the blacktop and make it look more gray. I always set my adjustment so the blade was perpendicular to the driveway surface.

ramman666 · Oct 14, 2019

Thank you so much, I知 just a little worried of making run marks in the new driveway I think my wife would make me color it with a sharpie until it looked new again. Lol did you just use the regular steel blade or did you swap it for some sort of polimer?

airbiscuit · Oct 14, 2019

There are threads on TBN about softer cutting edges for blacktop:

Rubber Cutting edge
Polyurethane Cutting Edge
Cut groove in PVC Conduit and slip it under the cutting edge of the blade

You will like having a rear blade.

ramman666 · Oct 14, 2019

Thank you, I have been trying to find them but it is hard to find flipping threw 20 something pages with multiple postings. Does you or anyone have experience with rubber or polyurethane? I feel PVC piping would split with pressure unless you have had good experience please enlighten me

Roadworthy · Oct 14, 2019

I like the PCV conduit idea. I wonder if the blade in "float" would just slide along the blacktop or gravel while picking up snow. Possibly a smaller diameter conduit - say an inch or less - perhaps with the ends capped for a bit of extra strength? How long for the abrasion to wear through it, though? Interesting.

ramman666 · Oct 14, 2019

By floating the rear blade do you just mean setting it to a semi low position or can you actually float the 3 point hitch like you would a FEL??? Sorry very new to tractors.