OT: SNOW Blowers

[I_Automation]

"how do we beat Ariens" as far as I am concerned they haven't yet.

Working on Arien's for years as the service manager of a distributor, and being to their factory at lest 20 times for service schools and events, I can say they might as well drop that idea and just try to make cheap ones.


Also I bought a Rocket rototiller then and that thing still runs great after 40 years and much use. Plus my dad bought a Fairway mower in the 60's that finally fell apart in early 2000.




Maybe if Elon Musk got into outdoor power equipment Arien's might have to worry.

 

[Snyd1]

Another option...

https://www.boringcompany.com/not-a-flamethrower

 

[danw]

NEVER buy a snowblower with a Tecumseh engine (they might be out of business now) whose bowl carburetors need the high speed jet on the bottom of the bowl re-tuned when going uphill versus downhill (obviously my driveway is inclined, northern Illinois weather).



I totally agree with Tom Jenkins: two-stage, and the motor should be 5 hp or greater; and I'd opt for 8HP or greater. Can't ever have too many horses rotating that 2nd stage.

 

[I_Automation]

Can't ever have too many horses rotating that 2nd stage.

Also got to use a 18HP Arein's garden tractor with a 48" snowvlower on the front. If that wasn't so much and I had more walks and drive I would get one. Plus the 48" mower deck cut 3 times faster than a regular rider.
Another nice setup I saw was a 10 foot blower on the front of a back-hoe replacing the bucket. That was a snow and fence blower, and the operator didn't even know he was removing the wood fence.

 

[drbitboy]

My son's SnoJoe stopped working after several years of great service.

We took it apart and I flipped one of the brushes (graphite?) around and got it to work again for a bit. He bought another one, but I think a new set of brushes should give new life to the old one. Some of the screws were shot (Upstate NY = salt).

There were lots of sparks when we hand=started it to get it running, and it ran very weakly.

The worn brush (red, left below) and commutator (blue, right) were like this:

               [COLOR=Blue][B]/
          [COLOR=Red]____[/COLOR]|[/B][/COLOR]
 spring=>[B][COLOR=red] ____\[/COLOR][COLOR=Blue]\[/COLOR][/B]

The angles in that "drawing" are not to scale and far more subtle in the actual motor, of course.

So we flipped one brush around like this

               [COLOR=Blue][B]/
          [COLOR=Red]____[/COLOR]|[/B][/COLOR]
 spring=>[B][COLOR=red] ____/[/COLOR][COLOR=Blue]\[/COLOR][/B]

and the thing took off near full power when we threw the switch!

So I think the problem was inadequate pressure and/or contact surface between brush and commutator.

It died again a few snowfalls later, probably the other brush had the same problem. He replaced it and gave the old one to his brother in-law.

All those years with @OldChemEng mucking about with the fabulous "pancake motors" of Aurora HO slot cars paid off, eh?

[Update: and here it is, just like I remember!]

​

 

[RoTaTech]

I have that model, and it works well if the snow is not too heavy. I used it on my 16 x 20' deck with snow to the top of its auger - it worked well. I used it on the driveway with a wetter snow, and I would push it into the snow, throw about a foot of snow, trip its overload, and then I would back up and do another push. Somewhere I have a picture of it working the deck...