What's your ideal snow removal tool?

[NS Gearhead]

So, I'm a dreamer with alot of time to think. I'm only 30, but my retirement dream is to have a piece of equipment that I could do my subdivision's driveways with. There are probably 50 houses... so estimating that half would hire me... it would be to pass the time, not get ritch... so my fee would be attractive... it would just be nice to cover the cost of the machine and upkeep. Driveways probably average 100', and come in all configurations. At 1st I thought; no brainer... tracked skid steer with a snowblower!... but after giving it some thought, I'd like to take the wife along too... so perhaps a SXS with tracks and cab... but that's kinda light duty for heavyer or deeper snow.

So that leads me to my question; what would work best? Obviously nothing's going to be perfect... most things are a compromise.

Home made's not out of the question either. This thing's pretty awesome!
Homemade Tractor Plowing After Another Snow Storm - YouTube

Some things I have in mind it sould have;

-heavy
-tight turning radius
-good visibility

What I'm not sure of;

-tracks or tires?
-if tracks... 4 with two that steer, or two like a dozer?
-if tires... fat or skinny? My gut says skinny to dig down... but that home made rig I posted seems to do well with fatties.
-also if tires... single steering, dual steer, or articulating?

Two home made visions that come to mind; #1 would have dual 14 bolt axles that articulate with 53" XZL Michelins (both can be had for cheap), S10 cab in either a cab over configuration, or rear mounted engine (somehow LOL)

#2 would be a cab over truck (Hino, GMC...) with the driveshaft running a hydraulic pump... running two motors on full length tracks.


Let's hear it!

 

[Piston]

65-90hp tractor with cab, and buddy seat, no FEL (for manueverability) and an inverted blower.

My ideal setup would be a New Holland T4.75 with buddy seat, and a Shoule 492 inverted blower. The tractor is a tad on the smaller side for this blower, but since it would be an everyday tractor used for all different uses, I wouldn't want a bigger frame size than that.

 

[NS Gearhead]

I've never heard of a buddy seat or an inverted blower... you've given me much to google! LOL

 

[Buckgnarly]

What I run......no one piece is perfect for all IMHO.

Plow truck for speed and small snowfalls.

Tractor with blower for deep stuff, and FEL for pushing back banks.

How much snow you get also is a key factor in choice.


Oh yeah, and since you have a Jeep, this is used to get all the other junk unstuck! Oh, and for cheesey end of Winter celebration shots!

 

[NS Gearhead]

Nice looking fleet! What if you had a blade on the front of the tractor?... may not be as fast as the truck, but still have the three options.

We get about 12- 4-8" snowfalls a season... usually melts between snowfalls, but sometimes we get 3 or 4 in a row that don't and add up quick. There's about 2' in the woods where the wind wasn't blowing it around at the moment.

 

[Buckgnarly]

Nice looking fleet! What if you had a blade on the front of the tractor?... may not be as fast as the truck, but still have the three options.

That will be one of this Summer's projects! The Fisher on my truck mounted to a QD plate. It will be only for backup though. The tractor does not have the same handling as a truck...truck is wider, heavier, faster and more suited for a plow than the tractor.
All my equipment is the result of years of trial and error as to what works best, plus I have enough backups for up here. We can get a ton of snow and I now do my neighbors driveways, so I have to be prepared!

 

[Piston]

I've never heard of a buddy seat or an inverted blower... you've given me much to google! LOL

Basically it's a rear mounted PTO snowblower that is a pull behind version. This allows you to look forward where you want to go, not kill your neck all day, and the blower has a small "blade" on the back of it which allows you to get right up next to a building.
I can't think of a better driveway tool for numerous smaller driveways. The larger the drives get, the better a truck and plow will be, and a lot more efficient.

Also, Don't google the price of one of those, you'll be dissappointed.

I still haven't seen a storm yet though that can stop my F350 diesel and 9' plow.

 

[NS Gearhead]

Basically it's a rear mounted PTO snowblower that is a pull behind version. This allows you to look forward where you want to go, not kill your neck all day, and the blower has a small "blade" on the back of it which allows you to get right up next to a building.

That sounds awesome! I suppose if the snow's so deep that you'll get stuck driving through you can push some aside with the blade or bucket!

 

[Jaylegger]

For driveway hopping in your neighborhood a front blower is an excellent option. I've never felt the need to clean up what a blower has left behind with a plow but often clean up the mess a plow has left behind with a blower. Many residences can run out of room quickly where to put the snow when plowing and therefore plows are often pushing far back into the lawn and tearing up sods to ensure there's space later on. If on gravel a plow will push considerable gravel onto the lawn which also requires work for the homeowner in the spring to remove. It's my experience all homeowners much prefer the clean and precisely finsished job of a snowblower and any time savings of using a much wider plow begin to evaporate as the snow deepens and the season progresses.

 

[NS Gearhead]

My Hino idea would look something like these;
PRINOTH TROOPER Track Vehicle Swamp and Mud - YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DotV3yMfIpA

Spin around on a dime and bank the snow as high as you want... or a blower on the front! Muahahaha!