I bought a Cycle Country 48" plow when I got my Brute last month and just got my mounting plate in the mail from the dealer today. They never gave a manual with the kit so the install was a slight adventure. They also shorted me the lifting strap for the manual lift. I don't have a winch yet so I'll be throwing the handle to lift/lower it. Couple of questions for y'all:

I had to remove the stock "skid plate" under the motor to install CC's mounting bracket. The mounting bracket is steel which should afford better protection than the stock plastic but it doesn't cover as much. I got totally unguarded space fore and aft of the plate underneath...Is that bad? Should I fabricate some steel or aluminum to cover everything?

The manual lift doesn't raise the plow a whole lot. I don't see much room to modify CC's system to provide more lift. Only thing I can figure is to go ahead and get a winch to raise it up a little more but even then it aint very far away from the bottom of the quad when it's lifted now. How high should I be able to raise it?

Thanks and God bless,

-BunnMan

 

What that a dealer combo you got? I'm ordering the Moose 60" setup which has the extended lift tubes. Says 10" with manual lift and 13"-14" with the winch. I was wondering about the mounting plate in relation to the skid plates as well. I plan to replace my plastic skid plates with aluminum. Guess a little modification will have to take place. I would definitely get some protection under there.

 

Hey Smooth,
I just got the Moose plow for my Brute. The thing is very well made and heavy duty.

The only thing thats bug me about these plows are the mounting plate. You have more exposure to the bikes innards, also the u-bolts which hold the plate in place hang down. Im sure this will be a problem when attempting to scale logs that one would ordinarily slide over with the smooth plastic skid plate. Any ideas to smooth out the underbelly??

 

Yes, it is a dealer combo. Cycle country didn't make any claim about lift height though I have seen other manufacturers do that as you quote on the Moose outfit. I can see how extended lift tubes would help in that case. I would wait on the aluminum skid plates until after you install the plow mounting plate. Under the motor/tranny (biggest skid plate on the bike) the mounting plate is gonna cover most of that. I reckon you could plan on cutting the new skid plate but with the amount you would be cutting away it would hardly be worth the expense of buying the whole thing. You know it wouldn't be a sin for these folks (CC, Warn, Moose, ...etc.) to make the plow mount big enough to replace the skid plate. When I get around to fabricating some pieces to cover the holes I'm gonna give some serious thought to replacing the whole plate. My plow tubes attach to the bike through two pins in the mounting plate. It wouldn't be real hard to weld a few tabs onto a larger repalcement plate to install the pins through.

Also, I gotta look at it again but I think I'm onto something to increase the lift height. Funny how your thoughts dwell on this stuff through the day.

God bless,

-BunnMan

 

Hi!! I dont know how the mount would go (I didnt get it yet) on the BF, but bolts (actually the nuts, I would assume) hanging down sounds typical. I have the cycle country setup on my honda and its decent but everyone says the Moose is real nice and heavy. Until I see it, I dont have any ideas about a diferent hookup. I just emaild BC Offroad about there 3/16" thick skid plate package, (its on ebay), asking them about the belly plate and putting the plow mount on the bottom of it. Just waiting for a reply. I dont think we have a choice about the bolts hanging down. I would like to get the rest of the belly covered up. Any chance you have the part number for the bottom mount so I can make sure there sending me the right one? Thanks and have a great new year.

 

Yeah, dwell on things, your not kidding. I like your idea about a full body plow mount. I just purchased a ready welder setup to weld aluminum because I'm building an all aluminum quad trailer for my brute and a buddies grizz. I'm thinking after the plow mount goes on, I'll order up the skid plates and either cut out a section, drill some holes and resecure it in the front and back of the plow mount. Otherwise I'll weld the aluminum to make it fit nicely. I think just cutting the belly plate and resecuring would be easiest and quickest.

 

i dont know if this helps but i saw that Tusk makes plows for atv's that claim dont have u-bolts hanging down and you dont lose ground clearence, they also have handle lifts and winch lifts. i think the mounting plate is like a two piece system actually looked nice. i was thinking about this plow. i thought maybe you guys would like to know.

 

Yeah, I looked at those American Eagle brand plows also. They have a flat bottom mount with no tabs or nuts exposed. Looked good, was cheaper, but Moose stuff is real nice. I'm also going to order the plow markers and top rubber flap for the 60" blade from moose. What series wheels do you have on the BF? Are they the 5+2 offset? How much do they stick out the sides? I just ordered some Type 6 with 26" dirt devils. Looks like the 5+2 would stick out about 1" on each side more than stock. Thanks

 

yeah they stick out pretty good, boy does the mud start a flyin!! dont really know the offset my bro gottem for my birthday. they look big to. its a little harder to wheelie but i'm not a big wheelie guy. and they whobble a little on pavement over 40 mph. the rims rock, ive been in some bad rocky situations and i dont think there is a scratch on them. good luck with the dirt devils those are some nice looking tires as well.

 

I don't know about the cycle country but the Tusk mounts are decent. Full belly skid with another lower plate which you can remove when out in the woods. Works well, plenty of lift height with the winch.