[springsrick]

Boy can I make a little problem into a bigger problem.

Just got a box blade and have discovered that it is tricker to use
than I imagined!

I presume there is a preferred setup for the the top member that controls the ""angle of attack" What is it?

Is it typical for the box to "submarine" as it loads and lift the nose of a light tractor?

Any tips , or the actual user manual would be much appreciated!!

Thanks
Rick

 

[Argee]

The best teacher is experimentation as to what works best for your tractor and box blade....try just levelling with it at first until you get the hang of it.

 

[Michael]

I am thinking that you need some counterweighting for the nose of the light tractor you are using.

I have several questions that I am thinking of and these follow

1. What is the model of the tractor you are using?

2. What is the size of the box blade you are using?

3. What type of terrain are you using on the box blade for?

You see the orginal post is rather unclear of the conditions you are running into and I am thinking that you are overloading the box blade either because it is to large or the nose of your tractor needs a counterweight like my Kubota L-185 has a FEL and it helps a lot to counter the weight I place on the rear.

Also using a box blade that is to bif can result in this condition and also trying to dig to deep with a single pass can also result in the lifting of the front end.

When I box blade I also load the FEL with several concrete blocks that do help but I also have to strap them in when I this.

 

[Michael]

I found this owners guide doing a quick search and it is attached there is not much info on operation but it is the best I can do at this time. this is from MIdwest Company and is pretty generic and does sort of apply to all box blades

 

[springsrick]

Thanks to All!

I running a 6 foot wide John Deere Box blade with no scarifiers in place behind my Ford 8N. I don't have a FEL or any "obvious" way to weight the front except wrapping the front axle with log chains, tire chains etc.

The terrain is a 10 ft wide driveway from paved road up a hill to my home, a distance of about 800 ft.

I can do a decent job with my straight blade, but people have been saying a box blade is "sooo much better" for smoothing that I thought I'd try to learn to use it.

I can pull the grade in 4th gear with no problem with the blade up(an indication of only moderate stepness)

the driveway starts flat at the paved road then up for 150 ft then levels some then up again at a steeper grade to a plateau for parking

I tend to do fine on the flat, it's when I start up the hill that I feel (and see) the blade load up maybe halfway with material and I try to raise it gently to keep the box blade from "submarining" . I either stall, lose steering in front wheels, or lose the load in the scraper into a pile building a roller coaster for the UPS guy to "enjoy".

 

[Michael]

All I can say is I think that a 6 foot blade might be just a little bit more then what your tractor might be able to handle. Experimentation to the way you use it might be the only course you can try. Have you tryed to go down hill with the blade maybe going opposite direction to prevent the lifting of the front end might work better. My tractor is just slightly smaller then yours and I have a four foot el-cheapo no name box blade that I got for less than $300.00 and it works great with my tractor. As I stated though I still add weight to my FEL to just have a more secure feeling. I also keep the FEL only about 3" off the ground when I do projects just so nothing funny can happen. I avoid going up hills and will only box blade going in a down hill position. Just some things to try is all I am saying if it is possible.

 

[springsrick]

MICHAEL

Thanks for the Lead on the user manual. i've read it and it is more about attaching and such bu there are some pearls.

Also I agree it is easier going down hill .

The problem is that gravity seems to move my road base downhill when we get a gully washer so I wanted to use the box to bring it uphill again while smoothing.

Practice may be the answer coupled with some front end weight.

Thanks for the help

 

[Michael]

That I understand but you might try bringing the stuff uphill as far as you can with the rear blade and then using the box blade to smooth it all out going down hill. Yeah I know the hassle of this method with detaching and then attaching the box blade, but that trick might work. I'm going to see if there are any other manuals that might have more info.

 

[Live Oak]

Along the lines of what Michael mentioned; try pulling the drive way material up the hill with the blade riding full down applying full weight and pulling as much material as you can without pulling too much. (you may have to adjust the 3 pt. hitch a bit to attain the right amount) Then raise the blade with the 3 pt. hitch perhaps an inch to half inch and pull the material back down the hill. You may will probably have to experiment with adjustments until you find a level that works best for you. If you have a landscaping rake; these work really well for this as well. I use a Land Pride LR 1584 rake for maintaining my driveway. Good luck and let us know how things worked out.

 

[springsrick]

Good tips on the landscape rake and Dragging up hill with the simple blade

I went to land pride and downloaded their box scraper manual.

Reading the rake manal gave me a clue that "pulling tighter on the top link (up to the pint the ends of the scraper bigin to dig in )may give me a less aggressive scraper.

Anxious to mount it up and try experimenting with that--it seems promissing.

Thanks
Rick