Snowblower size on Grand 30 series

[moship]

I am considering purchasing a front snow blower for a L3130. There are two models listed. One is 60 inches wide and the other 72 wide. The tractor has turf tires and the overall width is just over 60 wide, so I thought a 72 wide unit would be the way to go. My local dealer insists 72 is too big and the tractor does not have enough HP even though Kubota recommends either one for this tractor. Both snow blowers have the same fan diameter, but obviously the auger is longer on the bigger machine. With the same size fan I thought I would just have to slow down the travel speed a bit with the bigger unit. So why would not a 6 foot blower work?

So what snow blowers is everyone using on the lighter HP L30 & L40 Grand series tractors? Any regrets with the blower size?

Does anyone have a used L2174A or L2185 blower for sale?

 

[Couple of Achers]

It is going to depend on how much snow and what kind of snow you get where you live. A lighter type snow under 1/2 foot or so, your L could more than likely handle the larger blower. The snow we received last week in SE MN, 16" with 30 mph winds, with drifts almost as tall as my rear tires, your tractor I'm afraid will not have the necessary hp. I have the L2195 (newer version of the 6' wide L2185 you mention) With the blower fully raised, I still could not get to the top of the drifts. And drifts are hard pack snow. I have a L4740, which for argument sake is 49hp. I had to go slow, and could still hear the engine working at times. The L3130 is for argument sakes, 32 hp. and the actual pto hp is only around 24-25 hp. Six feet wide and taller than the blower is a lot of snow to move and requires hp. Once I got through the first pass then I could take less than full passes and move right along but even then in heavily drifted areas, and where the plow had piled it up I am glad I have every one of those horses. From what I have experienced with the front blowers, I think I would have to agree with your dealer. But again, it really depends on where in the country you are located and what kind of winters you have.

 

[Groo]

I can't speak to a tractor mounted snowblower, but I have thought long and hard about putting wings on my walk behind. for those light snows that are still to heavy for the push-broom and would get old quick with a shovel, I would end up releasing the clutch to build up enough snow so the fan would have something to "bite" or it would end up just dribbling out the chute.

I say get the big one and slow down for the heavy stuff. :thumbsup:

 

[moship]

Thanks for your input and I agree large drifts can be an issue for any compact tractor. Last year we had several major storms that dumped 18 to 24 each time. At the time I had another tractor (JD) with a rear mounted 60 inch snow blower that had no trouble going through any of the snow. Even after it sat for a few days and became crusty and more compacted. This tractor only produces 18 HP at the PTO, so I thought I would be safe with the this tractor. Drifting here is typically not an issue and if needed my neighbor can always help with his front end loader.

Thanks again for sharing your experience and I look forward to hearing from others especially those with the smaller L30's.

 

[brandoro]

With the hydrostatic drive wider is better, you can slow way down for the heavy snows but still be able to push enough snow into the fan for it to work well in the lighter snows. Not being able to drive the tractor in the cut of the blower is a pain too, my old 3pt blower was not quite as wide as this tractor. I like the wider one much better, you can work the blower right up beside things without worrying about hitting anything with the tractor.

 

[leonz]

Another option is the front P.T.O. attachment kit offered by Pronovost

It would allow you to mount a normally rear mounted 72-inch 540 R.P.M. snow blower up front and use a reversing gearbox to bring the RPM down to 540 RPM for your L.

My other question is whether a solid ribbon auger is available for their front mount blower- they can be ordered as an option for the Pronovost blowers for example.


As the tractor is a hydrostatic drive you can crawl through the drifts where needed The only issue I have with it is the reduced ground clearance for the front mounts.

Is a rear camera like the Cab Cam and or additional mirrors and a suicide knob out of the question in buying a 72 inch rear mounted blower?

 

[bitseeker]

I would not want the blower narrower than the tire's tracks. As far as power to move packed drifts, I can atest that a BX23 with a 4' front blower will get through the 5' high packed drifts that build in front of my garage at least once each winter. It is a little slow going, but there is enough power.

With the power you have and a 6' blower you would have more power per foot of width. As others have said, having more snow to feed the blower makes the ejection work better for fluffy snow and low depths.

 

[rpraymond]

I have a L3430 w/2185 front mounted blower. I've had drifts as high as 4' or so and I've just eased into them and never had a problem. If I tried to push my way through quickly I could overload and stall the machine but with a little patience it has always worked fine.

 

[Couple of Achers]

If a 72" width is questionable for your given horse power, and your rear tires are just over 60" wide, another thing you could consider would be to get the 60" blower and add a wing on each side. Even something as simple as a 2x6 bolted flat ways to each side would give you a 63" wide blower.

 

[AceDeuce]

You the operator, not the width of the blower, controls how much snow the blower ingests. Only the on the first pass does the width of the blower matter, and as others have mentioned with an HST you can creep into deep or tightly packed snow very slowly to mitigate that. After the first pass you can adjust the width of your bite based on how much power is needed to move the snow and how fast you want to go---just listen to the engine. You CAN'T do this as easily if the blower is narrower than your tractor though! Bottom line: Go for the 72".