Snowblower advice on L3710HSD

dingulus · Feb 5, 2008

First post. Hello all. Thanks in advance for your time.

We live at 8400 ft. in Colorado. Our driveway and main road are not paved. I have a 400 yard driveway to a common road that we help maintain down to the county road (about 1/2 mile). Don't know if it matters but, again, none of the roads are paved. It is Colorado snow so almost 100% dry powder.

We have had over 80" of snow so far this year. I have a rear blade on the 2000 Kubota L3710HST with a Land Pride frontloader (and an aftermarket cab). Our plow truck is starting to need some serious work to keep running and a couple things have me wondering if we should put much money into it for snow removal purposes.

The banks on the driveway are 3'-4' high already and I really have to plow at speed to throw the snow over them. This can't go on much longer. The banks will get too high very soon. Then it will be a one or two day affair to push back the banks with my front loader which will only last another month.

What recommendations do you have for a front mounted snowblower for the Kubota 3710 Hydrostatic? What has been done and what works? Is it worth eliminating the hassle and going with an easier rear mount?

I would really like to look forward instead of backward with the amount of snow I have to contend with but I'll do whatever makes sense. How hard is it to switch out the front loader and the snowblower? I really use the front loader quite a bit too year round. If it's hard to switch front loader and front mount snowblower (over an hour) I guess the rear mount snowblower is the way to go. I'd really like to get a 6.5' or 7' wide snow blower setup - can that be done? Wheelbase is around 5.5' and I definitely want as wide as is reasonable -- but the last thing I want is to be under powered. I think the PTO HP is 30.

1. Can anyone recommend a solid rear blower solution? attachments, brand and model, expected performance (how fast can I move and blow 8" fresh powder?), expected problems/maintenance? That sort of stuff. Please give detail on your experiences.

2. Can anyone recommend pros/cons regarding the front mount snowblower solution if I need the front loader pretty often too?

3. Also general recommendations for or against snowblower manufacturers based on performance, reliability, ease of use with my particular tractor, cost are very much appreciated.

I'm currently looking at Lorenz online but can't find any pricing or detail...

Thanks very much again for your help.

ScottyChip · Feb 7, 2008

My driveway is not quite as long as yours but I opted for a rear mounted snowblower. I have a 48" Kubota B2781, it is well built heavy steel construction, 8" of fresh powder is a joke, will throw 30+ feet away. It is up out of your way. I have had no problems either then breaking the occasional shear pin, but that is why they are there, I do have a gravel driveway. It takes me two hours to clean up my property, I thought that I would have a very stiff neck after the first time, but no problems. I like this setup because I still have my FEL if I need to stack snow or move a pile from one location to another. I am not sure about other brands or their costs but my 2781 was aprox $1500, worth every penny especially this winter. Your tractor should be able to handle a 6.5' blower since i only have 16HP at the PTO for 4'. Pray for an early spring, and that will give you lots of time for more research.

dingulus · Feb 7, 2008

ScottyChip -

Thanks much for the reply. The more I look into it the more I think you are right about keeping the FEL and using the 3pt on the back.

Do you have a large flat area too? 2 hrs seems a bit much for 4-6 passes on your driveway. Do you have to go that slow or do you have other areas as well?

Either way, thanks for taking the time to reply - I appreciate it. Have a good one.

rpraymond · Feb 8, 2008

You really do need a snowblower! I've had both front and rear mounts and either would work fine. My last unit was a 84" Farm King mounted to the rear of an Allis-Chalmers D17. Now I'm using a 72" front mounted Kubota unit on a L3430HSTC. I also have a gravel driveway and with the shoes set down a bit have rarely had a sheer pin go on either unit. I can be more accurate with the front mount and it is nicer to be facing forward but it was never really a problem with the old setup. The main reason I changed was ease of entry and heat. My driveway is such that when I used to plow it I spent more time moving snow out of the way for the next snowfall than I did clearing the driveway itself. Hope this info helps.

art · Feb 8, 2008

I'd have to say a rear would be a choice if your driveway is relatively straight. I found that you can often use the old banks to judge where you need to be while not having to crank your head around. I like the fronts and when going to the front you'll find that you won't need the loader for the snow removal.
Most times for normal snow removal it is fresh fallen and easy to blow away! Large horsepower is not needed as much with a hydro as it is for a gear drive as the hydro on PTO work is often good for five to ten horsepower because of the flexability of the hydro's speed vs a fixed speed gear drive.

The next critical thing to keep in mind is the depth of the snow falls. The smaller one would be better if the snow falls were deeper. Remember that with a blower the you are normally totally clean with every pass so a 6'6" with 6" overlap would have a 12' wide driveway clean.

With the blower on the front it is important on gravel drives to run if float position and skids up high where on solid surfaces you can run with down pressure.
With the three point you just run with the top link short so the blower is rolled to the rear actually lifting the cutting edge and helping to pack a base.
Rear mounts I recommend at leat hydraulic rotation and in close quarters for a good blower front or rear I'd recommend a dampener on the spout too!

ScottyChip · Feb 8, 2008

dingulus
I do have a large flat area by the house, I then do the path to the barn for my wife to feed the chickens and horses and finally I clear a path down both sides of my house. I do not have to clear so much, but I am getting lots of seat time. In my area we often get wet heavy sea influenced snow, the first pass is always the slowest, then things speed up. Light snow, I can pretty much run as fast as I want in low gear. I do not regret buying the blower, I think I would be lost without it.