Snow Snowblower Conversion

[bdhsfz6]

I'm tired of the stiff neck I get every time I work in reverse to clear snow with my Woods SS74 3 pt snowblower. With that season rapidly approaching, I'm again trying to figure a way to mount the Woods on the FEL of my Kubota. It would be easy enough to weld it to a QA adapter plate and fit a hydraulic motor but powering it is the question.

Tapping into the main FEL hydraulic circuit is the way Kubota / Landpride and many aftermarket models power their units. I have heard complaints however about the loss of power to the FEL cylinders when the hydraulic motor is in operation. This would be a problem for me since I often adjust the blower height and angle due to uneven terrain. This means a diverter valve won't work so I'll have to add a spool valve. I was thinking of tapping the BH hydraulic circuit but I'm not sure this will solve the problem.

The only sure way to avoid loss of FEL power is to use a PTO powered pump but the cost would be too much. I'm willing to spring for a valve, hoses and a hyd. motor but beyond that, I'll just buy more aspirin for my stiff neck.

I'm curious if anyone here has attempted this project and if so, what were the problems / results, hyd. motor size etc. For those who have front mounted snowblowers, is the loss of FEL cylinder pressure really an issue?

 

[carlhwv]

I'm tired of the stiff neck I get every time I work in reverse to clear snow with my Woods SS74 3 pt snowblower. With that season rapidly approaching, I'm again trying to figure a way to mount the Woods on the FEL of my Kubota. It would be easy enough to weld it to a QA adapter plate and fit a hydraulic motor but powering it is the question.

Tapping into the main FEL hydraulic circuit is the way Kubota / Landpride and many aftermarket models power their units. I have heard complaints however about the loss of power to the FEL cylinders when the hydraulic motor is in operation. This would be a problem for me since I often adjust the blower height and angle due to uneven terrain. This means a diverter valve won't work so I'll have to add a spool valve. I was thinking of tapping the BH hydraulic circuit but I'm not sure this will solve the problem.

The only sure way to avoid loss of FEL power is to use a PTO powered pump but the cost would be too much. I'm willing to spring for a valve, hoses and a hyd. motor but beyond that, I'll just buy more aspirin for my stiff neck.

I'm curious if anyone here has attempted this project and if so, what were the problems / results, hyd. motor size etc. For those who have front mounted snowblowers, is the loss of FEL cylinder pressure really an issue?

I have a Lorentz 7810...for sale....moved to TN....that I ran on the FEL of my 7040. I have have a third value and only have to hold the trigger in for the blower to turn. The thing you need to watch if you go hydro is matching the pump/motor on the blower with the flow rate of your tractor system. My 7040 is rated at a little of 11gpm and the pump on the blower is 14-16gpm rated and the blower worked fine. Only used it in big 2' plus snows biggest was 4' and it chewed it up. Down side is no loader..definitely recommend running a blade on rear with this set up. Hope this helps.

 

[Dave M7040]

I have an inverted snow blower. It is a two stage which you pull behind the tractor on the 3 pt.
I have not done it but I think with a bit of metal fabrication you could convert a back up style to a pull style and actually have it so you could still use it both ways by not destroying the existing hitch hardware.
I have a surgically fused neck and love being able to blow with out turning my head to look back.
Here is a youtube video of one in use:

Pronovost Inverted snowblower V 1 � e - YouTube

In this photo you can see that the 3 pt hitch lower arms are extending through the blower to provide a new 3 pt hitch lower points.

Unlike the first photo, on my blower there is a solid shaft that extends from the blower fan out to a pillow block on a structural brace running between the two 3 pt lower arms.
At this point the regular pto shaft connects to the blower.

Currently your fan will be held to the gear box by a bolt in the center of the fan hub. If you remove the bolt you will likely find that the fan hub is splined to lock to the gear box.

This is where my solid shaft is connected to the fan and welded to the fan hub. The center of the fan hub serves to center the solid shaft before it is welded.
The solid shaft and fan are restrained by the pillow clock set screw.

If this idea appeals to you I can provide more photos.

Sorry there is so much white space in my post. Dont know why

Dave M7040

 

[Industrial Toys]

It's an age old problem. There simply isn't enough hydraulic capacity on the average tractor to run a blower. End of story!

A hard drive line or external PTO pump and tank are the only options.

 

[hutchman]

I bought my used MK Martin just for that project as well. It will be a future project ... but for now ... stiff neck.

My tractor has no where near the flow rate or quantity of hydro fluid to run the blower and keep it cool. There are commercial units that have one or two hydro motors and they have a large 30 gallon (or more) tank that goes on the 3pt. hitch and the pump ran by the PTO. I've done the math to determine I could get a system like that to work. From what I've read, you need that large volume of hydro fluid to keep the system cool ... the sump of the tractors most of us have here isn't big enough to cool it.

If memory serves me right, a Prince makes a PTO pump that will do 22 GPM and that is what I was planning on using.

 

[hutchman]

It's an age old problem. There simply isn't enough hydraulic capacity on the average tractor to run a blower. End of story!

A hard drive line or external PTO pump and tank are the only options.

Yup, that's been my conclusion as well from what I've learned checking into it.

 

[PILOON]

Front mounted as well as pull types rotate opposite to the standard rear mounted blowers.
Hydraulics or mechanical reversers becomes necessary and complicated as well as costly.

Initially my blower was a mechanical front mount 'find' but I returned it to rear configuration ASAP as my tractor was not hydrostatic
Lowest fwd gear selection was simply too fast for the HP but reverse was just fine.
Also there was a whole lot of bearings, joints etc to cause maintenance issues and that not counting seasonal changeovers.
Also maneuvering in close quarters easier.
But all that said I don't mind sitting 'side saddle', also I installed a back up camera to make life easier.

What I once did however was to add a 16 hp motor directly on a blower and made up suitable ears to replace my FEL bucket.
That worked quite well until I ingested a discarded car starter that was under the snow. LOL, mea culpa!
Unknown to me was that the augers were rusted to the shaft so sheer pins did not work and caused the gear box to simply explode as well as trash one auger.
It simply was not economical to repair,
I had simply calculated ratios and used a V belt to drive the blower.

 

[Jay4200]

I'm curious if anyone here has attempted this project and if so, what were the problems / results, hyd. motor size etc. For those who have front mounted snowblowers, is the loss of FEL cylinder pressure really an issue?

You can't tap into the tractor hydraulics to power your blower - there isn't remotely enough flow. You need a BIG PTO-powered hydraulic pump/reservoir that can run up to your FEL and drive the enormous hydraulic motor you are going to need.

Hydraulic Power Unit Attachment - Power Pack by Quick Attach Attachments LLC

 

[hutchman]

You can't tap into the tractor hydraulics to power your blower - there isn't remotely enough flow. You need a BIG PTO-powered hydraulic pump/reservoir that can run up to your FEL and drive the enormous hydraulic motor you are going to need.

Hydraulic Power Unit Attachment - Power Pack by Quick Attach Attachments LLC

Hadn't seen that before. That's awesome ... gives me something to study for inspiration for my build as I'm sure that's a pretty penny right there!

 

[cat fever]

You can't tap into the tractor hydraulics to power your blower - there isn't remotely enough flow. You need a BIG PTO-powered hydraulic pump/reservoir that can run up to your FEL and drive the enormous hydraulic motor you are going to need.

Hydraulic Power Unit Attachment - Power Pack by Quick Attach Attachments LLC

That is very nice.