1985_K5_Silverado
1/2 ton status
I think the best plowing-the-street gig, in terms of consistently reliable income and expenses, is a full-time, permanent job driving a gub'mint-owned plow truck for the roads or highway department.
CK5
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plowing
- Thread starter NEK5
- Start date
NEK5
3/4 ton status
beater_k20 said:
well i just want to make some money over the winter, more than i would just doing the neighbor hood, because i could do my grand parents,and her friends(that pay very well), and theres always the desperate ones
Get a utility trailer.... Snowblower in winter, mower in summer... Always great to be able to haul stuff around and won't beat your truck like a plow will...
NEK5
3/4 ton status
ryoken said:
how much would one of those run for?
no clue... I'm betting you'd find tons of that stuff used if you look around... paper, Egay, etc... I would think you could get a nice little trailer for 4, 500.. Maybe one like the ATV guys use...
What I'd do...
If I were to plow for others in MA again,I'd buy a Bobcat with a plow, or a bucket--or a small 4x4 front end loader,like a "Terramite"...they can get into places no truck can,you still can ride in a warm cab,and they dont bust up as easy as a 4x4 truck and plow will--plus you can move and pile up the snow if desired...you can make a small fortune if you land a contract plowing out a store front with it like a Wal-Mart,etc...plus make $$$$ the rest of the year as well landscaping,etc....a snowblower sits and rusts,and gums up with stale gas the rest of the year,and is useless...
I consider a snowblower a waste of time and cash in MA---many of our storms start as snow,then turn to rain or freezing rain,and you end up with a foot of wet cement no snowblower will move,short of a Walter Snowfighter!!-
I had many snowblowers,and all they did was clog,break shear pins off in the auger,and give me a coronary pulling the starter rope at 10 above!..
I don't think I did ONE persons driveway without them breaking--I used them as a last resort,when my truck was "down" with busted plow parts,and was desparate to get customers driveways done on time..their neighbors were ready to KILL me for running a snowblower at 3 am too!
---I wouldn't waste money on a snowblower...
I've seen some small ATV's with 4wd and small plows work very well,but I imgine they are not ruggedly built enough to hold up for long...same with garden tractors with blades--even with wheel weights and chains,it wont push more than a few inches,less if its slushy--and the cheesy aluminum transaxles pop like corn if you beat them at all...a 2wd Farm type tractors suck too,I had a 600 series Ford with a bucket--it sucked,it just spun and wouldn't move half the time,even with calcium loaded tires and chains..and no power steering wore my arms out fast...
If I were to plow for others in MA again,I'd buy a Bobcat with a plow, or a bucket--or a small 4x4 front end loader,like a "Terramite"...they can get into places no truck can,you still can ride in a warm cab,and they dont bust up as easy as a 4x4 truck and plow will--plus you can move and pile up the snow if desired...you can make a small fortune if you land a contract plowing out a store front with it like a Wal-Mart,etc...plus make $$$$ the rest of the year as well landscaping,etc....a snowblower sits and rusts,and gums up with stale gas the rest of the year,and is useless...
I consider a snowblower a waste of time and cash in MA---many of our storms start as snow,then turn to rain or freezing rain,and you end up with a foot of wet cement no snowblower will move,short of a Walter Snowfighter!!-
I had many snowblowers,and all they did was clog,break shear pins off in the auger,and give me a coronary pulling the starter rope at 10 above!..
I don't think I did ONE persons driveway without them breaking--I used them as a last resort,when my truck was "down" with busted plow parts,and was desparate to get customers driveways done on time..their neighbors were ready to KILL me for running a snowblower at 3 am too!
---I wouldn't waste money on a snowblower...I've seen some small ATV's with 4wd and small plows work very well,but I imgine they are not ruggedly built enough to hold up for long...same with garden tractors with blades--even with wheel weights and chains,it wont push more than a few inches,less if its slushy--and the cheesy aluminum transaxles pop like corn if you beat them at all...a 2wd Farm type tractors suck too,I had a 600 series Ford with a bucket--it sucked,it just spun and wouldn't move half the time,even with calcium loaded tires and chains..and no power steering wore my arms out fast...
NEK5
3/4 ton status
atv`s worth it?
in my opinion...no....
An ATV is ok for doing your own driveway,but if you started using it commercially to "make money",you'd probably spend more on parts and labor fixing it,or having it fixed,which can take weeks!--and when its "down" it can't make you anything!..I doubt any are rugged enough to take the punishment of plowing heavy wet snow like we often get here for very long..
Another neat thing to own would be a "Bombadier" sidewalk "V" plow--it looks like a dozer,but has rubber tracks..local DPW's around here sold them at auction for less than 2 grand when they upgraded their equipment--one guy I know got one for 1500 bucks,it had a slant 6 mopar motor in it,and a torque-flight automatic!--I've seen them with 300 Ford 6 cylinder motors,and wisconsin 4 cylinder ones too..they will move a lot of snow,and are pretty reliable..might be hard to get parts for the tracks and drivetrain now though..
Most ATV's with 4wd cost 5 grand,or more!--you can buy a used Bobcat for the same or less money,and often a trailer for it is included in the package deal..it wont break anywhere near as often,and like I said before,its a useful thing to have all year,not just the winter!..you can do landscaping jobs,lift a motor into a truck,etc...I wish I had one,I'd take my plow OFF my truck!...its nice to be able to move piled up snow thats frozen to another spot in the yard when the snowbanks get too high..only thing that'll do that is a Bobcat or bucket loader with 4wd...
An ATV is ok for doing your own driveway,but if you started using it commercially to "make money",you'd probably spend more on parts and labor fixing it,or having it fixed,which can take weeks!--and when its "down" it can't make you anything!..I doubt any are rugged enough to take the punishment of plowing heavy wet snow like we often get here for very long..
Another neat thing to own would be a "Bombadier" sidewalk "V" plow--it looks like a dozer,but has rubber tracks..local DPW's around here sold them at auction for less than 2 grand when they upgraded their equipment--one guy I know got one for 1500 bucks,it had a slant 6 mopar motor in it,and a torque-flight automatic!--I've seen them with 300 Ford 6 cylinder motors,and wisconsin 4 cylinder ones too..they will move a lot of snow,and are pretty reliable..might be hard to get parts for the tracks and drivetrain now though..
Most ATV's with 4wd cost 5 grand,or more!--you can buy a used Bobcat for the same or less money,and often a trailer for it is included in the package deal..it wont break anywhere near as often,and like I said before,its a useful thing to have all year,not just the winter!..you can do landscaping jobs,lift a motor into a truck,etc...I wish I had one,I'd take my plow OFF my truck!...its nice to be able to move piled up snow thats frozen to another spot in the yard when the snowbanks get too high..only thing that'll do that is a Bobcat or bucket loader with 4wd...
NEK5
3/4 ton status
so you dont think that the snowblower thing would work?...i mean i already have one, and it has done me very well so far, and i take care of it and everything, dry it up and flush the gas and oil every season, and in the summer i could probably do the same with the lawn mower...i`m just trying to see if getting a trailer to haul it around would be worth it, or just do the few houses i usually do, which is my house, and 2 neighbors, in which only 1 pays
I wouldn't be spending alot of money getting equipment if you're not getting paid for your time and trouble.
I used to do alot of driveways and even some commercial stuff, but if I counted all the broken parts, nights with little or no sleep, cost of fuel and how many times I had to drag out the welder at 3 am, I'm sure I lost more money than I ever made.
The only plowing I do anymore is my own driveway.
I used to do alot of driveways and even some commercial stuff, but if I counted all the broken parts, nights with little or no sleep, cost of fuel and how many times I had to drag out the welder at 3 am, I'm sure I lost more money than I ever made.
The only plowing I do anymore is my own driveway.
