Grader/Scrape Blade Vs Box Blade.

[HoneyBadger1]

For give my ignorance. I am sitting here pondering if I should purchase a 60in Scrape Blade or a middle buster to place small trenches next to my roads and probably a few other places. Or should I use the box blade that I already have. The sales me told me I can do anything the scrape blade can do with the box blade but I would like to know what you think. Thanks in advance-Bill

 

[Oldoak]

Since you already have a box blade, why don't you try to do what you want done and see if it meets your satisfaction?

One thing a scrapper blade can do that you can't do with a box blade is to angle it at a 45 degrees to shift the soil all to one side while digging trenches.

 

[Rich B1]

I would guess the sales guy was trying to sell you a blade. The box blade and scraper blade are 2 different animals.

While there is some overlap in what the 2 do, it is small.

I have both and use both. But I use them for what they do best.

Watch Craigslist......you can find deals on blades there. Unless you have to have new

 

[Katahdin]

I purchased a box blade the same width as my LX and wasn't able to angle it enough to dig ditches. I think the BB need to be a bit wider than the tractor for ditch digging.

 

[oosik]

I pull a rear blade or roll-over-box blade( ROBB ) with my tractor. Both implements are HEAVY Class 2 implements. What Rich B1 says in post #3 is spot on. I will VERY SELDOM use the ROBB for driveway maintenance. It can not clean out my driveway ditches, can't clear snow and I don't have the time/patience to figure out if it can crown the driveway.

I use my rear blade, exclusively, for driveway maintenance - summer & winter. It clears the snow, cleans the ditches, crowns the driveway and to a limited extent will move material from here to there. I use the ROBB to create new trails in & around my property. Also to move material when landscaping, leveling or terracing. The ROBB is the implement for creating a new landfill cell on the property.

 

[fried1765]

For give my ignorance. I am sitting here pondering if I should purchase a 60in Scrape Blade or a middle buster to place small trenches next to my roads and probably a few other places. Or should I use the box blade that I already have. The sales me told me I can do anything the scrape blade can do with the box blade but I would like to know what you think. Thanks in advance-Bill

"The sales told me I can do anything the scrape blade can do with the box blade".
Your sales guy if full of Sxxt.
I have both scrape & box blades.
I NEVER use my box blade.....wish I had never bought it!
Look at the EA "Deluxe Scrape Blade",...it is first class!!!

 

[fried1765]

I purchased a box blade the same width as my LX and wasn't able to angle it enough to dig ditches. I think the BB need to be a bit wider than the tractor for ditch digging.

EXACTLY CORRECT !!!

 

[Overtaxed]

For give my ignorance. I am sitting here pondering if I should purchase a 60in Scrape Blade or a middle buster to place small trenches next to my roads and probably a few other places. Or should I use the box blade that I already have. The sales me told me I can do anything the scrape blade can do with the box blade but I would like to know what you think. Thanks in advance-Bill

I have both, and do exactly what you're asking about, so I feel somewhat qualified to comment. Other's have done this a lot more than me, so don't take it as gospel.

For cutting a ditch, a rear blade is the bees knees. Put a big angle and tilt on it, go slow, and it'll pull a nice (6" to 1' deep for me) in a single pass and deposit the scarf up on your road/trail. A BB is near worthless for this, I can't get enough angle, and, even when I can get it to start digging, it wants to jump out of the ditch the first high point I hit.

Now, if you're following, you've got a trail with a big berm of dirt from where you cut the ditch. Here's where the BB shines. Hook that up and I'll distribute that berm all over the trail nice and even, and put a great surface down to walk on if you tilt it way back to rest it on the rear blade (not cutting, just compacting). For me, it's a 2 step process, use a rear blade to dig the ditch, and the BB to level out the scarf and make the road/trail surface. You could do it all with the rear blade, but it's a lot more work to get a nice level surface (at least without gauge wheels, which I don't have). I use a 84" rear blade and 72" box blade on my tractor, the rear blade being bigger is important so you can cut the ditch without being in the ditch.

 

[crazyal]

It sounds like you are new to owning a tractor. When I first got my tractor I had access to a box blade but found it not at all what I needed. For cleaning out ditches I just used my front loader. On hills that are too steep the ditches usually don't need any work. It's not as fast as a BB but sometimes speed isn't always needed. Of course my ditches don't usually get filled with valuable gravel but leaves and dirt so the loader makes for an easy time moving it without getting it on my driveway. The best thing you can do is ask questions and play around some to get seat time. I ended up with a grading scraper instead of a BB. It can't do ditches but I find that 95% of what I need to do to my driveway is grading it.

 

[HoneyBadger1]

Thank.you all for the input. Let me clarify. Yes, I am completely new to tractors and even owning land. I have an RK24. I have a 5ft BB. I have tried to cut ditches with it and am unsure if it my lack of experience or the tractors lack of adjustment that prohibits me from getting the desired results from the BB. The salesman told me that due to the size of the RK24 I would not be able to run a scrape blade large enough to have a "tilt" capability(I'm sure there's a word for it but that's what I'll go with). He stated that my ability to dip the one side of a scrape blade down would be limited to the adjustment on the 3point hitch itself. I have not seen one in the size range I have been looking. If anyone has any recommendations I would greatly appreciate them. As far as using the FEL.... I can in a few places but the majority I can not. At least not easily.