Go BottomHeavy Or Light Scraper Blade
 | Hans Top
Join Date: Posts: 1 
|
2000-07-19 18107
What are some of the pros and cons of using a heavy weight scraper blade like Tufline GB4-72 (that weighs 546 #s) against using a lighter unit like the Land Pride 1572 which weighs just over the 300 #. With the heavier unit I would also get the offset features and tilt features. I am leaning on the heavier unit 6-foot width. The tractor I will be using it on will be a New Holland TC33D with a loader. I will be doing some general-purpose work, landscaping, ditch cleaning, snow clearing, and driveway grading. Will ordering the skid shoes be useful other than for clearing snow? Would like your opinion and experience.
Reply to |
Quote Reply |
Add PhotoHeavy Or Light Scraper Blade
| Bird Senter
Join Date: Jun 1999 Posts: 962 
|
2000-07-19 18114
Han Top, since most tractors do not have any down force on the 3-point, a heavier blade will cut into hard dirt in some instances in which a light blade would just skip across the top. And of course, a heavier blade is probably built stronger and less likely to have anything break. If you use a light blade, sometimes it helps to just add weight to it in the form of concrete blocks, big rocks, or a heavy piece of steel. ....
Reply to |
Quote Reply |
Add PhotoHeavy Or Light Scraper Blade
 | Murf
Join Date: Dec 1999 Posts: 7249 Toronto Area, Ontario, Canada 
 Pics
|
2000-07-19 18115
Short answer, the light blade is less expensive, marginally easier to man-handle, and will probably serve adequately, the heavy blade will cost a little more, but will shine at heavy work, as long as your tractor and budget can handle the bigger unit, buy it. Best of luck. ....
Reply to |
Quote Reply |
Add PhotoHeavy Or Light Scraper Blade
| Chris in IN
Join Date: Posts: 1
|
2000-07-19 18117
Somthing else to keep in mind with the bigger blades is the height of the moldboard. I have a Bush Hog 70-06 blade on a JD 4400 tractor. If I set the top link to level the blade frame, the blade is only about 3" off the ground with the hitch fully raised. I have to run the frame way out of level to get the amount of blade lift I need. The problem this causes is when I angle the blade is changed I must also change the tilt of the blade. Since my driveway is blacktop I just let the tilt float when scraping snow, when scraping dirt I can not do this. Chris ....
Reply to |
Quote Reply |
Add PhotoHeavy Or Light Scraper Blade
| JerryGoucher
Join Date: Feb 2002 Posts: 100 NW AR
|
2000-07-19 18122
Han Top, I have to agree with Murf and Bird. I have a 1250 Massey (32 hp) and when I first got it, I bought a light weight 6' blade. I found out real fast that I couldn't do what I wanted to do with it. I traded it in on a Hardee-Williams ABH-84. The Hardee looks a lot like the blade you are looking at except it is 7'. You can also do a lot more in the way of ditches and the like with this type of blade. I had the same problem that Chris had until I dropped the tractor end of the third arm to the lower of the three holes. That fix the problem and it is level again. It works great......
JerryG ....
Reply to |
Quote Reply |
Add PhotoHeavy Or Light Scraper Blade
| Roger L.
Join Date: Jun 1999 Posts: 0
|
2000-07-20 18125
Heavy blades really make the difference. I have 4 or 5 blades ranging from a light five foot one to an eight foot 900 pound Servis for the big tractor. I like one as heavy and heavily built as I can get....with tilt, angle, and offset as well. Make sure that the blade will reverse when it is on your tractor. I've never used skid shoes, but then I don't have a paved driveway to clean. I do have a lot of dirt road and if you do as well, I recommend that you order the end plates for the blade. They really expand what you can do with a blade. I agree with the six foot width. Anything longer is pushing it in heavy work with a compact tractor. On my 33 HP compact I have recently replaced my cheapy blade with a Model 350 Rhino 7 foot blade with tilt, angle, and offset. It weighs 412 pounds....about double what the cheap blade did. Although it is just the thing for maintaining an existing road, when I am doing landscaping type work - or working on a slope - or in close quarters - I wish it was a six footer and a few hundred pounds heavier at the blade. ....
Reply to |
Quote Reply |
Add PhotoHeavy Or Light Scraper Blade
| Scott
Join Date: Posts: 1
|
2000-07-20 18128
I have the skid shoes and a light duty blade for snow. I tried them once and decided that I didn't need them. Maybe with a HD blade it might tear up the drive. I you're interested, e-mail me and maybe we can make a deal. They are pretty universal and just use the cutting edge bolts. The link from ssb tractor where I bought them from is below. ....
Link: ssb skid shoes
Reply to |
Quote Reply |
Add PhotoHeavy Or Light Scraper Blade
| TomG
Join Date: Feb 2002 Posts: 5406 Upper Ottawa Valley
|
2000-07-21 18155
The skid shoes on my 5' blower dig into my gravel drive before freeze up. The blade cuts into the gravel as if the shoes weren't, there. The blower weighs 550 lbs.
My notion is that skid shoes, on a blower or blade, don't work well on gravel until it freezes. Gauge wheels might work better. Until freeze up, I plow using the loader in float, with the bucket curled up so the blade doesn't bite. I just have to hope that there aren't any heavy snows until it gets cold.
I may put some gauge wheels on my box scrapper and try plowing with the rear cutter until freeze up. ....
Reply to |
Quote Reply |
Add PhotoHeavy Or Light Scraper Blade
| Mike S.
Join Date: Posts: 1
|
2000-07-21 18175
I had a similar experience to that of TomG regarding the use of skid shoes. A few years ago when I was the proud owner of a JD955 with hydraulic front blade, I couldn't wait for the first good snow. I sat the skid shoes at 3 inches of depth and after making one pass in my driveway, realized that I had removed nearly all of the gravel in a path 66 inches wide and deposited the gravel in the ditch across the road since the skid shoes had sunk into the gravel. Even in float position, the front blade would remove gravel when using skid shoes. Mike S. ....
Reply to |
Quote Reply |
Add PhotoHeavy Or Light Scraper Blade
| Eben Morrow
Join Date: Posts: 1
|
2000-07-23 18190
I do several gravel drives and have found two things that help. I try to run the the skid shoes of the front blade down the crown of the road and this seems to minimize the gravel movement. I finish using the back blade backwards and this will clean it up nicely. Backwards works as well on pavement since the blade will run up over irregularities in the pavement and not cut the pavement. . ....
Reply to |
Quote Reply |
Add PhotoHeavy Or Light Scraper Blade
| RegL
Join Date: Posts: 1
|
2000-07-24 18211
Just a thought.All the skid shoes i have seen were small area wise.I wonder if someone was a good fabricator,they could make up a set that are shaped like a short ski,say about a foot long with the tip curled up.A ski like this would probably have to pivit.Has anyone tried this? ....
Reply to |
Quote Reply |
Add PhotoHeavy Or Light Scraper Blade
| TomG
Join Date: Feb 2002 Posts: 5406 Upper Ottawa Valley
|
2000-07-25 18246
Sounds like it might work, but I haven't heard of somebody doing it. How much force the pivot points are design to withstand could take a little thought. For example, are they designed to withstand hitting something or the operator forgetting to put the hydraulics in float? On the other hand, 'breakaway pivots might be a good idea. Pivot pins may be cheaper to replace than blade parts.
Myself, I plan to get a set of gauge wheels for my box scrapper. Gauge wheels are useful in spreading material. They also should hold the blade off the gravel to use the rear cutter for plowing snow. I probably could drill mounting holes on my blower for them as well. A heavy snow before freeze up would be difficult for me since I run turf tires, and they don't get a lot of traction for plowing.
....
Reply to |
Quote Reply |
Add Photo
Go Top
Share This