# Skid steer snow blades



## R.M Hanson (Nov 14, 2005)

Does anybody have any suggestions on a heavy duty snow plow designed to be run on skid steers? I am starting to look for a replacement blade for next winter. Currently I am running a 7 1/2 foot Curtis blade with pro-wings on a JD 325 skid equipped with Wolf Paw tires and a two speed. My problem is that the blade is just not holding up. It just wasn't designed to be used on a machine this large, and despite being as careful as possible, I keep bending and breaking things. Most of the other plows for skids that are offered by Boss, Sno-Way, Curtis, Hiniker and several other of the manufacturers are simply modified truck plows, which I doubt would hold up any better than what I already have. Does anyone have any experience with specialty companies that make good, sturdy blades?


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## elite1msmith (Sep 10, 2007)

R.M Hanson;734639 said:


> Does anybody have any suggestions on a heavy duty snow plow designed to be run on skid steers? I am starting to look for a replacement blade for next winter. Currently I am running a 7 1/2 foot Curtis blade with pro-wings on a JD 325 skid equipped with Wolf Paw tires and a two speed. My problem is that the blade is just not holding up. It just wasn't designed to be used on a machine this large, and despite being as careful as possible, I keep bending and breaking things. Most of the other plows for skids that are offered by Boss, Sno-Way, Curtis, Hiniker and several other of the manufacturers are simply modified truck plows, which I doubt would hold up any better than what I already have. Does anyone have any experience with specialty companies that make good, sturdy blades?


are you using your blade in float mode? is this a chain lift?? also did you add the valve box that has cushen and bypass valves on it?


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## cretebaby (Aug 23, 2008)

Daniels, Horst, Bobcat,

off the top of my head


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## elite1msmith (Sep 10, 2007)

i would check to see why your beeting up on your other one first

i would hate to see you buy a blade , then to watch some one mis use it...hit a curb , or angle it hard one dirrection... no float mode, lifting the tires off the gground


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## nhpatriot (Dec 9, 2007)

Can you use a pusher box for your application? A pusher has the skids on the sides which keep you from putting too much down pressure on the blade. Mine is a Horst Welding 3500 series, 9' x 38" high with reversible metal trip edge. I have been happy with it. I initially thought that I needed an angle plow on some of the accounts that this has turned out being perfect for. This thing holds so much snow that it cut down a 9 hr. straight blade plow circuit to 3 hrs. Scrapes really clean and leaves nothing behind.

Here's a few photos of mine: http://www.plowsite.com/showthread.php?t=77856


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## pieperlc (Jan 4, 2005)

I'm pretty happy with my Daniels plow. I've looked at the snow wolf and they seem pretty tough also. Both of these companies build plows only for skid steers and larger machines (no truck plows). The Daniels, and I think the snow wolf has it as well, is designed to be able to put down pressure as well as a float mode (not with the loader arms) with a chain.


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## R.M Hanson (Nov 14, 2005)

Thanks for the replies so far. I forgot about the the Daniels Plows, and I have only seen pictures of the Snow-Wolf and Horst Plows. I also heard about the new Bobcat blades, but my dealer didn't have any more information, and they aren't available to them yet. I'm not sure there is anything more I can do to help preserve the blade I already have, other than to retire it to secondary or backup use. It is equipped with a crossover relief valve to protect the angle cylinders, and the entire push frame was rebuilt before the season started with thicker steel. I have run the same style blade on other machines since 1996, when I first started plowing, with no problems. The blade does not float, and is designed to have some down pressure applied to it. Running the loader in float simply causes the front tires to be lifted from the ground during a heavy push, so that's not the answer either. Both times the blade broke last were actually during transport between jobs. The blade has a tendency to flop forward a bit and bounce back and forth during transport. I think this flopping is what is causing things to break, kinda like constantly hammering something. I fixed that by replacing the trip springs, and welding on some more metal in any stress areas. I really just need to replace it with a new one and use it just for backup or home use. I have thought about a box plow, and I think that it would work great on my business lots, but not for my residentials. I could always buy a box and a new plow and switch between them as needed, which is also something I've thought about. Does anyone have any experience with the Kage system? I have 5 commercial sites and 32 residential customers on a 2.5 mile route, so it's pretty compact. For backup or plan B I also have a truck with a plow, and a tractor with a loader and snowblower, but I like using the skid because of visibility and it's smaller size.


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## Spudgunner (Aug 23, 2006)

I saw what I believe to be one of the new Bobcat blades at the Boise dealer a couple of weeks ago. Pretty amazing. I have a 7' Quick-Attach blade for my Toolcat that I'm happy with but the Bobcat blade, in terms of heavy construction, made my QA blade look kinda lightweight. The blade I saw was attached to an S300...one of Bobcat's heaviest skids.


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## KAG (Jul 19, 2007)

Hiniker V-plow


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## rob_cook2001 (Nov 15, 2008)

I have a bobcat S300 with a 8ft bobcat blade and love it, the only thing I can knock is that when the blade is angle the corner closest to the machine drops 1-2 inches but it is only a paine on gravel
robert


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## Deckscapes (Oct 24, 2006)

We have run BOSS skid steer blades for the past 6 years without any problems. Our S250 2-speed bobcat broke the Bobcat brand snow blade the first night out and we have been running the BOSS blades ever since.


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## DGODGR (Nov 30, 2008)

I have an A300 and began plowing with a Bobcat 8' straight blade. It has held up well so far. I don't use it very much since I started using a 100" snow bucket. I have had higher wear on the corners but I have found that the bucket position is critical when angling the blade (center pin MUST be level or the edges will dig in). The new Bobcat blade appears to be of similar construction but has a bottom trip instead of the whole blade tripping like mine. As far as comparing my skid plow to a truck plow I would think that it would be very wise to buy one specifically designed for the riggors of skid steer use. That being said I think that my Western Pro Plus looks tougher than the Bobcat blade.


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## Premier (Nov 20, 2007)

I would get a blizzard 810ss ive used one before and it was on a jd325 they are built like a brick ***** house. i have a snoway on my 332 right now and am going to upgrade to the blizzard for next year


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## CityGuy (Dec 19, 2008)

Snowwolfe makes some good skid blades


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