# Low gear required for plowing?



## TJ548 (Jan 5, 2009)

My first post on plowsite. Been searching the threads for comments on whether or not a low gear is really required to push snow. I have a Polaris Scrambler 500 4X4 and it does not have a low gear. I do not need to push a whole lot of snow, just my driveway and maybe some neighbors when I feel like it. Thoughts?


----------



## JDiepstra (Sep 15, 2008)

Should be fine.


----------



## TJ548 (Jan 5, 2009)

JDiepstra;703078 said:


> Should be fine.


Thanks. Has anyone else pushed snow with a setup similar to mine?


----------



## banksl&s (Sep 7, 2007)

I use high gear and 4 wheel drive. Haven't had and problems.I use an Arctic Cat 500 and a 60" moose blade. Good luck.


----------



## FOX-SNO-REMOVAL (Jan 3, 2009)

I have a Honda Rubicon 500 and i always plow in 4x4 HI unless the snow gets realy deep then i through it in LOW. All you need is Hi, but Low does help in the thick stuff. So you should be fine. Good luck!


----------



## TJ548 (Jan 5, 2009)

Thanks for the advice. I have a line on a used City Slicker (Tusk) blade for $200 that is currently mounted on a Suzuki. It looks brand new. It looks like the mounting plate is pretty generic and should be easy to modify for my machine. 

I've been comparing the City Slicker to the Cycle Country and I really like the "beefy-ness" of the City Slicker. The angle adjuster on the Slicker has a thick bar bent into a radius with a spring-mounted holding pin in two positions on each side. It turns very smoothly despite the additional hardware. The Cycle Country has a spring-mounted lever that latches into a slot and is a little stiff, blocky & floppy. I've been able to compare the two side-by-side which is nice. Not intending to offend any Cycle Country owners, just initial observations.

It's snowing outside right now so I'm anxious to install it and try it out. I'll take some pics and let everyone know how it turns out.


----------



## EaTmYtAiLpIpEs (Aug 23, 2007)

my arctic cat 500 4x4 I plow in 4x4 hi all the time. I never use 4 lo. I think I used it once to plow and that was just to test it out


----------



## FOX-SNO-REMOVAL (Jan 3, 2009)

I've plowed with my cycle county 60" for 4 years now and have beat the ****tt out of it. The plow still looks brand new minus the scratches and chipped paint. It's not all bent up like the other ones i've seen, i don't know what the hell they were running into!!!! Its still going strong, but if I were to get a new one it would be a Moose for sure. Ya man post up some pics i would like to see it i haven't seen one on a Scrambler in a while. Good luck:redbounce


----------



## hondarecon4435 (Mar 13, 2008)

i wouldn't choose a scrambler for plowing in the first place it is more of a sport quad but if that is all you have to work with im sure it will work fine and you will make due with it.


----------



## shtuk (Sep 7, 2008)

Unless you have all kinds of extra weight, speed more so than low gear power, will be your best friend. I plow with a Arctic Cat 500TRV and 60" AC blade, my only regret is not having a wider blade.


----------



## IPLOWSNO (Oct 11, 2008)

go easy with it i had the 400 2 stroke and it lacked torque. i beleive you have the tork but the wrong tranny imo maybe talk about clutch changes at the dealer imo.


----------



## TJ548 (Jan 5, 2009)

Here's the pics of the City Slicker blade on a Polaris Scrambler. The install was about one hour because I had to adapt a mounting plate from a Suzuki. It was very close, all I had to do was drill a couple of new holes in the mounting plate and bolt it to the frame of the Scrambler. With the mounting plate in position, I clipped-on on the quick-connect plate that supports the tubes and then simply placed the new blade on the garage floor. Then you just roll the ATV over the tubes and lift and click them into place. Fasten the front strap and it was ready to go.

I was worried that the hand lift would be a pain but it sure isn't. I'm not sure now if I would rather have a winch lifting the blade for me.

I did about 10 driveways and a whole lot of sidewalk in about two hours. What a blast! I installed the blade and put it right to work. I have to say it was way fun. My driveway now takes about 5 minutes to clear where before it took 20 minutes with the snowblower. The picture of the snow in front of the garage is a bit deceptive. It was actually about 8 inches of light, fluffy powder when I got out into the open. I get the feeling this is easiest type of snow to push because it was effortless. Maybe the 500 will work harder in heavier snow but this was like it wasn't even there. I'm a fan.

I included a picture of my 10 year old snowblower that I previously sold for $500. Bought this blade used for $250. Good trade.


----------



## chuckraduenz (Jan 4, 2009)

i had a 2000 polaris sportsman 335. i know its not a sport atv. but it had almost 7000 miles. the first 6yrs i had it i used it for grading driveways, then the last 2yrs i used it for plowing snow and grading. before i sold it. i had it checked by a local small engine guy. he said it was in great shape. the belt had luck holding it together. and he was suprised it held that long. and the main clutch had small groves in it. it wasent bad. but their there. im guessing it was from useing it in low. iv plowed in high on the 335 and my new 500. iv made the belt smoke from plowing alot of snow. id say if you were going at a fair speed, and nothing heavy. id say you should have no issues. but be carefull when useing it for alot of snow. then you might have to replace your belt.


----------



## TJ548 (Jan 5, 2009)

chuckraduenz;703973 said:


> i had a 2000 polaris sportsman 335. i know its not a sport atv. but it had almost 7000 miles. the first 6yrs i had it i used it for grading driveways, then the last 2yrs i used it for plowing snow and grading. before i sold it. i had it checked by a local small engine guy. he said it was in great shape. the belt had luck holding it together. and he was suprised it held that long. and the main clutch had small groves in it. it wasent bad. but their there. im guessing it was from useing it in low. iv plowed in high on the 335 and my new 500. iv made the belt smoke from plowing alot of snow. id say if you were going at a fair speed, and nothing heavy. id say you should have no issues. but be carefull when useing it for alot of snow. then you might have to replace your belt.


Good advice, but I've already found you don't need to be plowing snow to smoke a belt. Last winter I was bombing through deep snow and frequently got stuck. I could smell the belt smoking and knew it was finished. It didn't actually fail though. I replaced the belt this summer and could only just tell the belt had frayed on the edges. I probably could have gone a long time with that burned belt.


----------



## -Iron Mike- (Oct 13, 2008)

FOX-SNO-REMOVAL;703179 said:


> I have a Honda Rubicon 500 and i always plow in 4x4 HI unless the snow gets realy deep then i through it in LOW. All you need is Hi, but Low does help in the thick stuff. So you should be fine. Good luck!


Ditto on all accounts.


----------



## hotshotgoal30 (Dec 29, 2008)

hate to say it but scramblers are not made for that by any means. i had so many problems burnin up belts when i had a scrambler. stupid things to like pulling another atv or hammering through mud puddles, the belt just did not last on it. but maybe ull get lucky.


----------



## skywagon (Nov 13, 2008)

hotshotgoal30;704891 said:


> hate to say it but scramblers are not made for that by any means. i had so many problems burnin up belts when i had a scrambler. stupid things to like pulling another atv or hammering through mud puddles, the belt just did not last on it. but maybe ull get lucky.



If you were burning belts like that you had sheeve or roller problems. I work my rhino hard and never had a belt problem, also word is on the street that you should always use factory belts not Dayco or someother brand.


----------



## TJ548 (Jan 5, 2009)

hotshotgoal30;704891 said:


> hate to say it but scramblers are not made for that by any means. i had so many problems burnin up belts when i had a scrambler. stupid things to like pulling another atv or hammering through mud puddles, the belt just did not last on it. but maybe ull get lucky.


I know a Scrambler is not the ideal machine for pushing snow by a long shot. I've got my eye on a cool fuel injected twin cylinder Sportsman 800. Now that would be nice but it's not in the cards right now. As far as belts go, I've replaced only one since it was new in 2000 when I found out ATV's are not snowmobiles. I was trying to cut a path through deep snow at full throttle. After a mile of churning and burning I gave up. There seemed to be no ill effects to the machine except for the belt which was only a little frayed on the edge. I probably could have run on that belt for a long time but I replaced it anyway.

What I do worry about is the gear box. I don't think it was designed for so much forward and back.


----------



## hotshotgoal30 (Dec 29, 2008)

scrablers are different than other utility quads in high gear. its not the same. these are more sport. utilities are geared different whether its in high or low the gearing is still different. im not going to say it burned up and stopped moving everytime but there was alot of times i would go to pull buddies out of mud or whatever and i could smell it. you would think they would be able to do more, but i guess thats why they dont put a hitch on them. you might be alright if you stay on top of the snow. i wouldnt let it get 6-8 inches deep especially if its really wet then you will probably start to smell the belt. im not trying to be a downer i just had bad experiances with scrambler belts and always used polaris belts.


----------



## sublime68charge (Dec 28, 2007)

wondering at what speed due you plow at?

I am thinking for your application the faster the better more moment to help ease the strain up the drive system of the scrambler. There made to go fast.
though I could be way off on this thinking.

though speed is also conductive to having things get broken and bent if you run into something solid.

also I would have a spare belt on hand for your machine. or make sure your snow shovel is in good working order.
maybe give your belt an extra inspection each month to give you early warning on any wear down of the belt. Though if you've already smoked one back when you first had the machine you know the drill for the belt then from that.

good luck and nice looking Pic's and your got a deal on your plow blade.


----------



## TJ548 (Jan 5, 2009)

sublime68charge;706173 said:


> wondering at what speed due you plow at?
> 
> I am thinking for your application the faster the better more moment to help ease the strain up the drive system of the scrambler. There made to go fast.
> though I could be way off on this thinking.
> ...


I think I probably plow at the same speed as everyone else. If anything, I've been going pretty slow. I'm not too keen on nailing an immovable object at high speed. The Scrambler seems to push just fine with my limited experience so far. Yesterday's snow was much heavier than Monday's so it felt like I was actually pushing something. I can't believe the strain on the scrambler pushing a moderate blade-full is any different than climbing a long hill. To me, it's all about throttle. If I'm wide open and not going anywhere, I probably ought to back off. If I have a little throttle and I'm pushing along (like most times), I should be ok. Like I said earlier, I'm more concerned about the forward/backward gear shifts than burning a belt or something else. Feels like I'm doing ok now but I'll know for sure at the end of the season. Something's got to give some time.

And yeah, it was a good deal. I figured I had too many unknowns to lay out full retail for a new blade so I got the used one for a minimal investment. Far as I'm concerned, I saved some coin and got the same thing as new. payup


----------

