model 73 and snowthrower compatability

[Findoggy]

This might be a silly question, but is a model 73 without creeper gear adequate to power a snowthrower, or would I be better off with a hydro of some kind or another? I really like the 73 and wouldn't want to get rid of it, but there is NO way my wife would let me get another cub cadet. What do you all think?

[gitractorman]

The 73 will run the smaller 36" snow blower without any problem. If you get into heavy stuff, you may end up riding the clutch a bit. Instead of riding the clutch, I have raised up the snowblower a couple of inches, taken off one lift of snow, then lower it down and make a second pass. I had an Original, without a creeper drive, and it worked fine.

You will need chains and lots of weight on the back, but you should be in business.

Now, on the other hand, a hydro will work wonders, and can easily run the 42" snowblower because you can just creep along.

Worst case, grab a snow blower and give it a try. If it doesn't work out for you, move on to another setup.

Later,
bill

[Leadfoot]

Oh yeah, your 73 was designed to handle a 36" snowthrower. A creeper will be very usefull while using a snowthrower, but you can still use the 73 without.

Any of the IH 36" snowthrowers designed a Narrow Frame with Quick Attach mounts will work fine, as will the QA36A, which will fit either a NF or a WF (it has an adjustable width front mounting set up)

[Findoggy]

As it turns out, I just today found a Model 73 with creeper gear, mower and snowthrower for sale. I'm going to meet the guy next week to see it all and will in all likelihood buy it. Wife says I can only keep one 73, so I'll have to see which is the better of the two...mine or the new one. Guy says he'll take $350 for all of it. I thought that sounded like a good deal.

[Findoggy]

How much weight in the rear do you figure I would need to get traction going uphill on my driveway? Is there a cheaper way to weight the rear without buying multiple sets of rear wheel weights?

[Leadfoot]

$350 for a running tractor with a creeper, and a mower and snowthrower sounds like a heck of a deal!!

Regarding 'how much weight'.......To counter balance the weight of the 42" snowthrower, and provide enough traction, I have 4 sets of IH weights (208lbs) and I made a bracket that allows me to put even more weight in a bucket, on my 1450.

Here are pics of my bracket (made with scrap pieces)...




Currently there is 140lbs of scrap steel in the bucket


However, there is still room in the bucket to add more pieces, and get up to 180lb

[Paul B]

Only you can answer the "how much weigh" question by adding weight until there is enoughor until something breaks. Most people seem to prefer chains on turf tires rather than ag tires for snow removal because of a better grip/bite on icy or packed wet snow, and they may also require less weight than ag tires. Many types of weights have been used - homemade concrete wheel weights, barbell weights on home made brackets, lead weights, brackets such as leadfoot posted, for containers that hold weights, fluid filled tires (use windshield washer fluid or RV antifreeze to prevent wheel corrosion) etc. The object is not to see how much weight you can get on the tractor, but to get enough to do the job without causing damage to your tractor. Using a snowthrower, going uphill, on a heavily weighted 7 hp tractor, could become more than what that 7 hp wants to contend with.

[gitractorman]

You will have an advantage over leadfoot because your 73 should have the little 6-12 tires. In snow, the narrower the tire, the more grip you have because you have less footprint on the ground, and more pounds per square inch in the contact area. Wider is NOT better in snow!

The turf tires with chains will work the best.

Two sets of wheel weights should be more than enough on your 73. I ran 2 sets of weighs on the back of my 149, with a 42" blower, and I was able to plow through 24" of snow here in Buffalo.

[Findoggy]

I don't know exactly what size my tires are (how does the designation work?), but I believe they are bigger than the 6-12 suggested. The reason I think that is because my father has an Original and my rear tires are much wider than his. They are still turf tires though.

[Leadfoot]

I have a gravel driveway, and chains mounted on any kind of tire 'stirs up' the stones with any kind of wheel slippage!!

I have chains mounted on 8.5" tires on another tractor that has a 42" front blade on it................I absolutely hate having to get it out...every time the wheels spin at all, they are digging holes! Then the blade or the thrower sends them out into the grass........

I made taller skis for the snowthrower, so I can leave 2" of snow on the drive (and to keep up out of the stones). After the 2" is packed down, I then lower the thrower to leave about 1/2" to 3/4". This worked great this past winter, as there was a VERY small amount of stones in the grass.

I made the bracket and added the bucket full of steel because backing up with the thrower in the up position wasn't the easiest thing to do.......the added weight solved that problem!

The 10.5" AGs work great for me, I keep from digging holes, and with the added weight, I have no traction issues at all.

Evidently 'gitractorman' is the expert on the subject though..................

Funny how in his first reply he states "You will need chains and lots of weight on the back" of a 73 with a 36" thrower..then says "Two sets of wheel weights should be more than enough on your 73"

So I guess 1 set is 'lots', and 2 sets is 'more than enough'...or how does that go exactly??

[Bigdog]

Gentlemen - save your flames for other forums. We will not tolerate them here. You can clean up your act now or we will delete flaming posts.

[Leadfoot]

Findoggy: The sidewall of the tire should have the size molded into/onto it.

The 7hp tractors had the 6" tire as 'standard'. However I bought a model 73, 3-4 years back from the original owner. He told me it had the 8.5" rears on it when he bought it new.

[Ritter107]

Basically the best advice is get soem wieghts... and adjsut the mix of weight each time u use the tractor until you knwo what's best. The composition, angle, and length of the drive along with the type of snow you get makes the difference. Just keep trying different amounts until you find out what gives you the best traction. I've had fluid in tires of one tractor with a 48 inch blade and 6- 55lbs suitcase weights on the back. On my 107, i have WW fluid in the tires and 180lbs of weight on a rear mount. Wheel weights are great, but i avoid them as they rust the rims and i hate it. All of my tractors have bar tires and chains of course and i use this on a long pea gravel driveway that is level the entire way. I do however blow out the neighbors driveway which is 100yards long and uphill the entire way... about 12 degrees. His 782 with blade has WW fluid in the rears, ag tires, and chains, and never spins even without weights. The other 782 has fluid and wheel weights... but mainly to counterbalance the blower.

Basically the moral of the story here is build yourself a eight mount and keep toying with it uptil you find the proper mix. However, do remember that you only have 7hp and you have to move all of that weight and blow snow at the same time. I'm still up in the air abotu the tire width issue. I think narrow on hardtop is good, and wide on gravel and etc is good. I have 8 inch wide tires on the 107 and it'll sink in gravel. So.. once again... test and tweak. Good luck.

['Country' Elliott]

Hey Findoggy...If your wife will only let you keep 1 Model 73...KEEP the one with the CREEPER & SNOW BLOWER and SELL the other (unless the engine in your current model 73 is BETTER...then swap em' out). The creeper will aid you in movin' MORE and HEAVIER snow with the 36 inch snow blower. You can get a set of wheel weights for about $100.00 or less if you look hard. Rear wheel weights and a set of chains should be all you'll need on your Model 73 with a creeper to handle the average Northeast, PA snowfall

[Findoggy]

Country, you and I were thinking along the same lines...my plan was to keep the 73 with the creeper gear and snowthrower!!!! Do rear wheel weights cost $100 a set? Wow, I got a set of rear weights for my farmall cub for $90! Now for a silly question, how would I know which engine is in better shape just by listening to them run? I have heard about compression tests, but I don't know how to do them, or even what a "normal" reading would be for the 7hp kohler engine. Thanks for the replies.