Another "what would you do thread"

[mjncad]

Erskine Attachemnts (Skid Steer Attachments - Erskine Attachments, Inc.) makes a front mounted blower that runs off the rear pto. They also have a rear mounted blower that is pulled forward rather than pushed backward. Good luck with your search.

I've looked at Erskine's products, and the PTO powered front blower intrigued me; but it looks like the driveline barely clears the ground depending on tire size.

Regarding the rear mounted blower you pull forward...it reminds me of putting the cart before the horse.

 

[crashz]

I've spent many hours behind the wheel of plow trucks. Anywhere from pickups to tandem dump trucks with 12 plows and wings to full fledged self propelled snow blowers (Sicard Junior!) and wheel loaders to clear the airport we used to service.

Our New England snow may be heavier, but it doesn't take much to stop a truck with a plow. Same goes for the tractor with a plow. The problem comes when the truck or tractor starts bogging and the operator starts ramming through. This causes snow and ice to pack in front of the blade, raising the blade and causing the truck/tractor to loose traction. Very quickly, you will loose the ability to move forward and backwards. And now you have a very heavy vehicle that you can't pull out, stuck between you and the rest of the world. Another problem on big storms is that you must plow with the storm no matter how big the equipment is. This could be very dangerous when visibility is poor, especially when steep, twisty roads are involved.

The snow blower will chew its way through everything you can throw at it. By going slow and clearing everything in front of you, you will avoid the battering ram mistakes and your chances of getting stuck are much less likely. You can take your time and start at the end of the storm whe you can see everything, and blow the snow much furthur away than a plow or wing can push it.

As far as the tractor spec, previous members have had some great suggestions as far as equipment and power needed. I'll second those and add the requirement of the blower and upgrade to the best radio you can get with the cab model tractor. You'll appreciate it!

 

[Gizmo2]

I've spent many hours behind the wheel of plow trucks. Anywhere from pickups to tandem dump trucks with 12 plows and wings to full fledged self propelled snow blowers (Sicard Junior!) and wheel loaders to clear the airport we used to service.

Our New England snow may be heavier, but it doesn't take much to stop a truck with a plow. Same goes for the tractor with a plow. The problem comes when the truck or tractor starts bogging and the operator starts ramming through. This causes snow and ice to pack in front of the blade, raising the blade and causing the truck/tractor to loose traction. Very quickly, you will loose the ability to move forward and backwards. And now you have a very heavy vehicle that you can't pull out, stuck between you and the rest of the world. Another problem on big storms is that you must plow with the storm no matter how big the equipment is. This could be very dangerous when visibility is poor, especially when steep, twisty roads are involved.

The snow blower will chew its way through everything you can throw at it. By going slow and clearing everything in front of you, you will avoid the battering ram mistakes and your chances of getting stuck are much less likely. You can take your time and start at the end of the storm whe you can see everything, and blow the snow much furthur away than a plow or wing can push it.

As far as the tractor spec, previous members have had some great suggestions as far as equipment and power needed. I'll second those and add the requirement of the blower and upgrade to the best radio you can get with the cab model tractor. You'll appreciate it!

A wise man.

 

[gordyy]

go with what crashz said
here in ND we just finished one of the snowiest winters on record (we still are at flood stage on our river and both lakes north of us are still above any previous level)
the plow trucks and graders ran out of room to move and pile
most commercial places paid more to haul away snow to make room than they usually do to clean there lots. the companies using blowers instead of loaders had room all year long

 

[Wis Bang]

I used to work for the US office of a French Canadian motor carrier. I used to laugh at out central dispatcher in Montreal complaining about the delays a few inches of snow caused in NJ. Where three inches during the morning rush hours would paralize the major highways.

My first visit to the home office was at the end of March. My directions had me exit Motoroute 40 at the Gallerie D Anjou, the mall at the north of Montreal. I marveled at the 10 wheel dumps driving up the landfill of snow dumping the latest accumulation that had been removed from the mall parking lots.

Then I was amazed to see the local snowplow; a large [quarry size] articulated CAT wheel loader except it had no bucket. The plow looked like they had simply welded the loader arms to a battleship and cut out a billboard sized section. Driving down the city street it was a foot of so off the ground and I could just see the operator's face peeking overtop. This thing could push snow, fire hydrants & parked cars included...

The best part was the apartments w/ little off street driveways. There were rented canopys w/ clear sections to check traffic so the locals didn't have to sweep that anoying snow off their cars each morning...

OP needs to think big.