Wear Resistance Snow Blower Skids

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I have welded new feet on the bottom of the skids of the snowblower attachment on my 1983 Simplicity tractor about six times over the years.  The last time the foot of the skid was badly and unevenly worn, so I decided to cut it entirely off and replace it. The first picture is the tractor with the skid in place on the snow blower attachment. To improve wear resistance, I hardfaced the bottom of the foot of the skid. I used the same size foot as the original skid except thicker, so I could evaluate the impact of the hardface material.  The Stoody XHC manual says that it is Rc 60-65 when welded to carbon steel. I stick welded it DCEP, but I was thinking that perhaps I should have welded it DCEN to minimize the penetration. Oh well.Here is a link to another skid welding project.https://weldingweb.com/vbb/threads/7...ow-Blower-Skidhttps://forum.millerwelds.com/forum/...ow-blower-skid1. TractorThe first skid was misaligned to the blower so the wear was uneven.2. Worn Skid 13. Worn Skid 2Here is a picture of me cutting off the old foot with my DoAll vertical saw.4. Cutting off foot5. Cut off feetSmith Oxyacetylene TorchMiller Dynasty 200DXLincoln SP-250 MIG WelderClausing/Coldchester 15" Lathe16" DuAll Saw15" Drill Press7" x 9" Swivel Head Horizontal Band Saw20 Ton Arbor Press BridgeportLincoln LE  31 MP & Lincoln 210 MP
Reply:6. Top of skidI welded the new foot to the top plate of the skid. I clamped the top plate to a 1” block. I used my Fireball magnetic blocks on the front to hold the feet in place against the top of the skid.7. Foot welded to topI heated up the foot with my rosebud tip on my oxyacetylene torch, to make it easier to bend.8. Hot bending footOnce the ends of the foot were bent to match the side plate, I welded the bent part of the foot to the top plate.9. Welding bent part of feet to top10. Inside corner MIG weldSmith Oxyacetylene TorchMiller Dynasty 200DXLincoln SP-250 MIG WelderClausing/Coldchester 15" Lathe16" DuAll Saw15" Drill Press7" x 9" Swivel Head Horizontal Band Saw20 Ton Arbor Press BridgeportLincoln LE  31 MP & Lincoln 210 MP
Reply:At first I MIG welded the outside corner, but it was a little uneven, so I ground it smooth and put a TIG bead on top of the MIG weld.11. Outside corner MIG weld12. Outside corner TIG weld13. Stoody XHC hardface14. Milling spot face for washer15. Skid paintedSmith Oxyacetylene TorchMiller Dynasty 200DXLincoln SP-250 MIG WelderClausing/Coldchester 15" Lathe16" DuAll Saw15" Drill Press7" x 9" Swivel Head Horizontal Band Saw20 Ton Arbor Press BridgeportLincoln LE  31 MP & Lincoln 210 MP
Reply:The hardface beads should go perpendicular to the direction of travel with a slight gap in between beads to hold material, in your case gravel or bits and pieces of asphalt/ice................Mike
Reply:Very nice work!   How long did it take for your skid to wear down that much?I'll be very curious to see how the hard facing holds up.  It'll certainly be better than plain ol' mild steel skids, and easy enough to touch up at the end of each season.
Reply:Originally Posted by mrmikeyThe hardface beads should go perpendicular to the direction of travel with a slight gap in between beads to hold material, in your case gravel or bits and pieces of asphalt/ice................Mike
Reply:How about facing it with Delrin or another of the HDP-somethings?Do not believe everything that you think.
Reply:Originally Posted by VaughnTVery nice work!   How long did it take for your skid to wear down that much?I'll be very curious to see how the hard facing holds up.  It'll certainly be better than plain ol' mild steel skids, and easy enough to touch up at the end of each season.
Reply:Originally Posted by XsbankHow about facing it with Delrin or another of the HDP-somethings?
Reply:Originally Posted by XsbankHow about facing it with Delrin or another of the HDP-somethings?
Reply:Originally Posted by ghost_walkerwhat he said or how about drilling and tapping for for hard steel? off cuts of excavator bucket or mine truck tipper box? for exampleshould last for a long time and then easier to fix than rebuild whole thing. just unbolt and rebolt
Reply:What are your thoughts?
Reply:Personally I would weld a chunk of old leaf spring on it for wear material. Cheap and already curved. Lots of preheat and 100-11018 electrode.
Reply:Originally Posted by M J DPersonally I would weld a chunk of old leaf spring on it for wear material. Cheap and already curved. Lots of preheat and 100-11018 electrode.
Reply:Originally Posted by 123weldexactly.    i ve put them on bottom of tractor/loader buckets for wear on cement, which see alot more impact then snow, using 7018, w/ very little preheat to the welded area,  , 0ccasionally one will pop off due to impact,  but worked great
Reply:Originally Posted by M J D Takes a lot to wear thru them and a lot cheaper than AR 400 or 500.
Reply:Why not cut a notch out of the skids and bolt on a wheel? Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G891A using Tapatalk
Reply:Originally Posted by 52 FordWhy not cut a notch out of the skids and bolt on a wheel?
Reply:Originally Posted by Don52You mean like this?-Don
Reply:Originally Posted by Don52IDo you have a source for the harder material?   Although once the hardface wears, it would be fairly easy to unbolt the skid and add a few new beads of hardface on the worn surface.  I would argue that welding hardface might be easier than drilling and counterboring the harder material.
Reply:Originally Posted by VaughnTIt's kind of a toss-up.  Since you've done all that work, it makes sense to simply add more HF bead as it's worn down.Of course, there's also something to be said for designing the most indestructible skid that you can.... just because you can.  Were it me, I'd be really temped to get a leaf spring from a dump truck.  Any large truck will have some pretty hefty springs, often more than 5/8" thick in the center of the leaf.  Even fully annealed, the alloys used in springs, like 5160, are far more durable and abrasion resistant than mild steel.  Putting some HF rod on top of it would just be icing on the cake.I don't think AR400/500-type alloy would be worth the cost.  If you want to get the most bang for your buck, I would recommend buying one of the mass-produced targets available on the market.  Lots of shooters love the AR500 for range time, and they are rather economical since they're being made in bulk.  It wouldn't be any problem to nip a few inches off the bottom and still have plenty left over to teach the grandkids how to shoot.https://www.aasteel.com/ar-400-500/These guys offer a flat bar with notches for hanging targets from.  3/8" thick and plenty wide enough for a skid, I think it'd last you a few seasons!  https://ar500-targets.com/product/ar500-bar/At $75, though, that leaf spring is looking better and better!
Reply:Buy a couple AR500 targets off of eBay, or Amazon,, they are sold as shooting targets,, laser or plasma cut,,That is a perfect source for small (or large!!) pieces of AR metal. AND, cheap,, too,,I think that business started out of making targets out of the drops.Shoot at them, then weld them to the snow blower when it snows,, MULTI-TASKING!!
Reply:Originally Posted by 52 FordI thought leaf springs were HCS, like 1095 or something.
Reply:Three years ago my brother bought a UTV and snowplow. The shoes on the plow were way too small to plow on gravel, they just dug in, so I made him new larger ones. I ran a square bead pattern on the bottoms( the shoes spin in use) to extend the life. They are still good to go after 2 winters of plowing 1000 feet of gravel driveway.7 years ago I made new stationary shoes for the tractor plow(1/2 mile of gravel to plow). I ran the same square pattern, but on a 45 degree angle to travel. They are still good to go also.
Reply:Originally Posted by VaughnT5160 is a high-carbon steel alloy.  I don't think 1095 would make a good vehicle spring, but maybe if the geometry was right.  Like with a lot of mass-produced stuff, we'll never know what exact alloys are used in them unless the manufacturer deigns to tell us.  Internet rumors often claim that leaf springs and coil springs are 5160, but that's pure myth since nobody can know for sure and there's no law that forces companies to use the same material.  Ford might use spec something different than Chevy.  Some companies might prefer oil-quenched alloys while other companies are trying to "go green" and opt for alloys that are either water-quenched or air-quenched.  We'll just never know.The good news is that all those high-carbon alloys have a host of ingredients that make them harder, tougher and stronger than your average mild steel like A36 or 1018.  I would posit that the hard-facing rod actually puts down a bead that's very similar to AR400-500 in terms of performance, and that's why it's used in repairing heavy equipment.Originally Posted by 52 FordIf I ever win the lottery, I'm buying a portable X-ray spectrometer. Hold it up to a piece of metal, pull the trigger, and it tells you what the alloy is. Bout $10K on Ebay. https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_sac...34.m4084.l1313