Thank you! It’s coming together, it is 84”s wide so when it is angled sharply it will still be wider than my pioneer and I really like the visibility I have from the driver seat 👍🏻That looks like it will move a lot of snow. It also looks to set further from the rig than others I've seen. Nice job!
looks goodWorking on my snowplow build for my pioneer. Some progress photos 👍🏻
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It definitely will be receiving a few more gussets before it hits the snow 👍🏻I would put some diagonal bracing between the arms. That plow, at an angle, is going to have a lot of leverage trying to bend them sideways.
That will push a lot of snow. It's hard to say how much more diagonal bracing you'll need other than maybe closer to the underbody pins. You have a long, solid chunk of steel giving diagonal strength near the blade under the winch hook. I'm posting photos of my pushbars and cross-bracing, but am really doing that to set up the next part of this post.It definitely will be receiving a few more gussets before it hits the snow 👍🏻
elkguide - I'd previously looked at the tow strap option, which I think would be a perfect seasonal option for the blade.My answer to the winch cable wearing by going up and down so much. I went to Tractor Supply and bought a 20' tow strap, cut it in half and just taped it to my winch. (after romoving the hook) After winding about 6 feet in, the tow strap will hold itself in place and works perfect as a plow winch/lift. Here in Vermont with the snow we get and since I end up plowing over a mile of driveways every storm/good overnight wind, I was cutting 5' off my winch cable about twice a year. Since I changed to the tow strap, I haven't had to do any cutting for the past three years.
You bring up a very valid point in having the plow frame being the weak link and not the pioneer frame 👌🏻Some good, wise and sounds like experienced comments so far. Mine come from far less experience, though I did use a plow on my ATV, I've been using a front mount blower on a cabbed Kubota tractor for 15 years.
I see why you have the added length in your push mount, to accommodate the wider blade. However, that all adds up to a goodly amount of strength needed in the parts, hence the previous suggestions for diagonal bracing I guess. My concern would also be in the amount of lateral force being transmitted to the UTV's frame. With the length of the longer "lever arm", comprised of both the forward half of the angled blade as well as that of the extended mount, that translates into much more twisting force on the mounts than would otherwise be the case with things moved in closer and a narrower blade. This could result in no problems whatsoever as things are all strong enough, things bent and twisted, or lateral forces that overwhelm steering and traction to impede directional control.
Unless you are really sure about the strength of the attach points of the push arm to the frame, You might consider "not" adding a bunch of diagonal bracing right away. Better to have something start to bend out front, than to have to deal with frame damage.
That will push a lot of snow. It's hard to say how much more diagonal bracing you'll need other than maybe closer to the underbody pins. You have a long, solid chunk of steel giving diagonal strength near the blade under the winch hook. I'm posting photos of my pushbars and cross-bracing, but am really doing that to set up the next part of this post.
I ask this question: is the fairlead to pulley to brush bar mounting a better way to go?
My place is at 8,000 feet in the Wasatch Mountains of Utah. Yep, lots of snow - sometimes 3 feet overnight and a wide, long driveway. I have a KFI Open Trail 66" blade that I've used 6 years on a Teryx4 and now for one year on my Pioneer. Despite all that use, the pushbars and blade are in excellent condition. At about the 5th year of use on the Teryx4, the wire rope had frayed and weakened enough that I cut 4 feet off the end and triple U-bolted the hook back on (with a metal eye). So without a pulley, I lost 4 feet off a 50 foot wireline after 5 years.
I understand the on-winch/wireline stress benefit of a pulley, but will it just wear a longer section of the wire rope as it routes around the fairlead and pulley? Another reason I ask is that the Pioneer underbody mounts seem to be deeper under the machine, which gives a steeper winch angle over the fairlead to the hook attachment behind the blade (third photo). My winch is mounted inverted and the wireline comes out almost direct over the fairlead.
(PS: Ignore the stepladder - I sometimes drop the blade on the stepladder to drain the pushbars which sometimes to collect snow/water).
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Amazon.com I don’t personally own this so I can’t say it is effective or not but sounds like a very similar idea to what you did with the tow strap.My answer to the winch cable wearing by going up and down so much. I went to Tractor Supply and bought a 20' tow strap, cut it in half and just taped it to my winch. (after romoving the hook) After winding about 6 feet in, the tow strap will hold itself in place and works perfect as a plow winch/lift. Here in Vermont with the snow we get and since I end up plowing over a mile of driveways every storm/good overnight wind, I was cutting 5' off my winch cable about twice a year. Since I changed to the tow strap, I haven't had to do any cutting for the past three years.
This video didn't answer the underlying question: does a UTV front plow pulley save or help anything?This is the video I had found in regards to using the pulley and why I ended up using one. Hope it helps 👍🏻
YES it is, you cut the load on the cable / rope in 1/2. Your line will last so much longer, it’s a bit slower lift but smoother.That will push a lot of snow. It's hard to say how much more diagonal bracing you'll need other than maybe closer to the underbody pins. You have a long, solid chunk of steel giving diagonal strength near the blade under the winch hook. I'm posting photos of my pushbars and cross-bracing, but am really doing that to set up the next part of this post.
I ask this question: is the fairlead to pulley to brush bar mounting a better way to go?
My place is at 8,000 feet in the Wasatch Mountains of Utah. Yep, lots of snow - sometimes 3 feet overnight and a wide, long driveway. I have a KFI Open Trail 66" blade that I've used 6 years on a Teryx4 and now for one year on my Pioneer. Despite all that use, the pushbars and blade are in excellent condition. At about the 5th year of use on the Teryx4, the wire rope had frayed and weakened enough that I cut 4 feet off the end and triple U-bolted the hook back on (with a metal eye). So without a pulley, I lost 4 feet off a 50 foot wireline after 5 years.
I understand the on-winch/wireline stress benefit of a pulley, but will it just wear a longer section of the wire rope as it routes around the fairlead and pulley? Another reason I ask is that the Pioneer underbody mounts seem to be deeper under the machine, which gives a steeper winch angle over the fairlead to the hook attachment behind the blade (third photo). My winch is mounted inverted and the wireline comes out almost direct over the fairlead.
(PS: Ignore the stepladder - I sometimes drop the blade on the stepladder to drain the pushbars which sometimes to collect snow/water).
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I also should add that the shock loading is cut in half too.YES it is, you cut the load on the cable / rope in 1/2. Your line will last so much longer, it’s a bit slower lift but smoother.
I run a full spool of rope on my winch because I don’t have the plow on always and perhaps need the winch.
not a recent pic but you get the idea.
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