Snow blower doesn't throw too well.....

[hounddoghundzsa 7]

I've got a front mounted, round sided snow blower on my 552. I just put it on the other day and tried using it. It just doesnt seem to throw the snow, but just "spits" it out instead. I tried increasing engine speed and tightining the belt, but nothing seems to help. Is this just how these old timers perform or is there something I can do to remedy the problem?

I've got over two feet of snow here and more on the way, and I'm tired of the crapsman walk behind. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks

[TT-(Moderator) 1,145]

I take it you mean an ST-3072 thrower?

I had one on my 704 two years ago and it seemed to work fine - but we didn't have 2 feet of snow.

It's tough to see snow against snow, but here's the best action photos I have:

[hounddoghundzsa 7]

Yea, I think that's the one. The I.d. plate is gone so I wasn't sure of the #. Mine didn't work nothing like that. The chute has some rust in it, but nothing major. But I didn't figure it was bad enough to cause it to do so poorly...

[sscotsman 166]

Scott,

is it wet heavy snow?

or dry powdery snow?

many older snowblowers have problems with the wet, heavy slushy snow..

there is too much of a gap between the impeller and the chute wall,

not tight clearance, the wet stuff "sticks" and just glops out in a thick mass..

or just clogs completely..

there is an aftermarket upgrade kit, the "Clarence Impeller Kit"

http://smllengns.tripod.com/

The guys on the "walk behind" snowblower forums just rave

about it..I havent tried it yet, but I plan to install it over the summer,

for next winter..

I dont know for sure, but I assume tractor-mounted snowblowers are basically the same design as a walk-behind machine..just slightly larger..

but the overall concept is the same..

If its cold, dry powdery snow that your machine is having trouble with..

then thats a different issue..probably the impeller belt.

Scot

[hounddoghundzsa 7]

It mostly has a problem with the wet snow, seems like it lacks the power to get it all the way out of the chute, then just clogs the damn thing up. :thumbs:

[sscotsman 166]

It mostly has a problem with the wet snow, seems like it lacks the power to get it all the way out of the chute, then just clogs the damn thing up.

yep, sounds like the classic impeller problem..

you should look into that Clarence Impeller kit..

as I said, I havent tried it myself, so I cant personally recommend it,

but I do plan to install the kit next spring..

here is some reading, if you are interested:

http://www.opeonthenet.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=8909

Scot

[hounddoghundzsa 7]

I sent them a copy of the manual to see if it would work, waiting on thier reply.....

[TT-(Moderator) 1,145]

Uhhh...... We're talking about a single-stage thrower here....... it doesn't even have an impeller.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Give it a try on one of those Kohler-powered tractors and see what it does. :thumbs:

[hounddoghundzsa 7]

This is the answer I got from them:

Being a single stage machine as long as the impeller blades are metal the Kit will work on your Snowblower.

Thanks Clarence

Clarence's Small Engines

http://smllengns.tripod.com/

According to the WheelHorse manual for this blower it Does have an idler...

[kajamo240 3]

Looking at the design of it, it doesn't really seem like it would be hard to do yourself...

[MikesRJ 552]

On a single stage blower that is not throwing snow far enough it usually means the auger is not spinning fast enough, or the engine lacks torque to keep it at speed in heavy/wet snow.

Easiest way to "get-er-done" is to decrease the throwers drive pulley. Drop 1" inch in pulley diameter (the pulley that drives the blower; the one that the belt from the PTO connects to) and it'll fling snow with the best of them.

[hounddoghundzsa 7]

I've got an 854 that I've got an oversized pulley on (it will go 15-20 mph in 3rd gear at full throttle) Maybe I'll switch the blower to that one and see what she does... I've got weights and duals on that one too, so it'll probably go a little better in the snow :thumbs:

[TT-(Moderator) 1,145]

The higher ground speed will probably hurt you with the thrower, but feel free to give it a try.

Whatever you do, don't hack, change, cut, modify, or swap anything on that thrower.

[Jim_M 178]

The Clarence kit will not work on your snowblower. It is for 2 stage blowers.

I would suspect that you're either not spinning the auger fast enough, the belt is slipping, the center of the auger is bent or (least likely) the chute has excessive rust on the inside.

The center of the auger does the throwing, if the "paddles" are bent it will affect the ability to throw the snow. If you're running full throttle and you're sure the belt isn't slipping, take a good look at the center area of the auger.

[sscotsman 166]

Single stage??

really?

wow..im very surprised..

I never imagined a tractor-mounted snowblower could be anything but a 2-stage..

well, then I guess the Clarence kit is useless then..

sorry about that (for my useless advice)..carry on.

:banghead:

[hounddoghundzsa 7]

The blower itself is in really good shape. No bends, just a little rust. I'm going to mess with it some more this weekend.

[W9JAB 156]

:banghead:

Clarence's Small Engines

I still don't get it! I send Clarence's Small Engines an e-mail asking for an install sheet, but got back this reply,

This is basically all that is required to install the Kit. This will work with the single stage as well as the two stage. Remove discharge chute by removing six bolts and brackets, or bands on bottom of chute. Inspect impeller blades for cracks and bent blades. Blades should be repaired before installing the Kit. The machine does not have to be taken apart. Reach through discharge chute opening and turn impeller so blade is horizontal in housing, place rubber paddle on flat part of the impeller blade mark and drill holes. Place metal support on top of rubber paddle and bolt to the impeller. Tools required- drill, 3/16 drill bit, knife, tin snips or hacksaw, screwdriver or 5/16 wrench and 3/8 wrench).

Kit may have to be trimmed to fit various sized Impeller blades

NOTE - Machines with the rectangular chute opening require an extended drill bit and also makes the installation a little more difficult.

Thanks Clarence

Clarence`s Small Engines

Where do these things get installed?

Any help?

:thumbs:

[nylyon-(Admin) 7,348]

I'm with TT on this one. On a 2-Stage unit you CAN install this kit on the impeller for 2 reasons.

1. It has an impeller

2. The impeller is at a right angle to the opening, therefore you can use a flat component.

I don't think that this will work on a single stage unit because of 2 reasone.

1. It does not have an impeller

2. The auger is at an angle, therefore it would require a curved component to plug the gap.

This would work great on the 44" 2-stage unit, but for the life of me I can't see how this would work with the single stage.

[sscotsman 166]

Clarence's Small Engines

I still don't get it! I send Clarence's Small Engines an e-mail asking for an install sheet, but got back this reply,

This is basically all that is required to install the Kit. This will work with the single stage as well as the two stage. Remove discharge chute by removing six bolts and brackets, or bands on bottom of chute. Inspect impeller blades for cracks and bent blades. Blades should be repaired before installing the Kit. The machine does not have to be taken apart. Reach through discharge chute opening and turn impeller so blade is horizontal in housing, place rubber paddle on flat part of the impeller blade mark and drill holes. Place metal support on top of rubber paddle and bolt to the impeller. Tools required- drill, 3/16 drill bit, knife, tin snips or hacksaw, screwdriver or 5/16 wrench and 3/8 wrench).

Kit may have to be trimmed to fit various sized Impeller blades

NOTE - Machines with the rectangular chute opening require an extended drill bit and also makes the installation a little more difficult.

Thanks Clarence

Clarence`s Small Engines

Where do these things get installed?

Any help?

huh..odd..

I just looked through their webpage, looking for info on single-stage,

and found these:

"This Repair Kit can be used on almost all two-stage snowblowers and some of the larger single stage snowblowers with metal discharge blades only and is not recommended for 2 stage snowblowers with the plastic impeller."

"Hi Clarence, I have installed your kit. In fact I installed it on one of my single stage blowers and it improved it just like new. I know it is intended for a dual stage but my single stage was in need of some kind of help. It was very easy to install for me, but being a maintenance engineer I'm used to working with kind of thing. Thanks again for the help."

"Hi Clarence, Yes I did install it a while back. I had thought of making

something just like it out of rubber also. I had about 1/2" of space between

the paddle and the housing. Now it blows snow 2 times as good as before. Guess

it did the trick! I have a case k-84 single stage blower. Thanks for asking!"

And here is a reference to the Clarence kit on a JD tractor single-stage:

http://forums2.gardenweb.com/forums/load/t...0953438629.html

no photos or details though..

so apparently it *can* be done..

I dont know where the kit would go though..

I guess on the auger paddles nearest the discharge?

doesnt make much sense to me!

but I dont know much about single-stagers..never used one myself.

Here is another discussion I found via google..

talking about "tips" for single-stage tractor-mount snowblowers,

and again Clarence is mentioned on a single-stage..

but again, no details about *how* it is installed.

http://www.mytractorforum.com/showthread.php?t=48546

thats all I can find!

Scot

[TT-(Moderator) 1,145]

There's a typical WH single-stage thrower. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

If the auger flights are worn bad enough to require extensions to be bolted (yeah - like that would be safe ) to the portion that throws, then I'd say it's time for a new auger.

I'll have to see if I can get an RPM reading on the auger of a newer single stage - just for S&G. :banghead:

[W9JAB 156]

:thumbs:

I e-mailed them yesterday once more asking for an install sheet, this is what came back.

There are a lot of people that install the Kit on their single stage blowers everyday. I don

[Operator 7]

I'll mention what I did to mine.

I have a gravel drive and shop area parking so my blower sucked a lot of rocks the first time out , I have since lowered the feet and only do my walkways. Anyway the single stage impeller area got torn up bad so I had some small channel iron I cut and drilled a hole [all the same size wgt.] I bolted them in the area that chucks the snow out. Works great and has been on there for at least 4 years now.

Randy

[Jim_M 178]

I e-mailed them yesterday once more asking for an install sheet, this is what came back.

There are a lot of people that install the Kit on their single stage blowers everyday. I don

[Docwheelhorse 2,682]

The obvious problem is that the poor thing is WAY underpowered.... a 32" snow thrower on a tractor with a 5 horse engine just ain't going to perform.... Find another tractor with at least an 8 (854, 857, Commando 8 etc....) and you will be better off. The more power you pour into a snow chucker the better.... I run a 42" one on a 14 Kohler K and it performs fantastic.... It was previously on a Briggs 11 powered machine and it performed just like an 80 year old guy with a shovel... The job was getting done ---but--- 911 was on speed dial for when the thing dropped of a heart attack!!

Tony

[MikesRJ 552]

Clarence has never sen a Wheel Horse single stage blower.

Clarence was dropped on his head as a child!