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

Looks like this can be done pretty inexpensively....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Jrh4ohiF8Q

This would be an awesome mod!

I'm looking into this right now. I have a Cub Cadet 930. I'm going to see how much torque it takes to rotate the hand crank. I've used it but never paid much mind to to how hard it was to turn.
I have a couple of electric screwdrivers I can try. I've also searched the internet for gearmotors but didn't find what I wanted right away. I'm sure I can find something. This weekend I'm going to take measurements of how hard the crank is to turn and how fast is acceptable. I'm also going to glue a magnet to the chute and use hall effect sensors to limit the chute rotation so it doesn't dead-end with the motor on. The electronics are simple.

I did a little fiddling over the weekend.
I tested a black&decker PD600 (6V, 2 speed, cordless drill/driver) it runs at 180/600 RPM and 80/40 in-lb. I also tried a 12V variable speed black&decker drill driver (XD1200K). it runs at up to 700RPM and 105 in-lb of torque.
At full speed, the 12V driver was too damned fast. The 6V driver works on either speed. The 180 RPM is a bit slow, but the higher speed is quick but not too fast. It's hard to believe it's 600 RPM, since the 12V model at 700 RPM is crazy fast.
But it works fine. I'll experiment with the 180 RPM setting at a higher voltage and see what the results are. I like the idea of having more torque for when the chute sticks a little.
I was able to make a hex adapter by using a short hex extension and drilling a hole through the end for the cotter pin of the existing universal joint. No permanent changes to the blower are necessary. For the final version I'm going to get a long extension so the motor can be mounted back further.
I'll work on a mount for the driver motor. Stepping the 12V blower voltage down to 6V for the driver presents several possibilities. I just need to make sure it's as water/splash proof as possible.

In general a gearmotor with ~300-500 RPM and 60-100 in-lb of torque will do the job on my machine. Other machines will be different since the chute control mechanism is different.

Cool. Anyone else?

Yeah kinda cool but I would keep it simple as possible. Seems to ask for problems. And the one in the video is WaYYYYYY to fast to be usefull.  I've head here that wiper motors work pretty good with lots of power.

":^)

JimmyM, I'd like to see some schematics showing how you hook up the hall-effects sensors. I was thinking of using some micro switches, but they would be more prone to failure that Hall-effect I think.

Cheers

When I have some more time I'll do a little experimenting and publish the results/schematics. I have a bunch of other projects going at the moment and precious little time.

I have installed both an electric chute rotator and deflector on my blower. I am using power seat screw motors from the junk yard. They work great and are fairly easy to adapt. I have a small / short joystick that controls them both. It's mounted to the hand grip on the right side. The motors are powered by one 12v electric scooter battery. I am still amazed at how long the battery has gone without needing a charge. I live in Michigan and I've gone for three months worth of snow blowing. I finally charged it just so as not to run it down.

How about a video or some pictures, I'd appreciate seeing your handiwork.

Cheers

Trying to figure out how to post photos so they show up, and not the links. Don't have, or see the insert/edit image button. http://www.flickr.com/photos/foranyone/4412728582/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/foranyone/4412728348/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/foranyone/4412728190/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/foranyone/4411959469/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/foranyone/4412727788/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/foranyone/4412727526/

I've put 12v electric screw motors on my Ariens 1032 to control both the chute rotation and the chute deflector. They both work really well, and for me they same a lot of time. I clear a few city sidewalks so I have to be careful where I blow the snow. So I'm constantly changing the chute direction and throw distance. For anyone who's interested I shot a short video of the set up and posted it on Utube. http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=jrpesky#p/u/0/qwbfkLuhdhw