Anyone use a box grader with a lawn tractor/mower?

[nortac]

I have a fairly substantial Zero Turn mower that I've thought about attaching a grader box to. I need to do some work on my gravel driveway and wondering if it is worth considering. The mower is not set up for attachments, a grader box would have to be passively towed with some sort of contrived hitch.

 

[Dualist]

Watch a few box blade videos on YouTube. Then go rent a tractor or hire someone or prowl Craigslist for a nice little subcompact tractor.

A box blade is a great tool but I'm sure you're not going to get anywhere with it on a zero turn.

A box blade is needs a ton of very stiff steel all around it- ie a 3 point hitch that only a tractor has. Period. Not a contrived attachment. Not just to attach it but to raise it and lower it as well as to tilt it. If you can't pick it up and drop it where you need to your task is futile. All this stuff has evolved the way it has for a reason and a zero turn is nowhere in the picture.

Passively towing it won't work because it needs to be held firmly in place against piles of material with a 3 point hitch. Plus, even a small box blade weighs a couple hundred pounds. It would be going sideways and crooked and without being held firmly where you want it it won't move material either. I think you'd be inviting the zero turn to go over backwards on top of you.

Also, I don't have a zero turn but there's no way it'll have the traction necessary to move a box blade dragging gravel. That requires significant power and traction. Sometimes even my 4wd tractor wants to spin with the box blade full. And it fills quickly if you have a lot of material to distribute. Even a compact tractor is going to be a ton, almost two tons. All that weight is to create traction, pure and simple.

I've seen people tow box blades like things that were built for the purpose behind 4 wheelers or trucks etc. But never for long because it doesn't really work. It would be more of a plane anyway, no good for gravel. You need a 3 point. No zero turn will ever have a 3 point.

You could tow what some people call a harrow, sort of a big heavy mesh of chain like chain link fence behind a truck but not really a zero turn there either. And it's not going to do much for gravel, it's more for dirt/sand horse rings etc. It'll sort of smooth things out a little but won't fill potholes or move material.

In short, there's a reason you never see anyone dragging tractor implements behind a zero turn. It'll simply never be effective in any way. A zero turn is a purpose built machine, with only one purpose.

They definitely cut grass quickly!

 

[nortac]

Thanks for setting me straight!

 

[Rhody]

Watch a few box blade videos on YouTube. Then go rent a tractor or hire someone or prowl Craigslist for a nice little subcompact tractor.

A box blade is a great tool but I'm sure you're not going to get anywhere with it on a zero turn.

A box blade is needs a ton of very stiff steel all around it- ie a 3 point hitch that only a tractor has. Period. Not a contrived attachment. Not just to attach it but to raise it and lower it as well as to tilt it. If you can't pick it up and drop it where you need to your task is futile. All this stuff has evolved the way it has for a reason and a zero turn is nowhere in the picture.

Passively towing it won't work because it needs to be held firmly in place against piles of material with a 3 point hitch. Plus, even a small box blade weighs a couple hundred pounds. It would be going sideways and crooked and without being held firmly where you want it it won't move material either. I think you'd be inviting the zero turn to go over backwards on top of you.

Also, I don't have a zero turn but there's no way it'll have the traction necessary to move a box blade dragging gravel. That requires significant power and traction. Sometimes even my 4wd tractor wants to spin with the box blade full. And it fills quickly if you have a lot of material to distribute. Even a compact tractor is going to be a ton, almost two tons. All that weight is to create traction, pure and simple.

I've seen people tow box blades like things that were built for the purpose behind 4 wheelers or trucks etc. But never for long because it doesn't really work. It would be more of a plane anyway, no good for gravel. You need a 3 point. No zero turn will ever have a 3 point.

You could tow what some people call a harrow, sort of a big heavy mesh of chain like chain link fence behind a truck but not really a zero turn there either. And it's not going to do much for gravel, it's more for dirt/sand horse rings etc. It'll sort of smooth things out a little but won't fill potholes or move material.

In short, there's a reason you never see anyone dragging tractor implements behind a zero turn. It'll simply never be effective in any way. A zero turn is a purpose built machine, with only one purpose.

They definitely cut grass quickly!

Amazing detail!

 

[HARMON]

I use a driveway drag much like this behind my JD 445 and it works very well. I weigh it down with cinder blocks and do about 200 yards of gravel driveway.

 

[nortac]

Thanks!

 

[HARMON]

Thanks!

Anytime

 

[ColtRevolver]

When I was a kid, the neighbors dragging their long driveway was always a big time. The dad would put a piece of of plywood on a old metal bed spring and hook it to a Ford 8N. All of us kids would pile on for weight. He would pull us up and down the driveway.

 

[hroshaan]

Make sure it's strong enough to pull the grader box without damaging the mower or affecting its balance.

 

[Mittangel]

Using a box grader with a lawn tractor or mower sounds ambitious! I had a similar idea once to grade my gravel driveway with my riding mower, but the setup was tricky. Since your Zero Turn mower isn't designed for heavy-duty attachments, you'd need to create a hitch and make sure it's strong enough to pull the grader box. The other thing to consider is the weight. Zero Turn mowers aren't typically built to tow much.

I ended up using a smaller garden tractor for tasks like grading, and it was much more stable and reliable. When I needed new equipment or ideas for farming gear, I checked out some online sources. A good one where I found my farming gear had various tools and tractors, which could give you an idea of what's possible and what's safe.