Plow Install

[Greenkeepers]

Hey All-

Do any of you install your own plows? this is going to be our first plow and was wondering if it is worth saving the money to do it ourselves. My bro is an aircraft mechanic so he is very mechnanical. I'm an accountant so I can count how many beers I'll drink while he does the work

Mike
Greenkeepers

 

[slplow]

I have installed a lot of plows. It all depends on what brand of truck. Dodge is the easiest to do, Fords not to bad,GM's are the worst to install a plow on.

 

[snow]

this being your first plow, i'd look into getting it installed at your local dealer. even though his price may seem high compared to unassembled plows in catalogs,customer service is worth it. do you think a dealer would work on a plow that someone put together themselves. their customers usually com first. another reason is that you need an air compressor and air wrenches to get everything tigh enough so the bolts don't fall on while plowing. doing it yourself could cost more in the long run because you might not of put the plow together, and parts might wear out quicker. if you talk to your dealer, you can probably work something out.

Bryan

 

[John DiMartino]

I installed all my own up to now.It will take you 6-8 hrs to do it right the first time-even with 2 of you's working.I just bought a used GMC,it had a western unimount on it when I got it.The dealer who installed it cut corners and did a sloppy job on just a bout every detail,no antiseize on any of the mounting hardware-wires run over the engine-lighting harness tied off over fan shroud etc...If you want it done right-you know how it goes.I'm not saying that no one does a good job-but if you get it installed-make it clear that a professional job is expected and you wont pay for or acccept anything less.Check the work before you pay for the install,make em fix any poorly run wiring or itll bite you in a storm.

 

[GeoffD]

Like John Said.

Ask for dealer references if you are going that route, and check out their work. I have my plows installed, just because i don't have enough hours in the day, and $ 250.00 isn't that much to have them back it up.

My Diamond dealer is great about installs, they are all done with 1st quality, and if something goes in for service (only happened once, defective motor found it out when i brought the truck home), it comes back with extras on the seat ( ie can of oil, paint, electrical covers, ect) My fisher dealer is good too, however his plow guy takes a week off the 2nd week of november for a hunting trip.

Geoff

 

[cat320]

I agree i had my plow installed and it was worth every cent when somthing went wrong i went back and they took car of me right away.And it will take you all day to do it right and maby longer if you never did one before. it's worth$300 to let the proes do it what is your time worth?

 

[thelawnguy]

I bought my Fisher 8 ft in the box, took me 6 hours start to finish to assemble the plow and mount wiring and push plates to the Dodge, but I know it was done right and how it all goes together, just in case.

Hardest part was getting the moldboard out of the truck by myself without doing bodily harm. I think next time Ill have the shop that sells it install it now that Ive done it oncve.

 

[Greenkeepers]

Thanks guys-

We have all the tools to do it (ie. Air compressors, tools torque renches etc). The problem is that the guy who I buy all of my mulch and supplies off of says he is a "dealer". What he does it call the other shop that I talked to and buys it from them and charges me a markup. He will not install it and The other shop will. I don't want him to get pissed at me, but the other shop gave me about the same price installed for an 8' plow instead of a 7 1/2.. For mainly residential what size would you go with?

Thanks Again.

Mike

 

[GeoffD]

the size of the plow is more dictated by the size of the truck. You better have a 3/4 ton, for most 8' blades. What brand are you going with?

Geoff

 

[diggerman]

We istall all our own plows,we do it because I often need stuff for the guys to do as it gets colder as well as rainy days.We have put on around six or seven Boss's,it takes two guys around three hours.The other nice thing about putting on your own plows is if there is a problem in the middle of the night my guys know everything there is to know about each plow. As for plow widths you will never notice the diff of 6", mount what everyone is the better deal.As far as what ever truck you have not being big enough to handle the little bigger plow, well don't mount it on a Isuzu but my feeling is anything else will do,as far as chevys go other than some changeable Torsion bars I've been told all the other parts have the same part numbers.

 

[Chuck Smith]

8' or 7.5'?

The only reason I can think of to go with a 7.5' instead of an 8' blade, is narrow residential driveways. Small ones. I'm talking 1 and 2 car driveways. There are a ton of them around here that are about 8' wide, and 2 cars long. It doesn't leave much room for error, and fixing curbstones is a real pain! If you plan on doing 90% residential narrow driveways, (that even have any curbing) then I'd go with the 7.5'. Otherwise, I see no problem with an 8' blade.
If you get the 8', just be careful plowing those narrow residentials! It seems around here, all the older homes are the ones with the narrow drives, the kind that require a lot of backdragging too. Once upon a time I would actually plow them....... Ahh, memories... NOT! More like nightmares!
Give me a wide push back anyday!

~Chuck

 

[# 1 PLOWTECH WES/MEYER]

From a installer standpoint, we do a top class job or we dont do it. We have repaired many others from dealers, and they were hacks. You get what you pay for and we are not afraid to charge for it. We know we are higher than others but our name gets around that we are there for you,the customer. without you we have no money,when you have no money the wife gets the frying pan out, and i only like the frying pan for cooking! Look at the cost not only just a for a perfect job, but how the installer will fulfill your future needs. On the other side, it is nice to know how everything goes together. It gives you a much better understanding how everything operates. P.S.- whether you or the installer install the plow, REMEMBER... Re-torque the bolts after the recommended time frame the plow manuf. states in the manual (no matter how big your air gun)The bolts will loosen.
Good luck #1 PT.