W/ 4WD you shouldn't need the blocks. The placement of the blocks is adding weight to the rear and lifting weight off the front My '96 250 4WD has a 54" blade and has never had a problem even ramping up snow in tight spaces. Yes on ice you might spin a tire or two. Just lift the blade a (1/2 to 1" and you'll get full traction.
Mike

 

just get a set of chains for traction, they are fairly cheap and will work better then just adding weight

 

I agree, adding the weight doesn't do as much you hope, I've also got a 54" blade on my Quadrunner and it pushes it fine, its when I've got it angled and the snow is really well packed it likes to turn me sideways. the weight isn't doing as much as you think though because your tires haven't got any bite to them, everything is useless on ice no matter how great your tires are or how much weight you have but in snow you should be fine without any weight, you're better off with some aftermarket tires but stocks work well because they're kind of soft so you essentially get more tire on the ground, chains will help a bunch too, you only really need them on the back for plowing but you can go all four wheels.
Your bike looks great by the way. I love Eigers. I prefer prior 2004 body style only because that's what I drove way back when around the barn.

 

If you keep the moldboard of the plow painted smooth and waxed it won't be so apt to push you sideways when angled. When angled it has to able to roll the snow.
Mike

 

Nice set up there Richard, good deal on the blade package, love the dual taper! I don't know anything about your mounting type, (I've seen them, just never mounted one).
If you must remove the skid plate, so be it, put it in the corner to re-install come spring is my thinking.

I agree with the above posters, skip the blocks for the added weight. If you feel it helps, try putting a few from the rear and add to the front.
Chains are a big help mounted on the stock rear tires.

I used to use chains, but not for many years, I've been using ice racing studs since 2004/05 (on deep lug aftermarket tires, 90 to 110 per tire). It takes a heck of a lot of snow to move the bike sideways when running them.

I also concur with the above poster about fresh paint and wax on the blade to make for easier/more fluid plowing.

 

Thanks guys. Ya, the added weight didn't give me any more needed traction. It did give me another couple inches or so when I was moving huge mounds before I started skidding sideways. By that point though, it was really just more of a test to see how much the set up can handle and didn't really need the extra couple inches. The only area where I felt a difference is when I was heading back up my driveway. My blade was up and felt lower to the ground so I felt a little more stable. I ran chains and weights when I plowed with my garden tractor. Didn't really like how the chains scratched up my blacktop though so I'll hold off on running chains with the quad for as long as I can.

As for the skid plate, I found a Tusk plow mid-mount video (specifically for my machine conveniently enough) and they mentioned trimming the plate. I'll see if I can jerry-rig something. It would be nice not to have to reinstall every year.

My winch is supposed to come in today. Hopefully, will be up and running with it before the next snowfall.

 

I doubt putting 200lbs of weight on the rack lowered the center of gravity. It likely felt more stable since you compressing the suspension and it was taking more pre-load (for lack of a better term) out of the travel.

I have a blacktop/concrete combo driveway and I don't use chains- too worried about it gouging/scratching the blacktop. If it is a light snow I can plow a lot in 2wd drive. Just when the snow gets heavy or deep it need the 4wd. The longest portion of the driveway is pushing 80-85 yards so by the end it is pushing a fair amount if snow.

Another easy way to keep the plow slick is buy bulk WD-40 and put it in a spray bottle and spray down the blade. A lot cheaper than buying the aerosol cans. I also use it to spray down the inside of the fenders and flaps, differentials and suspension- makes clean up a lot quicker after some time in the mud.

 

Got the winch installed last night. I have a new found respect for those who have ever wired one of these up….major props. A little disappointed that I lost an inch of ground clearance on the blade compared to my manual lift but otherwise, I'm pretty happy with it.

 

One thing I do to my winch when plowing is take all the cable off, attach the end of a 6 ft. 3/4" wide nylon dog leash I cut the snap swivel off of w/ a self drilling sheet metal screw. Wind it on the drum and attach the loop end to the plow w/ a small shackle aka: clevis w/ threaded pin. You'll be able to get that 1" back and won't have the cable getting snarled up on the drum. Still using the first leash after about 8 yrs.
Mike

 

Looks great. If it really bugs you you can keep it on and when you need to lift it up real high you can use it. I find I hardly ever lift mine all the way. Usually just a few inches unless I'm transporting it.

 

I was hoping to gain clearance so I can knock over the tops of the big snow piles I create. I can't move them when they get too big until I push over the tops first. I could manage it with the clearance that the manual lift gave me and I guess one inch won't make a big difference. I'm already hitting the bottom of the chassis when I have it raised all the way so I can't even gain any more clearance unless I find a way to angle back the blade itself. I'm actually at a loss on how I lost some ground clearance because the manual lift had to be hitting the chassis at the same points. Only thing I can think of is the added weight from the winch and mount to the front suspension is sagging(?) the front end a bit. The winch weighs 20 pounds and mount maybe another 5?

What kinda clearance does everyone else get? I'm at 8.5 inches which bites because the rail on my utility trailer is 9.5 inches. Was hoping to have the blade hang over the railing while transporting so I can leave the plow attached. I'll have to see if I can adjust the angle of the blade back to give me that extra clearance. I guess I could also place a couple pieces of plywood under the front wheels to raise the whole front end up.

 

You should have adjustable front suspension. It should have a weird step up thing around the bottom to stiffen or soften it. Can't see a winch making much difference in weight but who knows.

 

I concur with mla2ofus, set your winch to free spool and pull all the wire out & off the spool asap. Any old strap will do for a plow. I have an 8' or 9' piece of 2" that came from an old ratchet strap.

I can't recall, are there no spring pre-load collars on the Eiger shocks?

 

IMO 8 or 9 ft of 2" strap is overkill. 3 ft would be plenty.
Mike

 

I think they went to non-adjustable shocks in 2004. Mine's an '05 so no luck there. Would those hockey puck style spacers work?

Thanks for the tips on using a strap! Makes a lot of sense.

 

I think they went to non-adjustable shocks in 2004. Mine's an '05 so no luck there. Would those hockey puck style spacers work?

Well that's a shame. Not sure about the hockey puck style, I've made (1") from aluminum before.

 

Alright lift the plow all the way up, measure the height them lift up on the front rack, then measure it. I've got a half inch piece of round metal between one of the coils on my front shocks, keeps my front end a little higher up.

 

You always need a few wraps on the drum or it will slip off on you.

 

IMO 8 or 9 ft of 2" strap is overkill. 3 ft would be plenty.

If the drum on Mike's winch has that little hole to feed the strap through, I guess 3 ft would be plenty without having to worry about it slipping off.

You're thinking I went out and bought it specifically for the piece of strap? It was what I had lying around

This is what I was going to do. I might even still have a 15' or 20' strap I found in my garage after we moved into our house last summer. Any extra beyond 3-4' is just insurance against breakage. I am a newb, after all. Just cut off the broken length and reattach to the blade instead of having to re-spool a new strap.

 

If the drum on Mike's winch has that little hole to feed the strap through, I guess 3 ft would be plenty without having to worry about it slipping off.

As previously stated I use a single self drilling screw to attach the strap to the drum. After about 3 wraps there's no strain on the screw. We all have our own ways of milking our cow.
Mike

 

This is my first time milking a cow but I guess that's why I'm on this forum. Thanks for all the input. Happy milking!

 

You'll like having that 2" receiver if you plan on towing/working your bike in different ways Richard. A couple of my previous rides had factory receiver hitches, they tend to spoil you. The Vinson only comes with a simple ball mount, so I soon fab'd one up, couldn't be without one.

 

The ones with the single bolt hole are the ones you need to steer clear of though, they're not only extremely dangerous but they can also damage your machine as well, they extend the factory hitch out so you have more leverage on the bolts, it twists so if you haul something heavy it can swing from side to side and if it's real heavy it'll swing it all the way around into your rear diff. I made a custom one for my Quadrunner that takes the place of the factory hitch plate.

Haven't had any trouble yet. The wagon with onions weighs about 2000lbs. Also hauled the grain head a ways and it's 3500lb.

 

The hitch definitely came in handy last weekend. I was pulling the kids on sleds all day. Also had to move the utility trailer loaded with the garden tractor, plow, dump cart, bags of ice melt and the kids toys through fresh powdery snow.

 

It's a ton of fun pulling or getting pulled on a sled.
Have a look at my thread called the flat thing.