Right Tractor for 80" Pronovost Inv Snowblower in the mountains?

[toxic]

My tractor has cast iron wheels but the tires are not filled, 86" blower, m21 loader and a 7' snow pusher with hydraulic powered wings and it will go down the road at 25mph no problem at all. On the occasional steep hill it will drop to 19-22mph but very rarely do I even need to shift down to 11th gear.

 

[LTG33]

Thanks Toxic. You make a great case for the Kubota. Are the brakes 2w or 4w? All i see is hydraulic wet disc. Sorry if thats a dumb question but I dont know a whole lot about tractor brakes.

 

[Winmac]

Tractors generally don't have front brakes but some will automatically engage the 4wd on braking, this gives you all wheel braking using just the rear brakes.

In Europe tractors that can travel 50km/h are required to have front brake systems, I don't know about North America.

 

[leonz]

Any feed back would be greatly appreciated.
I am looking to buy a 90-105HP 4X4 tractor for pulling an 80"
Pronovost inverted snowblower in a couple Rockie Mountain communities.
Being the mountains, there tends to be relatively steep inclines and declines
(at least relative to normal farm lands).

Are there any special considerations (transmission, wheel base, front weights,
something i dont even know to ask..) i should be making given the terrain in
which the tractor will be operating?

Are there certain brands, models or features that would be better suited for
handling mountain terrain over others?

I am pretty sure i have the needed HP correct but not sure on much else.

I am looking to spend a max of $50K for a tractor that can handle the terrain in
which it will be operating and that can go a minimum of 20 mhp on the road
(preferably 25). Thank you for any input.

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Special considerations:


1. dealer support
2. dealer support
3. dealer support
4. dealer support


5 diesel power with indirect fuel injection

6. shuttle shift with Mechanical four wheel gear drive
a. high intensity work lights
b. room for a tool box in the cab for tools, spare roller chain parts,
and shear pins and light bulbs or light assemblies

7. dealer support

8. spare parts and hoses in your inventory as you will break down when no one is looking
and when CO-OP, NAPA, Menards, AuroZone, TSC, Farm and Fleet are closed.

10. dealer support since you have no idea what you are doing and residential
home owner associations and their communities expect you to be available
at all hours.

Don't expect to make money unless you have a long term contract of five years or more period.





For the money and horsepower your going to have buy used
and preferably a row crop rental unit with either wheel weights
or ballasted tires and a set of two row road grader/log skidder chains.

Its simpler and less costly for you to buy a PXPL86 snow caster with a
chute extension as you will be able to buy a 50-75 horsepower row crop unit
with a turbocharger to do the work with a year round enclosed cab.

Preferably a john Deere as they install good cabins for their tractors.

If you can find a rental unit with 75 horsepower R2 tires and a year round cab you will be better
off.

You have to remember that your going to need lots of work lights and rotating or LED beacons
and turn signals.

Your going to need auto insurance and plates for the tractor as it is not a farm vehicle
subject to being tax exempt-you did not see that coming did you????

The tractor is going to limit your driving speed period and the extra wight of a snow caster
on the backside of it is going to affect the handling on hills and curves so do not expect to
travel at those speeds.

If you continue with this you could have Nokian winter tractor tires installed for your needed work as
they are ment for dual use on road and farm work.

















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[Rustyiron]

I have a kubota m7060 with a 86" conventional blower. Has no problem to run it and had a road speed of 25mph with a 12×12 hydraulic shuttle transmission. 90hp for a 80" would be major overkill.

I wonder if you have different gearing in Canada? My 9540 with the 12sp. will not do 25.
LGT33, Road speed takes HP, lot's of it, especially on the hills.

 

[PILOON]

For snow blowing (any size tractor) hydrostatic is a godsend as you can adjust speed as you go along.
While chains are a great help since you will travel a lot between job sites you might want to consider studding your tires.
Studs outlast chains when driven on blacktop but might not be legal in some areas.
Weight is definitely your friend. Consider loaded tires.
With lots of road travel consider also front fenders.
Your choice of Pronovost is a good one, all maintenance components are stock off the shelf items except possibly the skid shoes.
Consider having a back up PTO drive shaft on hand.
You state mountains, consider a turbo powered tractor in order to have full HP at altitude.
If you can do so adding a plow up front is a real asset for lighter snow events--much faster!
Basic rules of thumb are that the blower be wider that your wheels (track)
Another is 5 hp/ft of blower but more the better especially if you deal with constant deeper snow events.

If doing lots of travel between work areas be well lit, consider 2 strobes to be well seen. (Crazy drivers out there)

Here in Quebec practically all contractors use Pronovost as they are a rugged well designed blower. Good choice!

 

[aczlan]

If doing lots of travel between work areas be well lit, consider 2 strobes to be well seen. (Crazy drivers out there)

Take a look at this video by a member on here (4shorts):

He does (or did) snow clearing and added some nice strobes to his loader, blower and tractor frame.

Aaron Z

 

[toxic]

When you step on the brakes 4wd is automatically engaged. Believe me this is a great feature that I am thankful I had a few times this winter.

 

[toxic]

The new m60 series from the M7060 and up are capable of 25mph with the 12×12 transmission

 

[FatTire]

You're not going to be able to use tire chains for what you're doing, so serious consideration of tires and/or studs is warranted. Even a short slide while running a tractor is way scary, especially with parked vehicles (or anything else of value) nearby.