The little snowblower that couldn't

[Dan Dubeau]

Agreed, and great repair eh. Is that tree a Norway maple, if it is those things drop branches like hair off an old dog.
View attachment 31657

It's an apple tree. Very beautiful in the spring when it's in bloom. Drive me nuts the rest of the year dropping apples on the cars/driveway. Wife wont let me cut it down so I got a cider press 2 years ago, then we had a very bad year of the gypsy moths, and almost all the the apple trees around my property have failed to produce very many apples again. Very sad, as I had a TON of old mature trees, and was looking forward to making some large batches of hard cider from all the different types. I made a small gallon batch years ago from this tree and it was amazing. I hope they rebound this year, or I'm going to have some smoking wood .

 

[Dan Dubeau]

Add this to your project list.

I love it.

 

[Dan Dubeau]

Love the work man! Hey, you 'might' get better traction if you swap the wheels, just sayin.

Good eye, I never noticed that till you pointed it out. I actually had very little complaints about traction with this one. One reason I like the smaller cut.

 

[Engmaxx]

Good eye, I never noticed that till you pointed it out. I actually had very little complaints about traction with this one. One reason I like the smaller cut.

You have really aggressive tread which is why I say 'might' but it doesn't hurt to get a little more if you can!

 

[Dan Dubeau]

I still have the set of chains I took off the old roper somewhere out in the barn. I think I do anyway. I'll have a look in the spring. That's my next re organizing project.....

 

[Former Member]

here it is running:

@CalgaryPT Peter you might like these vids if you haven't seen them already.

Just to add insult the guy is from Ontario .

 

[Susquatch]

Love the work man! Hey, you 'might' get better traction if you swap the wheels, just sayin.

He is right @Dan Dubeau , your tires are on backwards..... LOL!

I doubt it would really matter much though.

Edit - I see it's already been discussed.

 

[fixerup]

If you want to throw the snow and the wet slush further. Cut some 3/16 thick rubber pieces to close the gap between the hogger and the housing. Truck mud flap material could work. it just about the right stiffness. I screwed mine on the blades with self drilling tap screws and there still on there after 3 years. What a difference did it make, not 126 feet but at least 20-30 feet. But I have to say my gap between the hogger and housing was about 3/8- 1/2" . Some snowblower are better built and the gap is much less.

 

[ShawnR]

If you want to throw the snow and the wet slush further. Cut some 3/16 thick rubber pieces to close the gap between the hogger and the housing. Truck mud flap material could work. it just about the right stiffness. I screwed mine on the blades with self drilling tap screws and there still on there after 3 years. What a difference did it make, not 126 feet but at least 20-30 feet. But I have to say my gap between the hogger and housing was about 3/8- 1/2" . Some snowblower are better built and the gap is much less.

I did this on one of my machines. Works great, till they break and blow out the chute! But, it does help!

 

[6.5 Fan]

So far if the only criticism is the colour of my socks, I guess I'm doing alright lol. I've never had the best fashion sense.

My daughter get upset with me, says "you can't wear socks with crocks". I say watch me. Nice repair job.

 

[FatherWes]

Interesting. This must be a common problem.
I just finished fixing mine last week!

I noticed I had a problem when I pushed down on the handlebars to lift the auger housing, and the housing didn’t come off the ground. This whole housing is too thin by a factor of at least two. This is a Husqvarna, 27”. It came with the property 10 years ago and it is my only snow removal equipment (except for the shovels). My driveway is about 600 feet long, and I’m in snow country, BC. It’s done a lot of work, but I did not expect it to fail like this. It wasn’t cheap (receipt shows $1749+ tax in 2011), and I expected more from a Husqvarna, but I’m pretty sure there’s really only one company making these, and they get painted different colours as they go out the door.
The last two photos show how I repaired it. I didn’t get a photo of the final, but you can see how I wrapped the reinforcing round the edge to try to stiffen it up. I’m a ‘grinder’ not a ‘welder’, so criticism of the (unfinished) welding will be taken in good humour.
The belts still align properly and it has blown a foot or so of snow since this. Hopefully I get another 10 years out of this thing.

 

[Dan Dubeau]

Nice repair. Same housing (different paint/auger width) same failure in the exact same spots. I'd thought about adding another doubler plate to the back of mine also, but once I welded in the patch panels made the executive decision that it was good enough for what it was. Mine should see relatively lighter use next year once I get the big one, so hopefully should last a bit longer. The only material I have big enough was back in the barn too, so that made my decision easier as I wasn't snowshoeing back there to get it lol

 

[JustaDB]

I always forget, do you match them to the shoes, or the belt?

Hell, I dunno. I'm just happy when I can find two that aren't Sunday socks (not holey...).

 

[Engmaxx]

If you want to throw the snow and the wet slush further. Cut some 3/16 thick rubber pieces to close the gap between the hogger and the housing. Truck mud flap material could work. it just about the right stiffness. I screwed mine on the blades with self drilling tap screws and there still on there after 3 years. What a difference did it make, not 126 feet but at least 20-30 feet. But I have to say my gap between the hogger and housing was about 3/8- 1/2" . Some snowblower are better built and the gap is much less.

You wrote exactly how I would have written it but hey I get to add the pictures! I put a ~45 deg chamfer leading in and where it contacts the housing: eases the snow onto the pad and minimal contact with the housing. I have never looked back. Plenty of things get tossed from the chute so I would never go near that regardless.