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

I just received this model today and spent quite a while putting it together (mostly due to my own stupidty). However I cannot figure out for the life of me how or where to attach the headlight. The directions in the manual just say to attach it to the bolt on the right side of the dash. But the bolt isn't nearly long enough to hold the headlight on. Most of the pictures I've seen online show the headlight mounted to the front part of the dash not on the side of the frame attached to a bolt. I spent an hour trying to figure this out. If someone could post a picture or explain how to attach it I'd be grateful. I feel so stupid, but I see nothing to fasten it to.

All is good. I got the other bracket out from under and attached to the frame. The pictures posted in this thread were life savers.Thanks.

I will share my full frustration with you guys since I sense kindred spirits. Sorry for the lengthy post.

After I wasted 3 hours with the headlight Thursday night I was getting ready to put it away and noticed the metal clamps that sit outside the wheels (and as I know now, are there to keep the wheels on). I looked in the manual to see if these were just used for shipping purposes. Naturally the manual showed no metal clips so, like a dummy, I removed them. Next morning it snows about 4 inches. I fire up the blower and start clearing a path. I realize the remote wheel lock is not working so I'm stuck in one wheel drive mode (more on that later). But I also notice the blower is really hard to control. I do a few more paths and look down and see the wheels are practically coming off the axle!! I panic, turn off the engine and go back in the house to search for the metal clips. Thankfully I didn't toss them. I put one on but the other wheel isn't moving far enough down the axle for me to get the clip on. So I tip it on its side so i can see what's going on. I take the wheel completely off and hear what sounds like something metal hit the pavement. I search for it but can't find it. I thought maybe it was a rock. I manage to get the wheel back on and the clip and get going again however the remote wheel lock still isn't working.

I get to work and call Ariens to ask about the headlight and wheel lock and I also mention that I heard something metal fall out when I took the tire off. The guy tells me about the headlight and says that I have to walk forward a few steps while pressing the lever to get the lock to engage. Sounds reasonable enough. And he says there's nothing in the tire area that could have fallen out.

So this morning I tested his suggestion of walking and engaging the wheel lock and naturally it made no difference. I checked the manual and saw that I might need to adjust the tension on the wheel lock. So I put the machine in the service position and take off the wheels so I can more easily loosen the nuts. As I take off the first wheel I hear something fall out again but this time i see what looks like a very tiny, rectangular metal piece. Not quite sure what it is or where it goes, I just pocket it. I mess with the wheel lock mechanism and see how it works. I experiment with engaging it and seeing if the axle locks together. After a few minutes I seem to have it working. I put the wheels back on and fire it up. I put it in 3rd gear and the blower does not move an inch.

At this point I'm nearly suicidal and furious with rage. I recall the tiny metal piece that fell out of the tire. It dawns on me that this must fit into a groove on the wheen and the axle. I then have a moment of terror realizing that this little metal piece is what I heard fall out yesterday on my driveway. I figure I'm screwed but let me just look out on the driveway. I pop the door and I see the piece sitting right in front of me! Finally, some luck. I take the wheels off and insert the metal pieces in the grooves on the axle and position the tires to line up with the metal pieces. All was good after that. The blower was moving fine and the remote wheel lock worked perfectly.

Call me an idiot, as some of this was self-inflicted but the owners manual for this product was a total disgrace. No picture of the headlight mounted and incorrect pictures of the tires. I would have been better off with no directions. Then I call for help and the guy doesn't mention that there are metal pieces that connect the axle to the wheel. And let add that this is a terrible design. Why not just groove the tires so they lock onto the axle without a miniscule piece of metal that is destined to get lost if you ever take the tire off. Stupid.

Anywhow, so ends my saga. Despite all this nonsense, the unit seems well made and rugged. It's easy to maneuver and has a nice, low center of gravity. I had intended to buy it from a local shop to get it delivered and setup but it snowed the day after xmas and no one has had any blowers in stock since. Hopefully this is the last of my problems. Thanks for the help everyone.

Wow, what a story. Painful and entertaining. If there was such a thing as an intitiation rite to get into the sno-throw fraternity, the most sadistic person couldn't have devised anything more wicked for you to endure. Welcome is all I can say.  Nice machine too!

I felt like my 15 year old Craftsman blower that I was replacing was sabotoging me! I felt doomed to have to bring it to a shop and have it setup properly. I felt like such a jackass. I'm not the handiest guy in the world but I'm not as pathetic as this thread reads. I will say that once it was all working I felt a sense of accomplishment for overcoming horrendous instructions and my own epic stupidity. Now watch, it won't snow any more this season!

So I finally got the headlight installed properly (thanks to you all). I had originally installed it on the outside.  In any event, that doesn't matter because the light doesn't work! I got the blower at HD in October and just used it last week for the first time.

It was AWESOME, btw -- powered through the slush and guck like it was nothing! I had a little trouble with the area at the end of the driveway that the plows packed in, but I think its because I am short & lightweight -- no leverage to puch it down.

I realized (after I used it) that the light didn't work!  Today, I went out, carefully pulled the cord out of the back of the light and pushed it back in...it clicked, so it should work! I don't know what else to do! Do any of you have an idea of what I can do?

Thanks,

Cheryl

cheryl: Start it up and see if the light works. If not, it might just need a new bulb.