1811 and plowing

[mbull]

Originally Posted by Wild Bill

Thanks Mark!

The hydraulic lines are for the power angle feature of my front blade. I can position the blade anywhere within it's range of motion left to right, from the tractor seat by moving a lever next to the lift lever on the dash

The front hydraulic ports are standard on the model 1712 (the tractor I have)

The model 1812 also has front ports as standard equipment. The only difference between your 1811, and the 1812, is the front ports.

You can add the front ports to your 1811, if you find somebody parting out any X82 style machine, and get the valve, handle, and lines. Then you have to get the angle cylinder set up for the blade.

If you are really ambitious, you can engineer and build your own set up also.

Yes, the narrower the tire, the less 'flotation' you have. An old set of 8.5" turfs with so-so looking wheels (my turfs are from the early 1970's...and the 1712 was made in 1985) are normally pretty cheap. plus, the 2 link chains are cheaper for the 8.5" wide tire vs the 10.5" tire.

In the spring, I swap the weighted 8.5" turfs and chains, with 10.5" Carlisle Super Lugs

Bill,
Any chance you could take a close-up picture of how the angle cylinder is fitted onto the plow frame? I'm tempted to try rigging my own this summer. Mark

PS. Thinking about making an offer on those red wheels. Can you think of any reason they wouldn't fit as long as the bolt pattern lines up? Thanks Mark

[Matt G.]

I have a lot of wheels from OT garden tractors, and hardly any of them would fit a CC. Most other manufacturers used vastly different backspacing, so the wheels won't work on our tractors.

[Dave01]

Mark, I think the 2 bar chains and extra weight in the box will make a huge difference - but narrower tires will make a slight difference. So, my suggestion would be to pass on the wheels/tires and just do the chain and weight update. Keep in mind you have a long way you can go with weight - double your wheel weights, fill the tires, add to the box. I'm very confident you'll get the traction you need without the tire change. Just my opinion!

[jbollis]

I agree with DAVE01,

I have zero traction problems with mine. I am running the 10.50 tire. Get a set of 2 link chains and some more weight. I don't know where you are located (cant see wile posting) but, I have a set of cement filled plastic weights sitting here. I think they weigh around 50-55 a piece. If you come get them you can have them for free. Just remember the more weight you put in that bucket or box on the back, the lighter the front will get. after a point you will have a hard time steering it. It will just want to slide instead of go were you want. Mine, with about 100lb in it is just rite.

[mbull]

Thanks for all the great advice. I'm coming around to a good plan and appreciate all the input. I came into this post not sure weather it would be worth investing a couple of hundred bucks in the 1811 or if I needed to get a bigger machine to push the snow and allow me to get rid of the walk behind blower. The clear message is I can gain a lot of snow-moving ability from the 1811 by investing in additional wheel weights, rear-mounted weight, better chains, and perhaps filled rear tires. Will post a picture when I complete my setups. Hate to say it, but actually hoping for one more of those big spring snowstorms so I can test out the extra weight. Preferably a snow that melts quickly afterwards!

[mbull]

Originally Posted by jbollis

I agree with DAVE01,

I have zero traction problems with mine. I am running the 10.50 tire. Get a set of 2 link chains and some more weight. I don't know where you are located (cant see wile posting) but, I have a set of cement filled plastic weights sitting here. I think they weigh around 50-55 a piece. If you come get them you can have them for free. Just remember the more weight you put in that bucket or box on the back, the lighter the front will get. after a point you will have a hard time steering it. It will just want to slide instead of go were you want. Mine, with about 100lb in it is just rite.

Thanks, jbollis, for the offer on the weights. I'm in RI, so not really worth the drive to PA. I have a line on a set of Cub Cadet weights here in RI for a reasonable price. Right now I have 40# of dumbbell weights and a five-gallon bucket of sand in the back, so that is probably around 100#. I'll add another seventy or so with the second set of wheel weights and then perhaps more if I fill the tires. How much of a difference do you think the aggressive treads on your front tires make in terms of limiting sideways slide? That's another issue I want to overcome. Do the treads affect steering on grass in the summer?

[_DX3_]

Why not just fill your rear tires with Fluid? Much much cheaper and you get more weight in them than using the Cub wheel weights.

Windshield washer fluid: 14 gallon x $2 =$28 + tax. A drill ran pump for $12 and hose to air valve adaptor $10. @ $50 to fill tires + your time and effort = great traction ...

There are plenty of posts on here about filling the rear tires.

This is just a suggestion as opposed to worrying about finding weights..

[jbollis]

Originally Posted by mbull

Thanks, jbollis, for the offer on the weights. I'm in RI, so not really worth the drive to PA. I have a line on a set of Cub Cadet weights here in RI for a reasonable price. Right now I have 40# of dumbbell weights and a five-gallon bucket of sand in the back, so that is probably around 100#. I'll add another seventy or so with the second set of wheel weights and then perhaps more if I fill the tires. How much of a difference do you think the aggressive treads on your front tires make in terms of limiting sideways slide? That's another issue I want to overcome. Do the treads affect steering on grass in the summer?

My 1211 is only used for plowing snow and gravel ,pushing dirt around and stuff. It has the front blade on year around. I do not mow with it. It also has the super steer front axle from a 1863 on it. That being said, It will turn as tight as the wheels will turn with no sliding in grass. I would think that on a normal dry yard they would be fine for mowing, but any soft spots are surely going to suffer. In the snow they are great to. Some people ,including myself, have had problems with the front getting pushed sideways while plowing snow. Since I switched from turf tires to these X-tracs, I do not have that problem anymore. Even at full passes with a 54 inch blade. In those videos you can that with around a foot of snow there are no problems with it. I used to have around 200lbs of weight in the rear box but took about half out , and that made a noticeable difference in the steering capabilities. Like I said earlier don't get to much weight hanging of the back or it will make the front light.

I am thinking about taking the box of the back and putting 100lbs of washer fluid in the rear tires for next year. That should make it turn in snow like turfs do on grass.