Well I messed up and waited too long. I originally wanted the Everything attachments Land plane but wasn't sure what size to get. I knew my 2840 Montana could not handle much of a land plane and I knew I was upgrading to a bigger cab tractor soon. How much bigger I had no Idea. With 0% for 84 months being offered I finally decided on a CT2535 and tried to use it but it failed miserably in my application. I had no idea how much the elevation (4960') and a hydrostat would rob power from a normally aspirated 3 cylinder engine. I took delivery and promptly decided it wasn't going to work. With the backhoe installed and loaded tires I could not get the tractor to move even one inch using the linked pedal system. I then had to use the hand throttle at max throttle before even trying to move it to just get the tractor to move up to the house where I could call the dealer and tell them I needed to upgrade the size and HP.
For those that are thinking I'm full of it, watch the link below. It has been a long and challenging project for sure. Yes I cut the driveway myself with help from a friend who was a pioneer road builder for a local mine.
So what I ended up deciding on since I was now trapped into the Bobcat brand was the CT5555. The CT5558 was $2800 more for just 3HP. Just not worth the money IMHO. I get it delivered on Tuesday April 2nd. I sure hope it works! Yes with loaded tires and a backhoe too.
My question is that with Everything Attachments out of the picture what is the best land plane available? I liked the EA because of the designed in extra strength and the larger blade angle that allowed it to slice rather than just drag the materials to the side and dump them over the blade. I also liked the twin hole blade mount design that made it so you could flip the blades as they wore out. I know it is designed for gravel driveways but mine is a natural gravel and clay mix. So I thought for leveling out the ripples that driving up the steep side causes a land plane would be the fastest and easiest solution. Any thoughts are welcome. I have been using a 6' scraper blade that has a 6 way adjustment feature and was built in the late 1930s from what I can decipher on the data plate (1930 or 1939). This tool does a great job but with my old 2840 Montana it could only grade going down hill. It made for a two or three 10 hour a day job. Manually angling the blade and arm was a chore but manageable for now or until I get older that is.
For those that are thinking I'm full of it, watch the link below. It has been a long and challenging project for sure. Yes I cut the driveway myself with help from a friend who was a pioneer road builder for a local mine.
So what I ended up deciding on since I was now trapped into the Bobcat brand was the CT5555. The CT5558 was $2800 more for just 3HP. Just not worth the money IMHO. I get it delivered on Tuesday April 2nd. I sure hope it works! Yes with loaded tires and a backhoe too.
My question is that with Everything Attachments out of the picture what is the best land plane available? I liked the EA because of the designed in extra strength and the larger blade angle that allowed it to slice rather than just drag the materials to the side and dump them over the blade. I also liked the twin hole blade mount design that made it so you could flip the blades as they wore out. I know it is designed for gravel driveways but mine is a natural gravel and clay mix. So I thought for leveling out the ripples that driving up the steep side causes a land plane would be the fastest and easiest solution. Any thoughts are welcome. I have been using a 6' scraper blade that has a 6 way adjustment feature and was built in the late 1930s from what I can decipher on the data plate (1930 or 1939). This tool does a great job but with my old 2840 Montana it could only grade going down hill. It made for a two or three 10 hour a day job. Manually angling the blade and arm was a chore but manageable for now or until I get older that is.
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