I used my new Bison blade (hydraulic angle NVHA-240)for the first time with the recent snow. It has skid shoes and I'm using it on a dirt driveway until I get gravel down in the spring. My question is about rutting. The blade essentially bounced or skidded creating shallow ruts. I assume that's due to the angle. I changed the height of the skid shoes to various heights but found no distinct change. If it's the angle, do I want to increase or decrease it? If not the angle, what ideas?
Blade Angle?
- Thread starter Parshal
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fast*st
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M7040, L2900, F550 ford, Yanmar vio70 excavator, Case 580, JD 350 dozer, JD 644E
what speed are you scraping at? you might want to raise your skid shoes so your blade is only 1/2 inch above the surface or perhaps once its frozen, pick them up completely. If you get one bounce of the blade, the shoes will then start to follow that in a simple harmonic motion. Might be best to take off the shoes, angle the blade the opposite way and smooth the ripples. Deactivate any draft control where applicable.
I'm actually not sure of how fast I'm going but it's 2nd gear (L4200 manual shift). I have no draft control. The ground was frozen solid when I did this since the temperature never reached higher than 20 degrees F for five days. Without the shoes I'm scraping dirt off (I have a thin layer of native sand spread over the top of the fill dirt). I'm actually taking a bit of dirt off with the shoes but that's because of the crown and sand.
Actually, though, thinking back it only happened when I had the blade perpendicular rather than offset angle. I'll see what that does as well as slowing down and taking off the shoes, if necessary.
Once things thaw I'll smooth it out with the box blade.
Actually, though, thinking back it only happened when I had the blade perpendicular rather than offset angle. I'll see what that does as well as slowing down and taking off the shoes, if necessary.
Once things thaw I'll smooth it out with the box blade.
fast*st
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M7040, L2900, F550 ford, Yanmar vio70 excavator, Case 580, JD 350 dozer, JD 644E
It'll take a little experimentation, here we get a fair bit of snow, usually the first storm gets driven over to make the top layer of gravel into concrete, then plow without shoes and hook the cast off material back into the driveway in the late spring and renew the ditches. Back blades are awesome, M7040 with a 10' front plow and 9' rear blade, can make a 14' wide first pass but it wants tire chains all around.
Around here the snow usually melts within a couple days and it's usually dry fluffy snow. I have an area in front of the garage and another parking area by the house that don't get much sun so they don't melt quickly. I plan to use the blade to move the snow from there out to a sunny area near a drain I installed to melt. The rest of the driveway gets good sun so I only need to move most of the snow off the top if it's a big snow and pack it down to drive over it.
Thanks!
Thanks!
BAP
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Try adjusting your top link. Changing the forward or reward tilt of the blade can help with how much it digs in.
North Idaho Wolfman
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Simple solution don't run with the blade strait.
Check that the moldboard is tight to the frame change the angle of the blade to be down in the front (little goes a long way), down in front floats, up in front cuts.
If it's frozen solid you should be able to can get away without the shoes,
But if it still wants to oscillate and leave washboard then you need to pull the front up and drop the shoes down till the blade just barely touches if at all.
Excessive play in the Implement on the three point can magnify the oscillations and the washboard effect, like with a sloppy quick hitch.
Check that the moldboard is tight to the frame change the angle of the blade to be down in the front (little goes a long way), down in front floats, up in front cuts.
If it's frozen solid you should be able to can get away without the shoes,
But if it still wants to oscillate and leave washboard then you need to pull the front up and drop the shoes down till the blade just barely touches if at all.
Excessive play in the Implement on the three point can magnify the oscillations and the washboard effect, like with a sloppy quick hitch.
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Use the position control to have the blade above ground level. Do not just lower the blade all the way. The skid shoes are for those irregularities in the surface so that it does not dig in. They are not there to hold the weight of the blade up. That is what the position control is used for. Put the blade at no less than 30 degrees.
Try that and see how it goes.
Good luck
Try that and see how it goes.
Good luck
85Hokie
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BAP hit it on the money, the angle changes the "bite" at a certain angle the snow "rolls" off the blade, long top link pushes the snow, a short top link makes it slide and roll. You need to play with it ...and the surface will change that too, gravel vs asphalt etc.....
Slide and roll?
I think I've been using the wrong terminology. This angle mentioned above is pitch, correct? This is the "angle" I was questioning in my first post.
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Yes. Tilting the blade forward and backwards is the pitch. \ / Having the blade at a 30 degrees as I had mentioned would be the angle of the blade. ---/
I've often kicked around the idea if you took 3 or 4 inch PVC pipe and cut it open just enough to slide over the blade. Would it give you a smoother rounded surface to cut with on the bottom rather then just a flat blade from the mold board.
My thinking is with the PVC stuck on the bottom of the blade I would think it would give you a smoother surface on soft grounds like gravel driveways so you do remove rock.
My thinking is with the PVC stuck on the bottom of the blade I would think it would give you a smoother surface on soft grounds like gravel driveways so you do remove rock.
North Idaho Wolfman
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Wife said try cutting you next steak with your spoon! Using PVC pipe would cut just as well.
That would work really great if you wanted to make a snowmobile path or a skating rink!
Doing that on dirt or gravel the PVC would last about 10 min if your lucky!
I use 2 1/2 " ABS pipe on both my back blade and the FEL, It doesn't dig in. I have a gravel driveway and it helps keeping the gravel in the driveway rather than on the grass. I usually get 2 winters out of a piece of pipe. It's not an issue when things are froze solid.
Harvey
as you get your driveway established you might wish to consider getting a land plane to keep it maintained and level. a level driveway will be easier to remove snow from. i used a blade for years and the problem is that the blade follows every little contour so eventually you end up with a driveway like wavy potato chips. My wife even nagged at me cause the driveway was to bouncy for her bicycle. So I got a frontier lp1172. i had green tractor when I bought the land plane but now own orange. once i used the land plane my wife even raved about the smooth drive and she is hard to please. i am sure there are other brands of land planes on the market. Buying a land plane is the best thing i ever did for my driveway. there is a picture of my land plane in my album
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