What's new
CK5
Register an account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members.

Receiver mount snowplow?

K5wrench

K5wrench

1/2 ton status
Joined
Apr 29, 2018
Posts
1,063
Reaction score
2,846
Location
Wyoming
The Forest Service can't work out how to plow the parking lot 3 miles away.
Without that lot, no customer parking, no snowmobile unloading, access is lost to the Western bighorns.
So they want me to plow the lot.
Me and my m1009 with it's propane block heater and POTENT 6.2 non turbo diesel engine.
The contract is worth up to $3,000 a season but that is based on hours plowed.
So $150 to $300 an hour up to $3k a season.
There is a possibility of getting the state trails program to put it up to bid for $5k a season total based on hours and since I'd be the only bidder, I'd get it.

So.
My easiest option would be stick a plow on the m1009 for $2k.
A receiver mount job.

Or spend more and get a real hydraulic plow for the m1009.

Or spend about 2.5 to 4k and get an entire beater plow truck.
There are a few out there both Chevy and Ford for that price.

Or I do nothing and have the disaster we had last year where everyone got stuck, supplies were hard to get from town, and people were pissed off

The state will only plow to the bottom of the mountain at 5,000 ft.
The FAA plows from there up to 8,000 ft where the snowmobile parking lot is.
But niether will plow the lot itself.

Last year I got an emergency order from the Forest Service and used our big diesel snowcat to plow the lot but the owner of the lodge said; no more.

So here I am.
A low paid maintenance and snow removal and egg scrambler at a remote lodge.
We have to plow that lot or our guests will be unloading all up and down the highway.
The locals will block the road with trailers making it impossible to get our trucks out to get supplies or me to get the garbage barge down the hill to the dump.

So, anybody got a cheap plow truck for sale and or a plow for an m1009 withing 500 miles of the Bighorn mountains?
 
Our snowmobile parking lot is plowed with a snowcat and skid steer, same deal, contract with FS. It's about 9000ft. I can't imagine being able to keep a high altitude lot open all season for $3000, seems way too low.
 
Yeppers.
Took me 3 hours with the LMC snowcat and it's Caterpillar 3208 engine and 12 foot blade to plow each time.
Plowed about 6 times last winter and it wasn't enough.

I understand why the owner of the lodge does not want to foot the bill.
But I live and work here and without that lot, we are going to lose business, I am going to have to rescue people from the drifts, and the locals are going to absolutely block the road in protest.

Now I can't get paid by the Forest Service AND the State trails for the same job.
So I am leaning towards the bigger number;$5k from a state contract.

This could turn into a 3 year contract with the state.
But even at that, the money just ain't there.
This is Wyoming not Colorado.

I am in a tough spot here.
Ready to spend my own money to keep things going so the lodge can operate this winter.
But I want at least what I spend back plus fuel plus maintenance costs.

I figure 4 hours a week minimum from December thru March.
That is 16 hours a month or 64 hours a season.
For $5,000.
About $78 hr.
Now I need to ride down on my snowmobile 3 miles to reach the lot.
Fire up the propane block heater and ride back to make breakfast for the guests.
That would easily take 2 gallons of gas for the sled (4 trips) $10 (91 octane is$ 4.95 gal here) if I let the heater run, 1 lb of propane at $15.
My 6.2 will burn 3 gallons an session .(guestimate) $10 diesel.

$35 per plow op in expenses.

Now $43 per hour.

Then there is the $2 grand for the plow to pay off.
At $ 43 per hour, I would get $2,750 minus the 2k in equipment..
I would get a whopping $750 for my 64 hours of work.
About 11 bucks an hour.
Now all this assumes my truck can take it, the plow can do the work, and nothing unexpected happens or that my fuel estimate is close.
But the lot would at least get plowed.
 
Last edited:
were you live and work ....... go find a fisher plow and never look back .

those receiver units are great for low to min amounts of driveway city people if you ask me .

i am in the snow belt of the GREAT LAKES and we can get dumped on and i have beat my truck up good .

also going full on plow duty is a whole different world on many levels . you might open a can of worms that you do not want to open .

i do my driveway and few friends thats it .

fuel demands go way up plowing . axle shafts and u-joints in the front can pop .
 
Last edited:
I had a feeling those receiver mounts were geared towards homeowners.
I found a 454 powered Ex Cab Chevy with a Northman plow for$ 3,500 .
Then there's this . Gulp.. Ford with a real plow for $2,500 total beater with the 300 inline 6 up in Belgrade.
I am leaning towards a dedicated beater plow truck rather than a plow on my baby m1009.
But that would also mean I am plowing for free this year and taking the risk that the state renews the contract next year.
But most business ventures are not profitable the first year.
And as I said, it ain't so much about profit as it is about access and how it helps our lodge which also helps me.
 
What's your total yearly snowfall up there? I think we are about 320 inches. I have certainly seen plowing needed every day for long windy periods. That all adds up quick, how bigs the lot?

Ditto on the Fisher, I loved mine back in Mass.
 
fyi fisher plows were developed in maine right off the coast in rockland were they get snow and ice .

i run the older conventional mount speedcast plows . i do the 8ft and up style for my k30 trucks .

my 8ft blade is in the 825lb range i have read . thats just the plow unit that clips in the truck side .

look here to see why there still working at there old age . . . its the BEEFY built parts . the 8ft up setups run 3/8" or thicker for the main plates . the push beam the plow clips in is a i-beam section basicly . the blade is around 1/8" thick on the skin alone .

0909181553a.jpg

0909181750a.jpg

0911181612a.jpg

0911181613a.jpg

0911181613b.jpg
 
Last edited:
HankScorpio said:
What's your total yearly snowfall up there? I think we are about 320 inches. I have certainly seen plowing needed every day for long windy periods. That all adds up quick, how bigs the lot?

Ditto on the Fisher, I loved mine back in Mass.
Click to expand...
Down at the lot, maybe 100 inches.
The biggest problem was drift formation due to wind.
4 feet over night and closes the highway even though only a few inches fell during the storm.
The lot is big enough to hold 40 rigs and snowmobile trailers.
I know I won't be able to keep it pristine.
In fact, they like to leave a few inches so the sleds and snowbikes can steer.
I don't even know if a pickup based plow truck could do it if we had a real winter.
It is a gamble.
I really need that GMC 7500 plow truck that Dan has down in Buffalo.
But he is firm at $10,500.
I could swing that but not without a guarantee of at least paying that beast of in a season.
 
Is there a penalty in the contract if you break down and don't keep it clear? If you can walk away if unforseen things come up it would be less of a gamble. Watch public surplus or gsa auctions and try to get a retired street plow.
 
HankScorpio said:
Is there a penalty in the contract if you break down and don't keep it clear? If you can walk away if unforseen things come up it would be less of a gamble. Watch public surplus or gsa auctions and try to get a retired street plow.
Click to expand...
I don't know about a penalty.
I spoke to the State Trails rep sup. And he said everything has to go out to bid these days.
But that at $5 k.. nobody would bid on it due to the nearest town being 30 miles away and 5,000 feet down.
But he sent a sample contract for me to look over.
I'll take a look for a performance clause.

That Fischer plow is impressive.
Probably doubles the strength of the frame just having the mount on there.. heck. Triples it!
 
I've had 3 trucks with the same Fisher plow setup--the uprights on my K2500 were off a C-60 highway DPW dump truck I found at a salvage yard,the headlights stick up a lot higher that the typical K10-30 type of lift frame does..

My K2500 in the avatar has a home made push frame,whoever built it did a good job,they used 3/8" plate and boxed in the front frame rails,and used part of a Fisher upright lift frame so the lift can be unbolted if desired..

(here in MA by law your supposed to either remove the upright and "triangle" for warm weather driving,or face a fine,but I've never been pulled over or heard of anyone who has for not removing or folding the triangle down by pulling the lift cylinder pin out and tying it flat)..

The Fisher push plates are very beefy,and every plow truck I had with those on it had zero steering box or frame cracking problems,I think it braces the frame up better than any add on part you can get..

The fact a Fisher blade only has a trip edge makes it much better at pushing wet slushy snow that makes a Western or Myers plow fold over and ride up over it instead of pushing it..

I recall the day I came to a friends parking lot and a guy he paid to plow who had a Western plow left big piles of slush in the shape of his plow 4-6 feet away from the edges of the lot,now the cars couldn't park there without blocking the garage door..
My friend asked if I thought my plow would move the piles before they froze solid,I said I'd try--the guy in the other truck just scoffed and said "this outta be good--I bet you bend your frame trying to bash that back any further"..

I backed up about 10 feet and got a little speed up and when I hit the slush pile,it looked like it exploded,and it came splattering over the windshield ...I shoved it way back into the trees after I broke it free pretty easily..the guys jaw was dragging the ground...he wanted a Fisher plow after seeing mine suffered no damage after slamming it into those piles many times..

That said,the trip edge also does a fine job of tearing out 8 foot wide divots 6" deep or more out of your lawn,if you fail to raise the blade quickly enough..

Where you are,you may find anything under a 1 ton 4x4 may not be able to handle extreme snowfalls..a 1 ton is heavier and more rugged,most had a Dana 60 too--here, you cant plow for the state or towns unless you have a 1 ton or larger truck..


But if you get really deep drifts,you might be better off with a 4x4 front loader with a blade instead..or a bulldozer!.

Don't laugh,there has been times I wish I had one (or both),after a 3 foot blizzard with higher drifts my truck was barely able to move--if my driveway had just a tad more uphill grade to it,I never would have made it from the garage to the street--a few times I didn't,it just slid sideways after enough snow built up in front of the blade,and started coming over the hood--once enough snow gets under the front tires,the rear wheels spin and the rear of the truck slides off the driveway into some trees along a ditch..

You may be able to find a used dozer or loader for about the same price as a working plow truck..

Another option would be to find a snowblower unit that attaches to the truck,or the rear of a farm tractor ,that runs off the PTO--then you wont have huge snowbanks from the plow blocking the sides of the road or blocking your vision to oncoming traffic ..the blower would be a lot less strain on the truck and transmission than a plow too..
 
I used to have a CUCV brush guard that was modified to bolt to the Fisher push frame,used it on my other 2 plow trucks,but I sold it..
For $35 !..:doah:.

I needed cash bad at the time and I always seemed to wish I had the lift frame on the truck to pick up something when it was on it instead,I didn't put it on for a few years and decided I didn't need it--that was before that law was passed,I think insurance companies pushed it thru..probably why the "minute mount" plows came about..
I can see that Fisher triangle doing some gory damage to someone in a T bone crash..
 
diesel4me said:
I used to have a CUCV brush guard that was modified to bolt to the Fisher push frame,used it on my other 2 plow trucks,but I sold it..
For $35 !..:doah:.

I needed cash bad at the time and I always seemed to wish I had the lift frame on the truck to pick up something when it was on it instead,I didn't put it on for a few years and decided I didn't need it--that was before that law was passed,I think insurance companies pushed it thru..probably why the "minute mount" plows came about..
I can see that Fisher triangle doing some gory damage to someone in a T bone crash..
Click to expand...

i got best of both now . modified plow frame to clear cucv guard .

0909181750a.jpg
 
I hit a big doe on the highway last week in the m1009.
Absolutely shredded the receiver winch mount.
But the winch and roller fairlead survived.
Splattered brains and gut contents all over the hood and windshield.
That cucv brush guard kept the deer out of my radiator though.
But it put creases in my core support which i pushed back with a 4ton porta power.
The T Rex grille got folded up but held together.
Total cost was a Warn multi mount winch carrier, T Rex grille, and Warn solenoid box for the winch.
$240, $198, $140.

But had that cucv brush guard NOT been there, or my winch hadn't been there.. Would have needed a bumper, radiator, and trans cooler too.

Gotta slow down.
That damn 6.2 J code is just too fast...
 
sweetk30 said:
swap in some m1008 axles and it will slow you way down . 3.08 to 4.56 :rotfl:
Click to expand...
Already got ya boss.
Swapped the 3.73 12 bolt and d44 from my 76 k5 into this m1009.
Both have lockers and Yukon axle shafts.

I bet the guy that got my 76 with its 400 and 3:08's and uncorrected speedo can't believe his top end!
 
what size blade ? the 7ft 6" down stuff might be smaller in these area's over the 8ft up HD stuff .

more pics in the PLOW MACHINE build thread on how and why i had to modify .
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest Posts

Top Bottom