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

Hi,

We recently got an Ariens 520E (939003) and while going through the initial setup process we ran into problems with the belt finger adjustment. There are two belt fingers; one is a shorter stubby that sits "across" the belt and is on the left side (when standing in front of the unit, looking back past the auger at it ). This one adjusts fine. The other is a much longer finger that sits parallel to the belt and is on the right side. This one doesn't seem to adjust properly. When you loosen it, it will swivel but not move completely "out," away from the belt.

The manual calls for at least 1/8 clearance between the fingers and the belt, but the long one will be just barely touching the belt no matter what - like there's no way to really get it off of the belt completely. Does anyone have any ideas as to what's going on here? The bolt that holds the finger and the engine sheave are both stationary, so we can't figure out what to do. The manual calls for running the attachment for 15 minutes and then adjusting the fingers, but we didn't even want to try that because as I said that right finger is basically touching the belt now - just barely, but it's touching. No more of these at the store either, so we couldn't just take it back for exchange. Any help would be greatly, greatly appreciated. I'm in the Chicago area and we're getting pounded as I type this. Thank you.

-Jim

Can the finger be bent slightly to clear the belt?

Hi, borat. Thanks for the reply.

It turns out that even though logic would tell you to not run the belt while it's rubbing the finger, the manual is actually correct - once you get it running, the belt seats and pulls away from the finger and can be adjusted just fine. Thanks again.