...My take box blade is designed to pull or carry dirt from one spot to another and has limited to no skids for depth control
Land plane is designed to plane or smooth dirt with long skids for depth control. They will move limited quantity of dirt from one spot to the next. Less prone to follow washboard movements than box blade.
I think the vast majority of people who have a hard time smoothing with the box blade over rough terrain, is because they try to hold the box blade in the perfect position while the tractor goes up/down the bumps, causing the box blade to follow, and making it almost impossible to get a smooth surface without going painstakingly slow.
If the box blade is allowed to 'float' with the 3 point hitch all the way down, this doesn't happen. The box blade stays on the ground and the tractor pitches as needed over the bumps. The trick here is getting the top link set right so that it keeps the rear trailing blade of the box blade on the ground, acting as a gauge wheel, and allowing the front blade to just barely skim the surface. When the box is full, all the weight of the dirt inside it, also help to keep that back trailing blade tight to the ground, resulting in a packing action and smoothing the surface even more.
Using a box blade well requires a high degree of skill. Using a land plane well does not. A large box blade in the hands of a skilled operator can do everything the land plane can do and much more. Many operators, including me, do not have ninja-like skill with a box blade so I prefer the land plane since it's so much less frustrating and much quicker. I think that's the difference.
Very well said. I think this is what I'm noticing and perhaps the reason I don't see the huge advantage of the land plane.
All I can say is that I have 4 different implements that I can use on my over mile long drive. A half mile is shared with 4 neighbors and often has wash boarding. I have what I consider above-average operator skills. All of these implements range from 800lb - 1400lbs. For general road maintanance, I can get the same results with any of the 4 implements. I easily complete this task in less than half the time with the LPGS (land plane) vs the box blade, rear blade or landscape rake. They each accel at certain specific tasks.
Unlike most people, I do not consider the LPGS a one-trick pony, but that is another topic. It excels at road maintenance and I can't even imagine not having it for this task after having used one.
Heck, I have 2, a 7 footer at 1400lbs and a 5 footer at 800lbs for my smaller tractor.
A couple issues in my situation that complicates things are: My road is very steep. When using the land plane, the dirt just flows over the blades and loosely falls onto the surface of the road. With the box blade, and a full box of dirt, the dirt flows UNDER the rear blade and results in more of a packed down surface. If we get a decent rain after I grade it, all the dirt is washed down the road if done with the land plane. Even with the box blade the dirt won't last a downpour, but it does hold up better than the loose finish of the land plane.
The other issue is rocks. If I dig up a rock with the box blade, it 'usually' will get caught in the box and I can drop it at the end of the run where I please. With the land plane, the rocks will get pushed over the blades and just sit on the surface of the road, then I go back and hand pick them off.
The reason I still have the land plane is because I really like it, it's a quality piece of equipment that's hard to come by in this size/weight if buying used. I want to love it, I really do, I just haven't found that emotional attachment to it yet
I think speed is likely the answer I'm looking for. I can be lazier, and quicker, using the land plane in the right situations. I'm not giving up yet, I'll do some experimenting. I appreciate the other points of view from all.
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