2360 Snow Blower on GC1732E (2019)

[KodeBearKC]

All,
I'm looking to put a front mount Snow Blower on my 2019 GC1723E.
What i'm wondering is if any one can chime in on how hard it is to swap out the Blower for the Loader.
Thinking i might want the loader to move piles of snow/etc and wondering how hard it's going to be to pull off the Blower and slap on the Loader.
This might influence my decision to go with a front blower or a rear blower or even just do a Skid Steer Blower with a PTO Pump/Tank.

So looking for advice on the difficulty of taking on and off the 2360 Front Blower

- Thanks

 

[Langanobob]

I have a GC1720 with a different front mount blower than a 2360 but I believe my set up is similar. Purely subjective but swapping back and forth between the blower and loader is kind of a pain in the rear. I put my blower on at the first snow and leave it on all winter. Haven’t missed the loader bucket at all. The blower does a much more efficient job of moving snow.

No experience with a rear mount blower but it does not sound like fun. The front mount blower is fun.

 

[KodeBearKC]

Thanks Langanobob for the feedback.
The reason I was asking about swapping back and forth is I live where we get 240 inches of snow each winter. And I often have piles that need moved just due to running out of places to push/blow it.
So I can foresee the need to move piles. Not using the bucket to clear snow but rather move things out of the way. If that makes sense.

 

[Imold]

I would think the blower would throw the snow far enough away that you would not need to use a FEL, the 42 inch blower on my Husqvarna throws snow far enough that I don稚 need to push or move it at my place but if I only plow snow with my Ranger I run into problems with room.

I just purchased a GC1705 but no blower, I would of bought the 1715 if I was going to get a front end blower.

I sure would like to know how the snowblower works on your 1723e this winter.


Jim.

 

[Imold]

Nice tractor by the way, thumbs up.


Jim.

 

[irvingj]

OK, older tractor, but the same set-up, I think:

1) I'll go along with Loganbob -- with the blower, you may not need the loader; I rarely do, all winter. Only time I might use it is to remove piles snowplows have left from neighbors' driveways. I will use it at my house in the spring to speed up the process of melting a bit, and/or to remove buildups around bulkhead cellar door.

2) When I do need to use the loader I generally leave the quick-disconnect & mid PTO driveshaft in place and drop the blower onto a flat four-wheel metal dolly (with a 2x4 to get the right angle on the front of the blower). Then go into garage and put the loader on. Here's what it takes me, for time:
drop blower: 5 minutes or less
mount FEL: maybe 7 minutes
drop FEL: 4 minutes
re-mount blower: 5 minutes

Do keep in mind, however, that the quick-hitch hangs down some and can hit a low stone wall, for instance. I just watch out for that kind of stuff. If necessary, removing the quick-hitch and driveshaft adds around 10-12 minutes to the blower mounting & de-mounting procedure.

 

[KodeBearKC]

Jim will do!
Even on an off year we get around 100 inches. So I値l have plenty of snow to try this on.
After looking at every aftermarket blower put there and weighing my options I really think I値l just do the 2360 front blower and deal with the hassle of swapping if I have too. I will probably only have to do it 1-2 times per winter so if it痴 a 20min job so be it.
Better then backing to blow. Or the added expense of a skid steer quick attach unit (which seems to be double the price).

 

[KodeBearKC]

Irvingj,
Thanks this is super helpful.
As you said the only reason i壇 need to swap them (blower for loader) is to move piles of snow that have accumulated or block views to the road/etc.
I have no plans the clear snow with the loader just to move things that get in the way due to getting over 200 inches of snow. When you get that much you just start to run out of places to put things no matter how well you plan.

I like the idea of spreading things in the spring to speed the melt. Hadn稚 thought of that.

The leaving the disconnect and PTO shaft in place is the kinda thing I was wondering about. Sounds like it wouldn稚 be much of an issue for me, just have to remember it痴 hanging down there a bit.

I talked to my neighbor who has a bobcat with a quick attach blower and he doesn稚 have the GPM flow really required for a quick attach blower. Most of them want a ton of flow. So quick attach geared his down (blower) to match his machine痴 flow rate, but it doesn稚 throw the snow very far due to that. And I want to throw it as far a I can.
Also the quick attach units from everyone I could find were twice the cost of the 2360.
So it痴 be nice to just use the quick attach/ drop the bucket leave the loader arms/etc attaches, but the price difference and the machine痴 hydro flow all lead me away from that ideal option of blower.

I can think of better ways to spend the extra 3 grand. And deal with the 20-25 minutes to swap if/when needed.

 

[irvingj]

Another thing to watch for if you leave the quick-hitch on while using the FEL: the driveshaft/tube shield that hangs out the front of the quick-hitch can (and probably will) get plugged with snow. Not terribly hard to clear it out, but I just slip a 12" or so section of 3" shipping tube over it that keeps snow out when using the FEL.

 

[cdaigle430]

All,
I'm looking to put a front mount Snow Blower on my 2019 GC1723E.
What i'm wondering is if any one can chime in on how hard it is to swap out the Blower for the Loader.
Thinking i might want the loader to move piles of snow/etc and wondering how hard it's going to be to pull off the Blower and slap on the Loader.
This might influence my decision to go with a front blower or a rear blower or even just do a Skid Steer Blower with a PTO Pump/Tank.

So looking for advice on the difficulty of taking on and off the 2360 Front Blower

- Thanks

I know the rear mount can be a pain in the neck-literally! But I love having the loader in front and its a must now. I use edge tamers on the loader until the ground freezes solid.

Some say its easy to swap out loader and blower but in the middle of winter screwing around with couplers and cold metal? On top of that I get a pretty even distribution of weight with the heavy rear mount blower.

I just wish my neck could handle it better....or maybe I can find a way to reverse the seat and control the operator functions....that would be cool.