# Half ton Vplow myth busted-



## ggb6259 (Jan 14, 2010)

I expect to get flamed but here goes, 

I have heard over and over "You can't put a vplow on a half ton pick up". I've been working in a fact based effort to dispell that faulty assumption. In reality there are plenty of V-plows are out there on 1/2 tons- Plenty of them on this site and other sites. 

There are two manufacturers that specifically advertise and support via their unique plow selectors V's on a 1/2 ton. Snowdogg 7'6" VMD and Meyer 7'6"VLD. Take a peek on this site and other sites and you will see them out there. Snowdogg is 713 lbs and does (imho) push the upper limits of what most 1/2 tons without mods can carry. The Meyer is spec'ed at 585 lbs and can be carried by most 1/2 ton pickups. 

The net here is if you have a 1/2 ton or are considering a V there are likely options out there. Do the due dilligence first.


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## beanz27 (Dec 22, 2012)

ggb6259;2088171 said:


> I expect to get flamed but here goes,
> 
> I have heard over and over "You can't put a vplow on a half ton pick up". I've been working in a fact based effort to dispell that faulty assumption. In reality there are plenty of V-plows are out there on 1/2 tons- Plenty of them on this site and other sites.
> 
> ...


No one said you couldn't, just shouldn't.


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## SnoFarmer (Oct 15, 2004)

First off ths is a pic section, and you have been around long enough to know where you should have
Posted, so your way off topic....
Maybe a mod can move it for you...



The rub,
A 7.5 Veee is not adequate For a full size truck.
A 7.5 in scoop, Vee or swung to the side will clear a path that is to narrow.
We know this from experience a 8.5 should be ultized.
You can research why this is too.

So the 8.5 Vee will be to heavy.
You can do it.
But you will be installing it yourself.


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## Mark Oomkes (Dec 10, 2000)

We had an 8'2" Boss V on a '93 half ton.

That one burned after a "mechanic" left his coat under the hood.

Put another 8'2" Boss V on the '96 half ton that replaced it.

Not sure who says you can't do it.


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## ggb6259 (Jan 14, 2010)

SnoFarmer;2088177 said:


> First off ths is a pic section, and you have been around long enough to know where you should have
> Posted, so your way off topic....
> Maybe a mod can move it for you...


I looked for an appropriate segment but could not nail one down... Mod please move to appropriate..

thx


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## Philbilly2 (Aug 25, 2007)

Just because the truck can carry it, does it mean that the rest of the truck can stay together????

The front end parts on a 3/4 ton plus truck are not the only parts that are stressed with a v-plow.


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## iceyman (Mar 1, 2007)

ggb6259;2088171 said:


> I expect to get flamed but here goes,
> 
> I have heard over and over "You can't put a vplow on a half ton pick up". I've been working in a fact based effort to dispell that faulty assumption. In reality there are plenty of V-plows are out there on 1/2 tons- Plenty of them on this site and other sites.
> 
> ...


Why so butthurt about this?


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## Philbilly2 (Aug 25, 2007)

iceyman;2088202 said:


> Why so butthurt about this?


I was thinking the same thing. Someone push your buttons on this or something?


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## ggb6259 (Jan 14, 2010)

Just trying to help the cause. Provide facts. 
Too much misinformation out there.


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## 1olddogtwo (Aug 6, 2007)

ggb6259;2088493 said:


> Just trying to help the cause. Provide facts.
> Too much misinformation out there.


We know they offer them, hell we've seen them, hell there are even threads on them with pics (YES, PICS) nothing new with ur post.

They also make accessories for women to wear but I won't put that I my old lady for good reason.


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## SnoFarmer (Oct 15, 2004)

1olddogtwo;2088497 said:


> We know they offer them, hell we've seen them, hell there are even threads on them with pics (YES, PICS) nothing new with ur post.
> 
> They also make accessories for women to wear but I won't put that I my old lady for good reason.


You talking about theses?


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## 1olddogtwo (Aug 6, 2007)

Ah, ya....that's the ticket.


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## terrapro (Oct 21, 2006)

Ok man yea sounds good.
There's also guys on here that run boss V's on jeeps with 1000lb lead custom rear bumpers that swear it's the bees knees. Granted thats uber custom but my point is you can do anything you want. 
Can you do it? Sure, should you do it? Your money and life so whatever.


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## Mr.Markus (Jan 7, 2010)

SnoFarmer;2088177 said:


> But you will be installing it yourself.


...or by a mechanic who leaves his coat under the hood...


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## ggb6259 (Jan 14, 2010)

SnoFarmer;2088502 said:


> You talking about theses?


Can you get the wideout version for the gals with cankles?


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## SnoFarmer (Oct 15, 2004)

ggb6259;2088534 said:


> Can you get the wideout version for the gals with cankles?


That would be a game changer.
Thumbs Up
Working on it....


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## JMHConstruction (Aug 22, 2011)

ggb6259;2088534 said:


> Can you get the wideout version for the gals with cankles?


It is better to have that extra weight to push through that heavy snow.


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## SnoFarmer (Oct 15, 2004)

JMHConstruction;2088550 said:


> It is better to have that extra weight to push through that heavy snow.


I'm just concerned about the snow spilling back under the wider heel.


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## JustJeff (Sep 9, 2009)

ggb6259;2088493 said:


> Just trying to help the cause. Provide facts.
> Too much misinformation out there.


What "facts" and what "misinformation" exactly? Pretty much everybody on here knows that it CAN be done, most just won't do it. And by the way, both plows you listed are "light or medium duty", which I would not use with commercial accounts. A few driveways or whatever, fine, but that's about all I would do with any of them. There was a guy on here last year who posted pics/vids of his brand new Raptor with a Wideout on it. Haven't seen him since to see how it worked for him (although I can probably guess). Anyway, your thread is pretty much just a statement of the obvious. We all know what you can/can't do, but opt not to.


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## Philbilly2 (Aug 25, 2007)

Mr.Markus;2088513 said:


> ...or by a mechanic who leaves his coat under the hood...






Harleyjeff;2088592 said:


> What "facts" and what "misinformation" exactly? Pretty much everybody on here knows that it CAN be done, most just won't do it. And by the way, both plows you listed are "light or medium duty", which I would not use with commercial accounts. A few driveways or whatever, fine, but that's about all I would do with any of them. There was a guy on here last year who posted pics/vids of his brand new Raptor with a Wideout on it. Haven't seen him since to see how it worked for him (although I can probably guess). Anyway, your thread is pretty much just a statement of the obvious. We all know what you can/can't do, but opt not to.


Well said. ^^^^^


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## Mark Oomkes (Dec 10, 2000)

Mr.Markus;2088513 said:


> ...or by a mechanic who leaves his coat under the hood...


The story is far better than just that.


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## LapeerLandscape (Dec 29, 2012)

1olddogtwo;2088497 said:


> We know they offer them, hell we've seen them, hell there are even threads on them with pics (YES, PICS) nothing new with ur post.
> 
> They also make accessories for women to wear but I won't put that I my old lady for good reason.


PICS really, so its more than just a bigfoot sighting...


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## Mark Oomkes (Dec 10, 2000)

ggb6259;2088493 said:


> Just trying to help the cause. Provide facts.
> Too much misinformation out there.


Thank you, thank you, thank you.

I'm glad that 20+ years later, the misinformation of what we did has been corrected. I can't find any pics of that truck.


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## kg26 (Feb 5, 2013)

beanz27 said:


> No one said you couldn't, just shouldn't.


Why


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## Philbilly2 (Aug 25, 2007)

kg26 said:


> Why


Read the thread...


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## ktfbgb (Jan 31, 2016)

Philbilly2 said:


> Read the thread...


Lol.


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## SnoFarmer (Oct 15, 2004)

They invented 2 when 1 wasn't big enough.
Then they invented 3 when 2 was no longer big enough.


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## kg26 (Feb 5, 2013)

Philbilly2 said:


> Read the thread...


I did, all anyone said was it being too narrow, and something about rub. The majority of the time was spent talking about a woman's ankles. The real question would be what is the application if you are using it for residential drive ways one could be just fine with a 1/2 pick up with a 7'6" plow on it. Commercial application.... that there is another story all together.


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## SnoFarmer (Oct 15, 2004)

Why?
Why would you want to use a tack hammer to drive a spike?

Why limit your growth .

And soo mulch more was discussed than plow shoes .

So, go back and read it again,
This time take note of the smaller breaks, and lighter axels..
Smaller u-joints etc etc.

Not Say'en some don't use them,
But when Was the last you saw a fleet of 1/2 ton plow trucks.

They get 3/4 ton and bigger.

Ps a 7.5 is to narrow for the truck.
A 8.5 bearly clears a path wide enough.


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## Philbilly2 (Aug 25, 2007)

There is more in there than that.

You can do what ever you want, heck give me a 30 pack and I will mount a v plow on my kids power wheels... it is not that you can't do it, most are just saying that they wouldn't...


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## ktfbgb (Jan 31, 2016)

Not to mention the transmission not holding up. Company I used to plow for ran a couple of the old full size broncos for tight lots and parking space cleanup. All the other trucks were 3/4 ton or larger. Anyway he had 7.5 straight plows on the two broncos, which are lighter than the light duty V plows, and still had to put new transmissions in them every year or two. He needed those broncos for a specific purpose, for some specific lots, so he said it was just an expected cost of doing business, and prices for the lots that needed the broncos reflected a new transmission every year as part of his overhead cost. So, can you put a V plow on a half ton? Sure. Question is do you want to replace the transmission regularly, front end components, and other driveline components on a regular basis? Or do want to spend all that extra money on something designed to work hard and take the abuse of plowing snow.


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## Philbilly2 (Aug 25, 2007)

Why not????


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## SnoFarmer (Oct 15, 2004)

Why wouldn't you?


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## ktfbgb (Jan 31, 2016)

Philbilly2 said:


> View attachment 168706
> 
> 
> Why not????


Seems legit to me.


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## Philbilly2 (Aug 25, 2007)

AWD, heated seats, 7 passenger seating... perfect plow car...


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## Defcon 5 (Mar 20, 2014)

Might need some timbrens....Atleast the plow is chainlift...Should be a lot easier on the transmission...


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## leigh (Jan 2, 2009)

Philbilly2 said:


> View attachment 168706
> 
> 
> Why not????


 Why not? That western wouldn't last one storm on that gmc.


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## theplowmeister (Nov 14, 2006)

Philbilly2 said:


> Read the thread...


I read the thread, the only "Fact" I saw was Oomks that has used them. the rest has bean good old boys hiberbaly, no facts. Just... you can but you shouldn't. and someone that blew a lot of tranys. not much info there did he shift before coming to a stop? was it an auto trany or manual? and it was only second hand info.


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## ktfbgb (Jan 31, 2016)

theplowmeister said:


> I read the thread, the only "Fact" I saw was Oomks that has used them. the rest has bean good old boys hiberbaly, no facts. Just... you can but you shouldn't. and someone that blew a lot of tranys. not much info there did he shift before coming to a stop? was it an auto trany or manual? and it was only second hand info.


How is it second hand info if I was the one blowing the tranny? The FACT is that the drive train on a half ton vehicle will get beat to hell if you plowing snow with it. It wasn't meant for this type of service. Like I said there are situations that call for a small vehicle. In such a case you can use them but like I said just be prepared to regularly fix broken stuff.

And no I wasn't shifting into reverse or vise a versa before complete stops or doing anything different that an experienced plow operator would do. I have never had any transmission or other drive train issues in a HD platform. I guess it would depend also on the amount of snow you get also. Sure if get a piddly 20-30" of snow per year then maybe a half ton drive train would hold up. If your pushing over 100" of snow a year like we do then the fact is you are gonna break a lot of stuff on a half ton.


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## SnoFarmer (Oct 15, 2004)

I've plowed with a jeep, sure they too can plow some snow . but the reality is they also become overwhelmed
by a lot of snow. A better choice would be a 3/4 or Bigger truck.
this a fact just like all of the other facts in this thread.


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## Philbilly2 (Aug 25, 2007)

Ok, here are some facts then.

Typically 1/2 tons have lighter duty items such as:
Steering Components (some are electronic steering boxes)
Axle Ratings
Suspension 
Smaller Brakes
U Joints and Drive Shafts
Transfer Cases
Transmissions
Rear Ends

Also fact:
I have had my hands in enough of the undersides of the K5 blazers and the 88-98 K1500's replacing many of the parts mentioned above to just provide the info that you can do it, but most would not. 

As it is a full sized truck you need wider than 7 1/2 foot blade to clear the tires. What people are saying is that you can do it, most just would choose not to due the drive line is not as "built" for abuse that is headed it's way.

Same reason you don't see a 1/2 ton pulling a 30 foot livestock trailer, it is not that you can't do it with the truck, most just have enough brains to not do it.


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## SnoFarmer (Oct 15, 2004)

more facts....
Our experts include a few from the Rocky Mountains: Eric Curry, owner of RAI (Rock and Ice), Frank Ceferatti of Shuv-It, both in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, where city center averages about 14 feet of snow.

We also chatted with Gordon Speck, the Track and Fleet Manager at Bridgestone's Winter Driving School just outside of town who dealt with 500 inches of snowfall last winter.

These snow-plowing pros had a lot of great insights on what it takes to make a pickup last season after season pushing snow.

*PICKUP SETUPS*

All agreed that a half-ton pickup, Jeep, or older Bronco/Blazer/Scout SUV is useful for driveways or small areas with limited maneuverability. But commercial plowing requires a 3/4- or 1-ton.

In new full-size ½-ton pickups, only GM offers a snow-plow prep package. Toyota, Nissan and Ram do not recommend plowing with their respective Tundra, Titan and Ram 1500.

Ford dropped the snow-plow prep package from the 2011-and-newer F-150 because of electrical requirements associated with the electric-assist steering; many plows have peak draws near 250 amps and losing steering assist while plowing because of it could be problematic. - See more at: http://www.hardworkingtrucks.com/plowing/#sthash.83VcgUtI.dpuf


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## Oxmow (Dec 6, 2006)

I plowed with a 75 Bronco for over 10 years and must have done it the "right" way because it had a C-5 tranny in it and never had it rebuilt. did bust a steering shaft once, but thats because I put a body lift on it and never relieved the steering shaft angle. Had 7 inches of lift and 35" tires on it...Goodyear AT's.

Had a conventional 7'6" western on it.


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## FredG (Oct 15, 2012)

To me a half ton truck is a commuter, Back in the mid 80's I plowed with a full size Bronco small commercial. Yes it plowed ok unless you were in heavy stuff. The point is the beating it took. C6 tranny replaced, front end parts, brakes, Transfer case, Front pumpkin you name it.

Anything that carries weight needs a good foundation. Not to mention the heavier you are the better. You take a HD F250 or comparable weighed down correctly we barely use 4wd except for road time. I know this was mentioned above, This is a very old subject and been discussed many times.

Do you want to pull a 45' trailer with a 5.9 in a 1TN dodge or a Freightliner. These are simple facts to a seasoned Guy, Even on construction by the time you get your Tampers, Pumps, generator, fuel transfer tank, tools your going to look like your pulling a cattle trailer.

Don't buy into all auto and plow manufactures BS. These guys here are just going by real life learning experiences. Maybe I'm a old school FOG like my son calls me. He failed his first time in biz. I did not. Good Luck


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## Mark Oomkes (Dec 10, 2000)

ktfbgb said:


> Not to mention the transmission not holding up. Company I used to plow for ran a couple of the old full size broncos for tight lots and parking space cleanup. All the other trucks were 3/4 ton or larger. Anyway he had 7.5 straight plows on the two broncos, which are lighter than the light duty V plows, and still had to put new transmissions in them every year or two. He needed those broncos for a specific purpose, for some specific lots, so he said it was just an expected cost of doing business, and prices for the lots that needed the broncos reflected a new transmission every year as part of his overhead cost. So, can you put a V plow on a half ton? Sure. Question is do you want to replace the transmission regularly, front end components, and other driveline components on a regular basis? Or do want to spend all that extra money on something designed to work hard and take the abuse of plowing snow.


Maybe he should have tried to find a different\better tranny rebuilder. Broncos used to dang near a staple for plowing. Are the trannies great? No, but going through 1 a year is ridiculous.


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## ktfbgb (Jan 31, 2016)

Mark Oomkes said:


> Maybe he should have tried to find a different\better tranny rebuilder. Broncos used to dang near a staple for plowing. Are the trannies great? No, but going through 1 a year is ridiculous.


This probably was a contributing factor, I have no idea who, or how extensively the tranny was rebuilt. I do know that one of the times The bell housing split in half. They just don't do good for us up here at least. I'm sure you've been in the situation before, big storm, snow coming down at 3 inch per hour rate, by the time your at the end of the route you are opening up lots with 12" plus of snow on them. These are pretty normal conditions for us and when you work them like that 2-3 times a season on top of all the normal storms, they just didn't hold up. He has been doing it for a lot longer than me and had two identical broncos of the same year so we could just swap stuff out.


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## ktfbgb (Jan 31, 2016)

Oxmow said:


> I plowed with a 75 Bronco for over 10 years and must have done it the "right" way because it had a C-5 tranny in it and never had it rebuilt. did bust a steering shaft once, but thats because I put a body lift on it and never relieved the steering shaft angle. Had 7 inches of lift and 35" tires on it...Goodyear AT's.
> 
> Had a conventional 7'6" western on it.


Yes like I said in the places with really minimal snow, like Tulsa with an annual average snowfall of 9" per year, they probably hold up fine. We push 9" plus on a single push multiple times per year. It's not unusual for us to get 18-24 inches of snowfall in a 48-72 hour period and they can't take it.


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## theplowmeister (Nov 14, 2006)

ktfbgb said:


> How is it second hand info if I was the one blowing the tranny? The FACT is that the drive train on a half ton vehicle will get beat to hell if you plowing snow with it. It wasn't meant for this type of service. Like I said there are situations that call for a small vehicle. In such a case you can use them but like I said just be prepared to regularly fix broken stuff.
> 
> And no I wasn't shifting into reverse or vise a versa before complete stops or doing anything different that an experienced plow operator would do. I have never had any transmission or other drive train issues in a HD platform. I guess it would depend also on the amount of snow you get also. Sure if get a piddly 20-30" of snow per year then maybe a half ton drive train would hold up. If your pushing over 100" of snow a year like we do then the fact is you are gonna break a lot of stuff on a half ton.


Sorry I did not get that you where driving I thought you new a guy that....
so that is a fact then, you blow tranys in 1/2 ton plow trucks. ( still dont know if its an auto trany or manual.)

Ive plowed for 30 years with manuals and never blown one (using Fisher 7 1/2 HD up to boss 7 1/2 V) I have a jeep with an auto that was slippin when I bought it used. rebuilt the tranny last year (4 years of service with a failing tranny from the get go)


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## JMHConstruction (Aug 22, 2011)

There are a lot of old beater trucks that are half tons around here with plows. But none are new and all are 7.5' straight that I've paid attention to. I was going to put one on mine and just replace as needed until I got a new truck before the season. With that said, the weight of the light duty plows would be well over the limit of a half ton. Legally it's a bad idea.

I'll also add most of our snows are around 2" and we only average around 20ish" a year.


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## ktfbgb (Jan 31, 2016)

theplowmeister said:


> Sorry I did not get that you where driving I thought you new a guy that....
> so that is a fact then, you blow tranys in 1/2 ton plow trucks. ( still dont know if its an auto trany or manual.)
> 
> Ive plowed for 30 years with manuals and never blown one (using Fisher 7 1/2 HD up to boss 7 1/2 V) I have a jeep with an auto that was slippin when I bought it used. rebuilt the tranny last year (4 years of service with a failing tranny from the get go)


Automatics trannys in those broncos. Like the OP said he knew this would start a pissing match.

For me it's a fact that a half ton is going to get smoked in our area with the amount of snow we get and how hard we beat them. Some of the lots we needed the small turning radius of that bronco still had 300 to 500 foot pushes with 12" of wet snow. And we for sure push the limits of the HD trucks on a normal basis so if they are struggling you can imagine how the small trucks fare. It's just the nature of our mountain effect snow and how fast it can build on you no matter how early you start to try and keep up with the storm. If all our storms were in the 2-4" range like a lot of places in the country it would probably be a different experience. But for us around here only about half my accounts are a 2" trigger. The city doesn't even plow residential roadways unless there is 4 or more inches on the ground.

Would a manual last longer, yes. But most guys aren't special ordering a truck with a manual in it. Especially for plowing. To the average operator out there they are too slow. To the experienced one man operation who takes care of his rig and knows the proper way to plow with a manual I would say it's probably hands down better. I haven't plowed with a manual in probably 15 years, and I doubt that I will again. It's just my opinion and if someone asks if they should spend 5-6k on a plow to put it on a light duty vehicle I'm going to tell them my experience and advise against it, especially if for anything more than residential drives.


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## Mark Oomkes (Dec 10, 2000)

ktfbgb said:


> Yes like I said in the places with really minimal snow, like Tulsa with an annual average snowfall of 9" per year, they probably hold up fine. We push 9" plus on a single push multiple times per year. It's not unusual for us to get 18-24 inches of snowfall in a 48-72 hour period and they can't take it.


Haven't you ever heard of plowing with the storm? :laugh:


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## ktfbgb (Jan 31, 2016)

Mark Oomkes said:


> Haven't you ever heard of plowing with the storm? :laugh:


Oh you know I do lol. I think that what we call mountain effect snow is probably similar to the lake effect you guys experience up there. It can dump at an unbelievable rate. Just can't keep up with a 3" per hour rate. 3 hours into the route the first property already has another 9" on it.


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## Mark Oomkes (Dec 10, 2000)

ktfbgb said:


> Oh you know I do lol. I think that what we call mountain effect snow is probably similar to the lake effect you guys experience up there. It can dump at an unbelievable rate. Just can't keep up with a 3" per hour rate. 3 hours into the route the first property already has another 9" on it.


Shirley you can. Except when you axe these guys what happens when you have a parking lot that takes 3 hours to clear, how you will never plow more than 3" of snow..........allegedly. Or 4.5".

We plow with the storm, but the logic of those fall apart. 6 hour route. Start at 1.5". Snowing at an inch per hour. By the time you hit your last account you have upwards of 6.5".

Take your pick, use the numbers you want, but those who state one shouldn't ever have to plow more than 3-4" live in an alternate universe.


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## ktfbgb (Jan 31, 2016)

Mark Oomkes said:


> Shirley you can. Except when you axe these guys what happens when you have a parking lot that takes 3 hours to clear, how you will never plow more than 3" of snow..........allegedly. Or 4.5".
> 
> We plow with the storm, but the logic of those fall apart. 6 hour route. Start at 1.5". Snowing at an inch per hour. By the time you hit your last account you have upwards of 6.5".
> 
> Take your pick, use the numbers you want, but those who state one shouldn't ever have to plow more than 3-4" live in an alternate universe.


Couldn't have said it better!


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## 1olddogtwo (Aug 6, 2007)

I prefer to roll on a lot with 4-5 inches then mantianing a 1/2 on it......

Then again my plow is 11"6 vee..... Shirley 1/2 ton can handle that too


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