Ariens 24 Deluxe Upgrades

[nerd86]

So last year I purchased a Ariens 24 Deluxe. It does the job until I get to the end of the driveway (live on a state plowed road). The snowblower for the most part will ride up the snow. This leaves me muscling the snowblower in effort to pivot more weight to the front. This never turns out well.

My mitigation for the situation right now is to snowblower the rest of the driveway, then for the end of it I will start in a high gear about 10 feet away to gain some inertia and I will cut into the mound until I lose forward motion and begin to spin, or it begins to ride up the mound again. I then back out and repeat the process until I have created a full path through the mound. Once I have a path through the mound I will then go into it at half bucket widths as this seams to allow me to actually make it through in one pass..or at least less paths than the initial "bust through".

I am sure some of this sounds all too familure?

Anyway, I ordered the Ariens weight kit for the front. I actually ordered (2) of the plates as I was told it can clear two of them with the given hardware.

I also am about to order 16x5 chains for the tires.

I did use the search function but I really couldn't find anything that really answered what I am specifically asking, so here I am posting.

1.) Should the weight kit and chains make a pretty good difference in getting through the end of the driveway without riding up the mounds?

2.) I have the plates already, but have NOT ordered chains yet. Was about to tonight unless they are not worth it?

At this stage of my life I am all about spending the money if it is quality and is going to make my life less stressful. My days of smashing my knuckles turning wrenches out in 25 degree weather is something of my past. I just want a solution that is going to work aside from hiring a plow guy.

I even have looked at the notorious tracked Honda HS1332 but have read mixed feedback. Have read a lot of "unless you have a steep grade it is not worth it".

My driveway is about 50 feet level grade.

Any feedback is appreciated.

By the way, incase it helps knowing...I live in Northeast....and when I say that...I mean north of Boston. Wish I could tell you how much snow I get a year but the last decade has been an inconsistent **** show. It can rain one week and blizzard the next.

Cheers.

 

[Jersey Drew]

Pull the pile down into workable sections with a shovel. You don’t have to throw the snow just chop at it in a downward pulling motion.

 

[American Locomotive]

The weight will help a ton with it riding up the snow. The chains will help it dig in and keep going - especially if your driveway starts to get packed down.

 

[Den69rs96]

When I get to the huge pile at the end of my driveway, it’s always heavy and towers over my snowblower due to the steep banks on the side of my driveway. Once the snow is above the housing of the snow blower as I get closer to the end of my driveway, I actually push down on the handles so it rides over the snow. I use speed 1 as I don’t want to put a huge strain on the engine and belts. I go couple feet into the pile and then reverse out. Then I clear down to the pavement where I just did. I keep doing this until I’m on the street. Once I’m on the street I do half passes horizontally across the end of my driveway. At that point I don’t care if the snow falls over the top of the housing as I’ll clean it up on the next couple passes. I’ve never felt the need for extra weight or the drift cutters. I currently have a Ariens deluxe 28 sho. Before this I had a Ariens 24 classic deluxe. I did the same thing for both.

I live just over the border in MA off 84. We are in the snow belt as pretty much every storm hits us. We always get the max totals for Worcester county.

 

[Badger 13]

I agree with Den69rs96 said. I have owned Ariens snowblowers for over 30 years and never felt the need for added weight. I did have chains on a couple of older models but really don't feel the need for them with better designed tires. I also have the Pro model with the larger engine which makes a difference as well. Just use you lowest forward speed and and just slowing work into until you have the full opening. You really don't need a track machine for what your doing.

 

[greg13]

...And that is the beauty of the Toro Powershift. You kick the wheels back 10" and the weight shifts to the front of the blower, You can chew your way through about anything. I am surprised more manufactures never picked up on the design. They were an expensive blower with an all gear transmission but built like a tank, I have 3 of them. Wheel shift about 4 min. in.

 

[jonshonda]

Agreed! Makes a huge difference on the performance of the machine. It turned a great Ariens Platinum 24 into a little pitbul.

https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=441747

 

[bas157]

That weight kit, is it really just a $55 piece of metal, painted orange and some bolts/washers/nuts? Looks super easy to make for way cheaper!

 

[nerd86]

That weight kit, is it really just a $55 piece of metal, painted orange and some bolts/washers/nuts? Looks super easy to make for way cheaper!

Yep and my time is also worth money.

More than the 90-100 I spent on the (2) kits.

 

[Schurkey]

The part I don't understand:

The reason the front of the blower rides up on the packed snow is because the friggin' auger spins the wrong direction. The front of the auger is coming down on the hardpack, which lifts the front of the machine.

If the auger spun the other direction, while still pushing the snow towards the center so as to feed the second-stage impeller, the harder the snowpack, the more the front would dig under instead of trying to ride over.

Clearly my idea can't work or someone would be doing that by now.

 

[Skin]

...And that is the beauty of the Toro Powershift. You kick the wheels back 10" and the weight shifts to the front of the blower, You can chew your way through about anything. I am surprised more manufactures never picked up on the design. They were an expensive blower with an all gear transmission but built like a tank, I have 3 of them. Wheel shift about 4 min. in.

You can get something similar with the new Toro and Ariens tracked models. They allow you to change the angle of the track so that it's offset from the front effectively forcing it to dig in as it moves forward. Honda has allowed for something similar for a long time with a pedal and their newer machines have switched it to a hydraulic actuator.

The design of the Powershift was great but the transmissions are failure prone after about 8-10 years then you're on borrowed time. Usually the low gear or carrier assembly breaks since it's just sintered bronze. Once that happens it's a fairly involved repair. The chutes were also terrible for slush.

Clearly my idea can't work or someone would be doing that by now.

If the rotation is reversed they'll throw the snow up and out instead of down and in so you lose efficiency for general clearing except for hard packed deep snow. Honda Japan did make a model that split the auger into 4 sections with every other section rotating the opposite direction but so far it hasn't made it to any other regional markets.

 

[Muckin_Slusher]

That weight kit, is it really just a $55 piece of metal, painted orange and some bolts/washers/nuts? Looks super easy to make for way cheaper!

Yes, just dumb iron.

I just bolted a chunk of channel iron into my dad's husqvarna and he said it made a world of difference.

As for the big bank from the plow? I just use my LS185B. 75 hp and 7500 lbs makes quick work of the bank.

 

[CTyankee]

I agree with Den69rs96 said. I have owned Ariens snowblowers for over 30 years and never felt the need for added weight. I did have chains on a couple of older models but really don't feel the need for them with better designed tires. I also have the Pro model with the larger engine which makes a difference as well. Just use you lowest forward speed and and just slowing work into until you have the full opening. You really don't need a track machine for what your doing.

x 2...for my 47 yo Ariens chains are a definite yes, but never felt like adding weight would help in any measurable way. As Badger mentions, slow and steady should be able to get through almost any drift/pile.

 

[jonshonda]

x 2...for my 47 yo Ariens chains are a definite yes, but never felt like adding weight would help in any measurable way. As Badger mentions, slow and steady should be able to get through almost any drift/pile.

Ignorance is bliss my friend. While I have no experience with your machine, my newer Ariens Platinum 24 benefited greatly from added weight, and tire chains. No more having to lift up on the bars to get the front to stay down. It really did transform my machine into a little beast.

The other thing I would like to add at some point is a set of lights further forward on the machine. Just cuz I like things bright