danmurphy68
New member
Is there a specific way to use a box scraper to smooth off a road
what is the trick to a box blade or box scraper?
- Thread starter danmurphy68
- Start date
- Views: 13883
murphy1244
Super Star Member
- Joined
- Nov 25, 2011
- Messages
- 16,319
- Location
- Ohio
- Tractor
- Kubota 1120 RTV Kioti DK-40, MF-135, Ventrac 4500Y
Go to this site to watch some Video's Tractor Attachments And Skid Steer Attachments For Any Tractor Or Skid Steer
jeff9366
Super Star Member
- Joined
- Jan 14, 2011
- Messages
- 12,777
- Tractor
- Kubota Tractor Loader L3560 HST+ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 3,700 pounds bare tractor, 5,400 pounds operating weight, 37 horsepower
See if these Box Blade threads from the archive help:
http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/kubota-owning-operating/312788-box-blade-use-help.html
https://www.google.com/search?clien...mooth+site:tractorbynet.com&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8
Box Blade technique takes longer to learn than most people expect.
http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/kubota-owning-operating/312788-box-blade-use-help.html
https://www.google.com/search?clien...mooth+site:tractorbynet.com&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8
Box Blade technique takes longer to learn than most people expect.
Last edited:
johnk
Elite Member
- Joined
- Jun 7, 2003
- Messages
- 2,618
- Location
- western NY
- Tractor
- Kubota GST Grand L3130 w/ 723 loader, Ags
Practice is the best teacher.
cheoah
Bronze Member
Doing it with proper moisture is important. Use teeth (if you have them) when road is packed or dry. Learn to feather your 3 pt hitch, and be dynamic with it. It can take high spots and fill low spot, but there is no way to fill some potholes without some stone. Depends on what your goals are. I also use it to keep the sod edges off of field roads to keep them draining.
I'm no expert, but I do have a lot of roads to keep up. We have a motor grader, but I use the box scrape for some applications.
Nothing like power reverser for an application like this.
I'm no expert, but I do have a lot of roads to keep up. We have a motor grader, but I use the box scrape for some applications.
Nothing like power reverser for an application like this.
troutsqueezer
Veteran Member
Put it in the down position when you want to drag dirt, whether to smooth it or just move it.
Put it in the up position when you don't want to do this.
Everything else comes thru experience.
Put it in the up position when you don't want to do this.
Everything else comes thru experience.
joshuabardwell
Elite Member
There are a lot of different things to learn about using a box blade, but if I had to give you one, I would say that the angle (as controlled by the length of the top link) is key to controlling how the blade behaves. If the top link is short, the front blade will bite in deeply when you drive forward, and you will remove a lot of dirt off the surface and carry it forward. The blade will quickly fill up. If the top link is long, the front blade will not bit in at all; the box will rest on the back of the rear blade, and dirt will fall out of the box and be dragged smooth by the rear blade. Controlling a box blade's behavior is, in large part, a function of setting the length of the top link so that it has the right amount of bite--not too much and not too little.
Unlike a land plane, where you just make pass after pass over the road, or a grader blade, where you would make one pass to create a windrow of dirt, and another pass to spread it back out again, with a box blade, you must take the road in chunks. The blade will fill up with dirt or gravel, and then you will have to lift it, dump out the contents, then move forward slightly and start again. After having done this, you will end up with a bunch of speed-bump like piles of dirt in your road. Then you spread them out. Some people don't feel comfortable pushing with their three point, but if you are willing to push with your three point hitch, you can just back up to spread the piles back level. The same angle of top-link that makes the blade bite in when it's moving forward will make it slide over and spread the dirt when it's moving backward. If you are willing to push with your three-point, you can get a good rhythm where you pull forward to scrape up and gather the top inch or so of dirt until the box fills up, then you raise the box, pull forward, drop the box, and push backwards to spread and smooth that dirt over the section of road.
Alternatively, you can lengthen your top link and spread the dirt going forward, but in this case, you will have to scrape up all the piles first, then change the top-link length, then spread them back out again. If you have a FEL, I find it is also sometimes useful for finishing up the spreading, by back-dragging.
Unlike a land plane, where you just make pass after pass over the road, or a grader blade, where you would make one pass to create a windrow of dirt, and another pass to spread it back out again, with a box blade, you must take the road in chunks. The blade will fill up with dirt or gravel, and then you will have to lift it, dump out the contents, then move forward slightly and start again. After having done this, you will end up with a bunch of speed-bump like piles of dirt in your road. Then you spread them out. Some people don't feel comfortable pushing with their three point, but if you are willing to push with your three point hitch, you can just back up to spread the piles back level. The same angle of top-link that makes the blade bite in when it's moving forward will make it slide over and spread the dirt when it's moving backward. If you are willing to push with your three-point, you can get a good rhythm where you pull forward to scrape up and gather the top inch or so of dirt until the box fills up, then you raise the box, pull forward, drop the box, and push backwards to spread and smooth that dirt over the section of road.
Alternatively, you can lengthen your top link and spread the dirt going forward, but in this case, you will have to scrape up all the piles first, then change the top-link length, then spread them back out again. If you have a FEL, I find it is also sometimes useful for finishing up the spreading, by back-dragging.
Kenneth in Texas
Gold Member
- Joined
- Dec 16, 2008
- Messages
- 470
- Location
- Pretty good ways from DFW, Texas
- Tractor
- Kubota L2800 4wd, FEL
no real trick, just need lots of experience with the box blade to be real good at it.
Monster5601
Platinum Member
After several years of trying to smooth out dirt/gravel road and driveway I gave up and moved on to a road grader (RG Series Road Grader). I never found a method to stop the box blade from following the road, even feathering the three point control didn't work. A box blade is useful for maintaining an already smooth surface but not for making one.
gwdixon
Elite Member
The best way to level things with a box scraper is to use a hydraulic top link. That way you can experiment with your exact situation until the correct settings have been determined.
In general, I use the box blade with a long-adjusted top link to have the front blade barely off the ground and the back blade dragging the soil or gravel smooth. High spots are caught by the front blade but there is not a big build-up and dig-in that is common if the front blade has too much bite.
In general, I use the box blade with a long-adjusted top link to have the front blade barely off the ground and the back blade dragging the soil or gravel smooth. High spots are caught by the front blade but there is not a big build-up and dig-in that is common if the front blade has too much bite.
