Re: (ET) Today's lessons with heavy snow

[Steve Welch <swelch dejazzd com>]

Thanks for the report - always interesting to hear of other's experiences. 
 Glad it worked so well for you.  It's probably just my lack of technique, 
but I found the blade challenging to use.  The blade always seemed to 
overpower the front wheels ability to steer, and I often ran out of places 
to shove the snow (or the tractor couldn't shove the pile far enough to 
the side.  Finally gave up & went back to my 2-stage gas blower.  As I 
said, though, it could well have been just me.

Steve

On Dec 21, 2012, at 5:58 PM, Darryl McMahon wrote:

> Just in from almost 3 hours of plowing with the E12.  I'm pleasantly 
> surprised how long it lasted, with older batteries (6 years I think) and 
> temperature around the freezing point.  I was using the front lift and 
> lights extensively, and it was clear the front half of the pack was more 
> tired than the rear half by the time I was done.
> 
> The snow today is wet and heavy, and was about 7 inches deep when I 
> started (probably another inch or so fell while I was out).  Due to the 
> way the driveway joins the street, there is a long section where the 
> bottom inch or two is slush.  I've tried this stuff before with the 
> blower and it just spits water.  So, today is the first time I have used 
> the plow blade intensively for snow clearing.
> 
> The tractor has two mechanical 'clutches' to reduce damage when I am 
> being too aggressive.  The drive belt slips when I'm pushing a heavy 
> load (I'm guessing up to 400 pounds at times today in front of the 
> blade).  It's likely due for a tightening adjustment anyway.  The belt 
> was replaced a few years ago, so is likely in pretty good shape.  The 
> second 'clutch' is the lift strap for the plow blade.  I took a run at 
> an ice block from a previous municipal plow and snapped the lift strap.  
> Fortunately, that was a quick fix, and back to work in a couple of 
> minutes.
> 
> I loved the way the blade lifted the sheets of packed snow and ice off 
> the street pavement.  I have never seen that clean a pick up with a 
> walk-behind unit or the snowblower on the ET.
> 
> I would not have attempted today's snow removal with a shovel and muscle 
> power due to the weight of the snow and amount to be cleared.
> 
> Until today, I had not really recognized how noisy the snowblower 
> attachment is.  I liked the relative quiet.  Also, the blade is a lot 
> lighter, so I did not need the extra weight on the back for balance 
> (tiller), which makes the tractor a lot more nimble.
> 
> Next time I get the tractor under cover and on dry ground, I'm going to 
> be adding more lighting, both for vision and visibility.  Xenon driving 
> lamps for the front and flashing red LEDs for the rear and sides.  (and 
> tighten that drive belt)
> 
> I'm sure this is old news to many of you, but it was new discoveries for 
> me, and I thought I would share.
> 
> -- 
> Darryl McMahon
> 
> 
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