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lodestonefarm

UHMW base plate for snow thrower

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lodestonefarm

I just got a very nice condition tall chute blower and I'm looking for ways to protect it from my gravel driveway.  I'm thinking about a 6" deep by 1/2" 'board' of UHMW that would span all the way across the bottom of the blower, forward of the scraper blade.   For mounting I was thinking of replacing the existing skid shoes with angle bracket that would allow me to bolt this large strip of UHMW all across the bottom of the auger.  The idea here is to prevent stones from being sucked up into auger.  I'm not worried about 3/4" of snow left behind.  I'm more worried about putting 3 tri-axles loads of 3/4" stone through my blower.  

 

Maybe I could do the same thing with a pieces of 5/4 pressure treated decking.  The idea is the same, lift the blower up a bit and only allow it to throw the snow that's in the auger chamber and not allow it to pull things in.  

 

This is my first blower of any kind so I'm new to this and would like to make it last.  This could be hair-brained and stupid, which is why I'm seeking input before proceeding.  

 

Thanks

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varosd

I used the plastic UHMW as the snow blade edge .  it will wear down of course but worked fine.

my short chute doesnt have the replaceable scraper edge

it should work fine

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Ed Kennell

Not a stupid idea at all.  This is a problem for all of us blower users that have stone roads to clear.   Some have used the lift-a-matic or the hydro lift to float the blower above the stones and some have added larger wheels to the sides of the blower.    I try to float mine above the stones, but it is difficult.  Seems the stones still roll up and get sucked in the blower.

I think your idea of using  the 5/4deck board or even 2" stock with a 45 deg taper cut on the leading edge to help to press the stones down under the board has some merit.

Keep us posted on what you try.

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DennisThornton

I've got many hours behind a 35 hp 74" snow blower and yet I have little advice to offer.  After freeze up I'm ok but remembering back to the first time I used it during a thaw I put half the driveway into both sides of the lawn!  Blower didn't care!  Snow, driveway, mud!  Made no difference!  Oh, I'm better now but now I know when to just quit and push it!  Lord I have made some messes blowing the driveway!  But back to Wheel Horses, I've seen larger skids, much longer skids and larger wheels.  My 2 cents is thinking the long skids would be a great place to start.  Something has to help guide the blower over the drive base yet NOT over or climb up the snow.  Hard sometime for me and I guess even harder for a dumb skid or pair of wheels.  It's so variable!  Sometimes the drive is soft and the snow is hard.  Sometimes the drive is hard and the snow is soft!  How is a poor dumb skid supposed to know?

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shallowwatersailor

I was going to use UHMW for skid shoes last year on my snowthrower but never had the chance. The PO of my snowthrower welded on an additional plate that is wider and I was going to attach the UHMW to the bottom of that. Sorry about the darkness of the photo. Robalon makes their A 150 for the JD tractor snowblower. They are larger than the typical walk-behind skid shoe, and a large price.

 

I'm not sure if I would put a piece in front of the scraper bar. To me it would act like a plow and pile the stone up in front of it. Better to just have the skids riding on the stone.

 

DSCN2923.thumb.JPG.173f4d41ad357c5eb969c

 

robalon-a150bs-oem__84934.1384359515.128

 

 

 

Edited by shallowwatersailor
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JAinVA

I have a gravel drive that is over 650'  long.The ground is not always frozen hard and deep enough to use skids without digging trenchs.I added 8" wheels in place of the skids.

The wheel mounts are slotted so that they can be raised or lowered just like the skids.The default setting keeps the cutting edge 1/2" above gravel and it can go up to 2" higher.

One added benefit of using wheels is that the blower can be rolled around when not attached to the tractor and it moves easier than with skids when blowing snow.I am very pleased with the modification,Luck,JAinVA

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lodestonefarm

@JAinVA-  I like the idea of wheels, both for ease of rolling over the driveway as well as the ease of moving it around.  My problem is that my drive isn't all that even.  It would be possible for the skids or wheel to be riding along the gravel but the middle of the blower about to get a big bite of gravel.  I guess I need to do more the level my driveway before getting serious with the blower.  My driveway is very new- top-coat of gravel just went down this fall- and it's not all that well packed.  Maybe getting another truckload of smaller, angular gravel to smooth over the top.  Until then, I was thinking that a plate across the bottom would force the blower to lift over any mound before that part got scalped by the blower.  

 

I've got some shiplap siding left over from siding my house.  Maybe I could use a piece of that with the bevel end on the leading edge.  The hope there is that the lip would help ride over any stones that were sticking above the rest.  If I can figure out an easy way to attach it to the blower, it would be pretty easy to test.  

 

 

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JAinVA

loadstonefarm,

              I hear ya.The short chute I have came from the State College area of PA.PO must have launched rocks all over with the blower on skids.My concern has been to get

the most snow off the drive .An inch or two is not that big a deal.The wheels on my blowers can be adjusted from 1/2" to over two inches.Uneven surfaces are not a problem.

One of the members here posted a picture of this very mod.I must apologize for forgetting who it was but I'm getting senile.If you want to keep your blower from chucking rocks

I believe some wheels will help.JMHO,Luck,JAinVA

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WNYPCRepair
2 hours ago, JAinVA said:

loadstonefarm,

              I hear ya.The short chute I have came from the State College area of PA.PO must have launched rocks all over with the blower on skids.My concern has been to get

the most snow off the drive .An inch or two is not that big a deal.The wheels on my blowers can be adjusted from 1/2" to over two inches.Uneven surfaces are not a problem.

One of the members here posted a picture of this very mod.I must apologize for forgetting who it was but I'm getting senile.If you want to keep your blower from chucking rocks

I believe some wheels will help.JMHO,Luck,JAinVA

 

 

It may have been Squonk, I am pretty sure he put wheels on his

 

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DennisThornton
14 hours ago, JAinVA said:

I have a gravel drive that is over 650'  long.The ground is not always frozen hard and deep enough to use skids without digging trenchs.I added 8" wheels in place of the skids.

The wheel mounts are slotted so that they can be raised or lowered just like the skids.The default setting keeps the cutting edge 1/2" above gravel and it can go up to 2" higher.

One added benefit of using wheels is that the blower can be rolled around when not attached to the tractor and it moves easier than with skids when blowing snow.I am very pleased with the modification,Luck,JAinVA

I have a 46" 2 stage (heavy!) on my Husqvarna and the PO added quick removable 10-12" overall diameter wheels just so it could be moved around.  Really handy!  I'm wondering if both skids and wheels would be a good team?

 

It's a constant battle that varies with conditions of the snow and the gravel of trying to explain the the blower which to relocate!  Blow snow or gravel?  Often not being aggressive leaves snow that turns into ice or too aggressive that puts the driveway into the lawn!

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Martin

Take it from somebody who constantly is throwing gravel and stones, if you driveway isn't dead smooth, you are fighting a loosing battle. Best idea is to get the blower up as much as possible using the height skids on the sides or like what @shallowwatersailor mentioned. You won't get the driveway cleaned down to the ground level, only you have to decide what you are willing to deal with left over. Keep in mind whatever is left will turn to ice or if you get some warm temps, will turn everything to mush.

You will never get the board across the bottom to work as the blower will float and gradually get raised up as you travel. Or the board is going to scrape and pick up some stones or whatever.

Gravel or stone driveways that aren't constantly maintained and mostly smooth are going to be a pain. Its better once you get a good freeze going, but by looking at your pic with the mud, you are dealing with the same temperature situations as i do every year, get a couple warm days and then some snow, you are going to dig in somewhere.

 

You will unfortunately also tear up that blower some, but they can be fixed. I have a walk behind Ariens Deluxe 24 and a 42" single on my 416-H and both show signs of damage from stones. The Ariens was purchased new and i nearly cried the first time a couple years ago when i dug up my first chunk of gravel......The 42 was rebuilt in a thread i did on here and I see slowly some gravel causing more and more minor damage. I don't really worry about the 42 blower as it was a basket case before rebuilding.....

http://www.wheelhorseforum.com/topic/37692-blower-rebuild/?page=1

 

I don't want to discourage you, the blower is still the best way for big inch snows. I gave both of mine time out this season on the gravel, have a 42 blade on the 416H and use the Ariens for only concrete. The blade deals with the same problems and i slowly see my gravel in piles across the end of the lane where i push all the snow from the driveway. I think the Ariens is only going to do concrete duty from now on, just to keep it looking relatively nice. The 42 will get mounted up for those big snowfalls that were non existent this year.....:(

Edited by Martin

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lodestonefarm

@Martin-

 

I fear you are right about the abuse a blower is bound to take on a gravel drive.  We have just the situation you describe, some nice stretches of cold weather followed by a warm-up where things get soft.  For better or worse, my driveway doesn't freeze very well.  I've got 3-4" of gravel along the whole thing and it drains pretty well so there's nothing there to hold the stones in place and it generally faces south and gets good sun so it can melt/sublimate away even when cold.  When I was plowing this year on the first couple, lighter snows, if the blade would grab and cause the tires to spin, I'd start throwing gravel around with my rear tires because it's not held in/down tightly.  

 

The mud in the shed is absolutely an issue but one I'm just choosing to ignore.  That building is going to be taken down this year and the contents moved into a small building with a floor.  And some day I'll build a garage.  I guess the real solution for a gravel driveway is to pave it.  For that amount of money I can buy or rebuild a lot of snow blowers.  At the moment I'm fearing that first rattling sound when I'm blowing gravel instead of snow.  I suppose, like the first scratch on any new item, it'll get easier after that.  

 

I'm still willing to try getting a board across the front of this blower.  It just needs to be simple to try and simple to remove so that when I've confirmed it doesn't work I can get back to the business of blowing snow (and gravel).  If/when I test it out I'll post my experience.  

 

 

@Martin

Great write-up on the blower repair.  Thanks for linking to it.  I'll have to revisit that in a couple years to get my blower back into shape....

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Ed Kennell

Well I went with the majority and added wheels to my blower today.   I had a pair if wheels and some 1/4 X2" scrap bar.  It only took an hour and only involved drilling  a few 3/8" holes in the bar and the blower side plates.    I blocked it up and set the wheels 1 5/8" off the floor.   Now I need a  test snow.    I consider this a test run. If it appears to work, I may go to wider pneumatic tires if these tend to dig in.  One thing this will provide is a gage.   I can lower the blower till the wheels touch, then use the hydro lift to lift till the blower just starts to raise taking some of the load off the wheels.  We shall see..

IMG_5527.JPG.97cf58f54ceb335845993123dd9

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JAinVA

ekennell,

            Hope you get a chance to test the setup.One thing I sure of is you'll like having the wheels on the blower when it comes time to take it off.I also leave the lift flag

attached to the tractor and tie it to mower lift link.Just figured that one out this season.Don't have to struggle with getting the flag attached anymore.For those of you that do

that already,I'm slow to figure things out sometimes.Luck,JAinVA

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Ed Kennell

Thanks J, good tips,  but my blower stays on the 520.    She's a cold weather only machine.  That heated cab would reach 120F in the summer.

Could get some snow on Thur, but I need at least 4" to see if the wheels work.  I do have a 10'X20' drift that is about 2' deep in the front lawn. It's over grass, no stones, but may give me a clue as to how the blower  wheels will act with regard to steering and lifting up off the wheels

Sounds like I'll be clearing the snow from the front lawn tomorrow.

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JAinVA

One of the reasons I wanted wheels on the blower is to remove snow from other areas of the place.I keep the area under the clothes line blown so mama  is happy and

I keep areas cleaned out from the wood sheds to the house.We don't get as much snow in Va  as you do  up north of us but but every now and then we get hammered.

Let us all know how the wheel thing works for you.JAinVA

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Ed Kennell

Bad news....The wheels did not work on my snow drift.  The snow was so hard the wheels just rode up over the snow and didn't  allow the blower to cut into the snow.

 

Guess I'll have to wait for a new snow....probably next year.

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lodestonefarm
18 minutes ago, ekennell said:

Bad news....The wheels did not work on my snow drift.  The snow was so hard the wheels just rode up over the snow and didn't  allow the blower to cut into the snow.

 

Guess I'll have to wait for a new snow....probably next year.

Thanks for letting us know.  I was warned about that with my 'bar across the bottom" idea.  Maybe in more powdery snow the wheels will work.  I'm going to stop by HD tonight and see about some parts that will allow me to test using a piece of beveled siding across the bottom like a skid plate.  I'll post my experience if/when we get more snow.  

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WHX??
On ‎2‎/‎21‎/‎2016 at 3:02 PM, ekennell said:

I may go to wider pneumatic tires if these tend to dig in. 

Pay back Ed for stealing your grandkid's training wheels for your horse ideas... looks like those were ag tread trainers as well. :ychain:

 

Good posts here.... Have you got pics of your wheel set up @JAinVA I am a newbie to blowing this year and have learned a few things but have a ways to go yet. I blow bouth gravel and blacktop. The blower left too much snow (yah turned to an inch of ice) on blacktop with the skids set down  for gravel and sounded like a cement mixer with the skids set up for black top. Since I like the idea of wheels for ease of moving around I was thinking about wheels on a sliding pin in hole setup where they could be quickly retracted or put down with quick settings in between.

21 hours ago, JAinVA said:

I also leave the lift flag

attached to the tractor and tie it to mower lift link.

 

Now why didn't I think of that?:teasing-dunce:

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squonk

The wheels on the blower go round and round! I had no issues using these wheels. I'm sure there would be some conditions where they aren't ideal but it's better than a tore up blower! 

 

IMG_0015.JPG.caebc8534d865a5e60df777e604

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Martin

I would like to update to the newer style single stage but one of the benefits of the older style that stops me is the ability to adjust height on the fly, just by getting off the tractor and pulling on the lever. I have to clear both gravel and concrete.......

 

 

Edited by Martin
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Ed Kennell

 I'm not giving up on the wheels. Mike. The snow drift I was trying them on was from  Jonas.  And it was too hard.  I just had a thought though :eusa-think: I could probably chop it up with the Mad Max Tiller.  I hope the neighbors aren't watching.

Jim, a picture of my wheel set up is above in post # 13.    I also thought about making a retractable wheel set up and I will probably do that eventually, but I just stuck these on as a quick easy

fire for effect test. 

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JAinVA

Thanks to SQUONK for reposting the blower shot.That photo caused the light bulb in my head to go off.Thanks again for the inspiration.WHX6,I took a couple of shots today.I can't post those photos from my old computer but as soon as my wife gets back this evening I'll have her send them from her laptop.The adjustment

is done just like the skids.Loosen two nuts and slide the wheel mount up or down and tighten JAinVA,Jim

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Ed Kennell

I had a couple of the short chutes Martin,  with the little retractable steel wheels.  They were convenient  for moving   the blower around, but they did not support my blower in the stones.

Maybe if they had wider wheels or if the stones were really rolled tight and frozen it would have worked.

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Martin

Yeah Ed, it would be better if they were a little wider. My wheels roll smooth with new brass bushings and plenty of lube and seem to keep the blower at the right height fairly consistently. Still, there are times when a wheel will drop in a low area and start throwing gravel. Really have to be on the ball here and not upset the neighbors by throwing gravel in their yard. :hide:

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