I am looking for any ideas on how to fab up a snow pusher for my skid steer. I have a large light material bucket all ready and would like to fab up some wings or extension from the sides of the bucket to make it 10' wide and scoop up more snow with it and and take a bigger swath when using it. Any ideas?
And maybe I could have Jeff weld it up for :notworthy
here's one we made several yrs ago for our 544g deere end loader http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i182/dayexco/work pics/snowblade-3.jpg http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i182/dayexco/work pics/plow4.jpg http://i72.photobucket.com/albums/i182/dayexco/work pics/plow1.jpg
What size skid do you have? Off hand I think most skids can handle an 8 foot pusher,but a 10? i'm not shure.
we have a bunch of protechs 8-12'. 10' models go on only 2500Lb rated machines and larger. 3600lbs rated machines (gehl 7810) get 12' Other wise it get a 8'.
It'll be hard without seeing your bucket to come up with a design, atleast on how it would attach to it. Would you be willing to make a completely seperate pusher plow for just snow? You could start by getting an attachment plate, like this: http://cgi.ebay.com/DIRT-WORKS-SKID...hZ020QQcategoryZ66927QQtcZphotoQQcmdZViewItem Then build from that. A curved back would be best, like Dayexco's, but I bet that wasn't cheap to have bent. Those custom curved braces behind are really nice too, but another expense to add. BTW, very nice work Dayexco.:thumbsup You certainly don't need me to build a lift for your pontoon. You could make more of a box design with 3/16" or 1/4" flat plate, and maybe just three angles in the back. It wouldn't roll the snow as well, but would be easier/cheaper, and still would push. Something like the pic, with added braces rear and inside.(and two sides:wink2 ) Or maybe someone around has a snowplow that has the mounts damaged, and now they'de gotton a new one instead. As long as the actual blade is good you could use that and somehow mount it to the attaching plate like in the link. You could add box ends to it for more capacity too. Maybe someone from LTS with an old one................cheap? To me building something out of an old pick-up plow seems like a better idea than the multiple welded plates idea, or motifying your bucket. Good luck Jmac.
I would just use the bucket you have there is no your going to push snow with a 10'er unless it’s only 2"-3".
of course you can push more than 2-3" snows....you just can't take quite as big of a swath when it gets deeper. what it allows us to do with our 544g deere loader is have 10-12 yds of snow in the pile per push instead of the 2.75 yd bucket that came with the machine. we do most of our lots on a "per occurance" basis...the target store with the deere loader with normal bucket, 2 pickups with blades, takes about 3.5-4 hrs....with that big pusher, one pickup/blade, it's done in about hr. and ten mins. on average snow. they're a BIG time saver.
Dude if only you had a clue We had two 8' protechs on a gehl 4635 and a bobcat 773G pushing 8" - 10" at a time last winter. Because we where getting 3-4" an hour for 3 hour straight at one point. They where keeping up. They bascially saved our @$$ on one lot. The trucks couldn't keep up. I Live for the winter. A bucket is the most inefficent use of a skidloader when its snowing. Even a 1 yard bucket won't come close to the productiveness of a 8' protech snow pusher. One 8' protech will out plow two pickups with 7.5' plows. Been there proved that.
itsgottobegreen, if you don't mind me asking............about how much are those snow pusher blades going for? I've built two skid steer buckets, and after buying the quik-tach plate, cutting edge, plate, having the sides cut, etc., there wasn't much savings really. It cost me about $500 for the materials to build a dirt bucket, and countless hours. If I didn't enjoy doing that kinda stuff there'd be no good reason to do it. I was wondering if this wouldn't end up the same way? Unless Jmac want's to do it for the same reason's I do, satisfaction.
See his location :bouncegri
Protech SP08S SKID PUSHER $2332.00
This is what I am trying to solve. Picked up a parking lot last week that should take me about 5 hours with one truck to do (Boss "v" 8.2 blade). I want to do it faster even though I bill by the hour. I will just charge more per hour if I use something other than Pick up. I own a LS 160 with oversize rubber and steel tracks. I also own a light material bucket. Plan on taking tracks off and buying a 8' snow pusher for $3000 and use that if it saves me time. Or fab something up for my light material bucket if it saves me money. My truck is nice and cumffy and my skid is not so it better save me alot of time. (no radio, no heat, etc,etc.)
Here is the question. What are you charging per hour with your truck?
whether you charge per occurance, or by the hour, the only thing that's important is how much you net at the end. we personally prefer the per occurance situation. in fact, our seasonal accounts have been the best money makers for us. i'll stop now, this isn't a snow removal forum
Yeah, but the snow removal forums have sections about equipment use, so I don't think we're stepping on anyone's toes if some of the discussion here gravitates toward snow removal. Either way, we're never going to be a competitor to Let's Talk Snow...
And I like to here what you guys have to say. The snow forums are "ok" but I think the advise on here is better. With the truck it is $100 per hour. My concern is if it takes me to long will the customer complain. If they do then I have to find a faster way, same price per hour, just get it done faster. I have plowed for about 5 years and have dropped most of my driveways to do parking lots, but have about 8-10 hours to plow per snow. My other parking lots I have the price is set at 75$ per hour. I don't mind per season but by the hour is easier to sell, customer gets what they pay for and I get paid for what I do. We get about 200" per year of snow. The customer will do less shopping for the 50$ less contract by hour, also I can service them to death if the price is by the hour, If they call mid day to go back no problem, I am not counting how many times that I have plowed so far to make sure I am making money. Driveways are contract for the couple I do and I have kept the good ones that are close to home from year to year. Charge more but again service them to death.
we've found out that seasonals are getting very easy to sell, that way the property owner can budget how much this is going to cost him, no matter how much snow there is. a year like 97, we took it in the shorts....the last 3 years, been really, really good for us. you should be able to go back to your old snow invoices, determine the average amt. of snow occurances you have per year, the average amt. of snow per occurance, the average time it took to do each lot, amt. of sand/salt, etc.....allow yourself about 25% more for the bad years. betcha that 80% of your customers will jump on it. they like knowing what it's going to cost them.
Dayco has the snow removal ever come close or surpass the profit made in excavating. IMO it will never be bigger than excavating is to me, but the investment is less than excavating so the profit could be more. I don't really like it, up in the middle of night, you are a slave to winter, no vaca to the south like my wife and kids do. I need the cash flow so plowing fills in the gap.
You could add wings to that V blade. but the pusher will save you time even over the wings. Lots of time. First picture is 9' light materials bucket (3yd) on a 975 bobcat, along side a 9.2 Boss V blade with 2 aditional ft. of wings.
Hi Dawn, I tried the wings last year, a pair of pro wings, one of lots is all curb so I scrubbed the curb a couple of times and it bent back the cutting edge. I fixed that by welding on steel cutting edges but after a 8" snow tapped a curb a couple of times and still bent wings up. Hard too see those damn things (curbs that is) in the dark at 3am after heavy snow fall. The Boss wings look a lot stronger, my dealer had them for sale. How do they work, are they stong enough to take a few hits. I tried the snow bucket one year it was just to slow, bucket would fill up fast.
jmac, no, it comes nowhere close to generating the revenue the excavating does. we do it primarily to keep a few of our key people year around. seems like if you lay them off for the winter, they gotta eat too and go looking for other work. personally, i HATE snow removal! it's like having dairy cows, somebody always has to be around.
Not that that I have ever compared skids to trucks so I don't know. But I spent 5 year moving snow in the Midwest with anything from pickups to 10 wheelers and skids to a 966s. And the only thing skid are used for there where side walks. And it depends a lot on how wet the snow is and if there is ice under it, but I just can't see a skid going 8 mph keeping up with a pickup going 25 mph on a long push. And I love winter too if fact I go back to the Midwest a few times every year to push snow and hunt. He said a 10’ bucket to “scoop up more snow with†I don’t see a skid lifting a 10’ bucket of snow.
dozerboy, our pushers have no bottoms in them, just a blade with wings on the side. all you're trying to accomplish is to push the snow off the lot. the skidsteer pushers i've seen have been the same, you can stack with them, but you don't have the capability of picking up, or loading snow.
Thanks for the replays, back to the question "How much faster is a pusher compared to my truck with 8'2" Boss "v"?" Do I need chains for skid? Will the skid push 6" to 8" snow 200 yards or just spin? Skid is A NH LS160 no heat, no radio, no coffee holder, does have door and windows. Truck is 06' F350 heat, sirius radio, coffee holder, heated seats I pick the truck unless you guys can tell me that I will cut my time in half.
depends on the lot, if it is a small strip mall lot, with a lot of tight radius curb islands, cars left on the lot after the snow, most definitely the skidsteer, pusher......if you have a long lot where you can roll 20-25 mph and no obstructions, a pickup/blade
Thanks Dayexco, lot is long, wide open, no cars, tractor trailer parking. Lot is rough with manhole covers, so first time take it slow, after I locate all the bumps and head bangers I can go faster. I can windrow the snow also. Good I can stay warm and save 3000$ by not having to buy pusher.:yup
Jmac, in my latest issue of "Heavy Equipment Trader" I found an add for used Protech Sno-pushers, w/misc. sizes available. I couldn't find it in their online adds though, so I couldn't post a link (don't know if I searched right) It said to call for pricing. Their business # was 330-798-9311 (in Ohio) There was no web address I can feel your pain regarding the moving snow with an open cab skid steer.:yup Been there, done that, got the soggy socks too prove it.(there dry by now) I haven't used a pusher blade though, but I do have a 6ft snow bucket. That works good in tight areas where a truck won't fit, but it's still working out in the snow and cold.
Jeff, I have that issue of the trader I just got in the mail, will look for the ad. Thanks, but if it does not save me time, forget the cold, stay warm. Last year I would go out at around 2am and temp would be 10 below most of time. Also no filling machine with fuel, no cold starts etc. If I can avoid it I will.
Sounds like you are shooting yourself in the foot. Why get it done faster for the same rate when you get paid by the hour. We go almost 95% of our stuff by the hour. Which is why we tell our guys, anybody goes over 10mph when plowing or gets sent home. :nono If it takes 5 hours, so what. The customer will see you plowing the whole time. Not sitting around on the clock. You get paid by the hour.
my customers don't want me on their property for 5 hrs. straight, they want it cleaned off, deiced, and me gone...and are willing to pay me very nicely for it. i for the life of me cannot figure out why people get hung up on being paid for snow removal services by the hour. if you have no clue of what you're capable of producing, and price accordingly, i suppose it's the only way you can go. my customers have a good handle on how long it takes me to perform my services, and would never put up with somebody "shaggin the dog" out in their parking lot, but won't begrudge somebody who is performing well a good profit.
Well if you really want to get done faster. Build your 8' snow pusher and charge them $500 per push if claim it will take 5 hours at $100 an hour with the truck. It should take you 2.5 hours with that box then .5 hours with a bucket for clean up. Or if you still want to do by the hour. Charge $165 an hour for the skid. You still make the same money and get done faster.
Itsgotgreen, thats what I am talking about, faster same money so I can go do another one. Is the snow pusher on a wide open lot going to be that much faster? John
a pickup/blade with wings will definitely outperform a skidsteer/pusher on a big wide open lot, but a skidsteer with a pusher will outperform a pickup/blade on a small confined lot. like in excavating, every piece of equipment has their application. you have to determine what is most efficient for you.
Well you where talking about $100 an hour for the skid. So you lost me on trying to get it done faster for the same money. Thats the shooting yourself in the foot part. $165 and your making a killing. The problem with pickups with blades are. You can only windrow so much snow before you can't move anymore snow. Where a skid loader collects and then pushed the snow to the pile. Where the skid with the box shines is. a 8' snow plow is really only using 4-5' of blade width after the 1st pass. The 8' snow pusher uses 7.5' (overlap from last pass) of width So you are running almost to full capacity with the box. Another way to see it. A pickup up blade moves about 1-1.5 yards of snow. A snow pusher 2.6 yards of snow in the pusher and another 4 to 8 yards of snow in front of it. Yet another reason to use the skid is. You are always pushing snow. Since you push one direction into your pile, then spin around and push back the other direction. So you are always pushing. Unlike a truck with you push one way, then back up. So you are pushing 50% of a time, Unless you have a lot that you can go around in a circle. Unless you are plowing roads. Any machine with a snow pusher will be more productive than a truck with a plow. Which is why on our larges account we have 3 backhoes with 12' protechs, 1 gehl 7800 with 12' protech and 8 skid loaders with 8' protech. Its a 43 acre lot. There are 6 trucks, Which are for the roads and entrances.