# Snowbear



## mobo (Jan 23, 2005)

Hi, I was wondering if anyone drive's around with there snowbear on the truck and if they use the hook that came with the plow? I would also like to say I have been told by many people to get a real plow but for the price this is a great plow for a homeowner. Second year for the plow and still warm when cleaning the snow up.


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## mmwb (Jan 12, 2005)

I think the key is "homeowner plow". I seriously considered one last spring for doing my drive, but decided I wanted something that would stand up to more use. Ended up with an 8' western pro: used, for about twice the price. This fall I am doing three commercial lots and a couple of drives. I expect the snowbear is a good plow for its intended use.


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## groundbreakers (Jan 16, 2004)

I've had a snowbear for about 4 yrs ... never had a problem ... i use it for 3 small commercial lots about 3 miles from my house .... bought it for $500 on clearance from lowes .. made my money back and then more .... great for residential driveways .... and yes i do drive around with it on .. and on the freeways ... just my .002


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## LISnow (Oct 29, 2005)

Yes, Have the flexblade, loaded it on last week before the lame snow, then Friday had it on again for the snow that never came. 

If someone tells me to get a real plow, I'll have pictures of someone with their hand under the blade to post.  

I have it on a 3500 extended SRW, so it looks even smaller, but I only use it to clean two driveways. Only downside seems to be the back draging ability. Upside is $1500 (if anyone thinks I should get a "real plow" I'll send you my address and you can send the $2000 difference, and the money for maintenance of my front end) :waving: Also, I have the Class 3 version, so when not using the blade, I can mount my cargo tray when I use my truck camper... another plus is the wireless remote and the actuator instead of the winch.

I will post pics soon... but wanted some snow around before I take them.

What "hook" are you refering to, maybe the metal snow bear comes with something I'm not aware of? I had no problem at 60 MPH with plow on, very stable...

Rich


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## mobo (Jan 23, 2005)

My Snowbear came from Sams Club well the name on mine is winter wolf. When I purchased it I have a metal hook that is for traveling they said its to take the weight off the winch. I also have the strap winch and not the chain style I have read about. For the people that tell me to get a real plow I just ignore them because I only paid $800.00 for my plow and they paid 3 to 5 thousand for there plows and mine does the same. The only thing I worry about it driving with it on the truck and if it will break the winch or strap with out using the hook.


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## ymerejsregor (Jan 10, 2005)

I drive mine back and forth 20 miles to work to plow the lot at my store. Raise it all the way with the winch and then use the hook just as a safety in case the strap breaks (one in a million chance). If you lower it down to rest on the hook while driving, the plow will flop around. I was confused on this at first too. Also, I am in agreement with everyone else. For it's purpose, the Snowbear does a great job.


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## scholzee (Nov 9, 2001)

Why bother to plow when it still left snow on the ground, might as well just just leave it like the right side of picture if that is all the plow can do. Yeah its light weight that's way it does not scrape or backdrag. You would at least need downpressure if you want to run a light weight plow like Sno-way. You get what you pay for Nice Ice Skating rink you have going there.


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## ymerejsregor (Jan 10, 2005)

Frankly, you don't need to be such a smart alec. Sarcastic comments on the pics were / are not the point of this post. The winch & hook were. FYI, however, I plowed and the lot was fine. What you see is AFTER another inch or so of snow had fallen. Again, I'm not trying to start an argument here. It just seems as though this entire forum is full of people who just want to cause problems. I really haven't hung out here much at all, but from what I have seen that seems to be the general feeling I get.

Jeremy


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## Frozen001 (Oct 20, 2004)

I do not think his comment were that bad. He was just saying how it appears from your pictures the plow left a lot of snow on the ground after plowing. Which understanding what the snow-bear is, and how much it weighs I can totally understand. 

It does look like it would be a nice ice skating rink though.... 

For non-commercial use like plowing your own drive way the snow-bear does and OK job. I would rather use a snow blower, but that is just me...


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## scholzee (Nov 9, 2001)

Ok my comments were intended to stir the pot some, I have seen snowbears, winterwolf, and whatever other names they have on them over several years now. Used as they are intended will work decent for most people, However some who get plows start to take on more and start using the plow for more than it was intended to do. Your picture shows an ideal lot where you do not have to angle much or any at all. The manual angle of the snowbear can be a pain if you need to change it often, and the scrape and backdrag are affected by the its light weight. Thanks for the pictures and it does look like you have an improved lighting system over the standard lights that come with the plow, some details on your lights may help other owners with similar plows. Sorry for being an instigator, you were providing others with useful real hand information and pictures. My apologizes to any and all I offended.


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## ymerejsregor (Jan 10, 2005)

*No hard feelings.*

That's cool, man....no hard feelings. The lot you are looking at plus a 15' x 50' parking spot at home is all I plow, so a $500 clearance plow from Lowes does great in my situation. Right tool for the job, I guess.

Thanks for the compliment on the lights. I get some time, I will post.

Jeremy


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## jav1 (Dec 11, 2005)

As a newbie here, I don't wish to ruffle feathers but it did come off as a dig. I'm buying a new plow setup now and have been looking at everything out there. I'm not crazy about this setup but for the money, it's a decent deal and its likely what I am buying. The funny thing is that most of the bashing comes from dealers that sell other more expensive units and those that have bought those name brand rigs. The guys that own these things are generally happy with them for what they are. To me that says that while the big names are truely "better", these are good enough for many and there are folks out there that don't like that. I would have bought a name brand rig today at twice the price - the problem is that even the lightduty name brand rigs are 3 times the price or more. 

As far as preferring a snowblower- I hope you mean a truck mounted snowblower cuase I can't see any walk behind being as quick or as confortable as any plow setup. Cleaner - yes faster or better, I'd have to respectfully disagree.


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## Frozen001 (Oct 20, 2004)

jav1 said:


> As far as preferring a snowblower- I hope you mean a truck mounted snowblower cuase I can't see any walk behind being as quick or as confortable as any plow setup. Cleaner - yes faster or better, I'd have to respectfully disagree.


I meant prefer as in cleaner... Think about it is it leaves 1/2" of hard pack every time you plow how long before you now have over and 1" of hard pack to deal with...

You guys every thought of looking at a used plow set up for around $900 (at least around here) you can find decent used plow set up that have thicker metal scrape better and power angle... Might be a bit more difficult of an install, but worth (to me at least) just my thoughts...I guess we all will have different thought on this though...


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## PhantomRacer (Dec 27, 2004)

mobo said:


> Hi, I was wondering if anyone drive's around with there snowbear on the truck and if they use the hook that came with the plow? I would also like to say I have been told by many people to get a real plow but for the price this is a great plow for a homeowner. Second year for the plow and still warm when cleaning the snow up.


Usually I drive with the hook on. There are times I am lazy and do not put it on..

I think the issue is not the chain breaking...as it is the hub spinning and the plow falling. I have had the hub spin a few times on me..just took a slight tighting of the u bolts on the hub to fix it...but if the winch ever failed.. (or chain/strap failed) the hook will be a lifesaver I am sure.

With a few years under my belt already...wouldn't trade the SB for the world. Easy. Cheap. Simple...and it works..

Plus...for many trucks (like most 2wd) it is the ONLY choice. I do not know of any other plow that would fit (properly) on my 94 Chevy 1500 v6 2wd pickup.

Paul


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## jav1 (Dec 11, 2005)

Yeah,

I called 3 places for a used setup. Only 1 place had one. It was a used Meyer 6.5' (they didn't know the year). With new push plates $1950 +tax (cash and carry- no install).

Warranty was terrrible- 14 days - repair, replace or refund at thier discretion and then on the plow only- push plates were not returnable and no labor allowance if its dead and has to come off. lastly, no guarantee on a comperable replacement item being available at the time its determined the plow must be replaced.

All in alll, it didn't look like a reasonable deal to me.


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## dunedog (Oct 30, 2004)

[Plus...for many trucks (like most 2wd) it is the ONLY choice. I do not know of any other plow that would fit (properly) on my 94 Chevy 1500 v6 2wd pickup.

Paul[/QUOTE]

That was my problem not many plows I could hook to my Astro 
this past weeks 14" (yes it was fluff) was quick history compared to the hours I use to spend behind a blower (10HP /32" Ariens)
As far as the hook (orig. question) I have not used it but would if I where transporting any distance..


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## LISnow (Oct 29, 2005)

I have the flexblade version, scrapes right to the ground, ice and all, backdraging it's light, but you backdrag off the light stuff, hit the sticky stuff again going forward, then backdrag again, cleans right to the pavement. :waving: 

Got what I paid for, light weight, easy to handle, wireless remote, easy storage, no hydraulics, no rusting blade. :salute: 

I'm happy.


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## wagonman76 (Jan 31, 2005)

I dont have a snowbear but mine is similar in ways. 

Mine uses the same winch as a snowbear. I do keep a safety chain on it for going down the highway, but Ive never actually had a problem with the winch slipping. Its just more of a safety thing, an electrical short could send the winch down. If I sit on the blade (putting about 2x the blade weight onto the blade itself), it will slowly wind the winch down. Mines been down the freeway at 70 mph and stays perfectly stable as well.

Scraping ability isnt all in the weight of the plow, but it is based on surface pressure. Before I put the scraper edge on mine, I made up a spreadsheet from a Boss or Western webpage, listing scraper thicknesses, lengths, and blade weights. They ranged from just under 12 PSI to almost 24 PSI, average being about 18 PSI. So I put an 11 ga. steel scraper edge on mine to get me about 10 PSI. And it scrapes quite well, some of the dirt in my driveway is showing after I plow it, looks just like a bigger plow did it. I dont know what kind of PSI a Snowbear scraper edge works out to, but it can be made to scrape just as well as a bigger plow by making up a scraper blade of a different thickness if necessary. A fab shop could shear the piece and punch slots in no time, or just burn it out. Dont set it any further out than you have to and it shouldnt bend.


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## 00 Ram (Nov 11, 2004)

LIsnow, glad to hear the flexblade is working out well. I'm trying to decide which plow to put on my truck, and I like the idea of the receiver mount on this model. I'd like to mount a bike rack on the front of my truck some time in the future, as I too have a camper that monopolizes the rear trailer hitch in the summer. 

What kind of truck do you have it on? 

Did you buy it at a retailer, or did you mail order it? I'd like to take a look at one in person, but I don't know of any retailers that stock them...
don't see many used snowbears advertised, of any type. wonder what that says?


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## jav1 (Dec 11, 2005)

FYI - 

I talked to the Snowbear factory yesterday. The Flexiblade is discontinued and only available from dealer stock. They are only offering 2 plows this year in the Snowbear brand - the smaller SB50 and the larger PS200.

I was interested in some of the other plow options as some came with wireless controllers standard. It seems theres only 2 options now. 

BTW- I asked why they were dropped and they said it was just a popularity / numbers thing. There weren't dropped due to any problems and they would still be warranty support for those that are bought from old inventory.


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## 00 Ram (Nov 11, 2004)

thats interesting....

there are a couple of vendors on ebay that have the flexblade listed still, and they're "drop-shippers". they don't actually stock anything. 

My wife just checked out Sam's club thismorning...I had asked her to check and see if they were stocking them this year, as I know I've seen them there before. They had something called a "winter wolf extreme". 7 feet...steel, and red in color.


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## jav1 (Dec 11, 2005)

OORAM,

we think alike - I called BJ's yesterday with the same question. They listed the Winterwolf on thier computer but had no availablity. Did Sams have them and did they have a price?


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## 00 Ram (Nov 11, 2004)

jav1 said:


> OORAM,
> 
> we think alike - I called BJ's yesterday with the same question. They listed the Winterwolf on thier computer but had no availablity. Did Sams have them and did they have a price?


yeah, they had one on the shelf, on display. $997 was the price. (This was the Seabrook, NH store.).


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## jav1 (Dec 11, 2005)

Thanks! lets hope they still have them this weekend - looks like I'm going for a ride.


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## 00 Ram (Nov 11, 2004)

"Pep Boys" has the flexblade listed in their online catalog. don't know if there's one of them near you or not. might be worth a look...


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## Journier (Aug 23, 2005)

guys i just bought a Snow bear... the thing is tiny "seeming" really short , residential use is a definate ,unless you reinforce it a little?

But i Just got it for $25 dollars,"scrap price" (3 years old, found it at junkyard TODAY!!! lol, right after reading this thread i went to the junkyard. and there it was)

the thing was hidden in the back, this baby has almost no rust on it, the cutting edge is wore down pretty good though. now i have to go find a cheap vehicle thats small enough and 4x4 for it.

then ill have my backup rig..

Has anyone thought of reinforcing it? and throwing wings etc on them?

these are cheap plows They are well worth the cost i think. well, compared to other plows at a "new" price, i bought my 7.5 western unimount for 900 ready to go used :/

I read that someone already did 2 winches to have it so its not manual turning. Good idea, I think im going to make it all hydraulic, but maybe that will be to expensive :/


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## bdhunter (Dec 7, 2005)

*Snowbear Flexblade*



LISnow said:


> Yes, Have the flexblade, loaded it on last week before the lame snow, then Friday had it on again for the snow that never came.
> 
> Will love to see pics. I'm looking at the Flexblade for my 92 Chrokee. Have a few small lots to do (non commercial), and probably a few small driveways. It should go a lot quicker than my 18" Toro blower .
> 
> ...


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## mobo (Jan 23, 2005)

Hey, I just wanted to say I have the winter wolf extreme from sams club and I love it. I also wanted to say I helped a friend install a western pro on his truck and he plowed part of his drive and his gravel is all piled up in the snow. (He also has the shoes on) I plowed the other part with my snowbear and it turned out better than his side. :waving:


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## Frozen001 (Oct 20, 2004)

The western pro-is a much heavier unit than the snow bear so it is going to dig in more easier. If he had the shoes on then he did not have them adjusted properly. Plowing gravel driveways can take some getting used to you have to learn the feather the controls to keep the plow from taking the gravel away until the gravel freezes.


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## jav1 (Dec 11, 2005)

I picked up my snowbear winter wolf extreme at Sams on saturday. After spending some time assembling it, I'm fairly impressed! For the money (under a grand out the door), it's quite the deal - even includes the snow deflector. I also like that the Sams club version is a medium size (larger than Snowbears standard sb50 but smaller than the full size pw200). I'll have to wait for some snow to compare its performance to my old Fisher but so far so good.


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## 00 Ram (Nov 11, 2004)

Frozen001 said:


> Plowing gravel driveways can take some getting used to you have to learn the feather the controls to keep the plow from taking the gravel away until the gravel freezes.


thing is, mine doesn't ever freeze solid. I've had the drive re-surfaced a couple of times since I've lived here. the hill portion is prone to washouts, erosion, etc...

Anyway, both times, they used "linpack" (sp?). same stuff they use as a substrate for asphalt paving. First time, it lasted quite a few years, and when the weather got cold, it froze up as solid as pavement. I was plowing it myself at the time, w/ a 6.5 fisher on a Dodge Dakota. never had a problem. Then they resurfaced it with what we thought was the same material, but this stuff never freezes. no matter how cold it gets....and the last couple of winters have been VERY cold. Even in the coldest weather, I can dig my heel into the driveway and dig it up. couldn't do that before. Nobody seems to understand why this stuff won't freeze.

I've since sold my old plow truck, and the same contractor that surfaced the driveway (heavy equipment/excavating contractor) does the plowing now...(they're so cheap, it didn't make sense for me to buy a new plow when I got a new truck). But, when they come in with their 8+foot plows, they always make a mess. and now after a few seasons, there are windrows of "pack" along the sides of the whole driveway, from these huge plows. I meant to get it fixed this fall, before the snow came, but I procrastinated for too long, and now I probably can't do anything 'till spring. I'm going to pave the hill portion. In the short-term, its very expensive, but long-term, it'll be cheaper than perennial repairs required of the gravel.

I've decided I want to resume plowing it myself, partly because of this issue, but also because they do a lousy job in general...but also, in their defense, they can't do a really good job because its just too cramped an area for them to maneuver in when my vehicles are parked and in the way. (If one of my vehicles is the one doing the plowing, there's alot more room to maneuver). I spend way too much time cleaning up after the plow. when I did it myself, I spent a half-hour to 45 minutes doing everything; now I spend hours, with a snow blower, cleaning up the area that they either can't do or won't do. (2 hours, last storm).

So I need to decide which plow to buy for my current truck, which is not "meant" to plow, according to the manufacturer. its a full size half ton dodge, but with a "quad cab", your not supposed to put a plow on it. so if I'm going to bend that rule, I need to stay light. (another reason to go with the lightest thing possible). I'm sure even a conventional plow would be fine for personal use only, as long as I stay with the "lighter duty" versions, and with my driveway, the maneuverability of a 3-way would be more desireable. There's no way I can afford a new one, and used one's that are appropriate and affordable are hard to come by. got my eye on an ebay auction now...but if that falls through, I may me making another trip to Sam's club soon. (I was there saturday to check out the SB, too, btw!)


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## Frozen001 (Oct 20, 2004)

One other tip for plowing out loose surfaces such as gravel with a heavier plow is to back blade as much as you can. By doing the the cutting edge does not wand to dig into the surface. I have found this to work well on a troublesome gravel I do... After a couple of times a nice had packed layer of snow forms that the plow is less apt to dig into.


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## 00 Ram (Nov 11, 2004)

Frozen001 said:


> One other tip for plowing out loose surfaces such as gravel with a heavier plow is to back blade as much as you can. By doing the the cutting edge does not wand to dig into the surface. I have found this to work well on a troublesome gravel I do... After a couple of times a nice had packed layer of snow forms that the plow is less apt to dig into.


well...hardly practical for 500' of road. and that "pack" of which you speak quickly turns into a solid sheet of ice. The lighter plow moved all the snow without moving the gravel.


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## mudmaker (Dec 19, 2005)

I had one on my 92 2wd GMC Sierra when I managed a truck accessory store in the mid ninetys. I was skeptical when we first started selling them but after I mounted one and used it I was sold. 
And yes we did have to reinforce them with a thicker angle across the bottom to keep from bending the ends. Also removed the floater pads for a cleaner surface. 
We did mostly the lots at our three stores and had three mounted and none were on 4wd p/u's. 
For the price it was worth it. Wish I had one now as we have now 2 4wds and moved to the country but have no means of removing the snow. 
I guess if I were to buy a heavier plow, I would choose the Curtis. Just an easy install and remove when done at the end of the day. 
later


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## BIG DRIFT (Oct 23, 2005)

LISnow said:


> I will post pics soon... but wanted some snow around before I take them.
> 
> Rich


Rich

Any pics

BD


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## LISnow (Oct 29, 2005)

I thought we would have had some snow by now, but today I spent about 4 hours winterizing my Lance camper in a sweatshirt... 50 degrees...

Sorry, I guess by the time I get the pictures up, you'll have to make a decision about which plow to buy.

They will get up there eventually, sorry, I know I went crazy looking for pics before I decided to buy... Now I'm looking for someone with video of it in action (somewhat to use to quiet the critics, and somewhat just out of curiousity.)

Pray for snow
Rich


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## BIG DRIFT (Oct 23, 2005)

LISnow said:


> I thought we would have had some snow by now, but today I spent about 4 hours winterizing my Lance camper in a sweatshirt... 50 degrees...
> 
> Sorry, I guess by the time I get the pictures up, you'll have to make a decision about which plow to buy.
> 
> ...


Do you know why they discontinued the flexblade??

BD


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## MrBigStuff (Oct 4, 2005)

*Gravel*



00 Ram said:


> thing is, mine doesn't ever freeze solid. I've had the drive re-surfaced a couple of times since I've lived here. the hill portion is prone to washouts, erosion, etc...
> 
> Anyway, both times, they used "linpack" (sp?). same stuff they use as a substrate for asphalt paving. First time, it lasted quite a few years, and when the weather got cold, it froze up as solid as pavement. I was plowing it myself at the time, w/ a 6.5 fisher on a Dodge Dakota. never had a problem. Then they resurfaced it with what we thought was the same material, but this stuff never freezes. no matter how cold it gets....and the last couple of winters have been VERY cold.


The stuff I'm used to working with has an emulsifier added to the gravel to make it "pack". It was commonly referred to as *traffic bond*. I used quite a bit of this to solve a washout problem I had. Only came loose once and that was like a 100 year flood storm we had come through.

You may have gotten the same gravel but minus the emulsifier...


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