andrewj
Platinum Member
For those of you that own/use one, is there a substitute that works just as good? I have a 6 ft box blade....would that do? thank
Is a land plane really worth it?
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texasjohn
Super Member
Here a land plane can be rented for $50 per day.
Super deal.
No way a box blade will do the same job a land plane will.
Well, actually, it could, but would take 10X as long, IMHO, and burn more fuel than a land plane...which can dig up, transport without material loss, and then drop and spread exactly where you need it.
My net... would always rent instead of purchasing this tool... and wouldn't tackle cleaning out a dirt tank or picking up and moving a lot of dirt without it.
Super deal.
No way a box blade will do the same job a land plane will.
Well, actually, it could, but would take 10X as long, IMHO, and burn more fuel than a land plane...which can dig up, transport without material loss, and then drop and spread exactly where you need it.
My net... would always rent instead of purchasing this tool... and wouldn't tackle cleaning out a dirt tank or picking up and moving a lot of dirt without it.
bucmeister
Silver Member
Texas,
I am now curious as to what kind of apparatus are you calling a "land plane"? It sounds to me like you are describing what we call a "dirt pan" in this part of the country (MS). You scoop the dirt lift the blade up, close the door and take off to where ever you want to dump it. A land plane around here is a drag unit that has a series of blades, 2 in most, more in huge units that literally plane the ground cutting off the high spots leaving the dirt in the low spots.
Dirt Pan
Land Plane
A real land plane Rayne Plane This bad boy will surely level things down in a hurry. I hope to build a much smaller model for working the road at my camp property due to the fact the Frontier style unit we have still leaves highs and lows because of the relative closeness of the blades. Actually, need one 12-16' long to be able to leave a few feet between the offset blade and to eliminate as much roller coaster wave effect as possible.
I am now curious as to what kind of apparatus are you calling a "land plane"? It sounds to me like you are describing what we call a "dirt pan" in this part of the country (MS). You scoop the dirt lift the blade up, close the door and take off to where ever you want to dump it. A land plane around here is a drag unit that has a series of blades, 2 in most, more in huge units that literally plane the ground cutting off the high spots leaving the dirt in the low spots.
Dirt Pan
Land Plane
A real land plane Rayne Plane This bad boy will surely level things down in a hurry. I hope to build a much smaller model for working the road at my camp property due to the fact the Frontier style unit we have still leaves highs and lows because of the relative closeness of the blades. Actually, need one 12-16' long to be able to leave a few feet between the offset blade and to eliminate as much roller coaster wave effect as possible.
rvaitor
Platinum Member
This is what I think of when considering a land plane - - be sure to watch the videos
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Opti-Mist
Platinum Member
I guess it really depends on the size of your project. I have a 1-1/2 yard RO (Roll Over) Series Soilmover, it is a manual dump, that I have used to raise a road, peel and scrape to level an area, etc. It works well behind my 28 pto hp tractor. Actually, I'd like to have more use for it.
D7E
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That would be known as a land leveller here, Land plane is generally thought of as a lighter affair with several cutting edges on the 3pt as bucmeister showed
MtnViewRanch
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I think that the OP needs to clarify, but my guess is he's asking about the twin blade type commonly used on roads. 
texasjohn
Super Member
OK... guess I was describing a dirt pan rented from county soil conservation.
No experience with a dual blade land plane. sorry for confusion on my part.
No experience with a dual blade land plane. sorry for confusion on my part.
texasjohn
Super Member
Nothing in those plane photos is plain, it's plain to see, particularly on the sand plain. Plainly speaking
bucmeister
Silver Member
I need to see if our county has a dirt pan for rent that my tractor (JD5300 4WD) would handle.
jenkinsph
Super Star Member
Using the simple landplane with side skids works well for smoothing lawns and pastures prior to seeding. I built mine for this purpose with the blades set straight, works better in the fields than having angle blades. For road and driveway repair the angled blades will help with building up a crown if that is your main use. I use a rear blade for ditches and crowning though and the landplane to smooth everything out.
A couple of pics of my straight blade landplane with 96" grader blades and weighs in about 950 lbs.
A couple of pics of my straight blade landplane with 96" grader blades and weighs in about 950 lbs.
jenkinsph
Super Star Member
Will post some more pics tomorrow for you, the cutting edge is even with the wear strips on the bottom of the skids. I used a lot of materials I had on hand and it has worked out well. If I were to build this starting from scratch I would do it a little differently. I would use a tall channel shape heavy weight on the skids about 12" ht or taller, 6x6x 1/2" angle iron for mounting the blades to. This would be simple to build and offer near the same weight and strength. Would also consider making the skids longer, mine works well but instead of the 60" I have 72" might be better. Might consider building one with a hydraulic scarifier bar in front too.
I am thinking about adding a heavy roller or comb to the rear that can float an inch or two, haven't made up my mind yet.
This first one works well enough that I am planning to build a new one with adjustable angle, blade tilt, toothbar, comb and greater length. These planes are great tools to have.
Gordon Gould
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How come no will answer the original question? Are they worth the money?
I was going to build one - buy and cut the steel myself and have a shop
weld it up for me. For what I wanted it was still about a grand so I didnt
dare do it.
I was going to build one - buy and cut the steel myself and have a shop
weld it up for me. For what I wanted it was still about a grand so I didnt
dare do it.
MtnViewRanch
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My guess is that the OP has never even come back, let alone clarify what type of land plane he was asking about, therefore no answer.
The one's (5' & 7') that I have, similar to jenkinsph's are well worth the $$$$ in my opinion. But then I did not pay retail price for them either. There are a couple of manufactures of these that are in my opinion, better than the others out there, & a lot more money than the other guys too. They all seem to be pretty good, but the heavier ones with the longer sides should work better.
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bucmeister
Silver Member
Is it worth it, for me yes it was! I have an 8' heavy model with the pair of same angled blades and do not own a back blade nor a box blade, both of which I have used over the years and they all three have their own purpose. My needs were mostly to have a blade that worked a lot of road easily. With the land plane I just drop it down and head out staying to the right edge of the road, half mile later turn around and go back hanging to the right edge. Since it slides along on the skids I don't have to work at controlling the cut and the angle of the blades moves gravel back towards the crown as the rocks build up and fall over the top of the actual blade. A couple of passes each way usually gets things in pretty good order.
The one I have was built by a company here in MS, if I were to build one there are a couple of things I would change. First I would want it longer front to back to span the waves that can develop in a road/driveway with more distance between the two blades and the blades would be set at a bit sharper angle to give more slice to the cut which would also enhance the crowning effect. The more vegetation your road has the taller the sides need to be so there is clearance between the top of the blades and the framework that the 3 PH hooks to. Have had to stop lift and clear mine a few times due to the amount of grass that can grow up in our roadbeds over the summer. Another feature would be adjustable depth of cut either by numerous bolt holes or preferably by a type of screw jack method with a clamp mechanism on the ends at the side plates.
Now, if you really just want to level with no crown then a modified short 3 ph version of they Rayne Plane would be the ticket. Build the side plates 8' apart at least 10' long, and put 3 7' blades in an alternating angled pattern with a spreader rake at the backend after the 3rd blade. Front blade would be flush to the right side and end short of the left side the 2nd blade would be flush to the left side ending short of the right and the 3rd blade would set like the first one. This would slice and move your material back and forth across the road giving the best chance at filling and leveling the low spots with the rake spreading the windrow after the third blade leaving a bit of a crown. There are times I have need for just such a blade and have thought many times about building one using an old mobile home frame. Might even make it tongue pull rather than 3 ph with a hydraulic drop down axle just behind the mid point.
The one I have was built by a company here in MS, if I were to build one there are a couple of things I would change. First I would want it longer front to back to span the waves that can develop in a road/driveway with more distance between the two blades and the blades would be set at a bit sharper angle to give more slice to the cut which would also enhance the crowning effect. The more vegetation your road has the taller the sides need to be so there is clearance between the top of the blades and the framework that the 3 PH hooks to. Have had to stop lift and clear mine a few times due to the amount of grass that can grow up in our roadbeds over the summer. Another feature would be adjustable depth of cut either by numerous bolt holes or preferably by a type of screw jack method with a clamp mechanism on the ends at the side plates.
Now, if you really just want to level with no crown then a modified short 3 ph version of they Rayne Plane would be the ticket. Build the side plates 8' apart at least 10' long, and put 3 7' blades in an alternating angled pattern with a spreader rake at the backend after the 3rd blade. Front blade would be flush to the right side and end short of the left side the 2nd blade would be flush to the left side ending short of the right and the 3rd blade would set like the first one. This would slice and move your material back and forth across the road giving the best chance at filling and leveling the low spots with the rake spreading the windrow after the third blade leaving a bit of a crown. There are times I have need for just such a blade and have thought many times about building one using an old mobile home frame. Might even make it tongue pull rather than 3 ph with a hydraulic drop down axle just behind the mid point.
jenkinsph
Super Star Member
When I am planting a new lawn I run the straight blade landplane after tilling. This quickly smoothes everything out so the lawns can be mowed in record time. I thought about a more elaborate setup working the dirt from side to side but will say that is unnecessary. I would build one as large as you can pull because the wider and longer it is the smoother and better it will average out the imperfections. I am going to pick up steel this week to add a rear comb to mine.
Trails2004
Gold Member
This is what we use to build snow roads for snowmobiles and researchers in Anartica use to build snow runways. They are designed to "process" the snow through rolling and blending the snow.
This process breaks the points of the snow crystal off and creates bonding of crystals within the snowpack. Through the process the depth of the snow road will increase with each pass of the "grooming drag"
This type of "grooming equipment" is based on a land plane design.
http://www.mogulmaster.ca/dealers/subproducts.aspx?x=suClMgjEHbRhbslRy4SIiQ%3d%3d
This process breaks the points of the snow crystal off and creates bonding of crystals within the snowpack. Through the process the depth of the snow road will increase with each pass of the "grooming drag"
This type of "grooming equipment" is based on a land plane design.
http://www.mogulmaster.ca/dealers/subproducts.aspx?x=suClMgjEHbRhbslRy4SIiQ%3d%3d
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