[HandLogger]

I've been reading the forum -- on and off -- for several years now, but I wasn't able to find current information about our present issue, so here's my first thread ...

In short, we've got a lot of road to keep open in a mountainous setting, which, needless to say, can mean a lot of snow to deal with. We presently use the loader section of a CAT 420D TLB to push and/or move snow off of the road, but it has its downsides, which I won't bore you with right now.

Although there are other options out there, we're considering two options due to finances. The first option is a Polaris Ranger XP1000EPS with a 72" Bercomac Snow Blower and the second is a Kubota RTV-1100C with the K-Connect Snow Blower attachment. I read an old thread about a forum member out in PA who uses one, but, unfortunately, the thread never really got into the specifics of ground clearance issues.

Based on what I've read and been told, the K-Connect mechanism itself is very labor intensive to install and/or remove, so I'm assuming that, once it's mated to the UTV, it's married to the UTV. If this is true, we won't be able to operate the UTV itself in the warmer months due to the rocky terrain we typically work in. The Ranger, on the other hand, is easily detached from the Berco Snow Blower and, considering the great ground clearance specs, can easily negotiate our rocky old skid roads.

Having written that, we've owned a Polaris Ranger for more than 10 years now and, quite frankly, I have absolutely no problem believing that the Kubota is a tank compared to our present Ranger 700HD ... so, if anyone reading this has any thoughts on our present issue, I'd appreciate reading them.

In summary, we have two questions:

(1) Is the K-Connect as difficult to remove and/or install as I've heard?

(2) Is the 10" of ground clearance that the RTV-1100C comes with effectively eliminated with the K-Connect mechanism installed?

Thanks for your time ~ Hand

 

[HandLogger]

We're still looking for an answer to these questions, so I'm bumping this thread up...

 

[seville009]

https://www.plowsite.com/threads/kubota-rtv-x1100c-with-k-connect.168370/

You probably already have read the thread in the link. On the first page, one of the posts says that the whole front end comes off so that it looks like a regular utv (and presumably the regular clearance). Maybe try to contact one of the posters in the thread to see what their experience has been in the past three years

 

[HandLogger]

Thank you, Seville. Yes, I'm intimately aware of the thread you just linked me to and, in fact, I've actually corresponded with the OP (during the past winter). Unfortunately, most of these folks don't seem to be very active on this forum, so contacting them via PM is difficult.

We just received an updated quote for this system yesterday and, needless to say, at over $35K, we are proceeding with much caution. In short, I would really hate to find out that this setup doesn't work worth a s*** when it comes to our steep 500' asphalt drive and parking area. It also wouldn't be exactly pleasant to learn that the PTO system is all but impossible to remove for the summer months. We've simply got too much rocky terrain to negotiate to leave that expensive stuff hanging down there for the rock monsters to chew on.

By the way, we recently sold the Polaris Ranger HD we used on our forest property for 10+ years, so we know -- from actually turning the wrenches -- what breaking stabilizer bars, CV joints and transmissions is like.

Thanks again and any added thoughts would be very well received.

Have a good one ~ Hand

 

[iceyman]

Thank you, Seville. Yes, I'm intimately aware of the thread you just linked me to and, in fact, I've actually corresponded with the OP (during the past winter). Unfortunately, most of these folks don't seem to be very active on this forum, so contacting them via PM is difficult

Summer does that to a snow plow forum.. except for us degenerates

 

[HandLogger]

Summer does that to a snow plow forum.. except for us degenerates

Well, we degenerates aren't all bad ... at least we're a persistent bunch. :hammerhead:

No, I've actually been trying to get in touch with some of these folks for nearly an entire year now. Add that to the fact that the thread itself is pretty dated and you get a pretty strong feeling that most of these people have moved on to "other driveways." lowblue:

 

[BlairProperties]

I was told the underneath frame its a lot of work to take off. The entire install takes 16 hours at the dealer from what i was told.

I saw a youtube video where the clearance while the snow blower is off the ground was 5-6 inches. With the blower off the ground or removed it was 8-9 inches I believe watch though this i believe this is the video i saw it in

I am currently looking at adding one of these to my business as well as I have a few driveways i am having to use a normal snow blower and its just taking to much time to get done. I was looking at the Blower and the 10 cuft spreader for the bed. I think it will be a good addition but not a lot of guys running these yet from what i can see. I don't need it for a lot of driveways but I should be able to get a driveway that takes over an hour with a 24" blower down to 15 minutes which is a lot of time savings.

 

[HandLogger]

I was told the underneath frame its a lot of work to take off. The entire install takes 16 hours at the dealer from what i was told.

I saw a youtube video where the clearance while the snow blower is off the ground was 5-6 inches. With the blower off the ground or removed it was 8-9 inches I believe watch though this i believe this is the video i saw it in

I am currently looking at adding one of these to my business as well as I have a few driveways i am having to use a normal snow blower and its just taking to much time to get done. I was looking at the Blower and the 10 cuft spreader for the bed. I think it will be a good addition but not a lot of guys running these yet from what i can see. I don't need it for a lot of driveways but I should be able to get a driveway that takes over an hour with a 24" blower down to 15 minutes which is a lot of time savings.

Hi Blair - Just to keep the thread complete and informed, we ended up with an SSL and an 85-inch high-flow snowblower. We just went through a 24+ storm and the snowblower performed flawlessly.

As for the Kubota rig, we did exhaustive research before we made our final decision and, long story short, the Kubota system simply wasn't up to our tasks. Too small and not enough clearance ... and, you're right, taking the hydraulic unit off in the warm months isn't practical, to put it kindly.

 

[BlairProperties]

Gotcha I can't drive around town with a Skid Steer with the Kubota i can get a license plate for it and drive all over town so that is why i am leaning toward it I am just doing driveways nothing crazy and nothing commercial. I have a Chevy 2500 and a Fisher V Plow for my larger jobs