Snow plow for my Ford 545D

[Ljohnsaw]

I found this on CraigsList and was thinking of putting a quick attach plate on it for my Ford 545D tractor.


 
The owner says it's a 10'.  On the web site I see they offer 8½' and 9½' versions so I'm thinking it's 9½.  It's sitting in a 8' truck bed.  It is electric over hydraulic so pretty easy to add to my tractor.  But it's missing the remote control.

Do you need to go fast or does it not matter?  I'd be plowing Sierra Cement - usually wet, heavy stuff.  If I'm lucky, could be powder.  I was watching some videos a while back of V plow and thought that was pretty useful - and this pops up today (Hiniker). $1,500.

[Southside]

I had a Boss V plow mounted on a 65 HP, 2 WD, row crop, tractor years back. Dry or wet snow didn't matter, even if it had been sitting in a field for a while, just drop the blade and she would roll off the sides. Worked excellent. 

[sprucebunny]

We had a small plow on a small tractor. Because the plow was pretty far forward of the front wheels, the plow did the steering. You might need to add weights and/or chains to the front wheels.

[DeerMeadowFarm]

We had a small plow on a small tractor. Because the plow was pretty far forward of the front wheels, the plow did the steering. You might need to add weights and/or chains to the front wheels.

I had a 7-1/2' plow on my 52HP 4wd Massey Ferguson cab tractor and experienced the same issue. My advice would be to get the plow as close to the front of the tractor as possible.

[snowstorm]

if its missing the remote more than likely the isolation module is also missing. that is the brain that makes the remote work along with the lights when it was truck mount. that brand isnt seen here in the northeast . its fisher and boss. your picture shows that it uses single action cylinders to vee the plow with springs . others use that also. the weak point with that style vee is the pin. that looks more like a 8'6" its in a 8' body and only veed a little. what i dont like about it is its full trip were as a fisher only trips the cutting edge. that plow in vee will not trip when you hit something. straight or angled it will . will it work for yes it will and work way better than a straight blade . will it poke a hole through 3 ft of wet snow no would a real vee plow from a big truck yes with enough traction

[gspren]

My experience years ago with a tractor that had a slightly too big plow was keep the working part of the blade freshly painted with gloss paint, shiny is like adding pounds and HP to the tractor.

[beenthere]

Have a 7' blade on my Deere 32hp CUT. Works great, even in wet snow. Beats the life out of looking at something on the rear of the tractor. Fabricated a quick hitch for a regular truck mounted Western snow plow.
   Think your Ford will handle the larger blade just fine, as it has more weight to it than my CUT. Had a front plow mounted on my old Deere LA and also the Deere 420. Being a V-plow, you can pick and choose how much snow to push to maintain control with either steering front wheels or using rear wheel brakes to steer in a pinch.

[Ljohnsaw]

Thanks for the feed back.  It's about a 35 minute drive from me.  I'll take some cash and go look at it later today.  He said first with cash gets it - someone is supposed to come by at 5pm.  I had assumed it was double acting cylinders (some of their models have that).  I found installation/owner's manual and they have wiring schematics.  I don't need the fancy remote control to handle the headlights and parking/indicator lights as my tractor doesn't have any (working) ones.  There are 4 relays in the under the hood harness that control all of that.  I just need a power solenoid for the pump and switches for the relays on the plow that control the valves, I think.  I figure this is at least better than using my bucket to move/remove snow.

[thecfarm]

If plowing snow with a bucket, yes it will be better. 
I put the hook up of a fisher into my bucket. I bolted it in each winter. 
It worked good on a 40hp tractor.
Only plowed one year, did not like the high piles of snow.
Went with a rear mounted snow blower.
Been doing that for 20 years.

[Son_of_Liberty]

I would look for a skid steer plow that wont have the truck mount on it. They are usually much cheaper than truck plows and by the time you buy a harness and mess with adapting it all to a tractor I think the purpose build skid steer plow will be easier. I can't speak for your area but i'm able to purchase a new skid plow from BOSS for around what you'll have in that Hiniker.

[Ljohnsaw]

I would look for a skid steer plow that wont have the truck mount on it. They are usually much cheaper than truck plows

Good points.

Went with a rear mounted snow blower. Been doing that for 20 years.

Now that is a good thing to know.  Yeah, was thinking that a while back as well.  Probably better to wait to get that as my snow is rarely fluffy and usually deep when it comes.

Thanks, guys.

[47sawdust]

 

 


I moved my q/a plate way forward.No problem steering.

 

[newoodguy78]

Just a couple thoughts, if you mount on a quick tach plate keeping it as tight as you can to the plate will be beneficial. Helps with maneuvering,that setup gets long fast with a plow hanging off the front. Also wondering if that is an 8'6 will it be dumping the snow right in front of the wheels in v position? The stance on the front end is quite wide compared to a lot of tractors. 
With that said if it's a good price and you're able to overcome the controls being missing affordably I'd go for it. 

[snowstorm]

Thanks for the feed back.  It's about a 35 minute drive from me.  I'll take some cash and go look at it later today.  He said first with cash gets it - someone is supposed to come by at 5pm.  I had assumed it was double acting cylinders (some of their models have that).  I found installation/owner's manual and they have wiring schematics.  I don't need the fancy remote control to handle the headlights and parking/indicator lights as my tractor doesn't have any (working) ones.  There are 4 relays in the under the hood harness that control all of that.  I just need a power solenoid for the pump and switches for the relays on the plow that control the valves, I think.  I figure this is at least better than using my bucket to move/remove snow.

The fancy module also controls the plow. Unless it's really old. Usually there are only two wires to the control. Because they send multiple signals over the same wire. The easy way to mount this is with the proper control module and wiring harness. You will need to run the power to the pump direct to the battery with battery cable.

[Crusarius]

You really need to know if the control box sends millivolt signals to the solenoids to actuate all the movements. If that is the case, then you cannot just add power to actuate it you need to add signals instead. From what I understand making all that work can get pretty costly. 

Or you just replace the fancy control box and hook everything direct to the tractor hydraulics. But that may include removing the bucket and making a mount for it.

[Ljohnsaw]

Well, for now I passed on it.  A good QA plate is $350 (1/2") and either I spend a bunch on the right harness or I buy the parts to make up the control and that would be another few hundred (probably more).  If the guy at 5pm tonight takes it, oh well.  If not, the owner might be more willing to negotiate down a bit.  At $1,000, I might be too tempted and take it for another project - like I need that! :D  I think I'd rather have a blower like CFarm.

 that may include removing the bucket and making a mount for it.

I already have a QA setup that I installed early this year.

[Resonator]

I've been snowplowing with pickup trucks and tractors on driveways and a commercial size parking lot for the past 22 years now, my opinion the best blade I've owned is my V blade. 

Couple tips on buying a used blade:

Check all your hoses, not only for condition, but also they are the right pressure rating for the pump (aka power unit).
Check for hydraulic leaks on any seals. Also good idea to drain and put fresh fluid in, and make sure no solenoid valves are plugged or bad.
Check the wear on the cutting edges, they should not be so far down as to wear away the moldboard itself. Some can be flipped for more use. Also they should be hard steel, mild steel can work in a pinch, but will wear rapidly.
Check the frame and blade for cracks, breaks, or bends out of shape.
Things like trip springs and eye bolts are wear items, and best to keep spares handy.

Smooth and slick is best for the blade surface (I ordered my Boss V with poly blades for this reason years ago). This greatly helps snow slide off with less machine effort, especially in "wet cement" snow. V blades are naturally heavier than a straight blade, so you'll want weight on the back of the machine to balance out. Distance blade set in front of the front axle is a trade off. Farther out, you can push snow off the edges of lots more, and stack piles higher. Though it makes it can make harder to turn around, or sweep a tight radius. 

[Crusarius]

I meant to remove the entire bucket assembly and use the tractor hydraulics to power the rams direct.

[chevytaHOE5674]

Rear blower is great IF you have a tractor with a slowwww reverse gear. A hydro stat is best.

A 545d has a reverse speed between 1.7 and 3mph depending on which trans. Speaking from experience 1.7mph seems slow until your in deep snow and your needing to ride the clutch steady to keep from stalling out.

[Ed]

Did the rear blower thing for a few years, nope, it kills ones back and neck being twisted around driving backwards. It found a new home.

My plow truck is warmer too....

Ed

[thecfarm]

Rear mounted snowblower, I just turn sideways in the seat and press on the pedal and do my 500 foot driveway just fine. Then I head out back and do around the wood yard. Takes more than an hour to do it all.
I have no problems from any neck or back pain.
This a NH hydro.
My tractor with a clutch would cause me some pain.
I have got some wet sticky snow here, and that snow blower works fine. Maybe real slow, but it does it.
I do have problems with my neck and shoulder too.
Case in point, I have not used a chainsaw since May due to a hernia. I used one the other day for a while. Noticed my shoulder hurt the way it used too.
Really need a hydro to make it work.

[Crusarius]

if your thinking rear mount snowblower think about the rear mount pull style blowers. you can get best of both worlds as long as you can drive through it with the tractor it can be scooped and thrown with the blower.

[Bruno of NH]

I plowed for years with a skid steer mount plow on my loader arms .
60 hp Massey . It was power angle 9' 
Was hard on the loader arms.
Switched to a snow pusher on my Mahindra l liked that much better.
I just got a 2007 Kubota L3240 hst with 250 hours from my uncle and it has a 3pt meteor snow blower with power chutes. I'm going to look for another snow pusher for the loader.