thanks, I've broken down the price as well. I would probably be able to get a blade for about $320. I wouldn't go with the Husqvarna dozer blade. Rather I would go with one of the older snow blades, they are out of production, but you can still find them. Otherwise the Cratsman snow blade is essentially the same thing. I don't think I need the heftier dozer blade. In the end I would probably pay about the same for a blade setup as I would a single stage mower. My trouble is trying to determine which is the best value. I like the idea of the snow blade because I'd rather have a single machine to maintain rather than two machines, plus the extra space of storing the snow blower is a negative. But in the end if the snow blade doesn't work well or puts too much strain on the tractor, I'd go with the snow blower.