Snow Front Blade or Snow blower ??

keyman1808 · Nov 12, 2009

Ok here it is. Was wondering what would be better for snow removal. A 5' blade or a frnt mount snowblower. Here on the seacoast of mass we either get just a couple of inches or really walloped with 12 inches or more. So what are the opinions. A place to pile the snow isn't an issue. I have used the loader in the past but it is a pain in the a@#. Isnt wide enough and the snow falls back under the wheels and gets packed down. So what does everyone think.

Couple of Achers · Nov 12, 2009

I believe this issue has been discussed before here. I think what it comes down too is what works best for your situation. Were I live in MN, I would not want to be without a snow blower ever again. For me the best combo I have found is a the front mount snow blower and a 3 pt. rear blade. You can use the blade to pull around the nuisance snows (a couple of inches) but you have the front blower available for the 12" dumpers. I'm sure you will get other opinions as to what works best. That's the beauty of this site. Gather as much info as you can and then decide what is best for you. Good luck.

king1 · Nov 12, 2009

there are pro's and cons to both. if your driveway is gravel then i would not suggest a snow blower. the other thing with a snow blower is when the snow is light then they don't seem to work as well as a blade. when the snow is heavy and wet the blower can be somewhat slow and require more maintenance. the wind is also an issue with a blower. for example, i hate

snow blowing back in my face when i'm up against the wind and a building and there is no other place to blow it. the nice thing about the blower is not having to push it anywhere and that in and of itself is a plus and can save time. the blade is good for all of the above especially if piling up the snow is not an issue. some wet heavy snow is hard to move with a blade but if you have a place to put it without having to push it real far then i think that is a good option. its nice to be able to backdrag snow away from a garage door, building, etc. the blade is probably less expensive as well but if you need weight on the back or you need to load the tires and or get tire chains it can add up. i like blades or pushboxes because of the maintenace issue. i don't want to fix it so i can use it in the middle of a snow storm. the blade has alot less of a chance to break down. blades have been used by the state dot's, counties, cities, and your average guy for a long time. it's a proven way to move snow with little maintenance. good luck to you.

keyman1808 · Nov 12, 2009

I almost forot. I'm using a BX24 with bar type tires on a paved driveway. Backblading isn't an issue as I will leave from the garage itself so only one door will need to be cleared. I usally just push it out by hand the clear it with the machine. My concern is if the BX24 will have the muscle in a deep snow

techman · Nov 12, 2009

I think that biggest factor is your road/driveway. If you have clear margins on the sides, and you get a lot of snow, you will have a lot of room to push the snow off. In this case a blade should be fine. If you are restricted on the sides, a blower may make more sense as you can send it some distance.

I have a 1/2 mile driveway with about 1/3 of it along dense woods on both sides. We have had winters where I can get drifting up to 4' high, and there would be no place to push it after the first snow. For me the blower is the only solution. Blowing can take longer to do, but in bigger snow it is a one pass operation, where a blade may require multiple passes.

Paul

bp fick · Nov 12, 2009

Back Blade
Rear Snow blower
Front blade
Front snow blower

That is the generally accept order of preference, from worst to best. All work, but what works better and is preferred. Many guys hate backing up all the time. Sore neck and all.

That is not, however, the order of expense to your wallet. In order of least expensive to most expensive:

back blade
front blade
rear snow blower
front snow blower

Your mileage may vary.

missourithunder · Nov 12, 2009

keyman 1808,
I agree with bp. At the top of my wishlist is a front snow blower but the lining of my wallet told a different story so I went with a rear blade.

MT

radioman · Nov 12, 2009

keyman-
I have a BX24 as well. I found that anything wider then the FEL is better. muscle power ? don't worry about it, you got it for the 1-1.5' light stuff. If it wet, You just learn to push it aside. This is where ther HST comes in handy.

This is gonna sound like a broken record here as I said this many times before- I too started out with the FEL. I later built a 6' wooden pusher and strapped it to the FEL. Its whole lot better then using FEL alone. I comes on/off in minutes. Later I added a 4ft backblade. It works good in small snowfalls and wet stuff. A year later I experimented with a truck plow mounted like a dozer on FEL arms. Better then wooden plow but no angle. It rolls the snow out of the way. This summer I modified the mounts for truck plow so I can angle it manually and use the trip springs.

I prefer to have plow over blower since its toooo windy here for blower esp. with no cab.

moeh1 · Nov 12, 2009

I built a quickclamp front blade for hanging on the front bucket, really much faster plowing when the snow is light. I wasn't sure how well it would do, but its been nice. I have the cheaper rear blower for heavier snow. When we get a foot plus, it seems much easier to blow than plow. My drive is 400' long, curved and slopes down quite a bit to the road, and I have several spots where I couldn't just cut the plow off to the side....