Snow plow recommendations?

[jjohnsonElknewbie]

Hey guys, my cousin's lane is about 1/4 mile long and unpaved. He's looking to buy a plow for the front of his F350. This would be for personal use only, not business. Any recommendations?

 

[mtnbiker208]

I like western plows my self.
couple of things for him to think about.
If his truck did not come ready to plow, he will need to beef up his electrical system in the truck. Usually a more powerful alternator. My brother made that mistake and his windshield wipers would not work when moving the plow with the joystick. I order my trucks with the snow plow option from the factory.

I do a lot of plowing, but not commercial.

 

[gbflyer]

Yea. Don’t do it to a truck you care about. 1/4mi isn’t worth it unless there is no other choice. Destroys the truck.

I do it commercially. I had a pickup plow for one year. Sold it.

 

[Poser]

For a 1/4th mile, I’d consider a ATV setup or an old tractor. As mentioned above, you’ll seldom see a plow attachment on a “nice” truck. Usually a beater.

 

[jjohnsonElknewbie]

For a 1/4th mile, I’d consider a ATV setup or an old tractor. As mentioned above, you’ll seldom see a plow attachment on a “nice” truck. Usually a beater.

Roger that guys and the truck in question is a farm truck. However, I appreciate the feedback. For the price of a plow he could probably get a used ATV and blade.

 

[backcountry_hunter]

V-plow, 8 1/2 on SRW or 9’2” on duals. Had boss for going on 20 yrs but they’re all similar.

FWIW a used skiddy with some hours on it is going for close to what a full new plow w/ mounts and electrics set up costs now and it’s more useful than just snow.

 

[elkguide]

Just finished 2 hours of plowing mine and a couple of neighbors driveways with my Honda Pioneer SXS with plow. I also have 2 tractors with buckets if the snow gets to be too much.

But most importantly, I have a new GMC Denali 2500HD that there is no way that I am going to destroy for a little bit of snow removal. For the price of a pickup plow set up today, there are a lot of much better options/alternatives.

 

[Outcast2.0]

I wouldn’t recommend going the ATV route…. Good luck pushing 12 inches of heavy wet snow. That would be an uphill battle and they aren’t meant for the abuse. I would second getting a skid steer with a bucket or blade or get a tractor.

 

[backcountry_hunter]

I wouldn’t recommend going the ATV route…. Good luck pushing 12 inches of heavy wet snow. That would be an uphill battle and they aren’t meant for the abuse. I would second getting a skid steer with a bucket or blade or get a tractor.

2nd this…. Unless your snow comes straight down or only an inch at a time leave the atv’s to the subdivisions. Any amount of wind or inches and you’ll be calling your neighbor with a 3pt snowblower who did it right the first time and paying.

 

[rayporter]

plowing a long lane is a steep learning curve what ever you choose.

i bought a blower for the tractor after the 78 blizzard.

 

[Sandstrom]

I own 9 plow trucks currently (I own a landscaping company) They are all superduty fords. 7 of them have boss v plows. I am a big fan of the boss v and a Ford If he has that long of a driveway, I am guessing there is some acreage, a utility tractor or a skid would be my choice for its ability to do multiple things. As for wrecking the truck, I wouldn’t worry about it. They (Ford) can handle it no problem, especially if it is only one driveway!
Ryan

 

[Like2hunt]

I’ve seen lots of boss plows around. I do a parking lot with a 4-wheeler (brother helps on another after he finishes the side walks) and we haven’t had any problems but I don’t see how you could go wrong with a skid steer, they’ve got al sorts of attachments for them and you can use them all the time for anything. They fit in pretty small spaces too

 

[bushangler]

For the price of a new plow I recommend an older diesel tractor with appropriate size 3pt. Snow blower. I plowed commercially for years and now only do 5 driveways around the house for family and couldn’t be happier with my blower setup. My trucks were a bit faster and warmer but that’s about it.


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[jjohnsonElknewbie]

On the blowers, how do you keep the rocks out of them on a gravel lane?

 

[elkguide]

Heading back out to plow again this morning since we got another 6" of "HEAVY WET" snow here in Vermont. Have had no issues with my several SXS/ATV rigs until we have 16" or more of the wet heavy stuff that we usually get here.

 

[handwerk]

I have been using western plows for the last 28 years and have no complaints. There are a lot of ways to move snow, but if you have to do it often a warm pickup with a plow on front is best.

 

[rayporter]

if you have a gravel drive rocks will be every where come spring, no matter what you do to remove snow.

the blowers have skids to keep them up off the gravel but it is a fine line between moving enough snow and moving rocks.

if it is frozen hard enough it will help.

 

[jjohnsonElknewbie]

if you have a gravel drive rocks will be every where come spring, no matter what you do to remove snow.

the blowers have skids to keep them up off the gravel but it is a fine line between moving enough snow and moving rocks.

if it is frozen hard enough it will help.

That was my fear too. I push my lane to the sides to at least keep my rock out of the road and ditch. However, every spring it's a chore (PIA) to rake it back into the lane.

 

[Brooks]

I’ve always liked Fisher Snow Plows. First plow I ever bought I had so many people wanting their roads and driveways plowed it paid for it’s self. The next year I went around some businesses recruiting some plowing work. When you plow with your truck just go easy and don’t slam into a snow piles or thats how you tear things up and plow with a big snow storm don’t wait until it stops snowing. I also have a Honda Foreman ATV that will really plow snow but I sure like plowing in my heated truck better listening to XM.

 

[backcountry_hunter]

That was my fear too. I push my lane to the sides to at least keep my rock out of the road and ditch. However, every spring it's a chore (PIA) to rake it back into the lane.

Much like boots for a snowblower, You can also get adjustable boots for V's and straight blades that keep the cutting edge up off the gravel. I usually have them on for my first few days of plowing, then once there's a base mixed with frozen gravel I take them off. I lose very little gravel. One thing to consider (depending on the region you live) if you have 1/4 mile long drive the skid steer/truck plow/snow blower will allow you to get the first snow far removed to give you room as the winter wears on (especially if your annual snowfall is measured by feet and not inches). From what I've seen it's difficult or a heckuva alot of time to push w/ an atv that much distance to leave enough room so as the winter wears on you always have a place to put it.

As an aside, I likely put more hours in a snow plow than most and the only repair I can attribute to plowing is I lost a rear end in a 2004 F550 dump box with a 9'2" boss and much of that was my fault. Other then the added weight of the plow up front being additionally hard on even e-rated tires (especially if you already have a heavier diesel motor in it) I have not seen a correlation between plowing and repairs, despite always hearing this.