Snowblower Experience

[techman]

With the 6" of snow we got in eastern PA yesterday, I was able to really test out the snowblower on my BX22.

The blower works extremely well. Throwing snow 50' is no problem. The electric chute rotate is also a great feature, combined with the vinyl wind cab, makes it a very comfortable job with all controls at your fingertip.

The only problem I had was breaking 3 shear pins. The clearances in the impeller-housing are very tight, and I managed to catch a 1/2" piece of gravel where the paving ends near the main road. When the pin went, you couldn't tell other than the snow stopped blowing, not a beat missed in the engine or a sound made. The good news is that the pins are VERY easy to replace. Right out in front in the open, a one minute job.

The other pin I killed was on the ribbon feeder. Got that one when I grabbed the edge of a brick on the brick sidewalk. It wasn't easy to judge the depth of the lead edge (I need some more time with it) and I caught the brick's leading edge. Again I didn't know it until the snow started piling up on one side. Also a real easy exchange.

I was fortunate that I planned ahead and had purchased several of each shear pin, so I was prepared. I considered extending the skid shoes to minimize the stone ingestion problem, but then my paved area will be not a nice. I just need to find the right height to get it to with the lift when I reach the end of the macadam.

A great tool. A bit of operational fine tuning by the operator and it should be smooth sailing in the future. One other note is that the blower can easily swallow all 22 horsepower from the tractor. Forward speed had to be kept low to keep from lugging the engine. But when you consider that you are moving a 50" wide path, it's easy to see where the power is going.

paul

 

[thefarm]

Shearpins can be a problem until you get the blower adjusted.Mine will do the same thing.I have a rear mounted blower.I can go right along with mine.My BX1800 really likes it.The reason I didn't go with the Kubota blower is I felt it wasn't built as good as the Puma and I didn't like the fact that it wouldn't raise no more than 4 inches off the ground.The wife clears out the driveway when I'm working.I can see her stuck with a front end one.The augar and the second stage and the housing is 1/4 inch.But it is somewhat of a bother to back up all the time.I use regular grade 1/4 inch bolts for my shearpins.I have a dirt driveway and I live on a dirt road.These will break just as quick.Which is good,I've rather repalce a 10 cent bolt,than have a $4-500 repair.I have most of my trouble at the end of the driveway.I drilled out the bolt on the PTO to take a 1/4 bolt.I forgot what size mm it was.Was only a couple mm bigger.American sizes are cheaper to buy for me.

 

[NY_Yankees_Fan]

combined with the vinyl wind cab,

I too went with a 54" Puma 3 pt blower, worked great, but the flying snow is not fun when the wind is blowing in the wrong direction, I can not justify a $2500 Curtis cab yet. Where did you get a cab and how much did it cost?

Thanks

Tom

 

[hwp]

Breaking shear pins is annoying but you didn't break a driveshaft or gearbox. Shear pins are cheap insurance. Using higher grade bolts for shear pins is not a good idea. Gravel is really hard on snowblowers and will result in a number of shear pin failures.

You said that the clearance between your impeller and drum was quite tight - it should be. This is a major factor in determining the efficiency of a snowblower. A wide gap allows a lot of leakage and therefore a lower dishcarge velocity. When I rebuilt my snowblower, I fit the impeller to the drum so that I had 0.020" clearance.

The other factor is the speed of the impeller - keep your engine speed up to get a good throw. When I am clearing snow I run my engine at 2000 rpm and put the pto in low range. This gives me an impeller speed of 1000 rpm and a discharge velocity of about 5200 feet/min.

You have a quite a lot of snowblower for the size of your engine - I'm not surprised you have to slow down. I have a similar situation with my unit which also has a 50" blower and a 24 hp engine.

Heated metal cabs are great but expensive unless they come with your used tractor as mine did. Before I got my current machine, I had a conventional garden tractor, initially wihtout a cab, so I used a snowmobile helment to keep my head dry and warm. That was a reasonable temporary solution but a cab is much better.

 

[art]

Just a few tips on how to make snowblowing a little easier. On the front mounts make sure you are in float on dirt or gravel. You can use the down pressure on the pavement to scrape and you shouldn't have any trouble. On three point units on gravel shorten the top link so you are riding on the heel of the blower which is where the bulk of skid shoes are on the economy blowers. Later on in the season after you have a good base than you can tilt it vertical to cut the base if needed. Always have extra shear pins, they don't break unless you need them.

 

[techman]

Tom:

I did a lot of digging for cabs and found almost everything was way too expensive for what I wanted - a shield from blowing snow.

Finally I stumbled on a plastic/vinyl one from Sears. Just what I wanted. The price was $ 199. Low and behold about 6 weeks ago I was getting ready to buy it and I noticed on the Sears site that it was on sale for $ 119 "while supplies last". I went and got one. Took a few hours and 4 holes to fit it to the Kubota.

I am not sure of the current status. I checked the Sears site and it is still shown. You can check it out. The Sears item is #07124274000

I have attached a picture taken when I fitted it up.

paul

 

[NY_Yankees_Fan]

Techman,

Does it have a back to it, I have a 3pt snowblower so need the protection in the rear. Does it have a door? I see it is back to $199. What did you have to do to get it to fit? Do you think it will fit with the FEL?

Thanks

Tom

 

[snowman]

Ran over what I knew was a bolt that I had lost from the tractor a few nights ago - broke the shear pin in the blower auger. Decided to wait until today (Sat) to fix it since I it was cold and dark and the auger was packed with snow.

Cleaned it out today and found the attached.

Was wedged in there nice and tight. Almost bought myself a grinder last summer to sharpen the mower blades; was forced to go ahead and buy it today. No other way to get this out other than grind it down.

 

[snowman]

picture didn't attach to previous post

 

[snowman]

After I got it out

 

[techman]

Tom:

No back, but perhaps you could mount it "backwards". Each side has a zipper along the top edge and the side will fold open as a door. The bottom edge of the "door" is meant to clip into a supplied bracket that clamps on the pan sheet metal, but the location and fit wouldn't work. Besides it would mess up the finish, so I use a bungy through the eyelet on the vinyl and hook it around the ROPS. No more hassle than the supplied bracket would be.

It will defenitely work with the FEL. I have the right side FEL mount attached for the control valve, and the left would work as well. One other thing is that the BX is wider than the intended Sears "tractor", so the front flap does not seal up 100% with velcro as intended, so there is a small opening gap. But I am 100% satisfied - it keeps 99% of the wind and snow out, easy to mount and the price was right.

I had considered a rear snowblower, but my driveway is 2100' and I couldn't see driving backwards in poor conditions over that length. The Kubota unit was a bit more money, but well worth it.

paul

 

[emery]

Here is another idea for a winter cab. this is the picture and if you search on "winter cab" you will find the thread with more info.
http://www.tractorbynet.com/forumfiles/2-88974-top.JPG

 

[NY_Yankees_Fan]

Any idea what unit you got from http://www.northerntool.com? Does it have a rear window? How do you deal with the snow on the window? Can you see OK? Now that you have used it, what do you think, worth it?

Golf Cart Cover
· Tough cover help keep you dry in wind and rain
· Protects your cart from the weather when stored
· Nylon storage cover with elastic cord sewn in hem fits all carts; comes with storage bag.
· All-weather driving cover fits carts with a roof; has clear vinyl windows, zippered doors and large zippered access in rear for golf bags
· Windshield cover is clear vinyl; fits carts with front roof posts

In Stock
Ship Wt. 5.0 lbs
Item# 45050
Discount Price...$69.99
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Golf Cart Rain Cover
Deluxe Drivable Golf Cart Rain Cover. Best we've seen! Super clear vinyl cover fits over most golf cart rooftops to keep you dry. Zippers allow easy exit and entry. Or you can roll sides up and secure them with snap-straps. Rear zippers give you access to golf clubs. Easy on, easy off cover has adjustable hooked straps and buckles for customized fit. Storage bag.
In Stock
Ship Wt. 9.0 lbs
Item# 450502
Discount Price...$99.99
Sale Price... $89.99

 

[emery]

I got the deluxe cover and the vinyl seems very durable. It is very easy to see through. The rear panel is all clear making it very easy to watch snowblower. Snow does not seem to stick to it. There are zippers on all 4 corners as well as entry zippers in the center of both sides.

I will take some pictures tomorrow and post them later at night.

 

[JimMorrissey]

techman,

I bust about three to four pins each time I blow in early season. I actually have a large bag of grade 5 bolts and keep them with me when I'm blowing. What a pain when they break!....you have to get all greasy; your fingers are frozen solid and it's pitch black out usually. You can't even feel what you're doing after the second or third pin. -It'll get better as the snow packs and the rocks get burried. Spring storms will bring the problem back agian. Not much you can do about. I would shy away from moving from grade 5 to grade 8. Grade 8 bolts are substantially stronger than 5s and you could do some serious damage to your blower. I've been trying to find all the bigger rocks in the fall, but you can't find them all. Somehow the blower seems to find them all though

 

[techman]

Jim:

I'm not sure where the grade 8 suggestion came from, but I have no intention to change to a higher strength bolt and risk more expensive hardware.

I initially bought some bolts from the dealer. The impeller is just a plain grade 5, but the ribbon feeder pins had two notches cut into the bolt corresponding to the inner/outer shafts to facilitate shearing.

I bought a dozen grade 5's to match and put them in the lathe and cut the notches myself. I figured it was a good idea to try to match the OEM part. With a little time, they only cost me 5 cents each.

My experience with the stones is that the first couple of snows are the ones where the loose stones get removed. My old tractor/blower was a single stage unit and between the design and the years of gravel processing (we just paved our road this year, it was stone for 15 years before), it had enough clearance to not mind all but the largest rocks. Now the road is improved, but the blower is more sensitive. I'm sure things will run much more smoothlt next snow, but just in case I have now a bag of pins ready.

paul

 

[jasonf]

I do the exact same thing for shear bolts as you. After seeing that the bolts were going for $2.00 each, I took the original ones out and set them up as models for my lathe. Now I buy the bolts by the box full and spend a few minutes cranking them out. I now have enough to last a lifetime at around 2 cents a piece. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

 

[emery]

here is picture(from rear) of home made cab from golf cart cover. Following posts show frame details

 

[emery]

front roof support for plywood.

 

[emery]

This shows where front frame bolts onto FEL frame.