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

So I have a new Ariens, the chute swings 200 degrees pretty swiftly, though I wish the handle was behind the handlebars....And I wish it had a remote hood to change the distance the snow is thrown.
Has anyone modified their blower like this? Ariens simply said 'not an option on yours' which I new since it lacked mounting points etc etc. 
They never replied to my inquiry about simply buying the hardware from a higher model and I would then mount some tabs myself...
On a machine this size its a shame, since reaching the chute is kinda hard over the bars, and well when your blowin' you dont want to step in the snow to get around to it....
If I wanted remote Chute I would have had to get one size bigger machine, spend a few hundred more etc etc...
Anyone play around with a mod like this?
Tony

PS I saw a $1500 Toro with a 'joystick' that controlled both motions with one joystick-like handle, pretty trick!

I have added a chute rotator by using a 12 volt cordless drill and am in the process of adding a car wiper motor to control the chute extension angle to my old 5-24 MTD. My plan is to run both from a 6 volt battery (rotation speeds are slower) and a joystick commonly used for arcade games. Waiting for the joystick to arrive (ebay). Will add some photos & movie (if I can figure out how) as I complete the project over the next couple of weeks.

Cheers

I've never done it but I have a vague memory of someone using a bicycle gear shift lever and cable for something like this. I'm assuming you are talking about the deflector and not the rotator.

Yes, the deflector.
Thanks for the ideas so far!
JSG