Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more) Discussions

I have a 1992 8/24 snowblower passed on to me this year.It works excellent;although we`ve only had minimal snow this year.Can anyone tell me how to hookup a light to this machine. I`ve been examining them on new one a stores, but i don`t know where the connections are made ,or if i need any special parts,or even it can be done.Any,all help is welcome thanx.Reid.

JasonnB wrote:
You'll need to check to see if there is an alternator lead on the engine near the starter. Yellow wire with a bullet connector.

And to clarify, the power lead on the Tecumseh is AC 18W, Briggs is DC 1.5A on the more basic models. Both Briggs and Tecumseh have an available dual circuit with a 5A AC/3A DC on higher end models (handwarmers, etc.). Briggs also has a regulated DC system available.

PK

Edit. Hey Snowman. I just picked it up. It's a Craftsman 536.887990, made 11/2002, with a Tecumseh engine.  I just went out and started it up, and tested that yellow wire with bullet connector with my Volt meter, and put it to AC volts. It read about 5 volts, but it was idling. I then put it to full throttle and it jumped to about 15 volts, hehe. So, it looks like that's the wire to use :)

1) Any recommendations on a light? Would love it nice bright light that doesn't cost a lot of $. :)

2) What's the highest watt I'd want to go with?

3) Also, where would you MOUNT it?

JasonnB wrote:
Although some models are sold with light(s) mounted on the crossbar between the handlebars I found that it's best to mount it somewhere on the engine cowl on the side opposite the chute, this to avoid having your vision hampered by light reflecting from the snow coming out of the chute and from the machine itself. Here is an example:




My previous snowblower had two lights mounted on the crossbar and when I bought this Honda I initially thought the light placement looked odd but this proved far superior, no reflections and it illuminates exactly where it matters: lower front. This is a factory installed light but it's mounted on a U-shaped bracket that should be easy to DIY. The lght can be tilted for adjustment.

Snowman, or anyone else. Where can I get a light for this thing that will be the right one? Do I have enough power for two?

For what it's worth:

If all else fails, a hands-free miner type light can be bought and strapped on your forehead.  They come with 10 LED lights and are very bright and lightweight.  I bought one and test wore it recently although my machine has a light.  It's especially useful when pre-starting, turning on the choke, etc. in the dark.  Before I start cleaning up the  EOD, I place the light on backwards and use it as a bright tail-light to alert street traffic.  It also has a flashing mode.  These lights can be bought at any discount store for less than ten bucks.

I also use it as a reading light when waiting for my wife in the dark at the train station.  Obviously it has several uses.  Purchased two of them at Ocean State Job Lot, a chain of discount stores in southern Mass. and Rhode Island, FYI.

for the light kit to connect to the Tecumseh Snow King motor model yrs1988 to 2004 go to Outdoordistributors.com, pick MTD as the brand, go to lighting and you need MTD-OEM-390-255 12V 18 watt, it looks like it comes with the mounting hardware and all for about $50.00

Cool, this will work on mine? WHen I measured the volts it was 18 volts, so that means use an 18 watt bulb?

SNowman, you still around?

That link above shows a 27 watt light also for this same engine I have?

http://www.outdoordistributors.com/MTD/MTD_Snow/lighting.html

JasonnB wrote:
The Tecumseh 18W AC is unregulated. Voltage will depend on current draw. ~18W will get you to 12V which is what you need. 20W is close enough. 27W will brown out... Flood lens with wide pattern is preferable.

Ok, so what do you suggest??? Is there something local, like at  JC whitney that would work? Do you have an actual light in mind?

JasonnB wrote:
You probably won't find anything locally. It would be inherently automotive and at least 35W with an automotive style bulb (wouldn't even be able to buy a replacement bulb with a low enough wattage).

Not much out there for product specific aftermarket Snothro lights. Most units that were equipped with an alternator already have a light and it's only a matter of replacing the bulb. There's an MTD light listed in this posting (18W) that would work, but the bulb may be proprietary (MTD part number) and one could imagine how cheaply it could be made (coming from MTD).

I checked online for availability of the older incandescent Ariens pedestal light and didn't find anything. Also, the cost of a light direct from an Snowblower mfg'er would be pricey.

I'd say get the JW Speaker 4100, but I believe they only sell to OEM's. The nice thing about it is that it uses a MR16 halogen bulb which is available at any hardware store or mass retailer. You can get it in many different wattages and beam patterns. They also work well with the cold and vibration of a Snothro (I've used these in the past) and the sealed beam construction is nice to keep the ice and snow out of the lens housing (and they are fairly inexpensive).

Alternatively, there are aftermarket outdoor lights on Ebay for motorcycles, 4 wheelers, etc. with MR16 50 watt bulbs. You could buy one (but I think they come in pairs) and put a 36 degree 20W flood bulb in it (the bulb would be an additional ~$6 each on Ebay). I don't know that I'd stick an LED version of the MR16 in there though (get the halogen version). The light output in an LED is very directional and would not diffuse well and the relatively "dirty" current being supplied by the unregulated RPM dependent system might do some bad things to it.

Here's a link to what I'm talking about:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ATV-QUAD-DRIVING-LIGHTS-KAWASAKI-SUZUKI-ARTIC-CAT-BR_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trkparmsZ66Q3a4Q7c65Q3a16Q7c39Q3a1Q7c240Q3a1318QQ_trksidZp3286Q2ec0Q2em14QQhashZitem260340146799QQitemZ260340146799QQptZOtherQ5fVehicleQ5fParts