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.

  if the unit is capable of running a light there will be a wiring "harness" coming out from the engine on the fuel tank side.  if no wiring is visible, then it will be costly.  you will need to replace the flywheel with an alternator capable flywheel.  install and alternator, and of course purchase the light assembly.    the flywheel  will  run about  $165.00  the alternator   about  $50.00

I have a wire hanging out, but don't know what to connect. The connection is not formiliar to me, and I cann't find anything at the autoparts store to make a simple add on light.

if you want you can buy a factory light set up for your particular model.  or if you have a 18watt light already you can just cut that plastic terminal off that on the pigtail coming out from engine. crimp a male/female connector on this "harness" end   then crimp the opposits onto the light wire.   the light need to be no more than an 18 watt.   usually you can go to a northern hydraulics, tractor fleet store and they should have one for ya.

I would first recommend checking to see if there is juice at the wire you found before you get into this knee deep.

hirschallan wrote:

Uh, YEAH! EXCELLENT suggestion Hirsch!

Grab a voltmeter & set it to the "AC" scale. Put the positive (red) meter probe on this mystery connector. Put the negative (black) meter probe to a clean engine metal part (GROUND). Start engine & observe volt reading - if you get 12+ volts, congratulations - you found that you have a working alternator. NOW you can grab a light kit for your machine.

As for the mystery connector, we have an old method of tackling this. Just cut off the connector & splice the wire to your new light's positive lead...

Marty

I tried this, but the light came on for a few seconds and went dim like I blew it. Do you think I might need something like a battery in the series. If this is the case, have you hear of this. The motor is a B&S 9.5 powerbuilt, brand new on a Craftsman blower.

no battery needed,  you have an ac alternator.  which means at idle the light will be on but very dim. at high speed it will shine bright.

mattr wrote:

This unit likely has the 1.5A unregulated DC alternator. From what you describe, it's likely you have a bulb that is a much higher wattage. Try to get a bulb that fits into your headlight housing that uses 18W to 22W or so.

    snowman   the unit would not have a dc alternator on it unless it is a 12 volt  starting system.  dc current charges the battery. 

I'm looking at buying a 4-5 year old Craftsman snowblower. Model # is 536.887990, made 11/2002.

It has electric start, but you have to plug it into a outlet to start it. Could I add a light to this??

Here it is

http://harrisburg.craigslist.org/grd/501752638.html

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

Hey again.... Never got around to adding the light last year, so I'm revisting this again. Are these the lights you meant?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ATV-QUAD-DRIVING-LIGHTS-KAWASAKI-SUZUKI-ARTIC-CAT-BR_W0QQitemZ300335772611QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_100?hash=item45ed6833c3

ALso, just found this one:

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_07133168000P


Also was thinking about adding a snow cab/canopy. I see a lot of univeral ones on ebay, wondering if they are any good?

Like Snowbound, I am fond of the LED headlights. I do a lot of auto maintenance in my garage
and I don't even turn on the lights anymore. Just don't need to -- the headlight is very bright
and wherever I look....there's light.

I go running at night with it too -- freaked out the neighbor lady 'cause all she could see was
this bright bouncing light coming at her, six feet off the ground! Snowbound, I bet you get
some looks at the train station...

Anyway, that's not to discourage you from modding your snowthrower, but the headlights
do work very well.

JasonnB wrote: jason,
don't know if you are still sorting this out or not.  but, I thought I'd pass on what was helpful to me.
I'm pretty sure the light you linked on ebay is not compatible.  they are 55 watt lights -- far in excess of what your snowblower will support.

I used a cheap and really simple solution that someone here and elsewhere suggested (someone named Marty, I think).  anyway, I bought an outdoor landscape light on sale at $5 or so at Menards.  it was rated for either a 20 watt or 10 watt bulb (but, Marty used a 7 watt light and posted that it was very bright).  my snowblower has a tecumseh engine with an 18 watt alternator (per manual).
I added a $2 switch (from automotive dept at Walmart), and wired it all in (specifically, wire with connector pin coming out of alternator to switch, then from other switch lead to light, then other lead from light to ground on engine mount).  the 10 watt bulb works beautifully, but I might switch out to the 20 watt bulb, if I need it. 
I am a very basic diy guy, so this does not demand any complex skills. 

in case you might be wondering: I placed the switch in a recycled AC adapter box (after cutting out a small opening for it) to protect the leads from snow/moisture, and mounted the light itself at a higher elevation than the factory panel between the handlebars (to minimize shadows from the chute).  I did this by using the pre-existing hole in the panel (I presumed for factory-mounted light) to bolt a 12" generic mending bar (~3/16" thick) from Home Depot/Lowes ($2) and then bolting the light onto that at the other end with a pipe-mounting bracket ($0.40).

in retrospect, it makes perfect sense to use the landscape light.  it's designed for outdoor use and exposure to the elements. toss the spike-in-the-ground portion and you have a well-sealed, low-voltage (all this means is essentially 12 volt, not household current), and low wattage (compared to automotive or household appliances) light source ready to be wired. 

anyway, I hope this helps you or someone.  I scoured the boards for a long time, trying to find an easy solution, until I found this.
now, I can't wait for the snow to start falling!  but, indian summer is nice, too.

Snowmann wrote:

Tecumseh alternator... The missing piece of information I want to know is how much current (amps) the thing
can put out???? I want to convert this AC alternator to DC with a 25A bridge to power a DC motor that will make the chute move electricly...

tombraider wrote:
Make sure the engine has a stator to generate electricity.  If a Sears snowblower didn't have a light on it already, it may not.  Try to research the engine model they have to have made a few million of them.  The lights that can be used don't draw much electricity.  My new Honda accessory light is a 50 Watt Sealed Beam Halogen go to www.pmlights.com and look at the 507 F (F =Flood Pattern)  It has a rubber case designed to both absorb vibration which can ruin bulb filaments, and it also keeps the light weatherproof.  If you want the lower power draw requirements of an LED lamp, the model to choose is the 907 (look under new Products)  To actually buy the lamps go to www.foxtailights.com.  The 507 costs about 30 bucks, the 907 (LED) $72.00 plus freight to you.  To connect just ground the lights base to metal on the machine (the internal light wire connects to the steel mounting base of the 507 or 907), the other wire just connects to the stator connection point on the motor.  I had a Sears MTD model of similar vintage and installed a toggle switch between the light and the engine, otherwise the light is on whenever the engine is running.  good Luck !

JasonnB wrote:

JasonnB wrote:
Jason,
I believe you need to locate the Tecumseh engine model to get the answer you need (not the snowblower model, since the Tecumseh engines are mounted on a variety of different makes of snowblowers).  The engine model info is on a sticker or plate directly on the engine. Once you get that, you can search for any particular info you need.  The following are some sites I found useful:

http://www.outdoordistributors.com/Tecumseh/Tecumsehpartslists.html

http://www.cpdonline.com/692509.pdf

http://www.tecumsehpower.com/CustomerService/BSI.pdf

Hope that helps a bit.