Snowblower Front snowblowers and Kioti

[JCA]

Just had a long chat with a Kioti dealer. He said I'd need to use a rear snowblower; said the ones that go in front were too expensive, and...well, he didn't seem too sure what else.

Kubota sells a front snowblower for around $2800 (that's the one for the B series), and I know Woods makes one, though I don't know for what tractors, or how much they cost.

What's the real story? Is there any reason why I couldn't put a front 'blower on a Kiota LB1914? (Not that I'm going to buy one; I'm still shopping...) And how much to aftermarket front 'blowers cost, anyway?

Thanks,
Jim

 

[rambler]

I'm a guy who prefers rear mount blowers, so please bear with my personal bias'. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Don't know so much about your tractor, does it have a front (aka mid-) pto to hook the blower up to?

Do you have 4 wheel drive?

If yes, then a front blower is great.

If no to both, then they get pretty expensive because you have to run a gearset off the rear pto, a driveline under the tractor to the front, and all the mounting & lifting hardware up front.

And, without front wheel assist, you have all the weight up front, which takes away your snow traction.

--->Paul

 

[JCA]

Paul, I don't have a tractor yet; I'm still shopping.

The Kioti 1914 DOES have 4WD. This is what the spec sheet says about front PTO. Not sure what it means:

"The engine is equipped with a splined crankshaft for use as a front PTO." /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

Thanks,
Jim

 

[shoppintractors]

<font color="blue">The engine is equipped with a splined crankshaft for use as a front PTO." /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif
</font>

See the shaft coming out of the lower pulley in the picture.

Don

 

[rambler]

That splined shaft is great for running a hyd pump, powering a vbelt, or something. It would take something to use it for a snowblower I think.

Many 'front' ptos are actually coming out of the transmission about in the middle of the tractor, under it. It sticks forward, a splined shaft. Many turn at 1000 rpm, but can be different. It is fairly easy to hook a snow blower up to this, and tractors with a front (mid) pto typically have blowers designed for such use. They have a fairly straightforward mounting system when it's designed from the factory.

If you do not have a front (mid) pto then the driveline to power the snow blower becomes complicated (more $$$$) and the extra mounting brackets & lifts become more combersome & complicated (more $$$$). In addition to the cost, 'more complicated' usually is far more difficult to mount...

At that point, a rear 3 pt snow blower is about 1/2 price, simple to mount/ dismount, and retains it's resale value because anyone can use it, not just your model of tractor.

Guess that's what I would look at.

--->Paul

 

[JCA]

Paul,

Thanks for that info...very helpful. The problem I see with a rear-mount snowblower is that my driveway's nearly 1000 feet long, and I'm not sure how comfortable I'd be backing up and down it three or four times every time it snows, looking over my shoulder. I've never tried it before; maybe it's fine.

Cheers,
Jim

 

[MossRoad]

What tractor do you have now?

 

[JCA]

Don't have one. Still shoppin'.

Jim

 

[WCarlson]

I have had three JD all with front blowers. Currently I have a JD 4200 with a 59" two stage front blower. The ease which which you can operate a front blower makes it extremely efficient, albeit more costly. I can do my 400 ft of drive and two turn around areas in less than 15 minutes regardless of the depth of snow or what presents the county plows have left me, without getting a sore neck. So far this season I have had 180 inches of snow and the year before last had 192", so I get a lot of practice. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
Bill

 

[yooperdave]

Front snowblowers are just plain expensive.

I am thinking about buying a snowblower for a power trac tractor. All the usual concerns about a mid mount pto, special spline off the engine, etc become moot points with the power trac.

A 60" snowblower is $3,000 and a 72" is $3,500. Considering that I will already have a dozer blade and fel with ultimate quick attach, I may just say NO to any snowblower.

Yooper Dave

 

[johnsonauto]

Have you looked at the Mahindras? They offer front mount snow blowers on there tractors, and yes they are alot more expenssive than a rear mount, but much nicer than looking backwards all the time.
I think front mount aftermarket blowers run in the high 3's and up from what i have seen. Not shure about aftermarket for the kioti's though.

 

[Dr_Zinj]

If you're an older gentleman like myself, the back and neck don't handle being cranked around to see where your going if using a rear-mount snow blower.

And even if you're not an older person, doing that sort of thing on a regular, frequent, and extended basis will mess up your neck and back eventually.

I have a 1400 foot drive that's 15 feet wide for half the distance, and 25 feet the rest of the way. If the tractor won't handle a front mount snowblower running off a mid-PTO, it doesn't even make the consideration pile.

The only reasons why farm tractors have rear mount snow blowers is that the rear PTO was traditionally the only standard PTO. (That discounts the side PTO belt drive on the antiques) And because the blowers weighed so much it needed to be rear mounted for traction. You can offset the blower weight by making sure you have a rear weight box or backhoe installed just as you would with an FEL.

 

[GreenWannabe]

Erskine makes a front-mounted blower which is driven by a shaft from the rear pto, through a transfer case. You can see it on their website, Snow Blower - Front Mount - Erskine Attachments, Inc..

 

[smfcpacfp]

Even though the Kubota blower you mentioned was $2,800, you also need a subframe which would probably bring the cost to over $4,000.

As to the front blower...I guess it would depend upon how much time you have to spend blowing. I probably have to snow blow 40 times a season (20 to 30 feet of snow) and it takes about 40 minutes from when I start up my rig until it is put away. I couldn't imagine twisting my neck for 25 hours of blowing each year. It depends upon how much you value you comfort. Here is my rig - mid winter:

 

[brandoro]

I want to be like smfcpacfp when I grow up.
For years I thought the 3 pt snow blower was okay. Last year I guess I spent a little too much time looking over my shoulder, messed up my neck and upper back, so now I have a front mount snowblower on its way. Seems odd to be looking forward to a new snowblower in June but I still remember how long it took for my back to get over that. If your back is still young and flexible the 3pt blower will do the job, if you are not so flexible talk to someone who will get you what you want, after all, you are the one to decide what is "too expensive". That means way different things to different people.