Tractors, Mowers, Chippers, Trailers, Chainsaws, Generators, Driveway Erosion Control, ETC.

I like that tire idea for a livestock heavy use area, I’m going to have to keep that in mind.

 

I agree these land planes are awesome for maintaining a driveway. A box blade would be better for building a road but a regular 3 pt blade has its place too. I have a 7’ box blade I use to maintain a road where we hunt. I been looking for a deal on a regular 3 pt blade.

I use the boxblade on the back when it snows and I have to clear our parking lot at the store. The problem is it loads up and then is hard to get out depending on how wet the snow is. I wind up just using the bucket but it is a paved lot so there’s that.

 

Yeah, Grader/Plane>Box Blade>Straight Blade for road maintenance. The basic straight blade is nice for roughing in a road, or for redigging a ditch, but it's a pain for spreading or smoothing gravel.

 

In my opinion, the land plane does a great job at maintaining the road. However, if you get potholes, the box blade with ripper teeth is really the way to go. Once a pothole forms, you're not getting rid of it unless you tear it out and regrade it. Simply filing it in won't work most of the time.

That being said, if you're handy with a welder, the land plane can be made out of scrap from Craigslist or Facebook Marketplace pretty easily for a fraction of the price that a new one demands. The key is to make it HEAVY.

 

Straight blade, too. We made the one my dad uses out of an old manual-angle plow, reinforced it all over with channel iron and welded the trip edge solid, and if it weighs less than 800lbs I'd be absolutely amazed

 

We contemplated a box bade to maintain our driveways that were made from asphalt millings. We finally ended up finding some reasonable paving estimates and just got the driveway paved. Trying to maintain a steep driveway with the bucket was just not working. I don't have a blade or a box scraper.

Some friends of mine use some sections of chain link fence and 6x6's to drag their driveway. I think they do it weekly. Their gravel driveway is very long and services multiple homes on a farm.

 

I went with reclaimed asphalt for mine last summer, and it did a pretty good job of staying put this winter, but I've still taken a couple scoops of mixed snow/driveway material from the snowbank at the end of the driveway and spread it out on the driveway again this spring.

Edit- of course, it's pretty flat as well.

 

Yeah, not sure about slag, never dealt with it.
I think that the reclaim would have done a better job of staying put if I'd brought it in earlier in the season, when the driveway was still soft or we were still getting a lot of rain. But I waited until I had some vacation time and laid it down in July when everything was hard-packed already. I think after this spring it'll be locked in a lot better.

 

Paving definitely wasn't cheap, but maintaining a steep driveway with millings was a losing battle. If it wasn't so steep it would've been fine. Millings make a great base for paving too.

 

I did have the tractor out for a few hours moving some piles of scrap lumber to our burn pit. My little one enjoyed helping me on the tractor. He loves the sound of a diesel engine.

 

My grandfather gave me a older Massey Ferguson 10. I remember growing up and plowing with it or hauling wood with it. I have MANY fond memories using it. Still runs and I let my kiddo drive it or my nephews. I would love to restore it to make it look new.

 

I'm going to have to take a break from tractoring for the immediate future; things are softening up too much. I was up on the East side/uphill side of the property yesterday working up some dead standing pine that had blown down over the winter. I went up in the morning while everything was still frosty (22 degrees overnight), but on the way back with the sun on the ground and the bucket loaded up (maybe 600lbs; dead pine's pretty light) the front tires were sinking down through the top 3 inches or so until I hit frost. The rears were rolling the ruts back into place, but the frost is definitely coming out of the ground now.

 

Used the tractor to pluck the roof off the rickety playhouse and move it and lower it for the kids for another couple years. She’s in rough shape.

 

Cut our garden to start busting clods up before it rains again tomorrow.

 

You boys don't look like you're from around here

 

Made this for my buddy who owns the powdercoat place for his tractor so he can move his trailer around.