Blade or thrower?

[sblunier]

Btw, I just took mine off this morning. Rebuilt part of it, installed, put winter oil in the tractor, bolted on wind breaker cab first week of November.........and haven't started it since....until this am, when I undid everything........easy winter.....

 

[jpaxhia]

Well mine as well chime in to if anyone want to read. I live near buffalo ny in the snow belt soo I think I can speak with some authority on snow removal (since a few years ago we got 7 feet in a day and they canceled the football game cuz they couldn’t get the snow out lol). I never once ever considered using a blade a garden tractor does not have the weight to push a foot of snow or get the speed needed. If people have a blade i this area they have it on a pick up or have a very short area to plow (I do not). I have a 169 with a qa42, a 2082, and a 1872 with a 450,451 blower. Both the 169 and 2082 have Ag tires and chains ad are loaded with beet pulp instead of calcium. I used the 169 for many years with the old single stage, the only mod I did to it was to paint the inside every year (gravel driveway) with graphite paint. I moved slushy snow to perfect powder and rarely had it clog, now it does not throw slush very far but it’s better then shoveling. Maybe it works better too since it’s on a 169 that model is rarely mentioned on this forum. Now the 2082 is gone along with the 450 blower, but i did some modification to that blower and will do them again on the next 450 I get. I changed out the original pulley on it for a 4.25in to speed up the blower to get a better throw. I got rid of the useless lifting rod that alway broke and modified a jd318 lifting cylinder to lift off the bottom of the mule drive to a custom z bracket I made and attached where the old lift arm went to. The jd cylinder had the right price and right stroke, and yes I tried a cub one it did not work. Then of course I just used the aux front hydraulic port never had another issue. I then added a piece of flat steel that was 3/16 thick and rolled to the curve of the blower housing and welded that to the inside to close the gap between the blower and housing. After all that it worked like a champ, powder snow went easily 50-60ft and slush did what you’d expect went about 6ft, and something it could make snow sausages as I called them on long tube out of the shoot. If your interested in the mod I can try to find pics and send them. I too am getting out of cubs just not as useful on a large property. I moved on to a Steiner with a cab and a blower. I sold the 2082 and don’t use the 169 anymore and the 1872 is soon to be retired from my mothers place. Any who That’s my dealings with the cubs.