Author	[Modern View]
Britcheflee 09-10-2012 20:32:25 67.187.170.181 Report to Moderator	My brother in law is clearing some property he owns with a bobcat - he has pushed all the brush and small trees etc into a couple of big piles - what is left is uneven soil and roots - he wants to level this - would a box scraper on my 8N do this job? I have never used one so would be interested in learning how they work, what the limitations are etc Lee [Reply]   [No Email]
trouttman 09-17-2012 20:15:39 174.98.68.98 Report to Moderator	Re: Box scraper use in reply to Britcheflee, 09-10-2012 20:32:25   Britcheflee, I agree with FatBob on this, I have been using my 2n with box and rippers for years, to break up soil, dig ditches, backfill foundations and pull small stumps roots etc. it just takes time. When I built my house about 20 years ago the guy delivering fill dirt dumped 2 tandem loads of top soil in my front yard. Moved all of it with the 2n and box blade. He didn't spread any of it, the yard is only 25' x 40'. If you have several acres it would be faster and easier with a dozer, but if it is a building lot go for it. But you do need to be aware that you can destroy a trans or diffy. I did after about 12 years of this abuse, but I still do it today when needed. trouttman [Reply]  [No Email]
fatbob50 09-11-2012 21:25:22 67.142.175.20 Report to Moderator	Re: Box scraper use in reply to Britcheflee, 09-10-2012 20:32:25   Also, I meant to add that you need a good heavy box blade. A lot of them are not heavy enough to do this kind of work. The one I use is made by Wood Implement. [Reply]  [No Email]
fatbob50 09-11-2012 21:21:45 67.142.175.20 Report to Moderator	Re: Box scraper use in reply to Britcheflee, 09-10-2012 20:32:25   I have been using a blade doing the same thing you are doing for years. I used to use a little 2000 Ford and a back blade. It never worked that good, but then I bought a box blade that has 6 rippers. I drop the rippers down as low as I can get them and they do a fairly good job on the roots and rocks. They also work for limb and debris removal. When you use the rippers to rip the ground, the dirt is loosened so that you can come back with just the blade and fill in and level it out. I have cleaned up a lot of food plots this way. Hope this helps. [Reply]  [No Email]
MRinMN 09-11-2012 17:04:41 67.6.29.232 Report to Moderator	Re: Box scraper use in reply to Britcheflee, 09-10-2012 20:32:25   I"ve done the exact thing in my woods and the answer is- not really. You"ll be better off pulling a disc with a drag behind your ford, or a disc alone for starters. Plan on getting some roots caught in the disc and drag, bring a long prybar to get them out, then after the soil is loosened up you can use the box blade. Box blades work good on loose gravel on driveways. [Reply]  [No Email]
jackinok 09-11-2012 07:37:37 162.58.82.136 Report to Moderator	Re: Box scraper use in reply to Britcheflee, 09-10-2012 20:32:25   MY opinion,,maybe. like the others it wont do much for the roots,but if you found a box blade with skids you could probably level it up quite a bit. Personaly i would use a landscape rake first ,like someone else mentioned ,to scrape up most the loose roots and things loosen the soil a little and then use the box blade. a real soil mover,or land plane would be best for any real big area ,but you could level it fairly well with a box blade if you took your time. might be a winter project if its a large area. I would suggest if you have a lot to do,checking to see what a dozer and a GOOD operator would cost in your area.a good man with a dozer could do in two or three hours what would take you a month with a box blade.then you could go in with your n and finish it. [Reply]  [No Email]
NoNewParts 09-11-2012 06:54:54 67.240.145.25 Report to Moderator	Re: Box scraper use in reply to Britcheflee, 09-10-2012 20:32:25   I'd pass hooking a root will stop even a big tractor. biggest problem with a field that has trees pushed over and removed is dropping a front wheel in a root hole. guaranteed parts breakage when he has it clean enough that a rear blade and a landscape rake will fine tune it, tell him you will take over then. [Reply]  [No Email]
gwstang 09-19-2012 16:51:49 71.42.172.242 Report to Moderator	Re: Box scraper use in reply to NoNewParts, 09-11-2012 06:54:54   Quoting Removed, click Modern View to see I've done the wheel drop thing before and it will jar you to the dang bone. :shock: I've got a titanium plate in my neck now and don't know if I would survive it now...lol [Reply]  [No Email]
Dean 09-11-2012 06:04:26 67.172.15.77 Report to Moderator	Re: Box scraper use in reply to Britcheflee, 09-10-2012 20:32:25   No. I would not expect to grub roots with either a box blade or an 8N. Nor would I expect to level land with a box blade unless the soil is loose. Dean [Reply]  [No Email]
Billie R. Smith 09-11-2012 04:59:46 69.245.108.151 Report to Moderator	Re: Box scraper use in reply to Britcheflee, 09-10-2012 20:32:25   I think that would be a bit much for Old Henry. Probably hire a dozer with a root rake first. [Reply]  [No Email]
DDodge 09-17-2012 18:59:42 75.219.7.242 Report to Moderator	Re: Box scraper use in reply to Billie R. Smith, 09-11-2012 04:59:46   There you go! Now this is the way to do it and not break stuff. You would need the dozer anyway because the first time you hook a root even with a subsoiler and can go forward and you can't go backwards and you can't lift it up you need something to give you a pull. [Reply]  [No Email]
JMOR 09-10-2012 21:32:26 72.181.173.171 Report to Moderator	Re: Box scraper use in reply to bgarrett, 09-10-2012 20:32:25   Quoting Removed, click Modern View to seeLet him keep working the BobCat....don't abuse your old tractor. [Reply]  [No Email]
old 09-10-2012 21:30:44 209.86.226.27 Report to Moderator	Re: Box scraper use in reply to Britcheflee, 09-10-2012 20:32:25   In theory yes that should do a pretty good job if you learn how to do it the right way. But since I worked in road building and landscaping I understand how thing work or do not work and practice is the key [Reply]  [No Email]