Snow plowing thread

[deezdad]

Now that I just got a 94 regal coupe for a dd to go along with a company work van, I'm thinking of throwing a plow on my 01 4dr blazer cuz I'm now less concerned about beating the hell out of it..
I have a day job so was thinking of having magnets made w/ my cell# and slapping them on and heading out when the snow flies, taking on call ins and flag downs, customer list would be nice but don't really wanna be married to it for now..
Anyone here plow? How do you come up with pricing?
Can anyone recommend a smaller plow for an S10 blazer?
Winters coming feel free to use this thread for anything snow plowing related.........

 

[novaderrik]

i don't know how winter is where you are, but a plow on an S series Blazer is all but useless in MN winters.. not only are they too small and under powered, but they just flat out aren't built for the kind of abuse you will put them thru doing anything more than a few driveways.. half ton trucks are also iffy for more than casual use, and 3/4 ton trucks are basically made for this kind of thing.

 

[Rubicon 327]

That can be a nice little driveway rig as long as you don't ask or expect to much from it. Don't wait til the snow is A-hole deep and no slamming snow banks and you should be fine. I only plow my home and business but I have plowed for a friend years back with his equipment and all I can say is insurance, insurance, insurance. People can be so sue happy that I don't know if I would want to do what you are thinking without it. I hate to sound like "that guy" but it's not worth loosing everything you own over a bad accident with the plow on.

But back to the S10....I would go on plowsite.com and see what people have to say. I'm thinking a light weight 6 or 6.5 foot plow should be fine. Hope you have the 4.3 in the blazer.

Dave

 

[BARRACUDA1968]

If you get the right plow for your rig you'll be fine. I see lots of smaller rigs running around here in Iowa. Shorter the wheel base the easier it is to do what you're talking about. Crank the torsion bars if you have them or get better front springs. If you don't have the right ballast you won't like driving it with the blade up.

This is not a part time do it when you feel like it job. You need to be married to it or forget it. If I hire you to do my driveway I want it clean before I leave for work etc. Around here you can charge $80 an hour for truck and driver.

I have been plowing for 15 years but I stick to my car dealership and my driveway at home primarily. I do help a few people who need it and do business with me for free.

If you want to get in to it there is money to be made. I run a 9.6 foot V Plow on a 1 ton cab and chassis dually. I wouldn't waste my time with a straight blade if it was free. V plows are more expensive but you can run circles around a straight blade especially in a parking lot situation.

Your blade needs to be wider than your vehicle so only go as wide as it takes with a smaller rig. Get the lightest blade on the market which unfortunately will be a straight blade but for driveways and lanes they work just fine. Stash half of what you make to repair what you tear up on your vehicle and fuel. Commercial plowing tears sh&t up! And wear your seatbelt for the first time you plow a new road or lane and the blade catches something you didn't know was there. That way you can keep all your teeth.

 

[deezdad]

So I ended up buying a used Fisher homesteader 6'8" wich makes it an inch or two wider whan my blazers wheel base at full angle..
Guess the next couple days will be a good test to see how it does as the North east is about to get bombed..
Never plowed before should be interesting ,
already started out rough, had the plow sitting on the side of my garage under a tarp on a grassy area since october, drove my truck over to it and it didnt quite line up, the jacks sunk into the ground so had to play with a hydraulic jack and 1-1/4 emt bender in 4" of snow to mount the damn thing

 

[Nasty Wendy]

Oh I get it. This is just like that Muffler Bearing thread. You guys joke to much.

 

[OhioC5]

I don't plow, but my neighbor offered to plow my driveway. He smacked the rear bumper of my wives car. I feel worse for him than he feels for hitting her car.

 

[deezdad]

Oh I get it. This is just like that Muffler Bearing thread. You guys joke to much.

No joke, i just dont know what the hell im doing

 

[Rubicon 327]

No joke, i just dont know what the hell im doing

Unless you have a long far push to do then just putz around in 4 low and take it slow and easy and you'll be just fine. It doesn't take long for you to figure out which way to push it and how much to try and take on after you've had to go back and clean up your mess because you took a 3/4 blade width of snow when you should have only taken 1/2. Or that you didn't have you blade angled all the way when you should have cause now you have snow on both sides of the vehicle to clean up.

Go easy and don't over work the vehicle and you should have fun. I usually enjoy it until I have to think about coming in to work around midnight tonight just to keep up with the snow so I don't have 2-3+ feet to try and get through to get to my shops parking lot.

Oh, and the biggest pain is when the plow rides up over top of your pile you've made then drops down and leaves you hung up with a bunch of snow between the front of your vehicle and your plow......WooHoo, Good Times Right There Boy!!......have the shove ready to do some digging unless a friend is around to tug you out! You won't do that very much before you figure out how to avoid it especially if you have to dig yourself out by hand! :0)

 

[Venus]

As somebody who has plowed commercially in Ohio winters, I can tell you that what you are attempting to do is not a good idea. First of all if you plan on trying to plow 12in+ of snow with your setup it's way too small/underpowered. Hell 3/4 and 1 ton trucks will have a hard time keeping up with it using 8 to 9 foot plows. Secondly if you don't have any kind of commercial insurance and you run into something and cause damage, a standard full coverage auto insurance plan does NOT cover it. Also if you tear up peoples yards(which is very easy to do even to a experienced guy) you will also put yourself at risk for damages.

 

[buddy]

Put some Rachet straps and come alongs on the truck. You are definitely going to get stuck. And you will definitely hit stuff and you will definitely kill your truck and people will definitely call you to complain about their landscape lights and grass. And have a 2nd truck ready because when your truck breaks everyone that you promised is going to call you crying and screaming. My helper does 60 driveways and he makes good money but he is on the phone non stop for 3 days after listening to pissed off Assholes. Have fun!!!

 

[deezdad]

Points taken, willing to learn the hardway haha

 

[johnnycasx]

Good luck. I gotta plow later on. It is going to suck but the money is really good.

 

[deezdad]

Can't complain , took care of 30+ inches of powder snow in 2 sessions, not bad for a dinky little set up.

 

[Gene Van Horn]

Also don't worry about customers, all your friends and everybody who knows that you have a plow will all be lining up to get a "deal",hahahahah good luck,it's fun at first but def wears on you because of the responcibily of having to be there.

 

[johnnycasx]

Just finished after almost 40 hours non-stop in the city. We are getting more soon. Good thing you got the plow on your truck because man it was brutal

 

[deezdad]

That's a lot of plowing, truck must smell ripe lol

 

[johnnycasx]

lol oh yeah