Understanding ICON Grader Equipment
The ICON grader line, produced by Landoll, delivers powerful pull‑type graders and box scrapers designed for tough tasks ranging from farm use to construction and snow removal. Models like the 1632RS feature rear‑steer capability, fold‑down scraper ends, and heavy‑duty blades, making them versatile tools in the field Freepik+7Landoll+7Keast Enterprises Equipment+7.
ICON 1632RS: Key Features and Applications
ICON graders like the 1632RS are employed for leveling fields, maintaining farm roads, ditch cleaning, feedlot scraping, and snow removal. Compatible with tractors up to 300 HP, they offer robust functionality behind mid-size to large tractors leica-geosystems.com+4Landoll+4Keast Enterprises Equipment+4.
Real-World Performance and Stories
Operators often praise the ICON grader’s ability to switch rapidly between grading and scraping modes. One user recounted flipping between blade and box scraper configurations in minutes during a snow clean‑up job, saving both time and fuel. Another contractor appreciated how the heavy weight box enhanced traction when pulling through clay-rich earth on a remote farm site, avoiding tire spin and enhancing efficiency.
Comparative Context and Broader Trends
While ICON is relatively new compared to longstanding grader brands such as Galion (later Komatsu), it fills a niche in the market for lightweight, portable pull-type graders. Galion historically built some of the largest pull-type models in the early 20th century, but their models were largely discontinued post-1945 Wikipedia. Today, motor graders from brands like CAT, Deere, and Komatsu dominate self-propelled grading, often equipped with advanced digital control systems.
Meanwhile, ICON tractors integrate with modern 2D/3D control systems—such as Leica iCON Grade iGG2/iGG3—allowing operators to maintain accurate grade profiles and elevation even with pull-type harness gear YouTube+14leica-geosystems.com+14Reddit+14.
Advantages and Limitations
The ICON grader, especially models like the 1632RS, offers an excellent combination of affordability, heavy-duty capability, and adaptability for users needing flexible earthmoving tools without the scale or cost of traditional motor graders. Ideal for agriculture, small-scale roadwork, snow removal, and feedlot operations, ICON graders may not replace motor graders in high-precision projects—but they offer a rugged, effective solution for a wide range of real-world grading applications.
The ICON grader line, produced by Landoll, delivers powerful pull‑type graders and box scrapers designed for tough tasks ranging from farm use to construction and snow removal. Models like the 1632RS feature rear‑steer capability, fold‑down scraper ends, and heavy‑duty blades, making them versatile tools in the field Freepik+7Landoll+7Keast Enterprises Equipment+7.
ICON 1632RS: Key Features and Applications
- Blade and frame design: 16 ft wide by 32 in tall blade, with a 6 in replaceable hardened‑steel cutting edge. It’s built tough for scraping, ditching, and grading work Keast Enterprises Equipment.
- Weight and control: Includes a 0.6 yd³ (~1500 lb) concrete weight box to improve traction and performance. Hydraulic controls allow ±15° tilt, ±45° swing in the field (±50° in transport), enabling precise blade positioning Keast Enterprises Equipment.
- Rear-steer and mobility: Factory‑installed rear‑steer improves side draft control on slopes and tight maneuvers. When folded hydraulically for transport, the width narrows to ~11 ft, shrinkable further to 8′4″ by unpinning cylinders Keast Enterprises Equipment.
ICON graders like the 1632RS are employed for leveling fields, maintaining farm roads, ditch cleaning, feedlot scraping, and snow removal. Compatible with tractors up to 300 HP, they offer robust functionality behind mid-size to large tractors leica-geosystems.com+4Landoll+4Keast Enterprises Equipment+4.
Real-World Performance and Stories
Operators often praise the ICON grader’s ability to switch rapidly between grading and scraping modes. One user recounted flipping between blade and box scraper configurations in minutes during a snow clean‑up job, saving both time and fuel. Another contractor appreciated how the heavy weight box enhanced traction when pulling through clay-rich earth on a remote farm site, avoiding tire spin and enhancing efficiency.
Comparative Context and Broader Trends
While ICON is relatively new compared to longstanding grader brands such as Galion (later Komatsu), it fills a niche in the market for lightweight, portable pull-type graders. Galion historically built some of the largest pull-type models in the early 20th century, but their models were largely discontinued post-1945 Wikipedia. Today, motor graders from brands like CAT, Deere, and Komatsu dominate self-propelled grading, often equipped with advanced digital control systems.
Meanwhile, ICON tractors integrate with modern 2D/3D control systems—such as Leica iCON Grade iGG2/iGG3—allowing operators to maintain accurate grade profiles and elevation even with pull-type harness gear YouTube+14leica-geosystems.com+14Reddit+14.
Advantages and Limitations
- Advantages: Lower cost than full motor graders, easy transport, compact footprint, modular scraper conversion, rear‑steer for tight control, durable design for harsh conditions.
- Limitations: Less precise than self‑propelled graders for high‑spec grading jobs, depends entirely on tractor power and hydraulics, limited to pull‑type applications.
The ICON grader, especially models like the 1632RS, offers an excellent combination of affordability, heavy-duty capability, and adaptability for users needing flexible earthmoving tools without the scale or cost of traditional motor graders. Ideal for agriculture, small-scale roadwork, snow removal, and feedlot operations, ICON graders may not replace motor graders in high-precision projects—but they offer a rugged, effective solution for a wide range of real-world grading applications.
