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Thread: 19 year snow blower dead - I don't think anything new will last as long

  1. #16
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    Quote Originally Posted by Brian Elfert View Post
    I have looked all over online for the part and no go yet. MTD has the part list with a Buy Now button, but clicking the button says not available. I think I might be able to replace with a flange bearing. The question is how much time and money do I spend on something 19 years old? What if something else breaks that is definitely not fixable?

    $800 in 2000 is only $1,200 today. I don’t know for sure that I even spent $800 on it.
    Brian

    Everything is "fixable". Just a matter of time, skill and money, but no worries, I understand exactly what you mean.
    175' of driveway is a lot of area to deal with. I think if possible you should bite the bullet and buy a new one.
    We use the Honda's at work pretty much exclusively, and they seem to be holding up well. I'll never buy another Honda product personally, but there machines are nice.
    Ariens would be my next choice,but not the models from Home Depot and Lowes. Go to an actual Ariens dealer.
    I have the Cub Cadet 3 stage, and it's nice, but it only truly shines in deep snow. In snow up to 4" that first impeller isn't doing much. Get 6"+ and now that impeller has something to do.
    First thing to go will probably be fuel system related. Carburetors are plastic bodied these days, and rebuild kits are kind of a thing of the past. It's become a throw away part for the most part.
    I also have an old Troy-Bilt, 5HP, from the late 80's, so I do know which part(s) you're looking for. You might try eBay, or the snowblowers.com website. Might be able to source a used part.
    "The first thing you need to know, will likely be the last thing you learn." (Unknown)

  2. #17
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    Quote Originally Posted by Frederick Skelly View Post
    Neat video Bill!

    Best i could find. The snow is not that deep.
    Bill D

  3. #18
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    Quote Originally Posted by Barry McFadden View Post
    Just curious as to why you put 2 identical posts up.... one at 10:34 pm and one at 10:47 pm?
    I certainly didn't do it intentionally.

  4. #19
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    I lucked out and found the part in stock somewhere. I called Small Engine Parts Warehouse (sepw.com) and they said they deal with a company that stocks obsolete parts. This company has the part and with any luck I will have it this week. I have purchased a few parts from SEPW and have a package arriving from them today in fact. I attached a picture of the part.

    Simplicity was one of the brands I was planning to look at tonight before I found the part. I doubt the Ariens models are any different between power equipment dealers and big box stores, but I would have to look at the model numbers between the two.

    I thought about having the part made if I couldn't find one, but I don't know where to go for this plus the cost wouldn't be cheap. I kinda figured the time and expense wouldn't be worth it.
    Attached Images Attached Images

  5. #20
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    I doubt the Ariens models are any different between power equipment dealers and big box stores, but I would have to look at the model numbers between the two.
    A manufacture has to do something to cut the costs for the big box stores. Many products are 'cost reduced' to meet the demands of mass marketers.

    jtk
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
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  6. #21
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jim Koepke View Post
    A manufacture has to do something to cut the costs for the big box stores. Many products are 'cost reduced' to meet the demands of mass marketers.
    With the volume of snow blowers sold at big box stores I bet the same 'cost reduced' models are also sold at power equipment dealers. There are certainly products sold only at big box stores that are less well built than the products sold elsewhere. I bought a Moen faucet at Menards for one of my bathrooms and asked the contractor remodeling the other bathroom if he could get the same fixtures for that bathroom. The plumber said that product line was big box only and not available from his wholesale suppliers. I recall I ended up buying the fixtures at Menards myself. The fixtures haven't had any issues in five years now, but they should last far longer than five years,

  7. #22
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    Glad you found the part!

  8. #23
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    Quote Originally Posted by Brian Elfert View Post
    My 19 year old Troy-Bilt snow blower is dead. A bearing support for the auger broke and no longer available. This was one of the last units made before Gardenway went bankrupt. This is not an MTD. This thing is a tank. It broke a few years back and the hardware store I bought it from said to spend $500 on repairs instead of a new one as it is made better than today's units. (It did not cost $500 to fix that time.) The engine starts on the first pull every time.

    I'm not happy that it is dead simply due to a $30 or $40 part.

    I think the only snow blower that will last as long is the Honda and I don't want to spend $2,000 on a snow blower. I think I spent at most $800 on mine in December 2000. The bad part is it is supposed to snow overnight and I have no way to remove the snow from my 175 foot driveway other than a shovel. Ariens would probably be my choice today, but they still have a Chinese engine. I have a feeling the engine will be the first thing to go.
    First off, a 175' drive calls for a plow truck. Second choice would be a big honking snow blower. A drive that long amounts to almost 3/4 of a mile of clearing path for a 24" blower. Unless I was retired and loved cold weather, I'd be looking at at least a 30" two stage, and perhaps a small tractor with a blower accessory. But I digress.....

    I bought a 24" MTD for under $400 in '96 and it lasted 20 years. The recoil starter on broke during a big storm and I had to buy the replacement over a weekend. I bought a new 24" Troy Bilt by MTD in 2016 (under $600) and it's been flawless. Starts first pull, handles deep drifts, and has electric start if I need it. I live in a lake effect snow zone so it gets a workout. Living in the great white North, your mileage may vary. You might need a bigger version. Is there offshore content? Yup. My point is, it's a robustly built blower with a good engine. I wouldn't fret about an MDT built blower. I sold the old one on Craigslist for $200 and I'm guessing the other guy will get another 10 years out of it.
    Sharp solves all manner of problems.

  9. #24
    As to the video Bill posted up- notice right in the middle of the video that behemouth snowblower, like every other snowblower, started pushing the snow instead of blowing it, and had to stop-

    ...guess the operator forgot the silicone spray, ay?
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  10. #25
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    Quote Originally Posted by Brian Elfert View Post
    175 foot driveway
    A 500 cc quad with a 48" blade.

    I have a 3 car garage that's actually about as wide as a 4 car, a shop that's as big as a 4 car garage with an apron in front of it, and about 75 feet or so of driveway. Plus I'm on a corner so I get to clear the sidewalks on two sides of the house. And my two neighbors are even older than I am so I often end up going all the way down the block. I have a quad with a blade AND a 30" Ariens (from the power equipment dealer).

  11. #26
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    The first 110 feet of my driveway is only 12 feet wide so that portion only takes three trips up and back with a 24" snow blower. The remaining portion of the driveway widens out as wide as 30 to 40 feet. It isn't great to do with a 24" snow blower, but I can't afford nor do I have room for a quad with plow or similar.

    The reality is I have a great big 48" snow blower attachment that weighs 450 pounds sitting in my garage on blocks. It attaches to my Toro Grouondsmaster 228-D riding mower. The mower is currently down with a hydraulic cylinder issue. It wasn't lifting properly on one side so I took the cylinder to a hydraulic shop and they said it was broken and they fixed it. It still doesn't lift all the way and not sure if the cylinder is broken or if it just has air in the lines. I am currently removing the fuel tank so I can get to the cylinder, but it is going to be too cold to work in the garage for a while as it is only 15 degrees now and getting colder.

  12. #27
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dave Lehnert View Post
    I am not as far north of you (Cincinnati) But I have a Toro electric and love it. Had it for about 10 years.
    Mine lasted 14 years, and actually was still running when I retired it last year. It was starting to lay down, not blowing the snow as far. I had gotten tired of the cord management aspect of using an electric blower, and there was something also about the height of the chute direction handle that aggravated my back. So I moved over to a single stage gas powered Cub with really nice chute controls. The performance difference was incredible.
    Brian

    "Any intelligent fool can make things bigger or more complicated...it takes a touch of genius and a lot of courage to move in the opposite direction." - E.F. Schumacher

  13. #28
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    Sep 2009
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    I have 2 drives that I blow one is 150 feet and the other is 175 feet I also blew out my neighbors 200 foot drive when he lived there. I have had my Yardman snowblower for over 20 years and it is still going strong I do live in the secondary snow belt

  14. #29
    Glad you found the part Brian. I’ve got some “old iron” Gravely stuff back in Connecticut that I found over the years. I collected a few of these machines out of nostalgia because that’s what my dad had when I was knee high. OSHA be dammed, you can’t kill a “dog eater “ snow thrower. Not my picture, but I’ve got both models shown here plus their latest 2 wheel before they discontinued (bought out by Ariens) that can still run. Convertible L-8 and a comm10/12
    3D9F328C-0612-4D76-949B-6E1F849DE203.jpg

  15. #30
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    Quote Originally Posted by Steve Fish View Post
    ... OSHA be dammed, you can’t kill a “dog eater “ snow thrower. ..
    My dad had a Gravely and one of those dog eater snow blowers. Never heard them called that before, but it fits. During high school (50's) I used to earn $2 each plowing the neighbors driveways during some mean Syracuse winters. That thing could eat some snow. Mowed lawns during the summer with a big old front mounted mower unit on the Gravely too. It was a beast. I think the closest thing you can find today are the Italian made BCS machines, which are like the Mercedes of two wheeled garden tractors. Love to have one of them for my garden.

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