# hello and greetings



## treefarm (Jan 10, 2010)

I have a few basic questions, which I'm sure have been asked 1 million times so please forgive me. I am located in upstate New York about 45 miles northwest of Albany, it's safe to say we get quite a bit of snow . I live on the family farm with about 1800 foot gravel driveway quite a ways back also have a large barn area that needs to be kept open, I have a rear three point snow blower 84 inch on a 60 hp tractor. in October I purchased a 2010 F350 XLT 4x4 I would really like to put a plow on it to save my neck from looking back on the tractor . I know it's exactly not the best time to be buying a snowplow but even if I wait till the spring, it's very confusing which model is better which features are better and who is really the most reliable? I've looked at a few fishers and westerns someone told me they are basically the same plows? Another question what size should I get I have had dealers tell me 7 1/2 to 9 foot which would be right for me, they all see my truck and want to put the biggest plow possible on it ,one other thing I don't want to buy used I am definitely going to buy a new plow to have a few years of reliability I just don't have time to play with old plows pumps motors you get the point, my father had a 68 pickup truck with an old plow I was under that thing more than it plowed .finally what's a fair price for a eight and half installed on the truck out of season of course I know right now they will get a premium, but then again with this economy I might just get a good deal thanks for all your help and all opinions are welcome


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## show-n-go (Feb 5, 2009)

As long as you bought a SRW truck then an 8.6 plow would be great. You will be able to get the same deal now as in the spring it might be a littler longer wait to get it installed now though. Western and fisher are the same company and both are very good plows, just make sure you buy from the dealer that has the best service, that will matter more later on down the road.


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## treefarm (Jan 10, 2010)

thanks for the quick response, yes it's a single rear wheel would it hurt to put a bigger plow on the truck? And are the V. plows that much better at clearing snow? I'm just full of questions sorry ;-) what about some of the other manufacturers are they any better like the boss or Meyer just curious.


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## gusdust (Jan 6, 2008)

Since you are going to buy new, you might want to use a plow brand that has good dealer support in your area. Good service means a lot. V plows are nice in my opinion, but maybe not necessary if you are only doing a few driveways. Buy a Boss if you want to help out Michigan's economy. Good luck.


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## leon (Nov 18, 2008)

*snow etc.*



treefarm;953620 said:


> I have a few basic questions, which I'm sure have been asked 1 million times so please forgive me. I am located in upstate New York about 45 miles northwest of Albany, it's safe to say we get quite a bit of snow . I live on the family farm with about 1800 foot gravel driveway quite a ways back also have a large barn area that needs to be kept open, I have a rear three point snow blower 84 inch on a 60 hp tractor. in October I purchased a 2010 F350 XLT 4x4 I would really like to put a plow on it to save my neck from looking back on the tractor . I know it's exactly not the best time to be buying a snowplow but even if I wait till the spring, it's very confusing which model is better which features are better and who is really the most reliable? I've looked at a few fishers and westerns someone told me they are basically the same plows? Another question what size should I get I have had dealers tell me 7 1/2 to 9 foot which would be right for me, they all see my truck and want to put the biggest plow possible on it ,one other thing I don't want to buy used I am definitely going to buy a new plow to have a few years of reliability I just don't have time to play with old plows pumps motors you get the point, my father had a 68 pickup truck with an old plow I was under that thing more than it plowed .finally what's a fair price for a eight and half installed on the truck out of season of course I know right now they will get a premium, but then again with this economy I might just get a good deal thanks for all your help and all opinions are welcome


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They saw you coming!!!! , and they have no incentive to discount prices as each plow is mounted to each individual vehicle and requires time to weld and fabricate each individual mounting to an individual truck type and truck frame and install the controller wiring in the wiring system of the tractor.

Did you know you could buy a three point hitch for a small tractor and a front drive pto kit for smaller tractors?

You will be money ahead and will have fewer problems with machinery buying a front mounting kit three point hitch attachment kit from one of these three builders of hitch and the kits for less money.

buckeye tractor company
wwww.bucktraco.com

front hitches for three point implements for tractors to 400 HP they may still make the rear to front PTO kits as well.

others include

Laforge systems www.fronthitch.com for smaller tractors and front PTO drive kits for three point hitch attachments used up front on small tractors

MK Martin www.mkmartin.ca smaller tractors rear to front three point hitch kits and pto adapters to use three point hitch mounted PTO powered attachments up front

Lorenz Manufacturing www.lorenzmfg.com

also builds the front drive and hitch kitswith a gear box and under tractor propeller shaft to send pto power to the front mounted three point hitch mounted attachment

The lorenz folks advise everyone to contact them directly as they may not have your specific tractor in the list on thier web page and they should be able to help anyone. depending on whether the tractor has a mid point PTO shaft etc.

You have the tractor and you could mount a mower up front if desired with this unit as well.

I would call Buckeye tractor company Mk Martin and Lorenz mfg. first then laforge systems to ask about a mounting kit and PTO kit for you tractor.

The new to you truck will require an individual plow mounting frame that will be welded to your truck and additional wiring work. and they will charge you for labor and steel as well as anything else you need to mount and operate it.

The PTO attachment and hitch mounting frame bolt on to your tractor and can stay there etc.and you will be able to use most all your three point mounted attachments up front with the approved visibility in operation while using the snow blower up front.

Do your home work, do you really want a lot of weight adding to the repair expense of the truck, like tires, wheel alignment, shocks and or springs, power steering, additional loading of the electrical system with the plow pump, problems from freezing temperatures and moisture in the oil and soleniods.

The plow is used seasonally and requires truck modification to mount it weakening the frame and adding weight to the front suspension of the truck.

The snow blower and the tractor are pieces of equipment you already own and the adapter kit is simple with a bit of time and work attaching it and it would be permantly mounted.

The snow blower has fewer working components 
a right angle gear box for the impeller fan and chain drive for the auger which are shear pin protected to avoid breakage and it depends upon the tractor for PTO power and hydraulic lift.

And the snow blower you all ready have will get the snow out of the way further away completely the first time eliminating any piling and frozen snow banks.

The tractor you have will be more versatile with the front hitch kit and front PTO system.

Its your money or your banks loaning you money but spending more money for snow removal buying a plow for seasonal use when you have a dedicated pieces of machinery that already does the job and a three point mounting kit and PTO adapter may be readily available to you and may cost you much less than a new plow and the labor for the plow mounting frame welded together for your model of truck and the labor and parts needed to install the electric wiring..

Iike I said its your money I know you have asked about snow removal on the forum here previously.

leon


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## In2toys (Jan 25, 2006)

I'm pretty sure You won't have any welding to do to mount a new plow to a new truck.... But you could buy a skidsteer blade & have that mounted to the loader arms where the bucket mounts too. Some loaders have skidsteer type quick hitches. 

To your original question though. If your truck is SRW you can get by with a 7 1/2 foot blade if all you are doing is your own & a road. Put a set of wings on it & be done with it...


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## show-n-go (Feb 5, 2009)

For your own driveway you do not need a vplow but yes they are worth it if your plowing alot.
I would stay away from meyer.
Maybe check out snowdogg for there prices and they seem to be good.
Boss
western
fisher
are all good plows as well. dealer support is what you need to worry about as long as you get one of these brands since they are all good.


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## KBTConst (Oct 25, 2009)

Get a V dont get a V. You say you have a 1800' drive we know you get alot of snow there but is it in the open where you get alot of drifting if you do i would get a V if its just a plain drive that doesnt get alot of drifting get a straight blade I know you have a blower you could use on drifts but you are trying to keep from using it so if your going to buy a plow In my opinion get a 9'2" boss V it works great and its on a F350 SRW. the price is not alot more for the V but you can do alot more with it.


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## Grn Mtn (Sep 21, 2004)

leon although seemingly still living in the 1950's has a point, if the reason your looking at a plow is because your blower for the tractor is the push type and not pull, than looking back words all the time would be a pain. So the least expensive solution of front mounting it seems to make sense.

However, putting a plow on your truck (and last I checked a F350 is a work truck so it can handle a plow ) is warmer and faster, and you'll still have the blower setup if things get really bad. Don't sell yourself short, buy the 8' or 9' straight blade. they are built more durable and will last you longer (if you put a homesteader on your truck you'll just break it with too much power). I prefer the trip edge plow vs the full trip (fisher vs western). another reason I like a bigger plow is when angled you still are over-hanging so your not packing down fresh snow when making turns. Also they have higher moldboards so in deep snow your not filling up your grill.

also, they won't have to be welded on....

lastly, vplows are great, very versatile and can stack higher clean up windrows, etc. 
But not really necessary in your case.


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## mycirus (Dec 6, 2008)

My brother has had a SS X blade on his F350 for the last 7 years. Has held up well and still looks great. He has an 8 footer. I wouldnt go less than that on your truck.


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## Kenyou (Oct 13, 2007)

Welcome to Plow Site treefarm.
My only concern is that do you have enough room to push the snow? You can't push it to the side and and do it again later, especially with that much snow. If it freezes hard, chances are you will not move it. Do you have the room to push it way out into a field or what ever to make room for the next snow? A blower doesn't have that problem as much. Again, Welcome and Good Luck


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## treefarm (Jan 10, 2010)

Wow thanks for all the information , but honestly I have never posted a question on this site I just made up my screen name yesterday maybe someone else has a similar name. As far as the tractor goes I know all about front mount snowblowers I have a few John Deere's new Holland's an one very old case love her to death, the problem is they are a pain in the ASS to start when it's 15 below even though the new Holland is a cab tractor it takes the entire day to get up to temperature. I'm in the process of selling the snowblower to a neighbor it was the biggest mistake I ever made for years I used the bucket loaders I just never thought how hard it would be to back up even with rear mirrors it's still a pain in the neck no pun intended. Most front mount snowblowers for the size tractors started about $9,000 and go from there I have been in contact with a few of the people you recommended by the time they fabricated the front mounts I was over $14,000!! Including the fact that I had too purchased their snowblower to use their front mount systems, I even try Hydro set up was outrageous in price. Erskine also makes a front mount about $9500 outrageous that's why I settled with a new Holland 84 inch rear snowblower about $5500. Now that I got that done this is not my first truck I'm a contractor by trade and have owned many trucks over the last 20 years I'm not concerned about the truck being broken up or wearing out parts I do enough of that hauling my material to job sites every day  in three years I'll be replacing the truck it will be be the next guys problem LOL. I really just wanted to hear what you think about the companies that are available unfortunately in the upstate area there aren't many dealers to choose from :-( fishers about the only one around. I like the boss but the nearest dealer is almost 80 miles away to far to get parts. Myers is pretty close and so was Western but being that they're both the same plow Western and Fisher I probably just take a Fisher I was looking at the 8.6 X Blade in stainless I have plenty of places to push the snow lots of room in the back yard and the road has a 10 foot drop off on each side where the county dug up the ditches to let the water run not to mention the amount of tractors I have with loaders snowbanks wouldn't be a problem, I probably should have just bought a plow for my old truck and moved it to the new one I wasn't thinking. One other thing if I buy the Fisher plow I will begin with arrowhead equipment in Schenectady New York anyone have any experience with them they seem like a nice bunch of people very informative also I don't believe they will need to weld the frame most new super duties have the holes already set for a plow frame to bolt up the most they will have to do is cut my plastic air dam so the arms could reach through no biggie thanks again for all your opinions and if anyone has prices I'd be interested to hear them, this is why might wait till the spring when they're choking on them and I'll get a better deal ;-) take care and thank you


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## leon (Nov 18, 2008)

treefarm;955400 said:


> Wow thanks for all the information , but honestly I have never posted a question on this site I just made up my screen name yesterday maybe someone else has a similar name. As far as the tractor goes I know all about front mount snowblowers I have a few John Deere's new Holland's an one very old case love her to death, the problem is they are a pain in the ASS to start when it's 15 below even though the new Holland is a cab tractor it takes the entire day to get up to temperature.
> 
> 
> A kerosene salamander in the 100000 btu class will warm a tractor of any size up very quickly with no issues.
> ...


They have no incentive or reason to deal as it a seasonal income for them, more money is made on repairs and spare parts than sales.

They will not be choking on inventory as its paid for if its in stock. Plows and spreaders are side line seasonal business complimenting what a dealer/vendor may be doing already by selling vehicles/ heavy trucks and repairs.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Spending 800.00 dollars is a lot less money and you already own what is required to do the job.


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## treefarm (Jan 10, 2010)

Well I see I struck a chord with you Leon try not to take this the wrong way I sort know how to make tractors run grew up on them my entire life learn to drive a tractor before I learned to ride a bike  , any diesel tractor and -5 is going to take a good two hours to warm up I run full synthetic I'm not worried about the tractor I'm worried about me ;-) I have a work truck with a heavy duty snowplow package and a big 10 cylinder with a lot of torque and heated seats, the snowplow is an absolute must at 4:30 AM when I have to go to work and be on a job somewhere at 6 AM I don't have time to play with tractors I run the plow down the road and the wife and kids can get out, but thank you for your points they are very well taken and you are quite correct when some of your suggestions a plows not going to set me back that much money especially with the sale of my snow blower I'm basically losing about $500 for one season not bad my neighbor has a small area he doesn't mind backing up I'm quite done with it thanks again and take care


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## Grn Mtn (Sep 21, 2004)

treefarm;955400 said:


> ..... One other thing if I buy the Fisher plow I will begin with arrowhead equipment in Schenectady New York anyone have any experience with them they seem like a nice bunch of people very informative...


was considering buying a Toro Dingo from them, they run a good business.


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