Plowing S10 Jimmy/Blazer .

[AB Lawn Care]

Well after alot of reasearch(thanks to the search feature on lawnsite),I am thinking of picking up either a 4x4 S10 or Jimmy/Blazer.From what I understand the S10 pickup and jimmy are the same just one with a bed and one without.From what I have read in posts here,I should be looking for a 4.3 auto.

I would really like to hear for anyone who plows/or had plowed with these truck.How reliable where they????How well did they preform.Is there anything I shold avoid??????

Any help would be great.I want to know as much as possible about this truck before I start plowing with one.Thanks in advance!!!

Also John DiMartino,Alan and mdb landscaping.I would really like to here your thoughs one plowing with these trucks.Could you give me some input??????

 

[John DiMartino]

I only have plowed with a 2.8 auto,it plowes like a champ,no problems at all,in fact i honestly think it out push a F/size truck sometimes,it does excellent.I just mounted a plow on a S10 Blazer and i havent plowed with it yet,but when I do ill let you know how it does.I can tell already that it doesnt handle the weight as good as the old 84 did.The rear end looks like its going to come of the ground and the front end is low,but not on the stops,may have to put a couple 80 lb sand bags in the back and crank the bars up a turn or 2.

 

[NEAL]

I have a 1994 s-15 jimmy 4dr. I bought a 6.5 ft western (used) standard plow this past summer. I ended up selling the plow opting not to plow at all this year. I never plowed with it but I can tell you that I had to crank up the torsion bars just about all the way to counter the sagging. this will make it hard to align the front end so keep that in mind. Also know that Western no longer sells their unimount sport utility for these trucks because the federal government says the front axle capacity is too light.Although Meyer still lists a 6.5 ft plow for it.

There is a guy that plows comercially here in Lake Geneva and he has been using an s-10 4dr blazer with a Western unimount standard plow I asked him how it worked once and he said it worked good.

One last bit, there is a company out west that sells a solid front axle conversion for s-10's. Costs about $1500 for the kit and you need to get a jeep front axle to put on it. Provides 5 inches of lift in the process. Seems with this setup you could have a pretty neat little bulletprooff drive or small lot setup.

Neal

 

[OBRYANMAINT]

i plowed w/ a 91 s-10 blazer for two years, worked very well i had a two meter meyer with wings on it the small truck was very, very maneauverable in tight locations, it also had the 4.3 a real power house for a light vehicle

the only downsides were that it was not heavy enough for heavy wet snow or more than 6 inches plenty of engine not enough weight the only other prob i had were the torsion bar mounts(very similar to motor mount or trans mount)they would break often from weight on front end it would not shut the truck down but would then continually make a loud click or bang when turning cheap to fix but shows how some of the parts were not meant to be plowing/abused

 

[MRPLOW]

I have been plowing with a 93 S15 4 door Jimmy for 6 years (128,000 miles and still going strong). I use a Snoway 6'8 plow which is a little lighter than other plows, I reccomend this plow due to being lighter in weight, its also an awesome plow too with the down pressure. Don't get me wrong I wouldn't reccomend driving around all winter with the plow hooked up. I have never had any major problems from plowing, but you will over the life go threw much acclerated front end wear. As far as drivetrain with a 4L60 tranny and 4.3 200 HP vortech this truck is tough in that department and plows like crazy with a very tight turning radius. My friend also has a 95 S10 Blazer with Snoway and has had no major problems. We were both highly advised against plowing with these trucks and had many places refuse to put on a meyers or western. We went ahead anyways and couldn't be more happy. Check some old post as there is member on here that uses a couple of S10's with 8 foot Snoway with good results. I believe him as I have only had to put the truck in 4low once in 6 years. As far as years starting in 92 you get the benefit of the 200 HP vortech, so thats my reccomendation.

 

[Alan]

Originally posted by MRPLOW
Check some old post as there is member on here that uses a couple of S10's with 8 foot Snoway with good results. .

That's me, and this is the fourth season on oen and third on another, both are 8 foot Sno-Way now, we ran a 6'8" the first year on the first S-10. Conventional thinking was small truck, small plow. Doesn't have to be that way, 8' Sno-Way is about the same weight as the "proper" Fisher plow for that chassis, and nobody thinks twice about a 6'something plow on a small truck. Torsion bar mounts do catch hell, but I think those are a weak point in these trucks anyhow. I've gotten good at changing them, knock out the center stud and tack a nut in it's place, then you can change them with no problems getting clearance installing the new one. Other than that they push as well as a full size does. Run Cooper Weathermaster snow tires and you will get all the traction you can from the weight you have.

 

[DanG]

I used an 1987 S-10 blazer with a 2.8 auto for a couple of years.
Never had any problems with the truck or the plow.Installed a unimount 6 1/2 plow and it would out push most other trucks doing driveways(more nimble)

I just took the plow off of that truck and put it on an 1997 S-10 zr2 4.3 liter auto with slight modifications.(Mostly because of where the oil fliter is now)
Western stopped selling/listing after 1996 and so did Fisher. Thats why I retrofitted it to my newer truck.

As far as the torsion bars mounts when I worked for the chevy dealer here in Albany we used to change them all the time under warranty( very poor design) they changed it so the newer trucks have a different style, which should help them to hold up better.

Dan

D.G. Enterprises

 

[bdemir]

Alan,

I did not understand what you meant by "no one thinks twice about a 6' blade on a samll truck"

Meaning that a small blade is fine or 6' blades are too small and undesirable. Im new at this.

 

[Alan]

Originally posted by bdemir
Alan,

I did not understand what you meant by "no one thinks twice about a 6' blade on a samll truck"

Meaning that a small blade is fine or 6' blades are too small and undesirable. Im new at this.

What I meant was that if I was running the "right size" plow on the S, a 6 foot something, the "experts" would not see anything wrong with that, but hang an 8' and you start getting all the rasons you can't do that.

If the weight is the same, and it is quite close with my Sno-Way 8' to a 6'6" Fisher or Western, what's the problem? I've been told all sorts of reasosn why I can't do it, most of them don't make sense to me so I just keep on pushing.

 

[bdemir]

Alan,

You have inspired me to go out and look for a toyota 4x4.
I have found a few and will be calling around to find out if a plow can go on one of these. I love theses trucks and have heard great things about them. They dont cost 25k like new plow trucks do and you can have a fleet of them without spending alot and they are durable as hell. thanks for the help.

bdemir

 

[AB Lawn Care]

I really appreciate all of the replys guys!!!!!

Now about the torsion abr problem.Is this a problem in the blazer/jimmys only or is this a problem that runs in the S10 pickups as well?????How often have you had them brake?????

Thanks for all the input Alan!!!!I will be using a snoway lexan plow as well.How much did/does the front end of your S10's sag with the snoway plow on?????Any tricks in this area,or is the snoway plow much lighter?Is it the bolt on the end of the torsion bar which brakes or???????From what I can understand you punched out the stock bolt and nut and put in your own.Is that correct?????How much longer does that last then the stock bolt?????Thanks for all the input and help!

I don't know what I would do without this forum!!!!

 

[Alan]

Originally posted by AB Lawn Care


Now about the torsion abr problem.Is this a problem in the blazer/jimmys only or is this a problem that runs in the S10 pickups as well?????How often have you had them brake?????

Thanks for all the input Alan!!!!I will be using a snoway lexan plow as well.How much did/does the front end of your S10's sag with the snoway plow on?????Any tricks in this area,or is the snoway plow much lighter?Is it the bolt on the end of the torsion bar which brakes or???????From what I can understand you punched out the stock bolt and nut and put in your own.Is that correct?????

The torsion bar snafu is common to all the S series with the old body design, that takes you up to mid-90s model years. I'm not familiar with the newer design at all.

The front end definately takes a bow when you lift the plow. I can't tell you just how much but it's REAL evident. I've been tempted to wind up the torsion bars as far as they will go and still let the front end align properly but haven't gotten to that point yet.

The mounts actually attach to a crossmember that holds the rear of the torsion bars in place. It's like a motor mount, two steel parts with a rubber insert bonded to them, the bond is what lets go. When that happens the end of the cross member will lift and bang on the frame or something, scary until you realize just what it is. The mount is attached to the truck frame with two bolts and to the cross member with a stud. The stud is pressed into the mount and teh way it sticks up makes it hell getting the new on into position. What I do is drive out the stud and tack a nut where the head of the stud used to be. With teh stud gone it's easy to put the mount in place and then put a bolt down through the cross member. You have to tack the nut in there as there is no way to reach it with a wrench to hold the nut otherwise. I usually replace a couple mounts a year between the two trucks. The 91 has gone two full years on the last ones and the 88 got new ones this past summer, can't remember just when they were done last before that. I woulkd think that they could make the mounts with through pins, like the old Chevy "muscle mounts" that were used on big block motor mounts.

 

[RB]

It seems like a perfect residential setup would be an S10. But what year would I need if I wanted to go to my local Meyer dealer and get a 6.5?

Thanx.
RB

 

[Alan]

Go find a Sno-Way dealer and forget about Meyers, then hang a 7'6" or an 8' and go plow some snow

 

[CT18fireman]

When I started I had a Toyota. 6.5 fisher for driveways and I would switch to a 8 foot meyer with a fisher receiver to do my uncles condo which was flat. Noproblem pushing 4-6 inches. Any more and I would use the 6.5 or to push up piles. I did put stronger torsion bars in and loaded the back with sand. The truck worked great though I would never have traveleddown the road with that 8 foot blade on.

 

[RB]

I would like to get a Snoway, but I've never seen one let alone know where to get one. 9 out of 10 plows around here are Meyer plows. I know they might not be the bet plows around, but the dealer is close and used parts are everywhere. Anyway, here in Pgh, we don't see all that much snow.

I still would like to put a Meyer on a S10. What year S10 is the newest truck I can get a stock mount from meyer. I know I'm able to buy a 6.5 Meyer, but I don't know about the mount.

Any help?

Thanx.
Ron

 

[CT18fireman]

I know a friend that just put one on a 98 with the off road package. It was a meyer. I have seen fisheron the new s-10's also.

 

[Bad Boy]

s-10 plowing

To Rb In Pa
I am plowing this year with a 94 4dr jimmy 4.3 auto
When I was at the meyer dealer they told me on the jimmys and blazers 94 was the last year able to install a plow on that they had listed that was during the summer. I have seen a newer blazer with a fisher on it

I haven't had any problems and when I raise the plow it only drops a little I haven't measured it but it isn't very much at all I plowed with a 76 chevy 3/4 with an 8 foot plow for about six years.

I think on the pickups the years are 82-93 are the same except for if they have any type of off road package meyers web address is meyerproducts.com you can send them comments and questions

 

[John DiMartino]

Alan,I priced out a Sno-way setup this summer,they will not sell you an S10 plow frame and a 7'6" or 8ft plow-no way.I tried,the biggest they'l sell you is a 6"8".I wanted to put one on a Durango,which is a quite a bit beefier and heavier than the S10.What got me is the durango isnt mych narrower than a Full size truck,especially with the 31x10.5x15 tires/wheels.I wanted a 7'6" for it.How would you go about geting the right plow/frame combo-even if you bought it cash and carry,they still will know what its going on,if you want the plow frame to fit your truck.I told them Id buy it cash ans carry and install it myself,they said no way,we could lose out distribution rights with Sno-way.I really pried them and tried to get a 7'6" or 8 ft.I wouldve bought one right there if they wouldve done it.They wouldnt budge-not even a little,any suggestions?,other than buying an extra blade or 2 plow setups.

 

[Alan]

Dealer is sandbagging

John, what you need is a dealer who wants to sell plows! I've never heard of any such BS about Sno-Way pulling a dealership. I actually bought the plow on my first S without the mounting kit,, built my own. Dealer here had no problem with that at all. He even brags about the customer he has who hangs 8 footers on S-10s.

So much about anything we buy depends on how the dealer wants to treat things. We're lucky up here in that the lawsuit crowd hasn't really gotten a foothold yet.

For what it's worth, Sno-Way uses two parts for their mounting system. The "nosepiece" is universal and is where the plow attaches. Behind that is a hardware kit that is specific to the truck model and holds the nosepiece in place. In addition you can run either Series 24 or 25 power units, both are downpressure but the 25 is the commercial strength version. Then you can get either 24 or 25 series moldboards on either power unit. Those things are fully modular, at least in the straight blade versions.

If you're still interested in Sno-Way, call my dealer up here, GB Mechanical,,802-864-9979, talk to George, tell him Alan Nadeau told you to call. He'll sell you anything you want. If you can make a deal with him I'll haul it down your way. I've got to go to John Parkers at some point in the near future and I could drop it there for you to pick up.