I have had 2 center mount plows. The "something Country on my Polaris chipped a giant chunk of paint out of the blade. My current plow is an Artic Cat 60 inch center mount. The plastic blade is a bit light and slids over some snow.
Im wondering if the front mount is easier to get off? I have the mounting tabs hanging down all the time, and the blade and tubes really arent that hard to get on and off, just need to lay down to install it.

 

My understanding is that front mounts are easier on/off, but I wonder if its a big enough reason to go with front mount. I really dont see it being all that difficult to reach under to hook and unhook.

 

Yeah, its not that hard. But Im lazy and like to take the path of least resistance. Plus the mounts can be a bear to get on and off of mine. I would probably look into the advantages/disadvantages of both before I bought another one.
If a front mount meant I didnt have to mess with mounts that affect ground clearance and was easier to remove, i would probably o with that.
I guess it depends on whats important to you as far as the differences. Sorry I cant be more helpful.

 

I find my center mount is pretty easy to take on and off. I remove the bracket when I'm not using the plow, and it's only 4 bolts. I leave the bracket on when I want to go annoy the neighbors and play in the fresh snow before the city plows my street - the ground clearance lost isn't enough to do anything on the street.

My main issue in reasoning against a front mount - because I could've made either: was that they have a shorter lever between the load point and the fulcrum. Center mounts have another 2' of distance and cause a straighter "push" against the load. The load is also acting against the middle of the ballast (the machine's weight) which provides better distribution of the forces acting upon the machine from the plow itself.

You'll often see people complain that their front mounts "lift" the front of the machine when they're pushing heavy snow. I've never had that problem. Some of the newer front mount designs have better geometry that helps reduce this lifting issue. They also stick out farther from the front bumper, and that means you have a greater turning radius than you would if the plow was allowed to be tucked further under the machine.


I have no regrets with my plow choice.

 

I agree with Jim Timber, the center mounts push snow very good.
i have owned the same set-up for 8 years.
Cat plastic blade and warn winch. 650 feet of driveway that gets drifted at times. I should flip over the cutting edge, it's starting to wear a bit.Sold that quad 5 years ago and kept the plow, its on an 07 700. plowing with a manual tranny was a pain in the arse back then. Much easier with the 05 500, then the 07 700,plow has been on 3 different machines.

 

07 700 plow,
i like this set-up, it does a great job.

 

I used to have a homemade front mount on my prowler and it lifted the front so bad that I could hardly push a load of snow. I then made a center mount and life was good. Now I have a new prowler and it has the Arctic Cat front mount which goes in the receiver. I'm hoping this is better than the last front mount I had.

 

If you plan on leaving the mount on go with the center mount, I take mine off in the spring and the bolts that hold on the bracket and floor boards will be broken so you have to grind them off, thats why im going to go with the front mount then I get to see if this set up causes other damage.

 

You just need to use copious amounts of anti-seize compound.

A BIG bottle of the stuff (lifetime supply) is around $6 at napa.

 

anti seize and maybe change them over to grade 8 bolts too ? Or are the existing bolts good enough?

 

Its not the bolts its the nuts that are tack welded on to the frame and with the mount on you cant reach the nuts and they break free from the weld and just spin when you try to unscrew them.

 

The originals are 8.8 if I remember right.

The nuts are buried inside a welded on bracket and poorly welded in.

 

Same here, use the anit seize for sure. The biggest problem is getting the bolts to line up once you install the brackets and when removing the brackets for the summer. They just dont line up very good and you can easily strip the welded on nut if your not careful. Use a center punch or similair to line them up and fingers to get them started.
One thing I noticed is that the quad that does the plowing goes thru brake pads alot sooner than the other quads that have less miles. Just the nature of the beast i guess.

 

Any of you guys ever see the Quadrax system with rear mount push? Pretty good idea IMO

Quadraxatv.com, Q-Lock Plow System

 

that Quadrax system looks pretty neat, it remeinds me of the Swisher plow, I would love to use the rear mounting point like that, but they are pricey! Plus it doesnt show enough info/detail, such as how it mounts up to keep it running straight ahead, if it uses the same setup as the swisher, mounting to the front a-arms to carry the weight and keep it pushing straight.

http://www.swisherinc.com/atv-utv-accessories/2646-universal-mounting-kit.html

 

Looks like it uses a couple chains to keep it centered.

Interesting design.

 

Haven't posted here in forever, but have you guys seen the new ClicknGo2 (Kimpex)?? Center mount, but it articulates in the middle so you get the height of a front mount. Inverted leaf spring holds the plow frame straight unless you pull up on it that little bit harder and then you get the height of a front mount set-up.

 

the inverted spring setup is like the swisher one, I havent really looked into the Kimpex plows much, I think I've seen some not so good reviews about them though.

 

the inverted spring setup is like the swisher one, I havent really looked into the Kimpex plows much, I think I've seen some not so good reviews about them though.

Kimpex is who makes AC's plows.

 

Quadrax system leaves only the rear hitch when unhooked (according to my rep @ MTA).. I dunno

I have not yet seen one "in person",, just our catalog and link I posted so far...

 

I had the swisher plow on a cat 375 it was very heavy duty, kind of a pain to install and uninstall almost overkill for just plowing snow and when installed on that machine the center beam hung really low dragged when going over curbs with the straight axel machine, but I loved how it would push the weight on the rear I plowed mostly in 2wd with it

 

I have a center mounted Eagle 60" plow on my V2 here. I can attest that it is built like a tank and has swivels on the attachments. Really easy to mount or remove the push bars.

I recommend using a tow strap instead of your steel cable on the winch. Much less wear and real cheap to boot.

Also, I highly recommend using either a rotating beacon or strobe light on a pole. I used conduit welded to a metal plate mounted to the racks to keep traffic from hitting me with a hazard light.

 

I built a blade setup, i made it front and rear mount. The weight transfers from the front to the rear by a 2inch square tube. I made it with a double hinge so it will lift a lot higher. How ever i am retireing the atv blade. Got a 7 foot blade on the skid steer now.

 

i use the glacier 1 plow on my mud pro ,,front mount doesnt hang down under the footpegs and can stay on all year round if needed
quick on and off..

cats new front mount system is almost the same ,that takes very little effort to take the plow on and off
and when your done plowing and want to ride,, you wont have an issue of the center mount system hanging down catching rocks,logs etc..

 

Have always used a center mount and never removed it for trail riding.I just bought a new mount for my 1000 TRV and it hangs down less than an inch and it is rouded so it doesn't catch on anything.It has torn the bark off a couple of logs though.

 

I don't know how I missed this thread.
If you are going with Arctic Cat plow mounts, I recommend the mid mount. One of these days, I need to sell my front mount garbage.
I have had both. The only thing I miss is the easy stand up install and removal. Laying down and wrestling the not so light Arctic Cat 2 way tapered blade to mount it isn't my idea of fun.
The front mount puts too much stress at the front of the frame. The primary support for this mount is the 2 large bolts that also support the base of the winch and the bumper. Mine knocked the mount loose when I hit an ice chunk.

I have hit the same type of crap with the mid mount and have done zero damage to either the plow or the machine.

 

I don't know how I missed this thread.
If you are going with Arctic Cat plow mounts, I recommend the mid mount. One of these days, I need to sell my front mount garbage.
I have had both. The only thing I miss is the easy stand up install and removal. Laying down and wrestling the not so light Arctic Cat 2 way tapered blade to mount it isn't my idea of fun.
The front mount puts too much stress at the front of the frame. The primary support for this mount is the 2 large bolts that also support the base of the winch and the bumper. Mine knocked the mount loose when I hit an ice chunk.

I have hit the same type of crap with the mid mount and have done zero damage to either the plow or the machine.

I had the same problems with my eagle front mount so I welded a plate to my set up and now it uses the fairlead bolts and 2 u bolts that hold it to the frame by the 4wd actuator and its rock solid no more using the front frame bolts and ruining the atv!