Tractor for snow removal?

[tstrupp]

Hi everyone,

These 2 tractors are for sale near me. We have a big problem with drifting snow on our place. I would like a front mounted PTO snowblower on a tractor some day.

I'm a total noob, never owned a tractor before. Any thoughts on these 2 for my needs?

Generally speaking for a PTO blower would a 50 hp tractor be better than a 35 horse?

Thanks for the help

 

[seville009]

Just a general comment - my preference would be a rear blower and leave the loader on the front. The loader is very useful for , among other things, breaking up piles and drifts, which you can then blow back.

Also - yes - more available horsepower is always better

 

[KennyG]

Front mounted snowblowers are nice, but they are tractor specific and require a mid-PTO which not all tractors have. You will have to do a little more research to see if those tractors have mid-PTO and if a snowblower is available. 35 HP should be plenty to run a 6 foot blower or even a 7 foot.

 

[nybirdman]

A front snow plow is quicker and less expensive than a blower.If you average less than 100 ins/yr.:go with a FEL mounted snow plow.
That Kubota is a nice tractor with about the right hours for the year;no pollution crap and it won't last long.
With a quick attach on the FEL you can change back to a bucket if needed.

 

[jeff9366]

There are 100's of posts on your topic in the T-B-N archive.

Read away: tractor snow removal site:tractorbynet.com - Google Search

 

[Slowpoke Slim]

Hi everyone,

These 2 tractors are for sale near me. We have a big problem with drifting snow on our place. I would like a front mounted PTO snowblower on a tractor some day.

I'm a total noob, never owned a tractor before. Any thoughts on these 2 for my needs?

Generally speaking for a PTO blower would a 50 hp tractor be better than a 35 horse?

Thanks for the help
View attachment 622032View attachment 622033View attachment 622034

Generally speaking, yes a 50 horse tractor will always be better than a 35 horse tractor.

Always.

The question really becomes will a 35 horse tractor work?

Usually it will. As long as you size the attachments to the tractor.

 

[chim]

Here's some interesting reading for you

https://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/snow-removal/184041-pictures-your-snow-weapons.html

 

[mikescruggs]

I would look at the Kubota if those are your two options. Not knowing where you live or how large of an area you have to clear I don't have much more to add.

The larger tractor is larger not just in HP, but weight which helps control the snow load. I would avoid a loader mounted blower for tractors. On skid steers they are fine. I need my FEL in the winter and don't want to deal with swiping out the units.

I just went from a L4240 to a M7060. What a difference in moving dirt and I cannot wait to try it with snow. I think the 50HP would definitely be the ticket here. I hear a lot of good things on the board about LS so I am not bad mouthing brand, just recommending larger.

Mike

 

[MinnesotaEric]

Hi everyone,

These 2 tractors are for sale near me. We have a big problem with drifting snow on our place. I would like a front mounted PTO snowblower on a tractor some day.

I'm a total noob, never owned a tractor before. Any thoughts on these 2 for my needs?

Generally speaking for a PTO blower would a 50 hp tractor be better than a 35 horse?

Thanks for the help
View attachment 622032View attachment 622033View attachment 622034

Get a skidsteer. Seriously. If you get a tractor, try to get a V-plow. If you're dead set on a tractor, and have money, look at a Kubota L60 series with an Auto-hitch.

Kubota L6 Series L6 AutoHitch - YouTube

 

[fried1765]

Hi everyone,

These 2 tractors are for sale near me. We have a big problem with drifting snow on our place. I would like a front mounted PTO snowblower on a tractor some day.

I'm a total noob, never owned a tractor before. Any thoughts on these 2 for my needs?

Generally speaking for a PTO blower would a 50 hp tractor be better than a 35 horse?

Thanks for the help
View attachment 622032View attachment 622033View attachment 622034

If you should decide on the Kubota, you should know that of the offered attachments, both the back blade and the mower, are too narrow for optimal use on that tractor.
The land plane (scraper -8') would be fine.
The price on just the 1300 hour Kubota does seem a bit high, but you have no location in your profile, and regional pricing can vary somewhat.

 

[finn1]

A front snow plow is quicker and less expensive than a blower.If you average less than 100 ins/yr.:go with a FEL mounted snow plow.
That Kubota is a nice tractor with about the right hours for the year;no pollution crap and it won't last long.
With a quick attach on the FEL you can change back to a bucket if needed.

Plows work well for minor snow events, if you have room to store the piled snow.

A pickup with a plow is faster than a cut and , being heavier, moves snow better than a tractor, in relatively better operator comfort, albeit with poorer visibility.

Front mounted blowers with an enclosed cab handle severe snow events, and are best where storage of the snow is an issue or where the snow has to be moved uphill.

 

[Jchonline]

Hi everyone,

These 2 tractors are for sale near me. We have a big problem with drifting snow on our place. I would like a front mounted PTO snowblower on a tractor some day.

I'm a total noob, never owned a tractor before. Any thoughts on these 2 for my needs?

Generally speaking for a PTO blower would a 50 hp tractor be better than a 35 horse?

Thanks for the help
View attachment 622032View attachment 622033View attachment 622034

The guy selling the LS has probably already bought the Kubota

Seriously though what type of road conditions do you have? Hilly? Gravel? How windy is it where you are in the winter?

 

[nybirdman]

Plows work well for minor snow events, if you have room to store the piled snow.

A pickup with a plow is faster than a cut and , being heavier, moves snow better than a tractor, in relatively better operator comfort, albeit with poorer visibility.

Front mounted blowers with an enclosed cab handle severe snow events, and are best where storage of the snow is an issue or where the snow has to be moved uphill.

My cabbed L4240 with loader rears weighs about 7,000 lbs and can push a lot of snow;I refuse to put a plow on a new four wheel drive pick-up that cost $40,000.I can pile snow 9ft.high with a FEL mounted plow.

 

[nards444]

We get about 150in of snow here and lots of lake effect. Smaller 18-25hp move snow around here all the time pretty easy specially with blowers, issues with smaller tractors would be pushing big banks.

If you go with a front blower you need a mid PTO, on Kubota they are often standard, but have to look on each model The other consideration with a cab is if you get a rear mount can you reach through the window to crank the chute, the other option is with a cab and being a rear mount is you would need at least one remote this would eliminate you have to reach through the window, which if you get a cab to have to keep the window open kind of defeats the purpose. To me if I went rear mount I would probably get drag model instead of a push model, as in you drive straight with the drag model basically auger faces the front not the back, I wouldn't want to be backing up all winter. If possible I think I would buy a tractor with a mid pto anyways, eliminates the want or needing of it later

A lot of ways to do it and everybody's situation is different. Blades are the cheapest, front blowers are the most money. But you can always buy these things used. With that said Im not pushing snow with a blade, it creates big mounds and I don't care how good you are it always takes up lawn which means fixing it every year, also thing blades are harder on pavement or concrete. I also wanted to be in heated cab and didn't want to drive backwards. So I went with the front mount, they aren't cheap, but I did find a used front mount system for about the same price as a new rear mount, so that was a pretty good deal.

 

[RalphVa]

No mention re how long or steepness. Application of the comments depend on this. Don't need a tracked vehicle if on level, and even turf tires work fine. Rear snow blower and FEL are about the right choice for a good bit of snow. If you don't get much, an FEL and rear blade work great. Those are both a lot of tractor; don't need that much unless you have a BIG snowfall every year.

Ralph

 

[PILOON]

Hey, I have years of snow removal my belt.
With a blower it is gone and forget about it.
Minor events like 2-3" your plow is the friend.
More snow and blow it to kingdom come and forget about it.
Front mount? now that's $$'s and very model specific.
Now mostly retired, my CUT is front plow mounted with a 60" rear blower, (CUT is a mere 20HP PTO)
I have operated front blower (for buddy) and hated it.
Just too much front swing making close work very iffy.
For speed nothing beats a plow on a nice 4X4 as long as accumulations don't get the better of you.
LOL, then comes the competition and they undercut your bid by 5-10%.
Welcome to snow removal!