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Posted by: thud
The skids are NOT wear indicators. They should be set about 1/4" to 1/2' HIGHER then the plow blade with the blade sitting on a level surface.( so when sitting on level pavement with the blade down the skids should not be in contact with the ground). The skids are part of the safety trip of the plow. Should the plow begin to dig into soft ground, or contact an obstruction the plow springs will begin to trip. This in turn 'lowers' the skids to the pavement where they will then prevent A) the plow from diggin in and further and B) will allow the plow to 'trip' even further until the obstruction is cleared. Some guy will run the skids lower then the blade because they think they will save wear on the blade. While this is true to a point what ends up happening is that you wear out the skids faster, and as some have noted.. you leave a layer of snow or 'tracks' where you have plowed.
Posted by: thud
LOL.. Your more then welcome to disagree with me but you're just gonna have to trust me on this one. Ive made my living the last 8 years plowing snow on Provincial highways here in Ontario. The shoes , on commercial trucks anyway, are intended to be part of the plow trip system. In all fairness theres a difference between plowing snow at 35mph with a 9ft blade on highways, and plowing snow on a driveway at 5pmh and a 60inch blade, but I beleive the trip systems are designed to operate in similar ways. From the links you sent it appears most appear to prefer to run without the shoes at all though.... so I guess its just a matter of personal preference but if I was doing it I would set them as they are designed to be run, that is.. slightly higher then the plow blade.
Posted by: thud
Its a one-way plow and wing set up manufactured by Viking Cives, they have a plant here in ontario, as well as one in NY and i believe Minn. Its supposed to snow tonight so Ill see if I can get some digi-cam pics for ya. Im reasonable sure its the smad style of plow thats used all around North America..
Posted by: delta
I have a 60" Moose plow that I use to plow a 275' paved D/W...I have the skids on the plow set up at the lowest setting (skid, with one washer underneath and the two rubber spaces above, with all other washers on top) for Moose users only!...One must remember that the 'cutting edge' (the scraper blade edge) is not only replaceable but reversable so one gets double the use out of it when it gets worn...(simply unbolt it and flip it around so the 'fresh' edge is now on the ground...) I must say that this plow setup has been the best addition to my ATV by far...I have a utility ATV that I like to use for exploring/trailriding, and having this excellent 'tool' for it really makes it worthwhile..Bottom line: I have my blade setup for maximum scraping and it works well...I also use my winch for raising/lowering the plow (highly reccomended) and that also helps with adjusting to varying terrain...HAPPY PLOWING!!
Posted by: jwkawi
Does anyone know how high off the ground should my blade sit for normal snow plowing? i have the heavy duty skids for a cycle country 48" snow plow. i feel that i might have it too high. last snowfall it didnt scrape too well but at the same time i dont want to ruin my blade. any suggestions???
Posted by: jwkawi
update on the heavy duty skids on my cc plow blade. THEY SUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!! thank you. i feel much better now.
Posted by: jwkawi
because when i backed up after plowing a load of snow, my skid got hung up on a big chunk of ice and bent to s#@!. i had to stop plowing and bust out the tools just to get it off of the blade. i dont think i need them anyway. i get much better scraping when i set them all the way up. i can see when the edge gets down too low. those damn skids dont do anything but get in the way and cost me 50 plus $. that, in a nutshell is why they suck. but plowing with a quad is much fun!!
Posted by: jwkawi
you're not kidding. we got 24" and counting since midnight last night. oh what fun. made some $ plowing too. nothing beats a good blizzard.
Posted by: Fango
I've plowed snow for the past 20 years and I have always set my skids just below the mold board of the plow (that is the plow itself). In my opinion the skids are only to protect the plow from being wore into. So I set mine about 1/2 inch below the plow so when the cutting edge reaches that point I will know it is time to change the edge because I will be leaving a small windrow of snow and the skids will be touching the ground. Without the skids, a person might keep plowing and wear right into the plow which negates the whole idea of having a cutting edge in the first place.
This is how I have set up my atv plow and my cutting edge is going on 3 years. It is basically there to be an indicator.
Posted by: Fango
We used to get a ton of snow!!!!!!!!!! As of late, though, we have not had anything but trace amounts. This sucks big time...I love winter!!! My snowmobile is still at rest and my ice shack is still in my yard!!! We need snow and temps below 30!!!!! I don't know if it is el Nino or global warming, but hey don't mess with my winter season!!!!! I might have to move further north!
Well anyway, MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL!!!!!!!!!
Posted by: Fango
I dream of a winter wonderland like that...!!!
We had a nice 10-12 inch storm a two weeks ago, but we need another dumping!!
El Nino has ruined my winter fun and my extra OT cash!!!! And if I remember right La Nina made for a sucky winter too over here!!!
Whatever happened to the good ole fashion normal winters!!!???img src="i/expressions/face-icon-small-mad.gif" border="0">
Posted by: Fango
jwkawi, just wonder why you say they suck...??
munzzzzzz(didn't count the z's
Your skids should be set at a point above the ground. They need to be set at about a 1/2 inch below the plow (not the bolted on cutting edge) They are meant to be indicators that the cutting edge is getting worn down to the point that you are in danger of eating into the metal of the actual plow blade (mould board).
This is how I have always set my skids up. In other words, when they are leaving marks on the ground then you need to check the cutting edge.
This is why I wonder what jwkawi means when he says they suck...because they don't do anything but hang on the plow until the blade gets worn down. Then they do their job and warn you that you better change up your IRON lest you eat into your plow.
I hope I explained this well enough. The 3rd post on this thread also explains my set up.
Posted by: Fango
memento...sounds like you guys are getting hit big again with the white stuff!!!!
LUCKY YOU!!!!!!!!!!img src="i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif" border="0">
Posted by: Fango
Thud...while I am not going to totally disagree with you...I am going to disagree never the less.
What I have found when dealing with the skids or shoes set the way you prescribe two things occur.
1. They get bent and damage occurs (like jwkawi's)
2. You are always adjusting the stupid things
Now I plow on hard surfaces generally speaking and as far as digging in to asphalt or concrete it just is not happening. So I set the skids and use them as INDICATORS. They do me no good any other way.
If you plow on gravel or on a softer surface, my advice would be to raise your plow just a TOUCH to take up some weight. You will be less likely to dig in. Also, if you are plow on this type of surface take it a tad slower if you are worried about digging in.
I have a link to another forum that you might find interesting...
SKIDS
SKIDS 2
In my opinion, they better serve as indicators then any thing else!!!
Posted by: Fango
LOL...Quote
you're just gonna have to trust me on this one. Ive made my living the last 8 years plowing snow
...I have been involved in plowing for the past 20 years myself.
So your're welcome to disagree with me.....heh heh.
You have me extremely curious and puzzled. What type of plow are you using that uses the "skids or shoes" as an intregral part of the trip system. We have several plows mounted on loaders, tandem dump trucks, and pick-ups. Donnel, Falls, Fisher, Boss, Western, and Meyers. I have yet to see one that uses the skids in this way. What part do the skids play in the system????
If you could, would you point me to a manufacture web site that I could see the system with my very own eyes????BR>
Posted by: action450s
Pavement - 1/4 - 1/2 inch, Gravel 3/4 - 1 inch. I don't run any skids on my ATV blade, cutting edge has lasted 2 years so far, always run skids on my truck's blade.
Posted by: action450s
Plowing is probably the most enjoyable way to clean out my driveway, very fun!!! Best addition to my bike so far. We get a fair bit of snow here and don't get to trail ride much because of the depth of the snow, with the blade I get to use my bike a lot more often.
Posted by: 3forever
One reason to have the skids set slightly below the plow blade cutting edge would be when plowing where there are manhole covers, water shutoffs, etc. that are set a little higher than they should be (sticking up above the pavement). This way you don't catch them when plowing. Other than that, to me, the skids should be set above the cutting edge just to keep you from wearing through the blade itself. I guess it's also a matter of preference.
Posted by: memento
fango - rest assured that it's El Nino, not global warming. We've had the coldest winter in 20 years here in NY and on Christmas day we got hit with the single biggest snowfall ever (I got 30+ inches). It's unbelievable. there's still 3 feet of snow on the ground.
Posted by: Munzzzzzzz
For those of you who have plows on your ATV's, what has your experience been in terms of the plow leaving marks on the driveway? When I plow my driveway, I don't really see any marks at all, but when I plowed a neighbor's once, the skid plates left lines going up and down the driveway (oops!). I'm wondering if I'd just take the skid plates off, if that would reduce marking on the driveway because the weight of the plow would be distributed better, or if it would just make one big mark instead of two little ones.
Any insight would be appreciated!
