wolfpack-lift arm auger belt question

[wolfpack 0]

Stay with me boys, i am new at this. 

I find two problems with my 1997 520H I would like to through out there.

1) The lift arm connected to the snow blower auger housing keeps coming off. I changed the connection to a clevis & pin. it works much better than a cotter pin, but that failed just after the last snow storm. Adjusting the feet seems to help

but does not get close enough to the ground to get a clean sweep. Why would anyone put that connection on the bottom of the auger housing? Am i doing something wrong?

2) The forward pulley for the auger belt- drive is so close to the auger housing I cannot change belts without removing the pulley, which at the moment is frozen on. The set screws holding the pulley to the shaft 

are next to impossible to get any muscle on with a small tool, no room to work. Is that pulley suppose to be that close to the auger housing?

[gwest_ca-(File Mod) 11,032]

If this is a single stage snowthrower the connecting hardware was

Lift hook flat washer 920013 is 5/8" SAE

Lift hook cotter pin 932034 is 3/16" x 1"

A smaller pin won't last.

If you remove the bolts from the right shaft bearing and loosen the left bolts you can pull the pulley back far enough to get the belt on.

 

Garry

[doc724 925]

I couple of things to note.  The blower should not scrape the driveway.  It needs to be 1/8 to 1/4 inch between the scraper bar and the ground.  a paint stirrer can be used to set the gap.

 

I use a hair pin cotter (a big one) to attach the lift arm to the auger housing. Just makes it easier for me to get it off.  However, if you are in the habit of running your blower up onto the lawn, the hairpin can be pushed off.  Not a good thing in the middle of a snow storm.  Keep a spare washed and hairpin cotter on hand.

 

Garry is indeed correct on how to get the belt on.  I pondered the same thing and reached the same conclusion.

[Sarge 3,463]

I've considered welding a pair of plates on the bottom of the housing so they wrap up and around the back, slightly above the original hook. Drill a hole through both plates and weld a new plate on the lift tube that sits vertically instead of horizontally,  then pin it. This would make a more solid connection and be easier to hook up the blower. The lift tube could have a bung welded into it and use a male threaded heim joint to make it adjustable for lift height .

 

The blower is a pain to wrestle into position with the stock lift tube on it and get the mounting bracket latched. The hook piece isn't all that strong and getting off pavement or into hard piles can break them off. It wasn't one of Who's best designs in my opinion. No idea why they would want to put the lifting point under the blower housing, that was just asking for problems. I've had mine lose enough pins and break the hook off that it got a heavier one welded on it and used a hardened bolt instead, hence the idea of completely changing the housing mounting bracket.

 

Sarge

[wolfpack 0]

Thank You for those who responded to  my lift arm and auger belt installation.

 

I realize the blower should not scrape the ground and the lift arm connection is a poor design at best.

Cotter pins are not the fix, the connection hitting the ground is a given at some point.

 

I plan on trying Garry's method of replacing the auger belt, sounds like a winner.

 

Sarge may have something on modifying the lift arm connection, i will draft something similar.

Getting the connection off the bottom of the lift arm is the only answer.

 

 

 

[ztnoo 2,298]

wolfpack

I have a suggestion in regards to your posting habits on various topics.

I see you are a new member here (March 2), so admittedly there is a learning curve of sorts here at Red Square. I went through one myself until I got the hang of things. I don't want to scare you off or badger you, but rather make a long term, helpful suggestion. We have had others get started off like this, and it can really get confusing after a while.

 

In every topic you have started here on RS that I note, you are using you user name as the subject line.

Doing so only impedes and confuses what you are attempting to ask and find a solution for.

There is no practical way for the other forum members to quickly delineate and identify what the real subject of your post might be when you repeatedly use your user name as the subject of the thread.

 

I would say your posts will be much more quickly and effectively answered if you make reference to your specific problem or question in your subject line, rather than continuing to use your user name in the subject line.

Make the subject line unique and pertinent to your question or the problem you are attempting to solve.

If you don't do that, I can envision multiple topics (maybe eventually dozens) with exactly the same subject line going forward, with absolutely no way for anyone, or yourself, to clearly delineate what you might be describing short of actually opening each individual post.

That's very inefficient, not to mention confusing.

 

Just a suggestion and food for thought before posting new future topics.

Glad you found Red Square. Its a great place to be to keep your Wheel Horse running and working.

 

Regards,

Steve

[Sarge 3,463]

The lift arm point on the blower housing is fine as it was designed for decent pavement,  the smoother the driveway or path is, the better it works. Unfortunately,  we don't all have places like this where a blower is necessary or more efficient than a blade. Rough or broken pavement and gravel is more common and that mounting point becomesa problem, hence the reason I'd like to change it.

 

Sarge