I need help picking out a snowblower for a J.D. 790

Greetings,
I bought a used 790 4WD last summer and would like to put it to better use this winter. I have contacted a few J.D. dealerships
locally and was told a Frontier 64" mounted up to the rear PTO is what I need. Is the Frontier a good and dependable machine or
should I be looking at other options? (The Frontier is $3169+ for manual chute adjustment.) If I had my "rathers" I would have
liked a front mount because I have some pretty bad back issues but it sounds like that's out of the question without the mid-mount
PTO.
We have about a 1/4 mile drive in Northern Michigan with significant drifting off the lake.

Any help or advise would be appreciated.....Thanks.
 
I have a 60" unit made by "Woods" that I use on my JD 4300. The tractor has front wheel assist, and a hydrostat transmission. It too is rear mount and can cause a muscle cramp if you are turned in the seat for too long looking backwards. It handles the machine quite easily though and will sling it @ 20 feet if conditions are right. I don't have the snow you have, so in my case if it isn't at least 6" deep, a blade works better. Of course if there's drifts between banks, that's a different story, but if actually works better in drifts. I did have to buy a vinyl cab to put on the tractor though, because even if you use the wind in your favor, when you're around buildings, tree lines or grain bins, the wind changes and you will be wearing a lot of snow.
 
I would consider a 3 pt pull type snowblower with that long of a driveway and bad back issues. More money I am sure, but not as much turning around in the seat of the tractor, more of a drop and go. I worked for a company 2 winters ago in northern Lower Mi that has just bought their 3rd tractor with a rear mount pull type blower. They are large units on larger tractors but work very well. I will try and attach a link to Erskine brand pull types, but there are others.

http://www.erskineattachments.com/rear-pull-snowblower

Another brand
https://mkmartin.ca/products/pullType.php
 
I don't know, can a mid PTO kit be put on that 790? If not, trade for a tractor that has that feature. Might I suggest the older 855 or 955 with MFWD. They're darned good front mount snow blower tractors. That series is all hydro trannys
 
Snow blowers on smaller HP tractors without hydrostatic drive can be an issue. The machine wants to go too fast, even in lower gears for some snow conditions. Remember, for the blower to work well, you'll need to keep the engine RPMs up. At least (I think) the 790 has a 2 stage clutch, which will help. Also since it looks like 1L and RL are the same overall ratio, it doesn't much matter if you're blowing going forward or in reverse.

How wide is your tractor (overall width)? You might consider a blower that is just that wide. The first pass is always the toughest, as after that you can just take a slice to reduce the load.
 
The tractor is 60" wide and getting a different tractor is out of the question for me. There are only a couple of stretches of the drive that are really bad but they routinely get 3 foot drifts that can stretch for 20-30 feet. I can not imagine getting the tractor and blower up on top of them for a pull behind. I do have a truck with plow that I can use for a good part of the drive most of the winter, at least until the drive starts closing in. Maybe I'd be better off just paying the guy with the loader to come down and open it up rather than trying to do it myself. That $3K plus would pay him for a lot of winters!
 
I believe there was an option for a mid PTO but I have been told that they are no longer available. That sure would be nice though!
 
(quoted from post at 22:14:29 09/09/20) The tractor is 60" wide and getting a different tractor is out of the question for me. There are only a couple of stretches of the drive that are really bad but they routinely get 3 foot drifts that can stretch for 20-30 feet. I can not imagine getting the tractor and blower up on top of them for a pull behind. I do have a truck with plow that I can use for a good part of the drive most of the winter, at least until the drive starts closing in. Maybe I'd be better off just paying the guy with the loader to come down and open it up rather than trying to do it myself. That $3K plus would pay him for a lot of winters!

My thought is to keep using your plow and getting the guy with a loader when needed, it sounds like your best option to me. Your tractor with a blower sounds a bit light for handling 3 foot drifts. A loader on your tractor might be something to consider for use along with your plow. Not ideal but might help, and you might have uses for it year round.

If there is a local contractor with a wing on a truck (road plow type, not 1 ton), grader or loader with a wing, a pass in and out to set the banks back can help your plow truck. Do you have access to put up some snow fence make a parallel wind break about 25 to 50 yards out from the side of the drive the prevailing wind comes from in the areas that drift? That may lessen the drift in the drive. Just some thoughts.
 
Maybe the parts could be found at a salvage yard. Study a parts book. They might be the same as in an earlier Yanmar-sourced model. Perhaps 650, 750 or 850?
 
Whatever you choose to clean your driveway it can be costly. The front mount blower is the only way to go. Those rear mount blowers will be just as hard on your neck when you have to look side to side often. Too many I have talked to have said that one guy left his tractor in the middle of a drift because of neck pain. He was trying to clear out his store parking lot. Good Luck.
 
I'm rethinking this whole notion of the snow-blower. I have used my truck for 20 years and outside of needing help a couple times a year we seem to manage OK. If we can't get out we don't set and fret about it, just throw extra logs in the wood stove and wait it out. I did put some snow fence out one year and didn't notice any difference but then I probably didn't do it right. I remember reading a little about it and it didn't make much sense to me so I could have even made it worse. (I think I've still got it around here somewhere.)
 

Gear drive , 0.8mph reverse and 1st gear , 26PTO HP , two stage clutch and 5ft wide .
How deep is the snow ? Hard pack or fluffy ? Any place to plug in the block heater ?

http://www.tractordata.com/farm-tractors/001/2/2/1227-john-deere-790.html
 
This discussion makes me wonder how much snow I could handle with my garden tractor and snow blower. I know I will never see more snow than I can handle with my tractor and snow blade. Would have to get the snow before the first of the year before we head south for the winter.


[video play=false:654c4848f0]https://www.yesterdaystractors.com/cvvideos/cvvideo55501.mov[/video:654c4848f0]
 
The older we get get, the worse the head turning problem. Thank God we got back-up cameras in cars & trucks. Now to put one on a rear-mounted snow blower and figure a way to keep the camera lens clear. Look thru the rear window of the cab??? Open tractor would pretty much be out of the question - monitor to keep clear too!
 

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