Loader-Mounted V-Type Snowplow

Loader-Mounted V-Type Snowplow SNOWBLOWERS Snowblowers 19-6-7 "I operate an orchard business 12 months of the year so I have to keep our roads open all the time. I used an old 500-gal. steel water tank to make a loader-mounted, 'V-type' snowplow. It didn't cost much to build and does a great job," says Thomas Roney, Greenfield, Ind. He cut the 4-ft. dia., 6-ft. long tank in half to make the two blades, then welded them to a 1/2-in. thick steel plate at the point. He welded two lengths of 6-in. channel iron across the back of the blades and welded the loader mounting brackets to them. He also welded steel skid shoes under both blades as well as the point to save wear. "It works much better than a bucket for opening roads because I never have to stop and push snow off to the side of the road. I've used it for about 15 years on three different tractors with no problems," says Roney. "It cuts about 8 ft. wide and can go through 2-ft. deep snow as long as the snow isn't frozen too hard. I've even used it to open roads in a housing subdivision when the county snowplows couldn't get through. I can raise the snowplow up and turn around right in the middle of the road. I use the bucket tilt cylinders to adjust the angle of cut. If I ever get stuck I can use the tilt cylinders to push myself back out the same way you would with a bucket. I cut a hole in the steel plate between blades so I can mount a clevis and let another tractor pull me. "The steel plate allowed me to weld both blades together without having to align them perfectly. It also strengthens the plow. The most difficult part was cutting the tank. Before I started, I practiced cutting off the parts from a 4-in. dia. mail tube until I got the design I wanted. Then I transfered the dimensions onto the tank and cut it out. "Whenever the skid shoes wear out I just weld new ones on. I've worn them off several times. I left about 1 in. of the ends of the tank on the outside edges of the blades for strength. It adds some drag, but I needed the reinforcement. I planned to have some 2-in. angle iron rolled so that I could cut the edges off and weld on the angle iron, but I never did." Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Thomas E. Roney, 5717 N. 300 W., Greenfield, Ind. 46140 (ph 317 326-2278).

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