I have a 2025r and use a 6 foot blade. For snow removal especially bigger is better.

One more thing I’ll add is you will find if the snow gets deep the rear blade is useless and you’ll have to use the end loader.

 

In snow, it’s helpful if it’s a bit wider than the rear tire track.
A blade on the back and a loader won’t let you clear as quickly as you can with a snow thrower, but they work for me, and I’m in Wisconsin. Good luck!

 

Also - I hope you’re comfortable driving backwards

 

Driving backwards is certainly no problem.

I'm wondering if 6ft. might be a bit much for the 1025?

 

I don’t drive backwards with my rear blade. I suspect for smaller snowfalls a rear blade is very fast. When the snow gets deep, not so much.

 

I have a 4’ from a smaller tractor. A 5’ would be fine. If you angle the blade the forward edge would be about even with the outside of the rear tire. (Unless you really cranked it steep). It would pull a 6ft blade but you may not be able to spin it 180° to push backwards or back drag going forwards.

 

t would pull a 6ft blade but you may not be able to spin it 180° to push backwards or back drag going forwards.

These tractor don't have steel rearends, I wouldn't push it backwards, Pulling forwards won't hurt.

 

6’ would be fine for snow. But, for heavy dirt work I wouldn’t go any wider than 54”. My 1026R tends to spin out with a 4’ box blade.

 

If for snow, don't mess around with anything smaller than a 6'.
Yes it will rotate 180 to push snow backwards. I did a lot and damaged nothing on my 1023E

 

I vote 6'!

Here is my Little Baby Fergie (similar to a 1025) pulling a six footer up an incline!

And yes it has room to turn 180° around ...

Also in Missouri ... Not really worried about snow around Springfield area ...

 

Me I would choose a 54" rear blade.

 

72”. I got a 60” for my 1025R and it handles it just fine. I would have liked a little more width. And Ness using it for gravel.

 

60” here used primarily for snow, occasionally for dirt. It’s always been a good fit.

 

The risk of damage to the aluminum rear axle assembly that GTT member Driveshaft is referring to, is from pushing backwards on implement connections which are meant to be pulled forward.

If the edge of the blade catches something solid, it can put a tremendous strain on the housing where the top link connects and snap off the flanges which hold the top link pin and secure it to the rear of the tractor.

It's happened before to others here on GTT. Some were able to have the damage welded, others were not so lucky and had to replace the rear case at incredible cost (if I remember, it was more than $7k in parts for the case).....

Personally, I would do the following if I HAD to use a rear blade on my machine...

1. I would go 5' minimum and preferably 6' in width.

2. I would put a flexible rubber squeegee edge on it the plow entire width, with about 1.5" of rubber BELOW the steel blade scraper edge. This will help to protect you and the machine from the corner of the blade or the cutting edge from"digging in" or catching a fixed object. The rubber edge, when installed correctly, will clear snow very well, but also provide important protection for the machine, operator and even the landscape.

3. I would pull most snow forward to clear it and angle move it off the driveway.

4. I would be EXTREMELY careful pushing snow backwards, especially into snow piles with the rear blade. Prior placed piles freeze solid and its like hitting solid rock at times.

5. Also be very careful pushing snow OFF the driveway when going backwards. All it takes is one solid object and you find out just how violently the tractor stops, aluminum case tabs crack and bones can break.

6. The 3ph arms and top link are meant to be PULLED behind the tractor, its not designed to be a "push implement". While some limited pushing is often done, I would certainly be very careful in doing so and limit the need to push backwards as the machine isn't designed to be used in this manner. Same with pushing backwards with a box blade. It's done, but not without incredible risk.

The tabs to mount the top link to the rear case and how your rear 3ph blade is connected to your tractor, are in the rear trans axle housing, which is cast aluminum. Many tractors have cast iron rear axle castings and assemblies. Weight is a GOOD thing on a tractor which makes cast iron an excellent choice. However, the 1 and small 2 series Deere machines use aluminum rear trans axle case assemblies, probably for reduced production costs and machining flexibility.

Aluminum is more likely to break than a comparable cast iron housing under extreme loads or shock impacts.

Here is the image and cost from the John Deere parts catalog. Keep in mind, this is simply the parts cost, not labor. Just be prepared that if you shear the top link tabs off the rear trans axle case or otherwise cause damage to your machine which is under warranty, Deere is likely to balk at repairing it, possibly claiming the machine has been "misused".......

Simply be aware......as it has happened to others before.........and its a very expensive lesson to learn. Sure, the price shown is for the entire assembly and you can purchase the bare case and transfer components. But surprisingly, the case components aren't much cheaper than the entire assembly and the labor cost of transferring all of the parts from a machine with a broken case to a new case add up very quickly....

In many cases, its less expensive to buy an entire new component, than to transfer all of the internal components from a damaged case to a new case because of the labor involved.

 

The risk of damage to the aluminum rear axle assembly that GTT member Driveshaft is referring to, is from pushing backwards on implement connections which are meant to be pulled forward.

If the edge of the blade catches something solid, it can put a tremendous strain on the housing where the top link connects and snap off the flanges which hold the top link pin and secure it to the rear of the tractor.

It's happened before to others here on GTT. Some were able to have the damage welded, others were not so lucky and had to replace the rear case at incredible cost (if I remember, it was more than $7k in parts for the case).....

Personally, I would do the following if I HAD to use a rear blade on my machine...

1. I would go 5' minimum and preferably 6' in width.

2. I would put a flexible rubber squeegee edge on it the plow entire width, with about 1.5" of rubber BELOW the steel blade scraper edge. This will help to protect you and the machine from the corner of the blade or the cutting edge from"digging in" or catching a fixed object. The rubber edge, when installed correctly, will clear snow very well, but also provide important protection for the machine, operator and even the landscape.

3. I would pull most snow forward to clear it and angle move it off the driveway.

4. I would be EXTREMELY careful pushing snow backwards, especially into snow piles with the rear blade. Prior placed piles freeze solid and its like hitting solid rock at times.

5. Also be very careful pushing snow OFF the driveway when going backwards. All it takes is one solid object and you find out just how violently the tractor stops, aluminum case tabs crack and bones can break.

6. The 3ph arms and top link are meant to be PULLED behind the tractor, its not designed to be a "push implement". While some limited pushing is often done, I would certainly be very careful in doing so and limit the need to push backwards as the machine isn't designed to be used in this manner. Same with pushing backwards with a box blade. It's done, but not without incredible risk.

The tabs to mount the top link to the rear case and how your rear 3ph blade is connected to your tractor, are in the rear trans axle housing, which is cast aluminum. Many tractors have cast iron rear axle castings and assemblies. Weight is a GOOD thing on a tractor which makes cast iron an excellent choice. However, the 1 and small 2 series Deere machines use aluminum rear trans axle case assemblies, probably for reduced production costs and machining flexibility.

Aluminum is more likely to break than a comparable cast iron housing under extreme loads or shock impacts.

Here is the image and cost from the John Deere parts catalog. Keep in mind, this is simply the parts cost, not labor. Just be prepared that if you shear the top link tabs off the rear trans axle case or otherwise cause damage to your machine which is under warranty, Deere is likely to balk at repairing it, possibly claiming the machine has been "misused".......

Simply be aware......as it has happened to others before.........and its a very expensive lesson to learn. Sure, the price shown is for the entire assembly and you can purchase the bare case and transfer components. But surprisingly, the case components aren't much cheaper than the entire assembly and the labor cost of transferring all of the parts from a machine with a broken case to a new case add up very quickly....

In many cases, its less expensive to buy an entire new component, than to transfer all of the internal components from a damaged case to a new case because of the labor involved.

View attachment 932199 View attachment 932200

Thank you for taking the time to explain the reason behind the recommendation, it is very much appreciated.

 

My JD650 EASILY pulls a 7 foot rake and a 7 foot blade, in the typical snow we get in Virginia,,

Here is the 7 foot blade just after doing some gravel work,

That "roller" is a piece of ductile iron pipe,, filled with concrete.
I do not try to move tons of gravel,, but the 7 foot size is perfect for moving excess stone from the edge towards the center.
Heck, if you use both of the blades angle features,, the effective width is down to about ~4 feet,,,

The 650 is only 1/2 (or less??) of the horsepower of a 1 Series,,

 

My JD650 EASILY pulls a 7 foot rake and a 7 foot blade, in the typical snow we get in Virginia,,

Here is the 7 foot blade just after doing some gravel work,

That "roller" is a piece of ductile iron pipe,, filled with concrete.
I do not try to move tons of gravel,, but the 7 foot size is perfect for moving excess stone from the edge towards the center.
Heck, if you use both of the blades angle features,, the effective width is down to about ~4 feet,,,

The 650 is only 1/2 (or less??) of the horsepower of a 1 Series,,

Those wide rears on that 650 look great.

 

"IF" I had to deal with snow on a regular basis on my gravel 1000' driveway, which I don't, as we don't get much or that often, and I have a 4X4 pickup truck to just drive through the 4"-6" of snow that melts in a few days ...

However if I did, I'd consider a front angle plow, if you had a shorter driveway, look at a loader mounted "snow pusher" ... Which you could still use the rear blade to scrape behind if you wanted too ...

I wasn't aware of the aluminum transmission weakness, mine has a cast iron one ... AND I found my CAT 1/2 rear blade out in the pucker brush after I bought this house, or I wouldn't even have it, as I can tilt my land plane to do "almost" the same stuff, but since I have it, I use it ...

If your planning on angling it, the 6' will better give you a "full path width" ...

 

I have the 60" Frontier rear blade and it does a good job on the 1025r, for snows up to about 8". I usually angle it one side and go down the drive, then come back up and angle it the other direction to go down the other side.

 

Well I don’t have the snow issue here in Tulsa, but very good to know my machine’s limitations.
P.S. I do have an F 250 & an F 150 to make ruts in the snow if necessary.

 

This is my Woods RBC60. I john Deere themed it. Tried a few blades and 60” is what works for me.

 

I have a 5', at times I wish it was 6'. All depends on what you want to do with it.

 

Well I ended up getting a 6'. The guy I bought it from had several other items for sale too so I bought a 5' foot rake as well. He had bought an entire lot of items somewhere, he was keeping what he wanted and selling the rest. They are brand new and I got both for $900!!!

 

The guy I bought it from had several other items for sale too so I bought a 5' foot rake as well.

You will love the rake,, but, now you gotta hope there is a "Black Monday" special somewhere like Amazon for a set of gauge wheels for the rake.

Heck, I like the gauge wheels on the rake so much, I have considered putting a set on the scraper blade that I have.
Maybe,,, that might be my next project!!

 

I'd like to get a rear blade for my 1025R, mostly for smoothing and spreading rock/dirt and for clearing snow off the driveway. I know there are better options for moving snow but those aren't in my budget right now and we usually don't get large snow falls very often in Mid Missouri.

Thanks!

Save money and get a nice 2-stage walk behind snow blower.

 

No offense, but that's not good advice.