How do the front blades work for plowing up dirt?

I am not sure. I have always wondered the same thing. I have been told they do not do well, but are advertised to handle "lite" utility work. I assume the problem is that the blades are spring loaded to prevent snagging on objects and breaking something and under the stress of a heavy load would just cause the springs to give.

This has prevented me from purchasing one myself. I have considered buying one if I could see how they was hooked up to see if they could be modified to not "give".

Sorry no experience, but curious too.

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Gap Arrington Dickson TN Honda ForemanES "and Yeller at that!"

I have used one to push dirt. The spring effect is disconcerting. However I intend to modify my blade so I can use it to push dirt.

I was able to push it rather easily and use the spring effect to my advantage.

I think it would be worth it. ATVs push snow better then lawn and garden tractors so why couldn't it push dirt better as well. Just have to find a way to lock the blade and that should not be to difficult.



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Eric Baatz 1996 Suzuki KING QUAD Remember the KING Lives!!

A turnbuckle(s) in place of the springs would do the trick. (get them at any hardware store). The spring loaded blade is a pain, but keep in mind the springs are there for a reason. I would hate to see a bent frame from getting overzellas. I would think with a turnbucle in place of the springs they would be OK for skimming softer types of dirt and spreading gravel and dirt. Just my 2 cents.
Sneeky

FYI, do NOT lock the blade down. I've snagged my share of rocks/roots/stumps/etc and the only thing that kept me from either going over the bars or damaging the blade mounts were those two springs. Just tighten them down a bit.

I have pushed a great deal of dirt with my Foreman and it does an excellent job as long as the soil isn't too muddy. I used it to grade a large area on my property and I am impressed with the results. Gravel on the other hand,it's not the right tool for the job most times.

The ATV will sit and spin it's tires if you dig in the slightest bit too much or shift your weight forward.


~joe

Our county road crew has a mean quad/blade combo. It is a Foreman 400 with a 5' blade from a ditch witch trencher. The frame is built out of 2x3" channel and it is bolted under the frame of the quad(via u-bolts) and goes clear back to the engine. The whole blade and frame weigh probably 150-200 pounds itself, so they put real heavy duty front suspension on the front. They also put four 9-12 ag tires on it(approximately 25.5" tall). They use this machine to grade the small patch of land between the fences and the ditches. They also use it to begin clearing out areas so that they can get the larger dozers in there. I've also seen where they doze places to put in sidewalks, beings the blade is just the right width. It is one heavy duty setup!

350XX, 250R, 200XX, 450S, 300 2wd

Could you get me a pic of that Foreman with the Ditch Witch blade? (If it cruises by your yard or anything) I'm thinking of making one for myself.

[This message has been edited by BushHog (edited 12-23-1999).]

I had thought of using a couple of turn buckles as well and I may still try that setup.

I can also see where having the springs would be beneficial,IE prevent going over the handle bars, but I don't see me pushing dirt that fast. I don't intend to take a running start at it.

If I use the turn buckles and didn't like them it would be easy enough to remove them and go back to just the springs.

Remember that this is just a thought and I have not proved the theory yet. I will admit I could be wrong.



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Eric Baatz 1996 Suzuki KING QUAD Remember the KING Lives!!

I plan on taking two fairly heavy pieces of channel iron and running it from two hinges under my quad to the blade (which I'm making out of a 1 and a 1/2 foot diameter pipe). I'm going to split the steel pipe down the middle and cut it about 48-50" long and mount it to the channel iron where I can tilt it some way.
P.S. I dont think I'll plow fast enough to throw myself over the handle bars either :)

[This message has been edited by BushHog (edited 12-25-1999).]

Many Blades aren't built strong enough to take a hit without the springs. The Springs protect your machine more then you since you are traveling at slower speeds. Look at you Blade carefully, Dirt weighs alot, pay attention to what the weakest link is, because thats where you will run into trouble if your doing alot of pushing.

Happy New Year, A :-)