​Buyer's Guide: A Comprehensive Look At Snow Plows For The Kubota RTV

Using a Kubota RTV to plow snow has its advantages. Compared to trucks, Broncos, skid steers and light tractors, Kubota side-by-sides are nimbler, more agile, and consume less fuel. You get an exceptional field of view from the cockpit of a Kubota RTV, and plenty of power to bust through the biggest of snow drifts. With the right snow plow setup on your RTV520, Sidekick, or RTV- X1140, you can push snow, pile snow, and even back drag snow to remove that pesky layer on the bottom that melted and recrystallized into ice. Whether you need a Kubota RTV snow plow that can handle near-daily use, or a Kubota Sidekick snow plow that you only bust out on rare occasions, we’ll go through it all in this comprehensive buyer’s guide on Kubota RTV snow plows, snow plow attachments, and snow removal accessories!

Kubota RTV Snow Plows Vs Kubota RTV Snow Blowers

When deciding between a snow plow and a snow blower, it’s important to consider things like the snow condition, the road condition, and the condition of your bank account. Snow plows are generally better for wet, sticky, and sloppy snow, while snow blowers are better when the snow is deep and fluffy. And for cleanup, you can’t beat a Kubota RTV rotary broom!

Aside from the consistency of the snow, there are other factors which can make either a snow plow or a snow blower the better choice. Removing snow from a gravel road, for example, is best done with a snow plow, as a snow blower would likely throw a lot of gravel -- which could be bat for both the blower and the road. On paved lanes and parking lots, you might also want a Kubota RTV snow plow if there are many nooks, crannies, and other small areas that would be difficult to access with a snow blower.

A Kubota RTV with a snow plow will usually be faster than a Kubota RTV with a snow blower. One thing about snow plows, however, is that they actually require a fair amount of speed to “throw” snow off to the side. Once the snow accumulates to high ridges and piles up, it becomes more difficult to remove with a plow, and easier to remove with a snow blower.

Snow blowers are better than snow plows when it comes to disbursement, but they cost significantly more than just about any Kubota RTV snow plow kit on the market today. First, you need the Kubota PTO and K-Connect (which is Kubota’s self-contained hydraulic system) and only then can you use a snow blower. Once you have the PTO and K-Connect, you’re set up to run other attachments as well. The factory front bumper is incompatible with the K-Connect system, and you lose a couple inches of ground clearance with the system on as well.

While the K-Connect comes off easily, the PTO that mounts to the frame does not – and it’s a big enough job to not want to do seasonally. The system will still function on a lifted machine, though, so if ground clearance is necessary for the areas you ride, you can always add a lift kit or larger tires to your machine!

With a snow blower, you have to be careful so that the front hydraulic lines don’t get twisted. Snow blowers can also drop, which might require a new hydraulic cylinder. Overall, there are a lot of moving parts in a snow blower compared to a snow plow, and thus more potential points of failure!

Best Kubota RTV Snow Plows

Once you’ve decided to use a snow plow instead of a snow blower, you must then decide on which type of plow you want, and which plow brand you want. For blade styles, you’ve got straight blades and V-blades. Those who plow for a living almost exclusively use V-Plows over straight plows, as V-plows will do everything straight plows can do, only with greater versatility and more functionality. Kubota RTV V-Plows like the ones by Moose or Boss aren’t cheap, but they can be worth it if you do a lot of plowing!

In addition to the blade style of a snow plow, you’ve also got fully hydraulic snow plows, electric-over-hydraulic snow plows, and manually-actuated, winch-driven, snow plows. As you would expect, manual Kubota RTV snow plows are the cheapest, and fully hydraulic Kubota RTV snow plows are the most expensive.

If you’re willing to throw down some serious cash, the fully-contained hydraulic V-Plow by Boss is a great option. Not only are Boss plows built like tanks, but they’re controllable from the comfort of your cabin and can be mounted or dismounted in less than five minutes without having to remove the hydraulic line. And once the plow is off, you’ll only be left with the small subframe remaining on the front of your machine. Plus, because the hydraulics are fully-contained, you won’t need to use the hydraulics from your RTV (which can mess with your power steering). One thing you cannot do with a Boss plow, however, is attach it to a K-Connect system.

For those without the budget or the need for an expensive Kubota RTV snow plow system, options like the ones by KFI, Eagle Plow, and Denali are much more affordable and still quite capable. Alternatively, some of the older JD plows can be modified to work with a MotoAlliance plow mount. Sure, you might have to get out and do a little exercise to change the blade angle every now and then, but that might be an acceptable tradeoff if it saves you a few thousand of dollars. Alternatively, you can always add a power angle actuator like the ones by Kolpin Powersports to your plow system if you get tired of having to adjust the blade by hand.

Final Thoughts On Kubota RTV Snow Plows

Only you and your personal needs can determine which Kubota RTV snow plow to get. Someone who does multiple driveways, parking lots, and horse pastures might be willing to drop more money into a plow that is faster, easier to operate, and more efficient. Someone with a short driveway, on the other hand, may prefer something cheaper – even if it means having to get out after every swath and change the blade angle. If you need a plow that can scoop snow, raise snow, and lower snow, a V-Plow could be the right choice. But if all you require is something for a few inches of light powder, an inexpensive straight blade is more than sufficient. Whatever conclusion you come to in the end, our team at Everything Kubota RTV will be here to help bring it to fruition!