Grader scraper pricing

[ETD66SS]

I'm in the market for a grader scraper for building and maintaining a crusher run driveway. Ultimately I'll have about 1700 ft of stone driveway to maintain.

I have been looking at all different brands of grader scrapers (I've read a ton of forum threads on the subject), and it seems most dealers nearest me carry Woods. I'm thinking I want a 7ft wide model to use with my Ford 4610 SU (with front weights). The model I have gravitated to is a Woods GSM84, the local dealer wants $1962.00 + tax. I do want one with scarifiers. They have GSS72P in stock that I could probably get for about $1800.00 total, but I think that unit is too light for my tractor and the work I want to do with it.

This dealership is notorious for price gouging, however I'm so close I can drive my tractor there to hook up etc, so that's convenient.

Just wondering what people have paid for these recently, most forum threads on the subject are a few years old. I'm looking at about $2134 total for the local dealer Woods unit, about ~$250 more than if I were to order a scraper from Everything Attachments. (However they say on their website that their cutting edge hieght is adjustable, but I'm not seeing that from the pictures/videos).

 

[oosik]

You are talking about "BUILDING"(my emphasis) and maintaining a 1700 foot crusher run driveway.

Unfortunately - you WILL NOT be building any type of a driveway with a land plane grading scraper. They are an implement to maintain an existing driveway. They will not build a driveway.

And if you are truly looking at building the driveway with your 63hp Ford - you are looking at an awful lot of work for which that tractor is not equipped to handle.

A 1700 foot gravel driveway is best constructed with construction grade equipment.

I'm sorry to be so blunt but with that tractor and a LPGS you simply will not build a 1700 foot driveway.

 

[atsah]

You are talking about "BUILDING"(my emphasis) and maintaining a 1700 foot crusher run driveway.

Unfortunately - you WILL NOT be building any type of a driveway with a land plane grading scraper. They are an implement to maintain an existing driveway. They will not build a driveway.

And if you are truly looking at building the driveway with your 63hp Ford - you are looking at an awful lot of work for which that tractor is not equipped to handle.

A 1700 foot gravel driveway is best constructed with construction grade equipment.

I'm sorry to be so blunt but with that tractor and a LPGS you simply will not build a 1700 foot driveway.

Agreed.. Pay someone who has an excavator and dozer and knows how to build a driveway and then maintain it with a box blade or whatever you have.

 

[ETD66SS]

Well, neither of you actually answered my question but thanks, I guess.

btw I have a dozer and excavator, etc Imgur: The magic of the Internet. What I don't have is a grader. I'm looking to fine grade the substrate before compacting, laying the geotextile and the crusher run. I'd rather not do that with my box blade. (actually I have been using my box blade and it's not flat enough to my liking). I also figured a planer would do a better job of flattening the crusher run after I spread it with the dozer as opposed to a box blade, and ofc it will be primarily used for maint. after the driveway is built. For spreading the stone I will use Dozer->Box blade->Planer->15t vibratory roller.

just wanted a price check, not instructions on how to run my life, sheesh this website sometimes...

 

[atsah]

I'm in the market for a grader scraper for building and maintaining a crusher run driveway.

Trust me we are not trying to run your life.. You said in your opening post that you are in the market for a scraper blade to (BUILD) and maintain a 1700 ft road, that is why we posted what we did.

The prices are pretty high in my opinion..

 

[oosik]

Perhaps your opening statement could have indicated something other than - "I'm in the market for a grader scraper for building and maintaining a crusher run driveway."

Now that we are getting more of the facts - its a new ball game and we can play it forward. For future reference - very few of us are familiar with your situation and rely upon what you tell us. And if you want instructions on how to run your life - well, you came to the wrong site.

OK - Woods makes excellent implements. The price you were quoted for the GSM84 sound pretty competitive. Your tractor should be adequate to handle that land plane grading scraper.

The LPGS is perhaps the easiest implement to learn. More or less - hook it up and go. The major adjustment will be with the top link.

Properly adjusted it will do the job you want with the substrate.

Added note - here you see the price difference on implements between where atsah is there in Maine and where I'm at here in EA WA state.

BTW - I have a Land Pride GS2584 which cost new in 2013 - $1850.

 

[ETD66SS]

I guess everything costs more here in New York. So far I have the Woods GSM84 comming in at $1962.00, the Land Pride GS2584 comming in at $2575.00 and a Bush Hog HDRG84 at $2595.00, all before the wonderful NYS tax.

I guess I go with the Woods as the dealer is right around the corner, I really can't wait the 4-5 weeks for delivery, but I guess these are a specialty item no one wants to stock...

 

[oosik]

Only thing I can think of on price - that price I quoted is five year old. LPGS is one implement that you could add weight to and probably not damage the unit or its frame. Mine weighs 796 and I have a 420 pound square of concrete I've set on it. This really get it humpin' when I'm out cutting new trails in the pucker weeds and thru the sage brush. Mine has a full set of scarifiers - with the scarifiers down - the extra weight on its frame - the unit does a good job of cutting new trails.

 

[ETD66SS]

Ok, so I found a "local" place that has a Woods GSM84P and a GSM96P, I have to drive about an hour one way but that's way better than waiting 4-5 weeks.

Me being a bigger is better kind of person, what would be the disadvantages (if any) of the 8ft model vs. the 7ft? The biggest tractor I have right now is the Ford 4610SU, but I am looking to get a 4630 4WD or the like sometime in the future, with plenty of trails/roads I'd like to make on my 60+ acres of land. One disadvantage I can think of is I currently have a 7ft wide Bush Hog roll over box blade, it might be annoying to have a leveler that is 1 ft wider when using the two in conjunction for a project. On the other hand, for landscaping, wider is better.

I'd think my 4610SU should be able to handle the 8ft for the driveway project?

 

[oosik]

My 84" LPGS pulls easily. Think about it - my two "blades" are set 1/2" below the side panels. So at the maximum the unit is scraping off a half inch of whatever - soil, gravel, etc. Now when I lower the scarifiers - it can become a harder pull. However - my tractor is 4WD and even with the scarifies at their lowest setting I've never felt it was a difficult pull.

If the scarifiers find my basaltic lava bedrock - well, that's an all different story. I've, so far, never damaged or bruised anything but I'm always on "high alert" when I go with the scarifiers down.

I don't think you will have any difficulty pulling an eight foot LPGS with your 4610SU. You will be working with substrate - which the unit should handle easily and you don't have to worry about large boulders or bedrock.

 

[TSO]

I have the LandPride GS2584. I am going to respectfully disagree with the others that say you can't build a new driveway with one. If you are experienced and crafty, you can absolutely build and maintain with one. The caveat would be that it's not gonna "carve" out your base and move the sub material out... You'll use a different tool for that. Generally I use my tracked machine to carve out a new driveway, and spread/compact base material. Then I spread and finish the driveway with the LPGS. The LPGS on its own will not create a road crown, but you can do it yourself by dropping the new material in the right place while installing/dropping it.

I have built many driveways in this manner with excellent results.

I too looked at the Woods unit but felt the LandPride was heavier built.... Which is why I ended up with the LandPride, at a slightly higher cost.

Best of luck!

 

[ETD66SS]

It's looking like I can get a pretty good deal on a Woods GSM84 at $1450. I'd have to wait 4-5 weeks to get a Land Pride GS2584, and the best price I have found is $2400. I agree that the Land Pride is probably a better unit, but I don't think $950 better...


And yeah, about 8 years ago I used my CAT D6C to excavate out the topsoil and backfilled the driveway with a glacial till material I had on site from pond digging as the substrate. I did this because my soil is all sandy loam, to about 9 ft down, so there is no good substrate by just excavating. I was worried about the glacial till I put in there, as some internet experts told me that was a huge mistake, however a Civil engineer that I hired disagreed with the internet experts, so I have the green light.


Only issue with the glacial till substrate is it does have large rocks mixed in, some about basketball size. So I will have to watch what I'm doing no matter what attachment I'm using.


The way I have done the crown in the past is to ask for live bottom truck with conveyors to deliver the stone, they drop the stone on the center of the geotextile and I drive behind with my dozer, the stone falling via gravity kind of creates a natural crown. It still needs gathering with a grader blade, then moving with a box blade to get level, and then I will use the grader scraper for the final leveling.
I can't get it level with my dozer alone, it's a 1968 machine with sloppy blade hydraulics and of course no laser leveling equipment.

 

[crazyal]

I doubt you'll find one locally but I bought a BEFCO grading scraper. It was several hundreds cheaper even with shipping and weighed more. I got a 6' simply because my driveway is about 10' wide.

 

[ETD66SS]

Well, I have decided to go with the Woods GSM96P for $1650 + tax. Much better deal than I would have gotten from my local dealer, plus I get to pick it up today as opposed to waiting 4-5 weeks.

 

[TSO]

Congrats! Do you have a hydraulic top link? As with many other rear implements, being able to adjust pitch on the fly is a MUST with this tool, especially with using the scarifiers.

 

[ETD66SS]

Congrats! Do you have a hydraulic top link? As with many other rear implements, being able to adjust pitch on the fly is a MUST with this tool, especially with using the scarifiers.

I do not, and my current top link is bent thanks to my Dad, so will probably have to do something there. I had home made remote hydraulics on the 4610 when I bought it but removed all of that as it was kind of a mess.

 

[ETD66SS]

Got it home, will try it out this weekend.

 

[TSO]

Looks good! Look forward to your review

 

[ETD66SS]

I got a chance to try it out this weekend, here are some pics: Woods GSM96P - Album on Imgur

I think I got the hang of it pretty quickly, most annoying part is all the rocks in the substrate, after each pass have to go pick them up.

My 4610SU pulls the unit without any problems. One thing I didn't expect is that the leveler pulls more dirt than I expected, I can somewhat move dirt around like I do with my box blade.

 

[TSO]

Nice pics. Just wait until you get the hydraulic top link installed again. Even as useful as that is now, it will be twice or more as useful with hydraulics.