DIY $50 Wood Hitch Plow
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- Опубліковано 30 січ 2025
- UPDATE I have a new video here: • DIY $50 Wood Hitch Plo...
Thanks for watching!
An inexpensive plow that fits into a Class III Hitch - I just finished this version last week, wish I had this thing all winter long. I looked around for an alternative and didn't find much - this thing does the job all day long.
Materials:
2x12 Green Treated 7' - 15 degree parallel angles cut - might go a little steeper next time
1x6 Hickory 9' - ripped 2 1/2 for the shoe, 3 1/2 for the top, the rest for the front plate & shoes. Oak, ash, or any other really hard wood wood do fine
4x4 1' - If I had to buy at least 4', I might bolt the rest inside the arms for reinforcement, cut with a 30 degree parallel angle to match the arms
2x4 Green Treated 6' *I'd use a 2x6 if building this from scratch - cut at one end to 30 degrees for a 15 degree rise to the mount
20 2" wood screws
6: 7" 3/8 bolts + nuts & washers
1: 8" 5/8 bolt + nut & washers
1 Drop hitch receiver
Feel free to hit me with any questions in the comments - please "Like" the video if you like the video!
Skip the boring stuff if you just want to see it work at 4:55
Rich, thank you for the video. I live on a mountain in VT with a 200+ yard long driveway that is on a steep incline with a nice curve. They want $50 per plowing which would add up very quickly. I built your plow last year at a cost closer to $100 . I have plowed the drive well over two dozen times since then. I have a breakage every now and then from hitting solid objects. It's always the 2x6 and never the 2x12. Costs me $6 and twenty minutes to fix. This is a minor inconvenience. This plow is great and you should be commended for helping out your fellow man. Thank you!
Thank you for taking the time to drop a comment - I really appreciate it, and love to hear success stories. Thanks!
Rich, I used your idea to build my rear mounted plow, but i used a snow plow from a lawn @ garden tractor, plus another plow to make my plow a little wider than my Jimmy, Can't wait to use it? Plus i used 2 "square tubing to build it , and it pivits, also for my lift i got an old piece of pipe and a chain to hold the plow up from my front seat . Thanks for posting your good idea! Ken from North West Michigan.
Looks neat. Not sure it that works to clear the icy pile at the end of the driveway left by the city truck though
Just made one and have used a couple of times on my double-wide 100' driveway in Montana. Great and simple idea that works quite well. Buying all new "stuff," the cost is right at $100, but still cheap for what it does. Also, one-arm lift-able, so it's convenient to take on and off. Thanks for your inspiration.
Works beautifully with a rear view camera, too.
This video has inspired me to build me own house out of hickory. Don’t know why I’m watching it. It doesn’t snow where I live. Great idea, you should perfect your creation and sell them for a few bucks. 👍
Thanks for the great idea. I took your design and modified it a bit. I used my bike rack since it had the hitch components already in place, to secure to my Xterra hitch. I then configured the plow to slide down on to the bike holding assembly and secure it self in place design. Using slotted 2X4's. I added a door weather strip ( thick ) which came with its own nails and washers. I placed this at the bottom of the plow blade to scoop the snow better at closer level to the ground. The only mistake was that I did not make the width of my plow boards longer to cover my SUV's wheels. Regardless it worked really well.
Sounds like a great solution! I have seen some great evolutions of this idea on UA-cam over the last few years, by folks who's engineering skills are far beyond my own. One guy found a thick rubber stair tread for the scraper, looked like it worked great. I will probably build a new one this summer, although the original is still going strong. Thanks for watching and dropping a comment!
Do you have a video of yours?
Dude this is a great idea 👍... good old fashioned Yankee ingenuity
haha... you saved yourself a small fortune, and a ton of work and aggravation here... gotta respect that for sure... today a new plow for a truck cost about 7500.00 bucks plus tax and installation... you can buy a cheap one or used one but you would still be into it for over 5k, and own any problems that will eventually surface before you can even use it if you go that route though... ANYTHING is better than shoveling... I hate even cleaning the snow off my truck these days haha... I bet you could come up with a great idea using some light gage metal and make a killing... great job man👍👍
Beats the heck out of shoveling by hand!! Great job!
It works! Fabricated a double high one and a singular one. Let it snow! Let it snow!
Love to hear it!
@@RichInMN, Gable Stevenson is a beast.
I'm in the process of making one now! Thank you for the idea! Awesome stuff!
Good luck with your project! My later design works a little better & still going strong
@@RichInMN awesome! Thanks, it went pretty well. Now, I just need some snow to try it out on here in ohio.
Great job, good video!!! I plan to make a wooden plow for my old Quad Runner and was looking for some ideas especially in terms of good bracing/support and attachment - this vid was a big help!!!
Thank you so much, I really appreciate it!
excellent wood selection my friend!
I love hickory
I have a love/hate relationship with hickory - I built a kitchen with it and after I was done it was such a relief!
Thankyou for the idea I just completed mine the only differences were I used 5/8 bolts and for the snow deflector I used a 1x4 now I’m just waiting for snow I’m in Upstate Ny and we have green grass 😮😮😮at the moment also it’s hitched to a 2010 Pathfinder👊🏻👊🏻💯💯
Nice, good luck with it! We are blanketed with snow in Minnesota as usual! 🥶😄
I forgot to mention that I’ve got it Ready for a winch which I’ve ordered off Amazon I’ve added the plate and eyebolt since the initial video checkout my video on my channel and let me know what you think 👍🏻👍🏻
Very clever and best of all it can double as a picnic table. All the best!
HOLY SH17!!#### I was totally singing the Mr. Plow song in my head when I switched from the last video to this one!! I shoulda known yall were Simpsons fans!! Great minds think alike!!!
Thanks for sharing your idea 👍. Real good video and description. Going to make my own
WOW - good design. Better yet to keep the plow from twisting{from left to right} I'd put on some chain for added stabilization on the ends near the top and chain it to the near widest area of your bumper - just some light duty chain would do fine.
This is actually a great idea - a chain with a turnbuckle-style tensioner inline would work great. Can't believe this video is almost 10 years old 😂
Harbor freight sells a 2500lb winch for 65 dollars, Im sure with the way you design you could make that work for a lift on your plow, also install a used front mounted reese hitch and you are still under 300 dollars on your entire project...Nice video, thanx for posting it
49 snow plow dealers disliked the aforementioned.
Pete C 😄
You don't need green treated lumber; its not going to be seeing a lot of soaking moisture (no rain) in the winter. And yes, when the snow melts in the garage it does get a bit wet, but that doesn't cause rot to form in ordinary 2x4s. My advice: add a short length of 2x4 diagonal going from one of the plow's far corners to the spot where the plow joins with the vehicle. That way if you hit a icy spot on the side of the snow pile, it won't put an instant 45 degree angle into your plow. Plus, add a small platform on top of the plow itself so you can place a few bags of sand / salt / cement blocks to help keep the plow down so it won't 'ride up'. I did that with my old corolla plow, except that had plow was at a 45 degree angle, had plywood 1.5 ft high at the front-most part and went up to 2.5 ft high at the part closest to the car, and the snow would often go right to the top of that 2.5 ft plywood, Saved me a ton of work having to clean the 2000 foot long driveway each winter after a moderate snowfall. When a heavy snow came I had to use the 2 stage snow blower, that plow was only good for snow falls about 9 " deep maximum.
These are some good points! I tried using plain 2x6's for the arms, and they broke almost right away - for some reason I think the breaking strength of the AC2 green stuff is a lot higher - it certainly cuts a lot different - that's why I'm using it in this case. I am planning to add a better top & a place to put a couple of 70 lb. sand tubes though, that was a really good idea. We definitely passed the limits of what I could handle last year - we got an 18" snowfall overnight in warm temps (near freezing) and then it went subzero, turning the whole thing into a frozen packed mess - I had to call out the bobcats to make a dent in that stuff!
Or you could save your money for a fisher homesteader and never need this or a plow guy again
Also try to make a gusit from the outer sides to the wood closest to the hitch , even steel cables with tension on them
Johnny Wrench This is a great idea - I could see my design being easily improved using eyehooks, some chain, and turnbuckles as tensioners.
Great idea and great video. Ty very much for many ideas. And ty for letting me jam to Dio. :)
Pretty cool and after the winter is over you can use it for kindling wood and roast marshmallows
Around my house, everyone loves (and demands) to roast marshmallows, but then no one wants to eat the marshmallows afterward!
Don't use treated wood in a marshmallow fire you donut.
Reading all these comments about winches and remotes. Its seems like all you need is an eye bolt and some cable to the front seat. The bolt thru the hitch swivels right?
That's what I was thinking. I want to do something like this and probably just use a cable I can manually pull forward, across a pulley, to lift the blade and could easily add a blocking mechanism to hold the cable in that position until I want to drop the blade again. Any truck, SUV, or even van with a window or door open in the back would accommodate that. It just wouldn't be as warm as with a powered winch system.
It seems like having a bit of a lateral angle on the blade would bevel the snow to one side or the other without it just piling up and potentially overloading the structure.
Thanks for the comment - a couple weeks ago I saw a version similar to this except it was all-steel construction welded together. The guy had put in an adjuster so it could pivot up, down, or angled - very slick. With wood I was concerned about losing strength with the compound angles and how that would mate up at the "blade".
totally going to try this. I have 250' concrete drive I've been doing with a walk behind blower for 16 years now. Considering more of a wedge shape to guide the snow to the sides better. Thoughts?
I thought about wedge, or also a slant to just always push to one side. In the end I felt like it would be hard to make it strong enough without some kind of welded/metal subframe which isn't in my skillset. I also like being able to push the snow to where I want to deposit it. Wedge would probably work well though, particularly in deeper snow!
Given the cost of buying even a low end plow, you could build this about 20 or 30 times. So even if it doesn't last you through the winter without troubles you could still save a ton of money.
Thanks for the comment! I broke the arms a couple of times, but going up to AC2 2x6's seemed to solve that. I keep saying I'll build another new one from scratch, but here I am years later and the original build is still clearing snow for me.
@@RichInMN I suppose if you make the plow larger then the arms need to be stronger due to more resistance from the snow. I am planning to move to somewhere (west Montana) and they get a lot of snow. So I intend to get a 4X4 like probably a Toyota 4 Runner and make me one of these plows. The ones on the market are just too expensive, but I think building one is the way to go. Also this method (wood) doesn't require a welder, which I may or may not have when I do this. Thanks for the inspiration.
Where did you pick up the class 8 bolt? I'm going to make one, but they longest one home Depot had was 6" in class 8. I'm also going to attempt to add a simple mechanism to lift the plow when driving forward. Should be interesting!
Thanks for the comment! Menards stocks them - I am 70% a Menards shopper, 25% Home Depot, and 5% Lowes. I'm lucky in that I have all 3 in the same shopping complex within 10 miles of my house, makes things a lot easier.
www.menards.com/main/tools-hardware/fasteners-connectors/bolts/cap-screws-hex-bolts/grip-fast-reg-5-8-11-x-8-zinc-grade-8-hex-bolt-1-count/g8hb588-1/p-1444421582298-c-8730.htm
I was thinking about a lift mechanism this morning - either rope, lever, or powered winch (powered from my 4-point towing harness plug?). No matter which, I think it will be important to come up higher at the hitch mount point in order to create a pivot/lift point with a good high lift angle. Good luck to you!
Cool. You just inspired me to make my own wooden snowplow. Going to make it a little more heavier duty. Maybe copy the snowsport plow that you mentioned
Clever - lots of leverage.
You should add 2 small wheels on the side of the plough to decrease friction instead of the shoes that will still give you the clearance. if you do make it make sure i get credit for it 😊
I like this idea, I wonder if it would be hard to find a side-mount caster that would hold up. Thanks for the idea, I'll check into it!
Buy two straight 3” casters cut off a third of the metal portion(mainly one set of mounting holes) exposing the wheel more. Raise you plow up what you want the clearance to be and mount the wheel on the back side of the plow touching the ground through the two remaining holes with carriage bolts through from the front.
Realized this is an old video!
I apologize if I missed it, but how long are the 2x4's?
I think they're about 3 feet, I definitely recommend upgrading to 2x6 though for a little extra strength as I did in my follow-up video.
@@RichInMN thank you. I did also watch your updated video using the 2x6. Thanks again
Seems like a couple of 45's could be used to brace the blade for unusual pressure on one side. Also, the guys are right - you need a lifting system [just a rope] to raise the blade when returning and turning to reduce the risk of damage. [I realize the blade is quite heavy.] Also, unless you are using the mirror, you will need a tube of Ben Gay for your neck.
Thanks! Gonna make one myself - doug in mn
Woulda shoulda coulda, I have a winch and a hitch on the front of my truck, I’m inspired. Marine grade plywood and lots of gussets and braces with some angled rips for front to curl the snow and I’ll be off!! Thanks for the inspiration!!
Mitch Jones n
I wonder how the longitudonal members will hold up under addirional side load when plowing around a tighter curve. Great design though!
Wow, 10,000 views? I just hope a few of the folks who watched this are able to make one that works for them too!
My Dad made his last night in a rush for the snow storm today.
RichInMN lol now 160,000
Hey Rich
I love this plough & I did see the video update
I’m going to make my plough very soon, how far up from the bottom of the 2x12 are the 2x6 mounted? Is there a video of you making the 15 degree cuts & making the plough?
I’m a rookie at wood wk
Thanks Al
@@althelockguy6043 Somehow I missed this comment, I'm sorry about that! Every year I start thinking I will build a new one from scratch and record all the steps for a new video... but the one I have refuses to give up! Maybe this year will be the year.
To answer your question, the 2x6's are mounted to the very bottom - in fact they were a little past the bottom when I bolted them on and I had to grind them back a little bit.
Rich, winter season 4 with my double high plow and winter season 2 with my singular plow. Let it snow! Let it snow!
Thank You
Pete
You saved me thousands of $s.
You should mount a winch on the hitch with a wireless remote to lift the plow up and down
Love the song...Great job
deliasantiago25 Thank you! It really has been a "cold world" here in Minnesota lately!
Smart idea
Thank you for information
I’ll making my own snow plower similar like this gave me some idea
Gonna work great in conjunction with my rear view camera.
Cool. *A drag plow will be fine for my 4 wheeler rather than hinging it etc.*
Can u put a link in description or post it here to the exact drop down hitch u used in the video, thanks.
Here you go - actually still made and the same price it was 6 years ago. How about that!
www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0014ZWJRC
It sure beats strapping my kid to the front with a shovel. But I would have to think about it.
Thommy Two Toes Times Three 😄
Hmmm, there is only one problem with this. Pushes snow in the straight line, not to the side. Could it be modified to operate at an angle or would the connecting 2x6s not survive that side force pushing them away? I can see the wood being ripped out of the bolts., no? My driveway is 400 ft so i need to push snow to the side, not way this would work...
Exactly right - I couldn't think of a way to create an angle that could hold up to an asymmetrical force. If I was a welder, a simple angled plate to bolt up to would work well for structure I think. Thanks for the comment!
Wonder if you could make v - shaped to break through icy snow plowed edge of driveway up here in northern Vermont
Nice! Looks like it works quite well!
Sir, you are a genius.
How long does the wood blade last before getting worn out
The Hickory lasted me about 6-7 years. About 5 years ago I replaced it with a 2x4 that I angled to a point in the front, and that's still going strong. Other folks have used rubber or plastic - someone mentioned recently snowmobile skid material although I have no idea where you'd get that!
@@RichInMN I was using the snowmobile material which I believe is called uhmw, but its expensive and I'd rather use a more sustainable material so I was wondering how wood worked. May just have to use it next as mine is pretty much worn out. Thanks for the reply!
nice job you should put a rop on it so you can lift it up
it would be nice if you could add some sort of pulley to raise it up enough so it wont drag snow along when going forward, just a thought.....
+Juan Martinez I've kept my eye open for an ATV winch on the Craigslist, I think it's a good idea that I'll do if I rebuild this one
+RichInMN1975 Use some heavy duty casters so when you pull forward it picks it up and 1 inch or 2. I used your specs and added the casters and it works great.
Silent Sin I'd love to see some pics or a video of that working!
put a cable on each corner pull it into the cab list it up when you're going forward Back Drag put a piece of put a 4x4 and knock it from the hitch to ea. corner of the p low to the hitch .
Totally Amazing! Damn Good! Thanks for sharing such this video. :-)
Like for the dio background
I once told the old lady we were gonna do a Polish snow plow. I would drive and she would sit on the front bumper with a snow shovel in her hand. She wasn't on board with that however.
John L 😆
POLISH POWER🇵🇱💪👍👌🏼👌🖕
I would have flare them out for a better support and control also formed the force snow back also put stiff rubber for your blade edge. etc etc
Very nice...You could add a bike flag to it, close the rear hatch, and still figure out where it's going...
Best part of this vid is the Dio/Sabbath track. How's the plow holding out? I would think that hitting something solid on one of the ends would snap something? Cheers
+Tales From The Hill The plow is still going strong, although I broke/replaced the 2x4 arms and bent the heck out of a bolt as well - see my updated video for details on that and more heavy tunes - thanks!
Just built your version and added a remote winch
Cool idea and very well build, just one sidenote. Why have it mounted behind the car in an 90 degree angle? I would mount it at an angle so the snow would get pushed aside. Maybe an idea for the 3.0 version? :)
I initially thought about working an angle in, but for that long narrow stretch on mine, I would want to angle it one way, and then the other... I couldn't figure out how to design that without either sacrificing pushing strength or getting into some metal fabrication which I wanted to avoid. I am going to make another one next fall that should work a little better - we'll see!
This really does work.
Pretty neat!
could always strap a couple cement blocks on top for weight
This is a shrewd idea - on wet snow sometimes it would float a bit; I bought a 70lb sandbag to put on the top, seems to help although I don't need it too often. Thanks for the message!
Wow this is pretty neat good stuff
Thanks for sharing this ....very helpful.
Great video. Hickory?
Beats shoveling. Not bad for $50.
Hey cool! Looks great!
looks like if you hit a curb it would turn into kindling real quick!!!!!
like this Wooden Snow Plow II - with automatic lifter
Good idea and nice build. Curious how long it lasts before it either breaks OR have to change out the foot sleds. Theres a BIG "but" coming... BUT that music at the end was unbearable. You should spend some time showing your build and specifications. Overall Solid build
Thanks for the comment, classic Sabbath is not for everyone. I broke the 2x4 arms pretty quickly, but have only broken 1 arm since I went to 2x6. It's been 7 winters now I think? And when the shoes wore out I found out it worked a bit better without them. I replaced the ground-contacting hickory board last year with a green treated 2x4.
THANK YOU!!! I want to make one!!!
Thanks for sharing! When you say you might make the top longer, did you mean longer length wise, so that it's longer on the left and right of the car? Or did you mean longer width wise, so that there is more overhang towards the back?
Longer on the overhang - if you see my later videos, I put an 8" overhang (angled upwards). It works much much better this way. If I build a new one, I will probably use a 2x12 for the bottom, and a 2x10 for the top. The width at 7' I feel is about right. Thanks for watching and commenting!
@@RichInMN built one today! haven't used it yet... will see if we get another storm in MKE this season
Best idea on here. Make it taller and never have to call the plow guy at 40 bucks a pop.
Thank you so much! I did make it taller, works much better now (but I am still keeping my fingers crossed for another mild winter)
40 bucks a pop? Shit I need to raise my prices...
40 bucks my dad is snow plowing guy and it isn't worth it for that cause if you get up at 4 and go out in the cold to start the truck let it warm up and the bars want to be plowed out before they open and gas money it just isn't worth it
ANY CONCERNS WITH GAS COMING THROUGH AS YOU DRIVE WITH TAILGATE OPEN?
what does this mean
how did you mount the little runners on the bottom?
I just countersunk a couple of screws deep in each one. Thanks for the views!
i built your version,but i upgraded it with some flashing as an edge ill send u pics
if the plow got stuck on a crack will it damage the car?
A couple things on this one - first, I have a couple small runners (shoes) underneath at a smooth angle to the pavement, and the plow "blade" itself has a rounded bottom edge. In addition, I'm never going faster than 5 mph in the driveway or so (just cleared 3" of powder tonight in fact, still working so beautifully!). Having said that, a Class III hitch can also handle a pretty decent amount of banging around; if you've ever towed a two or three thousand pound boat or trailer over railroad tracks & potholes, etc., you know what I mean! Thanks for the question!
its all good but it doesn't have a spring so if it gets caught on something (snap).
Excellent thought,simple and it works. Try an old tire as a cutting edge. Works like a squeezie.just cut side walls off, tread of tire against blade. A second on top edge would divert snow forward.
You should get an older lawntractor weld the diff and mount that or another to it , it's something you can find for free or cheap and I always had fun doing it .Also maybe a plastic cutting edge steel will dig in to the driveway .
Johnny Wrench I would love to find some hard plastic or hard rubber for a cutting edge, I've never been able to find anything the right size and thickness. Something like landscape edging but thicker. Definitely open to suggestions!
You should start mass production on this plow and sell it to commercial contractors and municipalities. Bet you'll sell more than BOSS and WESTERN combined.
jorge martinez right
I like it good idea 💡
Loved it
is the music iron maiden or black sabbath , been so long since i heard them , god has to be 25 or so years . holy diver you been down to long in the midnight sea :-)
DIO ROCK'S
Why 15 degree angle
fred myers , 10 degrees is perfect.
dio rocks on , lol i remeber my ole-school wood snowplow i made hehehe now got myself a real snowplow, tired of fckin around with cheap homemade craps stuff.
Hey Dale! I'm glad for you and that you can afford your new plow, i do like the fact this guy built and shared his video! I'm looking forward to using my new plow this winter, nothing better than smoking a fat one and plowing!
lol, you could of ran a rope with a snatch block to pick up the plow when you went forward instead of dragging it back.
WOW.GREAT
nice design ... needs to be taller 24" min w/ plywood ... I built a big drag behind Arizona Snow Plow ... basically a big triangle pulled with a strap.... worked well except turning around ... ideally, a front hitch wood blade like you designed would be ideal
I agree with most of your points - if my Pathfinder had front mounts like a Tahoe for example, I would definitely try that route. Engineering is funny, if the plow gets bigger, the bearing load from the extra snow could unveil more failures. The size it is works well for me now that I added to the top, YMMV. Thanks for commenting!
Widest snow shoves
I like it
The music is awesome.. hahaha.
also angle it too
You forgot to close your lift gate.
I got a free Craftsman lawn tractor on Craig's List, got it working, then built a snow plow for it. Total cost? $50.00.
Looks like Plowser copied your idea. 😮
I checked it out - looks pretty cool! And good for them - they need a better youtube video though! 😄
@RichInMN you should've copyrighted it, bro.
Wtf with all the ads on UA-cam these days
Kind of stupid in a way because you can't lift it up, so it's just moving snow right back where you don't want it. I'd recommend coming up with a way to lift it up when you go forward...Like string or bungee cord or something like that.
Your stupid in a way by just commenting on someones ingenuity
Ronnie James Dio!!!!!!!!!
A two way snow plow. LOL