ATV Plow

I may be in the market for an atv plow come next winter, I’m sure there are those on here with them so wanted to get some do’s/don’ts and other various advice to help me in my summertime research. It would be going on a 2001 Honda 500 Rubicon. So far I’ve only really looked at the cabelas one (mostly because I already had the site up on my screen). Kind of looks like I might be borderline on power for a 60″ wide, or are they just sizing conservatively? A 50″ seems a little iffy to me with it only being a few inches wider than the machine itself is. There is still an old plate on the underside of the machine that is a remnant of the plow the previous owner used to have on it, highly doubt that it would do me any good on a new one.

I got mine from the honda dealer when I got my new 4×4, I don’t no if I would want a 60 inch. I think mine is 48 or 50 and if snow is wet that is big enough or it will spin out

I have a 60” moose used it on a 2001 Honda Forman 450 and a rubicon 500 no problem. An atv won’t push pile back so you need to plow extra wide early in year. I have pushed 16” but it is best to take it in pieces.

If pushing a long ways make sure and get a county plow, it rolls the snow a lot better. I would suggest a 50″, you will be short on weight to push heavy and or drifted snow.

Didnt think about the weight factor with a wider one and wet snow, makes sense though.

Will I want chains on the atv (I have a set that I have yet to use)? Adding weight to the machine help any too?(other than my 260# carcass) I know wheel weights and chains made a huge difference back when I had my riding mower/blower but that was a blower and not a plow.

Chains always help.

Rockymountainatv.com
When I got mine these guys were way cheaper and free shipping

KFI is an MN company and all plows and mounts are made here in Spring Valley, MN. Winches are imported, but all steel components are made here. Great heavy duty ATV stuff. Price is VERY good also. Had one of their 60″ plows on my old Sportsman 570 and it pushed it just fine and only got stuck once, but it was user error.

404 ERROR wrote:

Had one of their 60″ plows on my old Sportsman 570 and it pushed it just fine…

Man, working a 570 Sportsman like that, did it almost melt the dang thing?

All I can say about ATV plows is I’ve never met anyone who was happy with one as their only method of clearing snow. Everybody seems to go in thinking they’ll finally be able to clear snow all winter while sitting on their comfy ATV seat.

It seems like the reality is a second, more heavy duty solution is ALSO needed for when the piles get too high, and/or for any snow that is wet or over about 3 inches. Also, it seems like driveways with hills are a problem. ATVs are great for speed clearing 1-inch snowfalls, but when the going gets tough you need a plan B that can handle real snow.

Grouser

I just put a Warn Provantage system on my wheeler. It is a front mount system so you don’t have to lay on your back to put the pins in underneath the quad. The pins are right by the winch and snap in really easy. The bracket doesn’t alter your ground clearance as well, so you can leave the bracket in all summer and not have to worry about it getting hung up on logs etc.

I bought the Yamaha specific bracket, the push tubes, and the 56″ straight plow for about $500 on amazon.

I grew up plowing with an ATV. They will handle pretty large amounts of snow, but like everyone said, you need to plow the banks much wider in the early months to give yourself enough room throughout the winter. You aren’t going to move a frozen 3′ high snow bank with an ATV.

Just make sure you keep it nice and wide from the start and you will be just fine.

TheFamousGrouse wrote:

Man, working a 570 Sportsman like that, did it almost melt the dang thing?

Only time it melted and started on fire was middle of summer…they replaced the seat, some plastic connectors and side panels under warranty…

I’d still have my current walk behind blower as a back up, but really not looking forward to doing that driveway with it (we are currently in process of buying/selling). I’m hoping my brother decides he wants to trade equipment back amd I get my old mower/blower attachment back, but we never really discussed that at the time we switched so it’s his call (didnt plan on moving again as soon as we are).

I may just watch clearances this spring too and see if I can snag up a much better walk behind at a great price as another option too.

Pat,
Did you have a ProVantage winch? I am looking at the same set-up but just have a regular vantage winch. From what I have read they are basically the same, mine is just rated at 2000 compared to 2500

Jake D wrote:

Pat,
Did you have a ProVantage winch? I am looking at the same set-up but just have a regular vantage winch. From what I have read they are basically the same, mine is just rated at 2000 compared to 2500

I have a KFI 2500# winch. I got a good deal on it when I bought the quad. I wasn’t able to use two of the bolts for the plow mount bracket because of it.

The problem I ran into was that the warn provantage plow mount bracket didn’t fit the KFI winch mount perfectly. At the end of the day, it still has 4 bolts all holding it together, but would’ve been nice to have two more for piece of mind.

The plow mount sandwiches between the winch and the winch mount. So you use the four bolts for the winch and then they add two more to the back plate of the winch mount. The plow bracket still sits flush against the back plate of my winch mount, it just doesn’t have bolts holding it. It cant move regardless.

All I can say about ATV plows is I’ve never met anyone who was happy with one as their only method of clearing snow. Everybody seems to go in thinking they’ll finally be able to clear snow all winter while sitting on their comfy ATV seat.

Seriously!? I have plowed for over 23 years with Atvs. Not just little city driveways either. My personal driveway is 1/4 mile long and the neighbors that I plow is the same and it’s mostly uphill. Never had an issue with heavy,deep, wet snow. I have a 60″ plow and wouldn’t own a shorter one. ATVs are more than capable of plowing, and are fairly quick at it also.

I have a Textron/Arctic Cat 60-inch One-Way Tapered Plow Blade – that I negotiated a good price on when I bought my Articat 500. I am so dang happy I got this with the Textron tube frame. We use this for our farm, and have 1500′ of driveway, lanes in the woods, between building, and so on. I even plow feeding paths in my fields for deer to get down to corn/hay when the snow gets deep. Been using it since 2008 and VERY pleased with it.

Probably the only thing that took some time to do was learn the plowing pattern. Because it rolls snow off to the side as you go, you need to learn an efficient pattern to make it easier

https://www.countrycat.com/textron-off-road-arctic-cat-0436-360-60-inch-one-way-tapered-plow-blade-yellow_1?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=google-simple&gclid=Cj0KCQiAm5viBRD4ARIsADGUT27XnVN5BTe5G3KDcHNYpFKB5RGRdk7YxhPrVMOfl1vExNZkrcgTEogaAqXCEALw_wcB

Are the ‘universal’ ones actually pretty universal or could I be running into fitment issues with an 18 year old machine?

poomunk wrote:

Are the ‘universal’ ones actually pretty universal or could I be running into fitment issues with an 18 year old machine?

The universal blades are fine. Just need to make sure you get the correct mounting brackets and frame. Pushing snow put plenty of stress on the frame. You want it distributed correctly

You could use one of these instead.

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Own 2 older wheelers with plows.

Ones a 2000 honda 450s foreman with a 60″ eagle/county line system that’s as old as the machine.

The other is a 2003 Kawasaki prairie 650 with a 60″ polaris glacier 1 system.

Plow 3 bigger driveways with them both, but prefer the honda setup. Gears vs belt driven preference.

Winches and solenoids can have some issues. Recovery time on some winches is terrible. Solenoids can get warm and start causing issues.

Deal with inclines on 2 driveways and never had to chain up. Have resorted to strapping weight on the back, over each rear wheel on the rear racks.

Like anything else, operator error is to blame for using something improperly and then blaming the machine. 4 wheelers aren’t plow trucks. Used with some common sense they are good tools, but like any tool they have their limits and draw backs. They are way more maneuverable vs a plow truck, but there’s trade offs with them.

Have a snowblower, but never use it, other than to check to make sure it still works.

Piles have to be pushed far enough back initially to accommodate late winter, typically March, heavy, wet snow falls.

Ditto on the 60 incher, you want a plow to extend past your wheels even when you put the plow at a angle, it is not a truck nor a tractor nor a grader, keep your end windrow wide. DK.

This is the setup I use, 800 can am, tommy topper and moose county plow.
It’s always worked great and my driveway is long and open.

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basseyes wrote:

The other is a 2003 Kawasaki prairie 650 with a 60″ polaris glacier 1 system.

I still want that machine…I’ve even got a spare 700 motor for it…

I’ve got a 2001 Polaris Xplorer 400. Nothing great, cheap machine I bought off craigslist pretty much only for plowing and ice fishing. My plow is as wide as the machine, so 48″? 50″?. I personally would not want a larger one, if the snow was more than a couple inches I wouldn’t have the power to push it. With where I store it in the garage, I also wouldn’t have the space for something that much wider.

It is all that I use for plowing snow, and it works just fine. If it’s a foot of wet heavy snow, it just takes a while longer as you take smaller strips each time. I do not have mine hooked up to a winch, just a lever that I pull up and down- works fine. The first year I ran mine, I did not have chains and it was a PIA. The last 3 years since then I have put chains on the rear tires and they make a HUGE difference (I should also note that my tires are near bald, most people would have probably replaced them by now but they work for me with chains).

404 ERROR wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>basseyes wrote:</div>
The other is a 2003 Kawasaki prairie 650 with a 60″ polaris glacier 1 system.

I still want that machine…I’ve even got a spare 700 motor for it…

I’ve got a 02 prairie 650 still, let me know how interested in it you are.

Hopefully this works. Plowed out some rock hard drifts with the Suzuki King Quad today. Drifts we’re as tall as the wheeler, but I still managed to get it done. So much for wheelers only being capable of plowing 1″ of snow!

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Michael Saal wrote:

You could use one of these instead.

X100000000 if you can afford one vs a plow!

I love my Denali plow from Moto Alliance!

Stop down to Two Brothers Honda in Onalaska, just take a look and ask questions…got mine there.