Box blade, rear blade or land plane for grading, gravel and snow, plus what the database holds on each: widths, weights, and how many of the 195 tractors on file fully fit.
The three most-bought rear implements for moving dirt on a compact tractor are the box blade, the rear blade and the land plane. They all grade, but they do it in different ways, and the wrong one makes a driveway harder to keep up. This guide gives the decision framework, then adds what the FitTractor database holds on each: 22 box blades, 15 rear blades and 5 land planes, with their widths, weights and how many of the 195 tractors on file they fully fit.
New driveway or rebuild: a box blade first to shape and crown, then a land plane for the finish. Maintaining an existing gravel driveway: a land plane is the right tool, because its wheels ride the high spots while the blades shave them into the low ones. Snow, ditching or pushing material sideways: a rear blade, because it angles and tilts.
A box blade has fixed cutting edges that dig in. On gravel it tends to scoop piles and leave ridges unless you spend time on the seat getting the pass right, which is why it is the wrong tool for finishing a gravel surface.
None of the three needs PTO horsepower, so the limits are weight, hitch category and lift. Every box blade, rear blade and land plane on file is a Category 1 implement.
The 22 box blades on file run from 48 to 84 inches wide and weigh 277 to 545 lb. The 48 inch blades weigh 277 to 366 lb, the 60 inch blades 346 to 475 lb, the 72 inch blades 440 to 510 lb, the 73.5 inch blade 474 lb and the single 84 inch blade 545 lb. One 72 inch blade has no weight on file, so we cannot check it against a tractor's lift. Twenty-one box blades fully fit between 142 and 157 of the 195 tractors, and the 84 inch blade is the one that fits the fewest, 142. Going wider costs weight, and weight is what the tractor's lift has to carry.
The 15 rear blades on file are 60, 72 or 84 inches wide and weigh 191 to 410 lb. The 60 inch blades weigh 191 to 232 lb, the 72 inch blades 213 to 330 lb and the one 84 inch blade 410 lb. All 15 fully fit 157 of the 195 tractors, the same set. They are the lightest of the three types, so lift is rarely the limit.
Of the 5 land planes on file, only two have a weight: 607 lb for the 70 inch Titan and 663 lb for the 81 inch Titan. Both are heavier than any rear blade and heavier than the heaviest box blade at 545 lb. Each fully fits 146 tractors, and the 81 inch model does not fit 4 of the tractors on file. The other three land planes, the King Kutter 60, 72 and 84 inch models, have no weight on file, so we cannot check them against lift. If you are buying a land plane, get the weight from the maker and compare it with your tractor's 3-point rating.
Pick a width that covers your rear tire tracks, so the implement grades the ground the tires cross. Then check the implement's weight against your tractor's 3-point lift rating, and the hitch category against your tractor. The compatibility checker does the second and third checks for you, and the hitch category guide explains the first.
A land plane is the best tool for maintaining an existing gravel driveway, the dual blades cut high spots and fill low spots in one pass. A box blade is better for rebuilding or reshaping. A rear blade angled at 30 degrees works for crowning and ditching but takes more passes.
For hard-packed soil, gravel, or compacted driveways, yes. Scarifiers (also called rippers) break up hard ground so the box blade can move it. For loose soil, finish grading, or snow, scarifiers are unnecessary. Most modern box blades include adjustable scarifiers, set them to skim or dig as needed.
Match the box blade width to your rear tire track width, typically 60 inches for sub-compact tractors, 72 inches for compact tractors in the 25 to 40 HP range, and 84 inches or wider for utility tractors over 40 HP. The implement should clear your rear tires by 2 to 4 inches on each side.
Yes, a rear blade angled and offset works well for plowing driveways. Look for a model with both angle and tilt adjustment. For deep or heavy snow, a dedicated snow blade or front-mounted snow blower is faster and easier on the tractor. Rear blades also tend to scrape gravel along with snow.
Published 2026-03-22, last updated 2026-10-21. Figures quoted in this guide cite manufacturer documentation where available, and the tractors and attachments it references are records in the FitTractor compatibility database.