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

I have a Honda 13-hp GX390 engine I want to build a monster SnowBlower. What deck should I be looking for that can handle this engine??????

Looks great.

Did you see the guy that repowered the Deere 1032 last year?  Not sure how similar your engine is to the one he used, but this series is worth a look.
http://www.youtube.com/user/31pockets#p/u/56/4YvyMSgQXXI

Bill_H wrote:

Great video series. Well worth watching.

After the inserted picture shows up the curser should be at the lower right of the picture.  If you hit enter the curser will go down a line and to the left margin.  The next inserted picture will go below the first.  Inserting in a row blows the thread out to the right.

It looks like your second picture did not show up.  The http you enter is has to be exactly correct.  Sometimes download software makes the name tag .jpg, jpeg, JPG or JPEG.  The Abbys server is case sensitive so possibly there's a mismatch.

Thank you for the youtube link I did review a few of his videos very informative. I did not want to do what he did I do not have a shop nor do I weld. I basically wanted a plug and play project. This why I looked for a new body I was lucky to find a 2 year old Murray body unfortunately the engine was gone I would have liked the engine for a reference such as the size of the original pulleys. I wanted  to install the same drive pulley and increase the auger pulley by 25% that will spin the auger faster and throw the snow further and faster. I was also lucky where the original belt cover will fit.

The challenges are 1) find out the original size auger pulley 2) buy a bunch of belts and find the proper size. 3) find a way to install a belt tensioner  for the drive belt, it must have been bolt it on the original engine.  4) Raise the Shute crank by ˝”  note it is on top of the engine. 5) test and adjust as required.

I did repower a 24 inch  with a 12 impeller with a 6.5-hp engine the original was a 5-Hp Tec engine and everything was plug and play it took less than 1 hour to complete the job and you would not believe the difference in performance. I think it was the best snowblower for the average size drive-way I regret selling it.

You can estimate the auger pulley size.  3600 x diameter / diameter of bigger pulley.  You were probably around 1200-1400 RPM, but you might be able to find it somewhere.

If you can get some specs off the model and serial numbers, you can probably look up the original part numbers and get the descriptions for belt length and original crank height.

"3) find a way to install a belt tensioner  for the drive belt, it must have been bolt it on the original engine."
 From what I've seen, the drive belt idler (tensioner) pulley is mounted on the body of the blower, not the engine. You should get a copy of the manual/parts list from the manufacturer or on line to see what you are missing. Usually the model/sn are on a tag or plate attached to the rear of the traction section.

Cheers

Up-Date  I completed the bolt down of the engine on the body that was a bit of  a challange. I fully tested the engine and everything is good to go for the next step. I am considering buying the OEM pulley set and the drive ideler. I hate buying OEM stuff they gouge the hell out of us here in Canada. I suggest always try to buy complete snowblower or Lawnmowers with all the parts  the  refference is very valuable and you will not have to hunt for parts.

As I indicated on my other post I repowered a 5-hp with a 6.5-hp engine snowblower and all the parts were a perfect fit. The entire project took 1 hour.

edgenet wrote:
Try going to a bearing supply shop for pulleys.  They might have what you need for a fraction of the cost.  Bring the old one with you for reference.

He said before that he didn't get the old one with the blower.  You could do some math to get the size you need though.

Impeller RPM * Impeller pulley diameter / 3600.

If your target RPM is going to be 1200 and the large pulley on the impeller is 9", then you would get a 3" diameter for the engine.

1200 * 9 / 3600 = 3.

Older blowers were around 1000 rpm and newer ones are around 1200-1300 I believe.