Front snowplow vs rear blade for driveway snow cleanup?

stillhunt · Aug 16, 2020

Just bought a new tractor and have a list of attachments to buy. Need a way to handle snow this winter on a gravel driveway with decent slope in areas. Tires ballasted and planning to chain it up. Debating between adding third function with a hydraulic-angle snow blade vs a rear blade. For those who've used both for snow cleanup, can you list pro's and con's for each. The rear blade would obviously be a lot less expensive but not sure I like the idea of driving over what I'm about to plow or going in reverse all the time. Tractor is a Kubota L2501, so not a huge tractor.

Thomas · Aug 16, 2020

If you pushing snow backwards just remember there no trip springs on the blade to protect if hitting hard object.

s219 · Aug 16, 2020

What climate/location? Does your ground stay frozen or go through freeze/thaw cycles? For a gravel drive in a freeze/thaw climate, you will need to put a pipe over the cutting edge, or use some other trick to prevent scraping the gravel off (standard plow shoes don't always do a very good job as they want to furrow in unless the gravel is really frozen hard). This precaution will be needed whether it's a front blade or rear blade. The whole trick will be removing the snow sufficiently "well enough" with minimal disturbance to the gravel. So in reality, driving over the snow before a rear blade hits it won't really matter and might even help.

If you are somehwere where the ground freezes hard and stays that way for a long time, you might have an easier job. And in those climates, people often want to establish a "plow base" of packed frozen snow over the top of the gravel.

I have a gravel drive and can generally get the snow cleared off with just a thin layer remaining. Here in VA, sun takes care of the rest quickly, but if it's really cold and doesn't melt off, it packs down and makes for a decent driving bases. Normally it will thaw again within 2-4 days.

This is a fairly typical result after clearing with a rear blade and pipe over the cutting edge:

I tend to clear in two passes, out and back, one on each side of the driveway. This avoids running down the very middle and scraping off the crown in the gravel.

mcfarmall · Aug 16, 2020

I used a fixed, pin-on blade on the front end loader and a 6 foot scraper blade on the rear of an old Ford 2N for many, many years and it was a snow moving beast. No angle, tilt or anything front or rear. Loaded rear tires and cross link chains.

Roadworthy · Aug 16, 2020

I just use the front loader on my tractor. I set the height about an inch or so above the gravel. The goal is to get it low enough not to high center my wife's car. We can drive over the last inch or two.

RalphVa · Aug 16, 2020

I had a big snow plow on my Gravely and now have a back blade on the JD with its FEL.

I'd say it's like this:

o Up to about 8" back blade is great. Driving over it first is no problem.

o Up to about 12 to 15" front plow is great

o Above 15" or so, need FEL for slow removal or front or rear snow blower for faster removal.

o Get sleet, need snow blower. Plows won't bite into it. Had an old snow blower for the Gravely. It bit into 6" of sleet and threw it about 60' away.

Depends on how much snow you get.

Ralph

chim · Aug 16, 2020

In the order of what I've used in the last 30 years:

Grader blade on a Cub 154 LoBoy
Rear blade on Ford 1210
FEL and rear blade on Kubota B7500
FEL and rear blade on Kubota L3200
Rear blower on Kubota L3200
Converted 8' Fisher plow on SSQA on Kubota L4240

I got by with all of them. Rear blades took more effort. Blower was fun but was poor for doing parking lots where I had to toss the snow more than once to get it off the lot. Snow plow on SSQA is my favorite.

RjCorazza · Aug 16, 2020

I use both a front ssqa blade and rear blade. The rear blade is easier for me to use on the rare gravel drive I do. I run the blade backwards to keep the blade from biting into the gravel. I also use the rear blade on paved driveways (backing) to push snow off the driveway edge, or when finding the edges.

Rear blades take a beating here on TBN, but I like them.

CoyPatton · Aug 16, 2020

If you get just a few snows per year and just a few inches at a time, there is a product call edge tamers that fit on your bucket and prevent the cutting edge from digging in. I have seen these slide across grass areas and you could see grass through the snow left. They will largely leave your gravel alone as well.
Gravel with any type of blade/plow will be a tough chore to leave undisturbed. Pulling a rear bladed reversed with a piece of plastic pipe over the edge works ok.
By the way the piece of pipe over the edge with blade facing forward does an ok job on moving leaves in the fall (not great but ok)

i7win7 · Aug 16, 2020

Unless your in Canada or have lake effect snow, you will be OK with forward plowing. Yes, plowing in reverse moves more snow. I do this to open up space for the next round of snow or to push it over a ravine. Chains, you may need wheel spacers.

Funny thing with FEL plow when you angle the blade it also tilts. You have to adjust curl cylinders to make blade level again. The skid shoes on the plow keep digging into my gravel, think it needs wheels like a state truck has. It maybe years of only having a rear blade but I just use rear blade now, less hassle.