KevinCollins

Hi Guys,

Completely new to the website and a relatively new 2009 Ford F-150 owner. I was doing a lot of reading up on how putting a plow on a 1/2 pickup no matter what the model puts a lot of stress on the truck. So much so that it's not worth putting a plow on due to the massive maintenance cost on the front end. Any advice for a guy from Massachusetts who is open to the idea of putting a plow on his truck to do driveways and non commercial plows? Any plows that don't destroy your 1/2 ton truck?

Thanks!

Kev

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Dirttracker18

Putting a plow on any truck causes strain and speeds up wear on parts. If you are jsut doing your driveway and drive with care, remove the plow when not in use, don't hit stuff, the extra maintenance is minimal.

If you are going to start doing other peoples drives or picking up some contracts, factory that expense into your bills.

Massive maintanence costs for the average home owner plow being massive is going way over the top.

You are putting a large heavy object hanging off the front end of your truck (the end not really made to handle large loads). In addition the drivetrain takes strain pushing the snow. Finally the suspension and drivetrain take a pounding as you bang into froozen stuff, sidewalk edges, curbs, etc.

I plowed commercially with a half ton for the first two years. It was hard on the truck but I had a lot of contracts. I would basically replace the entire front end and all U joints once a year.

What are you planning on doing?

Italianbuca

pretty much what Dirttracker stated. If you are plowing non-commercially then a plow is fine on a half ton, obviously there is additional maintenance with it due to the weight on the front end. How you plow also plays a huge part in maintenance of the truck. You can also add timbrens to help support the wight of the plow and/or heavier duty springs.

I know a few people that plow with their 09/10 f150's (all 3 have 5.4L with max tow package). 2 have fisher HT* 7'6" and 1 has a snowdogg 7'6". The snowdogg is definitely pushing the limits as it is around 750-800 lbs without mounts on the truck as they do not make a LT/HT plow. I plan on getting a blizzard 8000LT after purchasing a home for my own personal use.

If you are not using the plow don't leave it mounted on the truck, also have ballast in the bed to level out the truck and help support the load/provide traction. If you are intending on doing a lot of plowing/commercial plowing then a 150 may not be up to the task and it is probably a better choice economically/financially to get a 250 and run that.

*edit: meant to say Fisher HT, not SD. HT is fishers light duty plow.

Krack499

iTrader: (1)

I read somewhere on here you weren't supposed to plow with the newer f150s because something about hydraulic steering Idk if it's true but it's something you might wanna look into

Italianbuca

the issue is with 2011+ F150's as they have electric power steering, not hydraulic. What happens is the truck can't handle the electrical load of the plow and truck so you lose the power steering. 09+10 don't have this issue as they are hydraulic steering. You can overcome this by going with a sno-way plow, which has a different wiring configuration so that it's electrical demands are lower or add a dual battery setup.

The other issue is with the ecoboost. The plow mounts and frame block airflow to the intercooler, which is bad to say the least haha. Sno-way is the only plow that will work with the ecoboost as they configured the mounts and frame to promote airflow to the intercooler instead of blocking it.

I've spent a lot of time researching plowing with the f150 haha. A lot of info can be found on snowplowforums.com and plowsite.com as well as people I know that do plow with 1500's and 150's.

I believe there are a few members here that plow with their 150's as well if you use the search bar to see what they are running.

tomb1269

If you are really just looking to do your own driveway check out the snowsports plow. Its a gravity plow. I have seen UTube of some plowing with a BMW sedan. Plow mounts in a 2" receiver frame. http://plowhouse.com/m-56-snowsport-...FdHm7AodM0UAew

As a matter of fact I would have looked in to purchasing one of these for my 05 if I lived closer to my parents house were we could really us it vs paying for a contractor.

Agri-Cover, Inc.

]Thanks for mentioning our plow, tomb1269. We don't offer a mount for any BMW sedans, but we certainly do have them in stock for Ford F-150s, Ecoboost or not.

Here is a compilation of customers' videos of our plows in action.

Please let me know if you have any questions. We also have lots of information on our website: http://www.buysnowsportplows.com/

tomb1269

Access - as you plow mounts in a 2 in receiver the person had installed it on the back of a BMW sedan. It was a riot and I laughed like crazy.

Agri-Cover, Inc.

Tomb1269,

We'd love to see that video. I can't find it anywhere, though. I don't suppose you still have the link?