# truck mount snow blower is swelling my brain



## mudracingfever (Jan 20, 2010)

i have done searches and watch you tube on truck mount snow blowers.. i have seen the hanson and snow vacs and others..not quite diggin them..i have a few questions and concerns i need help sorting..

first my idea is to fab a skid loader snow blower to a western uni mount so the plow pump will raise and lower. a dodge neon 2.0 motor is 130 horse and good economy. that would be in the rear of the truck with a hyd. pump off the flywheel along with hyd oil tank. everything in the rear if the truck would be mounted on a frame so it is removable, hyd oil tank, engine, radiator, etc.

questions are: 
would a skid loader blower or tractor blower be better?
is a engine that size sufficient?
would a gas motor be ok or do i need a diesel?
do i just match blower pump to flywheel pump??

my brain is scarred with this idea.. my dad is gung ho ready.. questions, comments, smart remarks would help....


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## WIPensFan (Jan 31, 2009)

My guess is it won't work like you envision it to. I really don't know about your idea, but I would think this idea has been tried and does not work. All blowers i've seen on the front of pick-up trucks look slow. Give it a shot if you have the time and resources!


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## mycirus (Dec 6, 2008)

http://www.plowsite.com/showthread.php?t=96424&highlight=truck+snowblower


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## lumps (Sep 3, 2005)

Sounds like a decent idea, and a good way to keep some of the weight (engine) off the front end.


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## cretebaby (Aug 23, 2008)

WIPensFan;967828 said:


> My guess is it won't work like you envision it to,


Why not????


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## WIPensFan (Jan 31, 2009)

cretebaby;968103 said:


> Why not????


Cause it never does.


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## cretebaby (Aug 23, 2008)

WIPensFan;968263 said:


> Cause it never does.


Maybe he has better _vision_ than you LOL


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## WIPensFan (Jan 31, 2009)

cretebaby;968274 said:


> Maybe he has better _vision_ than you LOL


Sometimes I think everyone has a better vision than me.


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## speedy (Oct 30, 2004)

I think you've got the right idea. The gas engine would make for lower entry cost, But I think you'd want to upgrade to a diesel after you've made a few bucks and can afford to pay for a diesel. I think 80 
HP, especially in a diesel would run a high-flow blower very well.

Skidsteersolutions.com has some nice blowers, their weight seems like it would be tolerable for a 1 ton, or maybe even a 4500 or 5500 series truck - but converted to single rear wheel. Solid front axle would be a given, and I think air bags up there would be a must as well. High-flow blower would be the best way to go. And figure for a hell of an oil cooler too.

I don't think a regular plow mount would be up to the task. A custom mount - parallelogram-style with a skid-steer quick attach plate.

Outfit the truck with the lowest speed (highest ratio) gears you can find, with an automatic tranny, and you'd likely be running in low range in the T-case too.


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## Ryan's Snow Rem (Dec 8, 2009)

The hydraulic power is a great idea! The only issue I foresee is going to be getting your engine to turn the correct speed for your hydraulic pump. I take it you have the neon motor already? I would talk to a hydraulic shop for their thoughts on the horsepower and speed required for the pump.

Please let me know how this turns out!


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## theonlybull (Oct 17, 2004)

you'll have issues getting a pump to mount to your neon engine, without some custom machine work, or a cobbled up mess. standard power units, use an industrial sized bell housing, and fly wheel, that allows over the counter addapters to bolt up.

the neon engine will work, but you'll need a pump rated for higher rpm then standard. you'll also need a govenor to control the engine speed to maintain a constant speed.

a hydrulic skid steer blower would be simpler then a tractor blower. but either would work.

if you use a big enough oil tank, you won't need a cooler, thier just a pain. standard for mobile equipment is 1/2 gallon of reserve for every gallon of flow ( this changes with pressure, but is close enough for now) extra oil storage doesn't hurt. 

find the shipping weight on a blower that would be the right size, then see if it falls into spec for the mount you want to use.


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## Pennings Garden (Dec 11, 2006)

even with the motor mounted in the back, I would think it would be alot of weight on the front end, and alot more cost then a regular plow. what are you hoping to do? a snow blower will never work at the same speed of a plow...


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## robjets (Dec 12, 2009)

Yea, why not just a plow, sounds like alot of headache unless your just doing long access ways


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## mudracingfever (Jan 20, 2010)

i have an 8 foot western on a 2003 f350 diesel. i have f550 springs in front. i have 7 schools to plow and at all the locations where they want the snow put, we end up running out of room since the truck can only bring it so far due to a hill or a swamp or large bank. so with that obstacle, trucks can bring snow down to me and a blower would work best to blow it up the hill, down in swamp, over bank etc. i have acces to a lathe and mill machine for fabricating, im just not sure on how to set it up. as far as the engine governor i had thought of fabing in the speed sensor and using cruise control wiring. ive got it all built in my head but dont know all the specs of components..


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## gene gls (Dec 24, 1999)

mudracingfever;967753 said:


> i have done searches and watch you tube on truck mount snow blowers.. i have seen the hanson and snow vacs and others..not quite diggin them..i have a few questions and concerns i need help sorting..
> 
> first my idea is to fab a skid loader snow blower to a western uni mount so the plow pump will raise and lower. a dodge neon 2.0 motor is 130 horse and good economy. that would be in the rear of the truck with a hyd. pump off the flywheel along with hyd oil tank. everything in the rear if the truck would be mounted on a frame so it is removable, hyd oil tank, engine, radiator, etc.
> 
> ...


Here is some reading material for you.
www.baumhydraulics.com
www.federalfp.com
The motor is not a problem, its getting the correct pump to match a hydraulic drive motor with a sufficent flow to drive your blower. Look up the specs on the blowers that you are interested in. That will get you started with the basic requirements.


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## JohnDeere2320 (Dec 12, 2009)

I looked at a 7 foot blower on bobcat's website and it weighs over 1,000 pounds, and thats not even as wide as a small snow plow. 1,000 pounds is a lot for even a 1 ton truck.

I think you will be asking your blower to do an awful lot to move snow that has been plowed in from other trucks if i understand you right. Chances are it will be very heavy wet snow because salt will be mixed with it and the trucks will be bringing it to you faster than you can blow it. 

Good luck.


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## theonlybull (Oct 17, 2004)

a 78" skid steer blower is 645lbs. a set of wings to gain 6" per side, and a push frame. shouldn't be any heavier then carrying a 9' Vplow. well within the abilities of a heavy 3/4 ton truck.

here's a list on regular flow loftness blowers

http://www.loftness.com/pdf/current_snowblower_prices.pdf

20 gpm @ 3500 lbs should do fine with 50 hp to power it

not gonna be a cheap way to go, but would work . would be easy to switch from plow to blower to finish cleaning the lots. then the truck could pull double duty


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## black7.3 (Jan 18, 2010)

Why not just get a skid steer with a blower???


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## mtk469 (Aug 27, 2009)

black7.3;970893 said:


> Why not just get a skid steer with a blower???


Thats what I was thinking as well.

Sounds like a fun project but I can't imagine that it would be practical price wise unless you already had everything parts wise and even then you still have some $$ wrapped up in all of the fab work to find out if it will even work the way you hope.


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## doubleedge (Aug 6, 2008)

Most of the time, a skid steer has to be transported via trailer. That can be hard when the roads are full of snow and it wastes time to load and unload it. A truck mounted snowblower would be much more efficient than a skidsteer mounted unit considering the trailering problems.


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## BigLou80 (Feb 25, 2008)

I think you have a good plan except for the power plant.

I would probably look for something other then a neon motor, which will need higher RPM's then most pumps(except aircraft$$) will handle. Why not use a small block chevy(or any other make) ? they can be had for a few hundred dollars, use a carbuerated model so there are no sensors to worry about. with a 2bbl carb it won't use to much fuel and will make 130 HP at a lot lower RPM then a neon motor. you could easily rig up a starting switch and hand throttle in the cab. It would also make good ballast for the extra weight on the front of the truck. I would set it up in a cage/crate so it can be removed and installed as a unit.

I know back in the day GM was hooking motors directly up to well pumps in places where electricity was not available, so there may be many mounting accessories already available 
http://www.bucksengines.com/


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## mudracingfever (Jan 20, 2010)

1. skid loader blower would be nice however i dont have a skid loader. but i got off the phone with a friend of mine who is a mechanic on heavy equipment. not what i wanted to hear but thats how it goes. 
2. a gas motor wont work because of the lack of low rpm torque when its loaded up. 
3.weight of a blower would be bit muck hangin off the front since it will be out further, 
4. a standard pump would work with the hope of a sheer pin actually sheering. he said they dont always will they sheer, then pump kaboom. it would be quite a bit of money to get a pump built with a relief valve to handle the "what ifs" so that plan is out the window..


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## gene gls (Dec 24, 1999)

mudracingfever;971596 said:


> 1. skid loader blower would be nice however i dont have a skid loader. but i got off the phone with a friend of mine who is a mechanic on heavy equipment. not what i wanted to hear but thats how it goes.
> 2. a gas motor wont work because of the lack of low rpm torque when its loaded up.
> 3.weight of a blower would be bit muck hangin off the front since it will be out further,
> 4. a standard pump would work with the hope of a sheer pin actually sheering. he said they dont always will they sheer, then pump kaboom. it would be quite a bit of money to get a pump built with a relief valve to handle the "what ifs" so that plan is out the window..


There are a lot of gas skid steers out there that run blowers. You need to study how hydraulic systems are designed and work for different opperations.


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## cretebaby (Aug 23, 2008)

gene gls;971764 said:


> There are a lot of gas skid steers out there that run blowers.


Of that size?


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## flatlander42 (Oct 22, 2008)

As far as the Neon motor goes.......you could mount the Hydraulic pump to the side and adjust your pulleys so the Hydraulic pump is not spinning to fast, but the Neon motor is in the correct RPM too. Wouldn't that be the normal way of doing things?

Or does it just plain not have enough balls?


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## leon (Nov 18, 2008)

*snow blower*



mudracingfever;967753 said:


> i have done searches and watch you tube on truck mount snow blowers.. i have seen the hanson and snow vacs and others..not quite diggin them..i have a few questions and concerns i need help sorting..
> 
> first my idea is to fab a skid loader snow blower to a western uni mount so the plow pump will raise and lower. a dodge neon 2.0 motor is 130 horse and good economy. that would be in the rear of the truck with a hyd. pump off the flywheel along with hyd oil tank. everything in the rear if the truck would be mounted on a frame so it is removable, hyd oil tank, engine, radiator, etc.
> 
> ...


=================================================================
NO,NO,NO,NO,NO,NO,

A truck mounted snow blower will work well( IF and only if it is direct driven through a large enough automatic transmission with a Power Take Off Shaft to rotate a direct drive snow blower fan/snow pump).
The fan/snow pump must be the full width of the cut to remove the snow and cast it away in one revolution the same way it is done here with rotary snow plows used by the railroads in the west and snow clearing machines in europe, russia, and asia and japan.

Please take note:
The use of a flywheel on the full width fan of the blower approaches problems with US and european patent infringement too.

If a second engine was installed on these truck mounted blowers to rotate the fan in a direct drive method with a PTO shaft and gearbox to create 1000 rpm it would work as a much much smaller motor could be employed to operate the auger with an engine using an attached gear box.driven from the crankshaft as statndard equipment

The use of V belts and pulleys and an open auger was a compromise;
in both engineering and price to offer a machine that was the width of a truck and must work slowly due to the width of the cut, the size of the auger housing in cubic feet of area, and the single open auger arrangement to feed the impeller fan,
and they tell you this up front too.

Versus the use of a more expensive very narrow flight auger drum that has a smaller volume per revolution delivering smaller amounts of snow to the small impeller fan and reduce plugging.

The drum auger snow blowers are used in europe on both road equipment and tractors.

Adding a simple Clarence Impeller Kit would improve a truck blowers throwing distance as the entire volume of snow in the fan housing would be removed in one rotation.

SAVE YOUR MONEY for a better blower to buy a used small front end loader like an L90 Volvo and mount a used Costant snow blower with diesel power on it if you really want one to work well with both power and speed for both deep and shallow depths of accumulation.

They both come up often in municipal auctions(snow Blowers) and job completion auctions/lease returns(front end loader)

You must have adequate power to provide forward motion, overcome the resistance of the snow pack, its mass, and have adequate energy to dispose of it efficiently.

leon


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## theonlybull (Oct 17, 2004)

mudracingfever;971596 said:


> 1. skid loader blower would be nice however i dont have a skid loader. but i got off the phone with a friend of mine who is a mechanic on heavy equipment. not what i wanted to hear but thats how it goes.
> 2. a gas motor wont work because of the lack of low rpm torque when its loaded up.
> 3.weight of a blower would be bit muck hangin off the front since it will be out further,
> 4. a standard pump would work with the hope of a sheer pin actually sheering. he said they dont always will they sheer, then pump kaboom. it would be quite a bit of money to get a pump built with a relief valve to handle the "what ifs" so that plan is out the window..


2... depends on the motor, differnt cams, and gas engines set up to be power units

3 ... maybe, depends on a few factors

4... the pump won't blow up. any system must have a relife valve that is able to relive sufficent flow and pressure to protect the pump. not normally placed in the pump. usually in the control valve, or inline to relive from one line to the other.


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## tracerich (Oct 25, 2004)

Heres a Ford Pickup with a Perkins diesel powerplant for the blower.


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## Matt400 (Dec 23, 2009)

Have you seen this blower powered by the front gas engine:







> The body is all original with the 1600cc tracker engine running the blower with the front drive shaft off the tracker transfercase. There is a 3cyl. sprint engine in the back to move the body. A rear samurai housing was used in the front and the front sam. housing is in the back so that`s why it`s now a rear wheel steering 4X4


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## Matt400 (Dec 23, 2009)

Here is a RWD F-150 that uses the bed mounted engine to drive the truck while the 300ci 6cyl up front is simply there for ballast and to run the HVAC. Actually too light in the front now.
http://www.dieselpowermag.com/features/ford/0810dp_1995_ford_f150_cummins_diesel/index.html

Can't say you would be lacking traction with this in the bed:


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## chris694205 (Dec 7, 2009)

that sounds like a cool idea... you would have to keep in mind that the engine in the back of the truck would run really hot not getting any air.. you would have to fab up a good cooling system for it


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## oldmankent (Mar 2, 2001)

I think a skid steer with a blower is the best choice. It can make you money while you are not using it for snow blowing too. Trailering around a skid isn't a big deal. It doesn't take forever to chain and unchain. When you don't need it for snow blowing it could be pushing snow. $$$$


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