Hey great video! Where I used to work we had a gator and I always wanted to see if it could handle a plow. I'm happy to see that it can and that I was right about it. Thanks so much for sharing!!
One of my trucks is a 06 ford ranger with a 6.5' fisher steel plow. I mostly do driveways. Some guys laugh at the little truck plowing but I tell people it's like the most powerful gator in the world lol. When you think of it like that its really awesome. 207 hp, heated/cooled cab, will do 95 mph without plow. Rated to tows 5000 lbs/haul 1300 lbs. Oh yeah, and its road legal. Gets 14 around town 19 hwy. I had to weld a custom minute mount truck side, but it's been on two different trucks now and has held up. I do 37 driveways a church and a 1/4 acre parking lot. Works great for up to 6". After that it just takes longer, I'm wishing for a bigger truck. I realize this vid is geared towards homeowners. If you're reading this and you're looking for a plow rig, you're much much better off finding annold plow truck to use around the property than using a gator. If your area gets storms over 6", the gators get pushed around by the snow instead of the other way around. I know 2 people that tryed using gators for their long drives and always need help if its deep or late in the year when it starts stacking up. They dont have the weight or momentum to do what a truck does. They are great for many things(sidewalks, trails, etc.) But imo if your area gets any decent storms, you'd be much better off with a older 3-6k$ plow truck. Plus I have a dump truck with a 9' fisher for when it gets deep or to push back banks.
The reason you want to swap out to heavier springs is because you do not want your mounting bolts and locations acting as your suspension, this causes metal fatigue and bolts to snap.
I run an 825i with the Deere powertach straight blade. The Boss is much nicer, just not in my budget. It does an amazing job, I really find it much more versatile than a pickup. I have power steering and the machine itself is quite nimble and I'm able to sneak into tight spots. Good video!
I learned with a Kubota X 1100 with the same Boss plow. For me it replaced a Jeep . One tip, double click the up/dn button and it will automatically raise when you reach the end of the the push. Easier to stack. Then it will drop the same way after you back-up so you start your next row.
Just a safety tip - keep your thumbs out out the steering wheel. Practice keeping them on the outer ring. If you hint something and the steering will win. It will jerk to the left or right. Broken/bruised thumbs take a long time to heal. I plow with an 06 RTV. Straight plow, turf tires and 600 lbs of weight in the bed. I can do most jobs in 2wd “M”. It is hydro (no belt to worry about). Just turn the heat and tunes on, then go plowing. If I ever replace the RTV, whatever the next vehicle is will have V-plow with hydraulic angle and lift w/down pressure. Nice video. Experience will teach the rest...
While this advice is not bad its outdated. My father used to tell me that as well when I was driving. I did some research on where this comes from years ago as I was into Rock Crawling. The best I could find was it originated from Large trucks without power steering. On something small like this or on something modern with power steering its really nothing to worry about. I did crawling for a number of years in amateur competition and have never come close to hurting my thumbs when the wheel jerks around. It just doesnt do it violently enough.
If you lose a line, cable or hydraulic, push into a pile to get the blade up as far as it might go so you can ratchet strap it in as close to an up position as possible and this should be enough to get you home/shop without backing all the way dragging your blade. Saves on soft tissue injuries and is less embarrassing for those that don't go to the gym....besides making an awkward situation look like you're Macgyver.
I use a 50" Moose straight plow on my 2005 Kawasaki Bayou 300 4x4. You don't need the cc's when you've got 10 speed ----High & Low. I have a Dennis Kirk canvas cab on it with 30" LED light bars front and back and a Moose salt spreader on rear---mounts on rack. Chains on rear. I bet I can blade as much , as fast as that Gator set-up. Not knocking nothing or nobody --just say'in you can run damn economically if you are a handy fabricator and got some decent ideas. Good vid. though !!!!!!! P.S. I HAVE (4) KAWI'S---- A 1996 HAD FOR 6 YEARS, A 1998 HAD FOR 11 YEARS, A 2005 I BOUGHT BRAND NEW FROM LOCAL DEALER, AND A ABSOLUTELY UNBELIEVABLE, UNDENIABLE CLEANEST MOST PRISTINE BIKE I'VE EVER LAID EYES ON-----BOUGHT LAST AUGUST(CAME FROM DEALER IN GEORGIA WHO SOLD IT NEW TO 76 YEAR OLD GENTLEMAN) WHO JUST TOOK IT OUT TO HIS MAILBOX TO RETRIEVE HIS MAIL--I'TS A BEAUTIFUL 1994 ONE OWNER. PROOF ON BILL OF SALE, 66 ORIGINAL MILES ( IT'S GOT THE RARE SPEEDOMETER OPTION ON THE FRONT RACK, I PUT SOME AGGRESSIVE NEW SPIDER TRACKS AND A 2" LIFT AND KIMPEX (PERFORMANCE EXHAUST) . YOU COULD SHOW THIS BIKE AT A VINTAGE QUAD SHOW & SHINE. that's my line-up probably all for under 15K. You guys don't need to be impressed with these 30K dollar atv videos----SAVE YOUR MONEY & AND PUT IT IN EDWARD JONES, MAKE SOME INTEREST SITTING ON YOUR ASS FOR YOUR FAMILY !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THX. FOR YOUR TIME-- "MERRY CHRISTMAS" !!! Jim & Jill Kiesau
I plow in high range. You need the speed to throw the snow. People will complain you'll burn the belt. The belt won't burn if the machine is moving and engaged. I have yet to smell a belt burning. I'd rather burn a belt than run the motor at almost redline.
Surprised by the lack of noise in the 825i cab !! Have you installed sound deadener material or is the engine/muffler/chassis combination just that quiet ? My Can-AM Defender HD10 XT produces 80 [decibels] dB inside the cab at 4000 RPM.
Haven’t installed anything separate. It is still pretty loud in the cab. I am wearing a wireless lapel mic so it may seem quieter because mostly just picking up my speaking. But still a great machine!
I've mostly plowed in full size trucks, and 4wheelers. I did use a UTV one day, then went back to 4 wheelers (all sidewalk clearing on UTV/ATV). I don't wear my seatbelt in a full size plow truck while actively plowing (definitely put it on between locations). When you hit something, like a hardened snow pile, and the truck stops suddenly, having a seatbelt restrain you hurts like the dickens. Doing 5MPH tops, I'm not concerned about hitting my head on the wheel. I have heard with UTVs that a seatbelt is much better than not. I chuckled when you were talking about the snow pushing a UTV/ATV steering, I've been there many times, going along nicely, suddenly you're at a 45. Great videos! Also, being in MN I'm assuming you salt your parking lot. Do you have an attachment for the Gator?
Thanks for the comment. Oh man...please wear that seatbelt! Just make sure it’s placed correctly and then should hurt for those little jolts...but I’m telling you, if you hit something major you are gonna be in a world of hurt. And yes, we spread salt but for our smaller parking lot I just use a smaller walk behind spreader. Thanks for the comment
I probably should have mentioned that I mostly plow driveways - so being able to turn and move my torso to see past the pillars in the truck is extremely important while back dragging so you have _ZERO_ blind spots.
@@HeavyMetalLearning I'm 50 and I've been plowing snow with a no cab garden tractor or kubota compact my whole life. I just put a plow on my Gator 835M with HVAC and man am I excited to plow snow this winter. Pretty surprised you've been plowing in Hi range. That's good to see. That said the type of snow you get really dictates what kinda day you're going to have. Here's a video of a guy plowing with a $100k Unimog set-up getting his ass kicked on a side hill with ice and a little heavy snow ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-wrE24mJwMPc.html Be careful searching for them unimog snow plowing videos. You can waste a whole night going down that rabbit hole. Take care.
@@Elkmonger Don't forget it could've been driver error or wrong setting/setup for the unimog. My grandpa used 1 on the farm for years but used a big blower versus blade & uncle still to this day uses never once any problem. That truck can go places any regular 4x4 truck could only dream of lol. Not to mention has many options/setting. They actually started (invented) during the war as an disguised army vehicle. Those things are as much as a county road crew/plow truck then some.
