Look A Free Snow Blower

[drivadesl]

Stopped at a coworkers house a couple months back to borrow a fishtape. Saw this old snowblower sitting at the end of his drive, and being the lover of old machines, stopped to look. "Nice machine" I said, to which he replied: "You want it"? Turns out he couldn't get it to start, pulled the spark plug and there it sat. OK not in mint shape, rusty, but can't complain about the price. Its a 6HP Techumseh Snow Throw circa 1972. Pretty heavy, seems well made overall. Tires look OK, and nothing seems missing. Hope to get it running at some point, the electric start cranked her strong, so thats a good sign (NPI). Will start with rebuilding the carb, and tune up, fluid change, and see where that leads. My son is interested in learing more about engines, so this will be a good project for us both. Been looking for one of these for awhile, didn't want to spend a ton, so don't mind putting a few bucks into it if for no other reason than a father-son project.

 

[Tul01]

Great find and good luck, some of my fondest memories are passing my dad tools and learning how stuff works. Looks like he's already planning to keep the driveway clear this winter

Brent

 

[ToadHill]

When my brother and I married and moved out of the house, me in 1966 and my brother in 1968 my dad lost his shovelers so he bought a Ariens blower just like yours. It's now with one of my brothers boys and it still runs just fine.

 

[PILOON]

That's an Ariens 6-24.
Great blower, made from real steel and not tin and uses real bearings (not nylon bushings)
The auger gears are brass and steel and can take a much abuse.
I once re-powered that same unit with a big heavy Wisconsin ACN that simply went chug chug and blew snow clear over to next door.

Being fairly light however you will probably wish to install a set of chains.

Have fun, and good find!

At the very worst you can easily repower with a Chinese 6 hp clone for about $100.

 

[Thomas]

You won't find any plastic on or in that old girl like some models today..good fine.

 

[drivadesl]

Thanks guys. Yup, thats one more reason to like the older machines, the build quality is there. I found a load of info on these machines so expect that parts should still be available. Anyone know where to get the best prices on Tecumseh parts??

Funny about my son, (he's 11 next month,) he told me last week that he wanted to work on the engine, not just hand me the tools while I did the work. Like to hear that, gets them away from the TV and video, and believe me that is not always easy.

 

[bontai_Joe]

Sounds like a great father/son project, and the bonus is the machine is worth the time and effort.

 

[T_e_r_r_y]

If you look down by the left handle bar where it is bolts to the body. There should be a model and serial number. Either a sticker or it is stamped into the metal. Go to ariens.com, enter the model number it will bring up a parts diagram. You can also order both manuals.
As stated before these machines will last loooooong time with proper care and maintance.
Parts are made by a number of after market suppliers. Check the fluid levels,proper air pressure in both tires,other wise it won't track straight. The front auger shaft and gear are pretty costly $135.00 last year for me. Older model 67-68.

Happy motoring with your son, A fun and learning time for all!!

Stay safe T.J.

 

[Gil Case]

I had an old Ariens like this one given to me, I was all set to rebuild it but decided to put the plug in and crank it a few times to see what was wrong with it. Dang thing started on the second pull, so I just cleaned it up a little bit, put some chains from Tractor Supply on it and it has run ever since. Did need a muffler after awhile. Parts are still available. Watch for the shear pins on the auger shaft, there is one on each side. They shear pretty easily, probably why the drive gears last so long.

 

[drivadesl]

I found the model and s/n no problem, so along with that I was quickly able to locate the Ariens site which had the operators and maintenance manual. Also downloaded a complete parts list and technicians manual (from another forum site) for the engine. Man thats nice to have all that info available for free, just like the machine. I haven't tried to start it yet, to busy watching my team scratch their way to the WS. GO YANKS! Anyway, am very psyched to have another project, along with the other 7 that are in some form under way. Hey, if I ever finished with equipment, what would be left???? (family aside...) Great input on this guys, thanks a bunch!

 

[jeep44]

I'm guessing that engine is an HH60 6 hp Tecumseh-A great,heavy-duty,all cast-iron engine. I just rebuilt one on an old TroyBilt tiller this summer-all I had to do,other than cleaning it out real well,was put a new set of points and a condenser on it,and it was sparking strongly. The carb was totally gummed up,and that took the most effort to clean up (especially making sure the small passages were clear). A new head gasket,and I was back in business again. I found another HH60 off another Troybilt at a car swap meet a while back,and I picked that up cheap as a backup-I just hate the idea of putting a crummy Harbor Freight engine on a TroyBilt.

 

[Travelover]

I worked on those in high school. The transmission uses two perpendicular discs, one rubber and one aluminum. You may find that the rubber disc is rotted. If not, just clean the friction surfaces on both discs and make sure the rubber disc is free to slide back and forth on the hex shaft and you are good to go.

Carb bowl has a spring loaded drain with a rubber seal that usually rots out.

 

[drivadesl]

Thats correct Jeep, its an H60. Got a chance tonight to put a new spark plug in it, loosened up the carb linkage, changed the oil, (poured a cap into the cyl) sprayed in some ether, and cranked her over. Darned if she didn't start!! Had gas leaking out the bottom of the carb, and theres a cut in the fuel line, not sure if thats the same problem. Gonna change all the fuel lines, and look into a carb kit. THere was a nest underneath the engine cover, dust and junk spewing all over so didn't want to try to run it. Plus there was no air filter assembly on it. The engine manual, which covers go carts, and everything else shows parts for one, but not clear from what I've got if thats the case. Hey Jeep44 can check what you got on yours? Is it possible they didn't use one for snowblowers? I know my boat engine doesn't have an air filter. Thanks.

 

[jeep44]

Well, as you might expect, my tiller has an air cleaner assembly on it-it needs it in the dusty air it runs in. I don't know if a snowblower would have one or not.It also has a breather hose that runs from the valve cover under the carb/muffler to a fitting in the back plate of the air cleaner. Does your motor have that breather hose? How would you keep snow from getting into the carb and stalling it out? Here is a photo of a tiller very similar to mine-I think it came from another thread in this forum, but it clearly shows the type of aircleaner I have on mine.

 

[jhwentworth]

Is it possible they didn't use one for snowblowers?

Snowblowers typically do not use an air filter. Some of the old machines were fitted with one if the "tractor" portion was intended to power attachments used in the summer when dirt and dust could be a problem.

 

[Travelover]

Snowblowers typically do not use an air filter. Some of the old machines were fitted with one if the "tractor" portion was intended to power attachments used in the summer when dirt and dust could be a problem.

This is correct.

 

[drivadesl]

Thanks for the info! Jhwentwork, you are correct in this case. Theres a sheetmetal cover which goes over the carb, and allows linkages to pass through. It would not accomodate an air cleaner. The cover would keep chunks or even flakes of snow from getting pulled into the carb. As an aside, I stopped in to a local mower shop to pick up the fuel line today. Asked the counter guy about it. His genious reply: "It might have one." I walked out. The new Ariens machines on the floor didn't have an air cleaner, though with all the sheetmetal its not obvious. Now onto cleaning up the mouse nest and replacing the fuel lines..... Thanks again to all...BTW Jeep, nice looking tiller.....

 

[shamnh]

Hey all I think I just took on the same machine. Will find specs today. Looks the same. It was great reading all the post on this machine I was just taking a shot in the dark searching net on "Old Snowblowers" Boom this site and picture came up. Thank Tractorbynet !! Will get back with specs