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

Hi all,

Using rear shoes on the auger housing one of the rear studs broke off.

These are not pass through bolts and look like they are a place with two welded studs on the plate.

Will the plate and studs knock out?

If so, I can replace them with just regular bolts/washer/nuts
Or, is there a source for those dual stud plates. Dealership says he thinks they were considered part of the housing and there is no part #/

thanks,

I've had this same thing happened to one my welded studs on the HS1132.  It is a design I don't agree is a good one.  It is destined to be broken off in time.

The welded studs are hardened steel and are difficult to take off.  You can try to drill them out and put in a regular pass through bolt with a hex head on the other side.  I haven't tried this but I suspect it will eat drill bits and will be frustrating to keep the bit centered as it will wander off the studs.  I don't recommend this method.  If in the future you plan to restore the bucket and have to take off the auger, that would be a good time to drill out those pesky welded studs.  You can fashion some kind of drill guide to keep the bit from wandering.  Otherwise, it is awkward to work with as is.

One option is to take off the rear skids completely.  Buy Honda commercial skids shoes.  They are designed to mount to the side of the bucket.  It comes with all the hardware and a metal backing plate to take up the space between the metal indentation and the skid shoes.  You will need to drill four holes through your bucket.  After that, the skid shoes just bolt on like any other skid shoes.  I didn't use the included screws and bolts.  Instead, I bought slighter longer bolts and use two nuts per bolts.  These were all stainless steel.  These will not be as tough as the hardware included, but they don't corrode as easily.

The only thing I am not sure if the Honda commercial skid shoes are compatible with the older HS828.  But they will fit the the HS928.  You may have to check if the HS828 has the same side plate geometry and indents as the newer HS928.

Thanks.

Got tired of trying to figure it out and did not want to try drilling out what appeared to be hardened steel.
And I have limited time this week before the weekend and another potential storm.

A previous owner apparently had put on side shoes, so the holes were there and no welded nuts.
So, I bought the commercial side ride shoes and will go with that.

Play with the blade spacing a little but since the driveway is not smooth and I should be good to go for the next storm.
I did a quick pass and it makes the auger head seem like it is flexing a lot less, which should give me more consistent blade height over the unevenness.

Thanks for the fast feedback.
Glad to see it is/was in line with the direction I went.

BHShaman wrote:
The instructions for the commercial side skids should clarify the correct holes to use.  Do not use the existing welded nuts.

The holes that the side skids mount to are in the depression.  Therefore, a spacer steel plate will need to be used.  This will actually reinforce the mounting holes so you won't tear them out.

I've been using the side skid shoes for several years and prefer it over the rear skids.  The bucket is more planted and doesn't wobble as much.

There's another option for side skids shoes.  They are UHMWPE, essentially heavy plastic shoes from Robalon.   They are CNC machined and are an exact fit to the Honda.  They glide nicely over brick pavers.   I currently use this kind of skid shoes.  No rust spots on the floor.

http://www.sepw.com/detail.aspx?ID=5054641

Just my .02 cents here. I would prime and paint the newly drilled holes as it is destined to rust and destroy that bucket in time.