[AT] O/T Meyers or Western plow

Tue Jan 25 05:55:38 PST 2005

First off..THANK YOU ALL for the pro's and con's and Spence for providing 
this super list!

  Let me explain some of the winter conditions where I live (Helena valley 
foothills).  We seldom get the big dumps of snow.  Usually 3-6" at a time. 
Around a foot is the most cumulative I've ever seen on the ground in 30 
years.  Dry snow and wind does provide for good drifts tho and I'm sure you 
know how hard those are.

  On this newly acquired '69 Toyota Landcruiser (btw it has a nice? pto, 
vacuum operated front winch which hopefully doesn't have to be removed for 
plow installation...yea, right:-)))
  Anyway I don't need a quick on/off hitch.  I'll install it in the fall and 
remove in summer..that's July here<vbg>  So I'm thinking about a medium 
duty, 7 & 1/2 footer.
  I got lucky as both Meyer and Western are located together..got their 
flyers yesterday.  Haven't looked for a Boss distributor yet, but the "V" 
and "Scoop" feature is impressive.

  Mike, that stainless Fisher, and my champagne taste would go 
together...whew!! Their's a distributor in Great Falls...100 miles north so 
roadtrip will be in order.  Beer budget naturally, but it's a pretty tall 
plow and I like that.

 So thanks again...will the 7 1/2 footer work for me?  with an occastional 
shot at a drift?

RickinMt.

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Mike Reggie" <mrreg_99 at hotmail.com>
To: <at at lists.antique-tractor.com>
Sent: Tuesday, January 25, 2005 2:44 AM
Subject: RE: [AT] O/T Meyers or Western plow

>
>   Hello Richard, and list
>
>   Though I've been a member of the list since the fall of 1999, and I 
> enjoy
> reading the list every day, I don't post too often, however I do try to
> participate when I have some information to contribute, I do believe this 
> is
> one of those times. I have been plowing and doing snow removal 
> commercially
> for over 25 years, over that time I have had quite a few different brands 
> of
> plows attached to all the different brands of trucks, and as you will have
> different opinions on truck brands, so will you on brands of plows and
> everything else[maybe even brands of antique tractors] however, I have in
> the last ten or so years realized there is only one brand of snowplow, and
> it is the Fisher. I could no longer even consider purchasing any other
> brand, case in point, when I bought the truck I am currently using in 
> 1997,
> the dealer had about a half dozen of the truck I wanted, but they all had
> the Meyer brand plows on them, I explained to the salesman that we could
> still make the deal on the new truck, however he would have to switch the
> new meyer plow to my trade in and put my well worn Fisher on the new 
> truck,
> both he and his manager could not believe this, but after a short time 
> were
> able to get the truck in and have the meyer plow switched over for a 
> Fisher
> and we made the deal on the new truck. I hate to be be the descending vote
> against the Meyer and Western, but I just haven't seen a lot of service
> delivered from either one of these plows.
> I mean no offense to anyone, however, I believe the Meyer should actually
> come with one of those warning stickers that seem to get plastered onto
> almost everything except maybe bagged feathers, but this one should read
> "DO NOT EXPOSE TO SNOW FOR MORE THAN MAYBE AN HOUR OR SO, AS EXTREME
> FRUSTRATION WILL OCCUR".
>
> The Western is not a bad plow, but that is precisely it, it's not bad, it,
> like the Meyer and many others it still uses regular vertical type
> tensioning springs and allow [or more so, promote] the whole blade folding
> foward and remaining that way during the foward push which makes it not
> float as is ideal, but make it go "light" to the point you actually can 
> not
> feel it and the load, most of which it's dumped and you have now driven
> over.
>
>   The Diamond, when this plow first hit the market, I quiclkly bought one,
> the reason being it was everything I liked in a plow and none of the stuff 
> I
> didn't. I'll explain what I mean..........
>
>   When The company that now owns both Fisher and Western bought these
> companies, Fisher put a few stipulations on their selling, the main one
> being that the new company would not change the design of the actual
> Speedcast snowplow, and that it will not be made in an electric over
> hydraulic design. Unfortunately due to the motor vehicle regulations just 
> a
> few short years later, it was mandated that the front headgear for 
> snowplows
> could no longer remain on the vehicle year round, and so the unimount
> design[also a Fisher design and innovation years ahead of everyone else]
> became the standard for all plows.
> When the actual sale took place, a few of the engineers and key people 
> from
> Fisher left the company and formed their own company, they called it
> Diamond, they made and marked their own plow with the proven Fisher style
> torsion spring trip-edge design, full chasis mounted headgear, and the 
> best
> part, the actual Fisher engine driven full hydraulic pump and joystick
> controls, and because it was new the price was quite a few hundred dollars
> less than what was now the actual placarded Fisher. Boy was I happy, I 
> used
> that plow troublefree until I sold the truck. In the interim, the original
> Diamond company was having all kinds of growing pains and did not have the
> capital to make the move over to the now mandatory minute-mount design, 
> and
> was ripe for the picking, Meyer quickly sucked them up and incorporated 
> it's
> own electric-over pump and controls, which as far as I know is where it is
> at today.
>
>   Sorry Cecil, but I think that is the weak link on your Diamond, the 
> Meyer
> controls.
>
>   The Fishers have been, for the whole time they have been offering an
> electric over hydraulic control, been using the Western pump and switches
> which I must say have proven very reliable, I was and have been since the
> very first time I tried it very happy when I hit that angle switch with a
> full blade of snow, and the elect/hyd pump actually moved it.  I can
> remember when the Fisher Speedcast was the  ONLY  plow on the market,
> hydraulic or otherwise that could do this.
>
>   Sorry if this sounds like a rant or a sales pitch for the Fisher, it's 
> not
> meant to be, just my opinion and my personal experiences, I hope it will 
> be
> of help.
>
>    Pleased to be participating ................ Mike
>
>
> ----Original Message Follows----
> From: "Richard Strobel" <Richard_Strobel7 at msn.com>
> Reply-To: Antique tractor email discussion group
> <at at lists.antique-tractor.com>
> To: "Antique tractor email discussion group" 
> <at at lists.antique-tractor.com>,
>         "Antique John Deere mailing
> list"<antique-johndeere at lists.antique-tractor.com>
> Subject: [AT] O/T Meyers or Western plow
> Date: Sun, 23 Jan 2005 16:25:47 -0700
>
>    Howdy all;
> Need some mad money for this ole iron addiction.  Bought me a fairly nice
> '69 Toyota Landcruiser and now need a snow plow and then we'll go to work.
> Meyers and Western are probably the most popular here in the NW.
>
> Anyone got any pro's and con's on either?
>
> Sorry for the off topic post, but dern it, I want it all!!
>
> TIA
> RickinMt.
>
> http://community.webshots.com/user/stroberc
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