Location: wisconsin
Joined: Dec 16, 2005
Points: 155
ariens 8 hp 924 Original Message Dec 26, 2013 8:58 am
split my snowthrower last fall and installed two new drive belts getting it ready for winter. had a chance to use it a couple of times in light snow and a 6" + snowstorm that hit on the 23 rd right before xmas. snow blower is stored in an unheated garage and the last couple of times I got it fired up to use upon engaging the auger drive I get a light squeal and it really drags the engine rpm's down. after a couple of attempts easing into engaging the drive it finally frees up and every thing seems ok. while operating the snowblower I do however notice it engages like it's picking up a heavy than normal load even trying to engage the lever slow and easy . im pretty sure there is grease in the differential and when I put the belts on last summer the idle pulley bearings seemed to be ok. I thought maybe it was ice built up between the auger shafts and differential housing that had frozen. anything else it could be besides differential , idle pulley freezing up or bad bearing idle pulley bearing? first instinct was the new belt and pulleys being dry and clean were causing the abrupt lockup during auger lever engagement but now I'm not so sure? am I missing something on the auger drive that could be going bad I could check?
Location: St. Paul, Minnesota
Joined: Dec 5, 2010
Points: 622
Re: ariens 8 hp 924 Reply #1 Dec 26, 2013 9:29 am
<> Sometimes the idle pulley bearings may not show any issues when you spin with your fingers, however under the load or at higher RPM this assumption may not be true. I would replace the idle pulley bearings at the least.
Location: wisconsin
Joined: Dec 16, 2005
Points: 155
Re: ariens 8 hp 924 Reply #2 Dec 26, 2013 10:35 am
I took the pulley cover off and removed the auger drive idle pulley and everything seems to be ok with the idle pulley. upon further inspection I do have some up and down movement with the auger drive pulley shaft and auger drive bearing at the very back of the auger housing. also with the new belt the auger idle pulley adjusted to the end of it's tight limit the belt seems to be too loose. it jumps or bucks some when the auger drive is engaged with the engine running. these symptoms along with what sounds like the impeller dragging against the housing at low engine speed and an increase in vibration leads me to beleave the impeller bearing is bad. how big a job is it to replace the impeller rear driveshaft bearing?
Location: St. Paul, Minnesota
Joined: Dec 5, 2010
Points: 622
Re: ariens 8 hp 924 Reply #3 Dec 26, 2013 11:01 am
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xoHC9Jjt4cc http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Im5pU1yMiYQ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTxHyoHq8zc Check out the videos above. Good luck!
Location: Northern Hills of NY
Joined: Aug 25, 2005
Points: 327
Re: ariens 8 hp 924 Reply #4 Dec 26, 2013 11:05 am
Mkd55 Your saying that you are at the end of the belt tightening limit. I have a feeling your belt is not routed the correct way through the idler pulley configuration and that's why you have that much play in your belt. If you put back the true ariens replacement belt you will will not have that much slack ever. Now if you want to change the impeller shaft pulley you will need to do the following. Separate the bucket from the tractor / motor portion, remove auger pulley/sheave from back of bucket, dismount the both sides of the auger bearing setup, and bring the whole auger /impeller shaft out the front of the bucket in one unit leaving you room to remove and replace the impeller shaft bearing. Going back to your belt issue for a moment I forgot to mention there are also belt guides/fingers involved, so make sure your on the correct side of the belt guide /fingers.
Location: Michigan - 3 hours north of Chicago on the lake
Joined: Feb 10, 2010
Points: 539
Re: ariens 8 hp 924 Reply #5 Dec 26, 2013 8:54 pm
mkd55 wrote:
a light squeal and it really drags the engine rpm's down. after a couple of attempts easing into engaging the drive it finally frees up and every thing seems ok ... I do however notice it engages like it's picking up a heavy than normal load even trying to engage the lever slow and easy ---- grease in the differential ... ice built up between the auger shafts and differential housing that had frozen .... idle pulley freezing up or bad bearing idle pulley bearing ... abrupt lockup during auger lever engagement
Where to start? There may be two things going on here. A bad tension pulley wouldn't cause the other symptoms you've described. When tension pulley goes bad they normally just get really loose and wobbly. I've never seen, or heard of one that locked up. Even if it did, you'd probably just notice a burning rubber smell maybe a little smoke and the bearing making bad noises before it seized.
To me the loose belt is the first big clue. If you just put on a new auger drive belt and the tension pulley is maxed out on it's adjustment. And the belt still has enough slack to jump up and down. That isn't right. With a new belt you should have to back the pulley off because the new belt is smaller than the old stretched out one. So either the belt is the wrong size OR.
My first guess would be that the impeller shaft bearing is so worn out the that the shaft and pulley are not being held in a stationary position. Your getting slack in the belt because the impeller shaft and pulley are being pulled upwards by the belt tension. The bearing is partially seized or the ball bearings are no longer round. From rust pitting and lack of lubrication. That could cause a vibration and would also explain why the load on the engine. The bearing is so loose that it is no longer spinning in an even manner. The inner race is not being held in the center of the bearing. The ball bearing are rust pitted, dry and out of shape. The bearing could at times be trying to or actually spinning on the impeller shaft. Then once the bearing itself gets spinning (higher rpm) it may appear okay for a time. (Centrifugal force evens out the bearings a little but the inner race and shaft are still loose). Have no idea how old of a blower we're taking about here. So the seals may have gone bad and allowed water to enter the bearing. Which is the beginning of the end for the bearing. Also if the shaft and pulley are moving it can throw the belt alignment off just enough to cause belt wear issues. I would for sure pull the blower housing off again. And check things out. If it is a bad impeller bearing. You can do some serious damage to the impeller shaft if the bearing is spinning on it. Not the mention the possibility of welding it to the shaft. That you do not want to have happen. I wouldn't use it again until you have looked at it. This is all just a guess of what the problem might be.
Location: wisconsin
Joined: Dec 16, 2005
Points: 155
Re: ariens 8 hp 924 Reply #6 Dec 26, 2013 9:01 pm
hirsh thanks for your response! I beleave the slack in the belt is there because of the play in the impeller bearing, I took the whole blower into a shop today for a second opinion and one impeller blade was hitting some frozen ice at the bottom of the bucket. the slower the rpm the more noticeable the clanking noise. while he was looking at it he found about 45 degrees of rotational play on the shaft that drives the gearbox and also quite a bit of in and out play. quite possible the impeller is drifting in and out hitting the back side of the impeller housing. I don't have the place to work inside that is heated and can't lay the snowblower up to do the work. the alternative is a week or more in a dealer to get repaired. based on my situation I decided to buy a 28"ariens 921030 that was on sale for $999.00 plus the tax. I will try and sell my 924 to get whatever I can get back out of it. the engine run's like a champ and starts first pull usually, the machine still looks good for 27 yrs old and worth fixing if you can do the labor to repair it. to get it running like new would take a new gearbox and shafts and the impeller shaft rear bearing. I'm guessing $300 just for parts if everything went well. I'm not going to fix it but sell it as is. thanks again for your response.
