LX2980 cutting edge question

AJS

New member

Equipment
Kubota LX3310, LX2980, LA535 with 54 inch bucket, rear blade
May 29, 2022
12
1
3
Maple Falls, WA
I’m making sure my new LX3310 with LX2980 snow blower is ready for snow season. I have a long steep gravel drive and set the skid shoes to keep the auger housing as far above the deck as possible to keep gravel eating to a minimum. The cutting edge setup however seems designed to push gravel into the housing. Two parts are bolted to the underside of the housing leading edge, removed in the photo. The actual orientation is not as shown

The top piece in the photo (shown upside down to actual position) seems to be hard plastic, is mounted on the bottom and receives the bolts. The steel piece (should be rotated 180 degrees for actual position) is sandwiched between the plastic piece and the housing with bolt holes towards the front so this piece is hidden when both pieces are mounted.

The thickness of the combined pieces bolted to the housing underside is such that even with the skid shoes in the lowest position (housing highest) it acts like a plow, with gravel pushed up and into the housing. My drive was rolled, the surface is fairly flat with minimal loose gravel. My Ariens snow blower does fine with about 3/4 inch auger housing elevation above the deck.

For now I have bolted the steel piece directly onto the housing, the leading edge about flush with the housing edge. I am omitting the thick plastic piece. This should work, though I need to get some shorter bolts.

Do other LX2980 owners have the same setup? It seems strange to me. I invite comments, suggestions. You can tell I’m no mechanic. Thanks


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DustyRusty

Well-known member

Equipment
BX23S
Nov 8, 2015
4,952
3,692
113
North East CT
I would suggest that you consider adding adjustable wheels to the sides of the snowblower, so it will roll along the surface about an inch above the gravel. There are a lot of ways to do this, and it will be up to you to engineer how you want to accomplish this. I recently saw a snowblower on these forums where the owner had added large lawn mower wheels to the rear of his snowblower.
 

AJS

New member

Equipment
Kubota LX3310, LX2980, LA535 with 54 inch bucket, rear blade
May 29, 2022
12
1
3
Maple Falls, WA
I would suggest that you consider adding adjustable wheels to the sides of the snowblower, so it will roll along the surface about an inch above the gravel. There are a lot of ways to do this, and it will be up to you to engineer how you want to accomplish this. I recently saw a snowblower on these forums where the owner had added large lawn mower wheels to the rear of his snowblower.
Thanks for the idea. I thought about mounting the adjustable shoes to a plate with greater travel than the shoes now allow. My gravel drive is rolled and fairly hard so the shoes don't dig in.

I checked at my dealers. Turns out somewhere in the assembly chain someone attached both the steel cutting edge AND a hard plastic cutting edge, with the combined thickness of the two parts leading to plowing. I had already removed the plastic part and remounted the steel cutting edge alone and this looks like it will work. I operated it on my (unsnowed so far) drive in float, no significant gravel eating.
 
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Snowman7

Active member

Equipment
LX3310 535 loader, LX2980, RB2672, FDR1660
May 20, 2020
345
243
43
Boyne Falls, MI.
I have never really given too much thought to this. I simply drive over the snow and pack it. When it gets cold your base will be there. It does suck with the thaws because you have to start over. I think my shoes are in the lowest position. I have been blowing a 1/4 mile gravel driveway for 37 years. It is some smooth white top once it gets cold and snowy.
 

AJS

New member

Equipment
Kubota LX3310, LX2980, LA535 with 54 inch bucket, rear blade
May 29, 2022
12
1
3
Maple Falls, WA
I have never really given too much thought to this. I simply drive over the snow and pack it. When it gets cold your base will be there. It does suck with the thaws because you have to start over. I think my shoes are in the lowest position. I have been blowing a 1/4 mile gravel driveway for 37 years. It is some smooth white top once it gets cold and snowy.
Thanks for your reply, Snowman. My situation is challenging because (1) winter temps here typically hover around freezing, with thaw during daylight and refreeze at night, and (2) my 1/2 gravel mile drive is steep with a drop-off on the downhill side. So leaving a hard base doesn't really work here, except maybe for hill hockey. I deal with this with a combination of blowing and then plowing with my blade to get down to gravel.

I dealt with the skid shoe and cutting blade issue. Turns out the supplied cutting blade was simply the wrong parts, installed somewhere along the assembly chain. I got the correct cutting blade. I also found well-made aftermarket skid shoes with more travel adjustment and longer length. Problems solved I think. http://snowblowerskids.com/