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PSA: Adding A Weight Kit And Chains To Snowblower Is Most Excellent

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jonshonda

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I've got an Ariens Platinum 24 snowblower, which is a very nice machine in most regards. What I have never liked about it is the lack or traction in snow and how it likes to ride up when digging into deep stuff like the snowbank left by the city plow. A lingering shoulder injury is aggravated by having to pull up on the handle bars when it starts to ride up on the snow.

I was one the verge of buying a used Honda tracked machine which has settings which forces the housing down into the ground, but decided I didn't want to spend the money, and instead retrofitted this machine with chains and made my own weight kit exactly like the one Ariens sells.

It has completely transformed the machine, and it now performs so much better in every aspect with the exception of the skid shoes sometimes not sliding well on uneven surfaces due to the added weight causing more friction. I am thinking once I wear the metal ones out I will try the delrun version out to see if that helps.

Just thought I would share!
 
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Showkey

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Wausau WI
Most snow blowers need weight in the front housing to stop the ride up or bank climb.

I have placed a tube of sand on the front housing when the need to blow the frozen banks comes up.
 
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Cryptic1911

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Willimantic, CT
I finally ditched our wheeled snowblower and got a honda hss1332atd, which is an absolute tank. Never going back to a wheeled snowblower again
 
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RKA

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I had a tracked 624 or 724 (forget which). I called it the billy goat because it would just crawl up anything that it couldn’t plow through. So I think you did good adding weight to your existing. The smaller Honda’s probably wouldn’t have resolved the issue.

I haven’t caught my Ariens pro riding up over the snow bank as long as I slow it down to an appropriate speed. But it’s been 3 years since we have seen 15”+ of snow in a single storm, so maybe my memory isn’t the best.
 
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J

jonshonda

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Wisconsin
Showkey said:
Most snow blowers need weight in the front housing to stop the ride up or bank climb.

I have placed a tube of sand on the front housing when the need to blow the frozen banks comes up.
Click to expand...

The need to add weight is news to me and most the people I know. Granted, we ain't that bright! :confused:

Cryptic1911 said:
I finally ditched our wheeled snowblower and got a honda hss1332atd, which is an absolute tank. Never going back to a wheeled snowblower again
Click to expand...

Don't tempt me!! I really "want" a 928 or 1332 but just cannot justify it at this time. If I come across a used on off season for the right price I might pull the trigger though. I am a sucker for a good deal!

SweetD said:
I bought the aftermarket skid shoes for my Toro a couple of seasons ago to replace my wimpy OEM skid shoes. Huge difference.

http://snowblowerskids.com

Worth every penny.
Click to expand...

thanks for the link. I will check them out.

RKA said:
I had a tracked 624 or 724 (forget which). I called it the billy goat because it would just crawl up anything that it could plow through. So I think you did good adding weight to your existing. The smaller Honda’s probably wouldn’t have resolved the issue.

I haven’t caught my Ariens pro riding up over the snow bank as long as I slow it down to an appropriate speed. But it’s been 3 years since we have seen 15”+ of snow in a single storm, so maybe my memory isn’t the best.
Click to expand...

Yeah I was looking at the bigger 28 or 32" tracked hondas. With the added weight it actually does a really good job of scraping up the packed snow that has been driven over.
 
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DGersic

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DeKalb, IL
Here’s my version of a weight kit.

bd98ec37877f8f41ca361c068734906a.jpg

It definitely helped stop it from climbing. I’d add another couple of weights if I could.

I used to run chains. I got better tyres than the old ones, and haven’t run chains since.



Sent from my iPad using The Garage Journal mobile app
 

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Packard V8

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Spokane, WA
Yes a photo was very necessary. Since I've never seen weights on top of the auger housing and "Adding A Weight Kit And Chains" was the title, I made the incorrect assumption the weight kit was added to the wheels along with the chains.

Anyway, the photo sparked an idea. Since my Simplicity doesn't ride up, but does need more traction up my steep driveway, I may look for the dumbell weights which would fit inside the wheels.

jack vines
 
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kctyphoon

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Just a word of caution for the tire chains to anyone this may apply to. The first snowblower (I HATE that everyone calls them BLOWERS and not THROWERS) i had was an older 9hp craftsman which was a beast for what it was - but i added tire chains for more traction. What i found after everything melted were a bunch of scratch and scrape marks in some places of my sidewalk where the wheels were spinning trying to push through hard/deep snow.. not to the point of grooves - (which conceivably could happen) but if anyone has a patio / walkway with stamped/stained/colored concrete - i wouldnt do this. I’d also be very careful on asphalt driways.. just something to keep in mind..

Also - i dont know if new machines are still doing this - but some wheeled machines have removable pins that lock the wheels in place on the axle. My craftsman was like this Some of these machines come set where only one tire is a drive wheel, and the other is just set to roll freely. Its suppose to make turning the machine easier. If you find that only one tire is spinning in the snow (pushing the machine) theres is likely a second slot where you can engage that other tire to turn with the axle too. Basically you go from having One wheel drive to Two on a locked axle. Makes a big difference.

What the OP is describing is the EXACT reason why i wound up getting a tracked unit. I even spent money on upgraded skids with flat bottoms that were angled up at both ends for my second wheeled model. (Small 2 stage Troy Bilt) so it would stop slamming into uneven sidewalk, and it just made it even worse. It was like putting skis on the front. The say 3/4” wide bottom skids that were angled up to slide over uneven pavement, would just push the snow down and compact snow under the skids that the machine would just keep riding up. It was essentially making its own ramp to climb. I tried throwing a bag of salt on the front, and the weight just made it harder to turn and spin the machine around. It frustrated the living hell out of me. It got to the point it was less frustrating and felt like less strain to just grab a shovel. I always felt like the augers should spin the opposite way to pull the machine down instead of lifting it up.. Tracked unit eliminated that except in REALLY deep heavy snow, but even still it was never nearly as bad. I even keep mine in my basement, and drive it up a plywood ramp over my concrete stairs going into the yard..
 
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DGersic

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DeKalb, IL
kctyphoon said:
Just a word of caution for the tire chains to anyone this may apply to. The first snowblower (I HATE that everyone calls them BLOWERS and not THROWERS) i had was an older 9hp craftsman which was a beast for what it was - but i added tire chains for more traction. What i found after everything melted were a bunch of scratch and scrape marks in some places of my sidewalk where the wheels were spinning trying to push through hard/deep snow.. not to the point of grooves - (which conceivably could happen) but if anyone has a patio / walkway with stamped/stained/colored concrete - i wouldnt do this. I’d also be very careful on asphalt driways.. just something to keep in mind..

Also - i dont know if new machines are still doing this - but some wheeled machines have removable pins that lock the wheels in place on the axle. My craftsman was like this Some of these machines come set where only one tire is a drive wheel, and the other is just set to roll freely. Its suppose to make turning the machine easier. If you find that only one tire is spinning in the snow (pushing the machine) theres is likely a second slot where you can engage that other tire to turn with the axle too. Basically you go from having One wheel drive to Two on a locked axle. Makes a big difference.

What the OP is describing is the EXACT reason why i wound up getting a tracked unit. I even spent money on upgraded skids with flat bottoms that were angled up at both ends for my second wheeled model. (Small 2 stage Troy Bilt) so it would stop slamming into uneven sidewalk, and it just made it even worse. It was like putting skis on the front. The say 3/4” wide bottom skids that were angled up to slide over uneven pavement, would just push the snow down and compact snow under the skids that the machine would just keep riding up. It was essentially making its own ramp to climb. I tried throwing a bag of salt on the front, and the weight just made it harder to turn and spin the machine around. It frustrated the living hell out of me. It got to the point it was less frustrating and felt like less strain to just grab a shovel. I always felt like the augers should spin the opposite way to pull the machine down instead of lifting it up.. Tracked unit eliminated that except in REALLY deep heavy snow, but even still it was never nearly as bad. I even keep mine in my basement, and drive it up a plywood ramp over my concrete stairs going into the yard..
Click to expand...


Yes, chains will scratch up your concrete. I wasn’t too concerned about that, my driveway is far from perfect anyway.

Adding weight to the front does make turning harder. Not enough that it bothers me. With the way I did it, adding or removing weight until you find a happy point would be easy.




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Badger 13

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Northern Idaho
jonshonda, did you make your weight bar pretty much the same specs as the expensive Ariens one ? How many pounds did it turn out to be, and do you have pictures ?

Thanks

Jim
 
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pbon

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Just buying a quality machine like an Ariens or Simplicity is a huge step up from the craftsman or toro or other cheap big box store blower. They are worth the extra money. Definitely a $3k tracked a Honda is the ultimate, but a $1000 Ariens or Simplicity is a great upgrade from the craftsman or toro type.
 
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J

jonshonda

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Badger 13 said:
jonshonda, did you make your weight bar pretty much the same specs as the expensive Ariens one ? How many pounds did it turn out to be, and do you have pictures ?

Thanks

Jim
Click to expand...

Yes, we have a metal cutting laser at work and just drew it up quick using 1/2" steel cuz that is what we had loaded up and I wanted a quick wknd project. I don't have the exact weight, but I think 3/8" or less would be correct, as mine seemed heaver then 10lbs that Ariens says theirs ways. I don't have pics, but it looks just like the Ariens one. Too much weight IS a bad thing, as they skids have too much weight on them and it will be difficult to overcome the friction on certain uneven surfaces which will then cause the machine to buck left to right.

pbon said:
Just buying a quality machine like an Ariens or Simplicity is a huge step up from the craftsman or toro or other cheap big box store blower. They are worth the extra money. Definitely a $3k tracked a Honda is the ultimate, but a $1000 Ariens or Simplicity is a great upgrade from the craftsman or toro type.
Click to expand...

Having owned the Ariens Compact 24 and currently owning the Platinum 24, I would say the Compact 24 isn't much better then the cheaper ones on the market. But the deluxe/platinum models really are on a different level then the Compact models. Even though both models are 24" the platinum is a beast compared to the Compact. Platinum is more then a name and fancy hand warmers!!
 
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