abundell

Hey thanks. Sounds like a project for this weekend. Have a Merry Christmas.

I did some work a week or so ago (successfully) refurbishing the brake and replacing belts, and now a new problem has popped up. Engine runs fine and impeller/augers work fine. The tractor drive is temperamental. At first, the machine just wouldn't move even when in gear. I managed to sometimes get it going, but then it would stop for no reason. It was like the drive wheels froze up. So I wiggled it and sorta lifted up the handles when it stopped and dropped it from a few inches. and that got it going. Best way to describe it is to say it was like the drive wheels bound up and then bouncing the machine unstuck them. I leaned the machine up on the box and tried the adjustment in the manual... put it in neutral, and spin the wheels while tightening the adjustment nut and then back it off when it binds. Except that even in neutral, the wheels didn't spin freely. They seemed to bind up after hand turning them a revolution or two. And the wheels never felt smooth turning, kind of luck a cranky wheel bearing feel. Anyway, I tightened the nut and it definitely runs better. What I don't know is if there's something else I ought to do or if the wheels should turn smoothly. I have looked at the owners manual and the service manual and the problem is they basically say to take things apart, check for wear, and replace, blah, blah, blah. But they don't give any troubleshooting or symptoms. Is there any place I can read about troubleshooting/symptoms? I don't want to start tearing things apart if all I have to do is turn an adjustment nut. By the same token, if there's something wrong, I'd like to fix it. Thanks!

David,

Thanks for all the info. I'm planning to do a little grease work over the next few days. FYI... a friend of mine who is a mechanic turned me on to Penray Red Grease 7001. It's great stuff. Comes in an aerosol and sprays on like WD-40 (complete with the little red tube that fits into the nozzle), but after 20 minutes it dries to a non-tacky grease. Great for low and high temps. Great for hard to reach places and any place you need a light coating of grease.

Thanks for all the info David. I ended up doing what I usually do which is before I got your response I grabbed my tools and started taking things apart. Once I got the engine half separated from the blower half, things got more obvious in a hurry. The problem was the brake arm. It was more or less rusted in place. So, I removed it, cleaned it up in Evaporust, and replaced the clevis pin and spring. I figured out the mechanics of how everything worked with the case split. Not sure what happened to the blower belt, but it threw off a few chunks, so it was toast. I replaced the other belt just because I had it apart. So, it's all good now. Started it up and the clutch controls the augers. I suspect it'll also do a better job throwing snow, but that was pretty good already. I figured I could find the belts cheaper, but just didn't know where. And I continued to get hosed on the spring and the clevis pin. $10. Geez. But I love the snowblower and for $50 it's running great. And you're right, I definitely bought it from the right guy.

David, you're killin' me! I bought the snow blower from you last year! I tried calling you this afternoon, but no answer. It is a great machine, and I'm learning more about it every day :-)

Is that brake supposed to hold the sheave in place when the clutch is Out? I can't find an answer in the manual.