2816 Snowblower - Advice Needed please

[blueoval78]

Hi everyone, my 2816 front mount snowblower has just had the gearbox worm gear roll pin failure. Luckily my gears were spared but the case did get buzz sawed a little while the pin was falling out. I’ve inserted the replacement roll pin but am wondering if I should safety wire it to prevent further issues? My experience is roll pins don’t usually pop out but I see I’m not the only one to have experienced this failure which leaves me wondering if it’s a design issue or manufacturing defect. Looking to get a second opinion before putting it back together please. I really don’t feel like taking it all apart again in the future!

Thanks

 

[JWR]

I'm not your experienced help on this issue but will offer a comment: It would help a lot to know how the failure occurred. Do you know if the roll pin had worked it's way loose or partly out of place before this happened? Over a long period or rapidly? I think you would be safe to put it all back together, inspecting it well as you do. Then try using it with frequent inspection of the split pin. If you keep a close eye on it for several hours of usage you will soon know if it is quickly working it's way loose or has not budged at all. I'm like you, roll pins do not just normally pop out. I'd look carefully about the possibility of an undersized pin, a hairline crack in the metal surrounding the pin, etc. I do not think you should have to wire a roll pin in place. If you did, something else is wrong.

 

[blueoval78]

Thanks for the response. I’m not sure what happened to be honest. I bought the unit brand new in 2020 and have always done my maintenance per the book. (I have OCD). I’ve never carefully examined the pin so not sure how original install condition was or if it’s slowly been working its way out. A few weeks ago I started cleaning the driveway in soft fluffy snow, heard a scraping sound and my brother said the fan was turning but not the augers. I thought it was shear pins but long story short, figured out that the roll pin had fallen out inside the case. I googled the issue and found others have had the same failure as me so that’s why I’m wondering if it was a “COVID era” mis-assembly or design issue. I think I’ll put it back together without safety wire and as you suggested, check it periodically with a bore scope to see if it’s coming out.