• A Motor Grader is difficult for an Operator to learn to do precision grading in confined areas,
and can take months of training and experience. Some operators never develop the patience
for this type of work.
• The Operator cannot see the cutting edge of the blade bit and the buildup of material at the
lower part of the moldboard which makes it hard to set the blade for starting a pass.
• Motor Graders are inefficient at moving material from high spots to low spots because the
material is not contained and spills out one or both outside edges of the moldboard.
• NOTE: Some Blade moldboards can be set up for installation of side plates to help hold the
material, but these side plates are fixed and must be used for one angle position only.
This system is time-consuming for working in confined areas.
• Motor Grader Blade Operators predominately push berms of material into places which
require hand work to remove or place to a proper grade.
• A Motor Grader’s Blade is mounted approximately in the center of the front and back axle of
the vehicle which prohibits finishing out machine grading close to obstructions which are
either in front or back of the vehicle.
• Most Motor Graders do not have a very tight turning radius which makes it difficult to make
sharp turns around planters, rounded curbs, and other obstructions while maintaining an
accurate depth grade control.
• All Motor Graders use a 3 Point Blade Suspension System, One point forward at the center
of the front axle, pivot mounted, and one point on each side of the drive axle assembly. This
suspension system requires constant attention by the operator because any adjustment to the
plane of the blade requires an opposite adjustment to cancel the transition of the blade plane
angle. There is no forward reference for stopping the blade plane spiral. The Operator then
is very busy adjusting depth controls and avoiding obstacles at the same time.
• Motor Graders, designed to move material sideways, works well on highways, streets, and
roads however in confined areas they do not have enough room to process (mix) material, so
they tend to move the material sideways without mixing. Consequently, as the material
moves along the moldboard, it separates with only the large aggregate reaching the outside of
the blade passes.
• Most parking areas, cul-de-sacs, intersections and other areas, confined by more than two
sides, are designed with a warped surface (plane) for proper water evacuation, requiring the
Operator to continue to make depth and or angle adjustments for correct grade elevation.