Snowblower Chute Rotator and Work Lights

[KennyG]

Last year I picked up a slightly used Jinma 3 point snowblower (at least I think that's what it is, it says "ZIN PX-160" on it). It worked OK but had a few limitations. It didn't throw heavy snow very well. I put Clarences impellor kit on it and that seems to help. With any wind the snow blinded me, so I added an Original Tractor Cab this year. It had no rotator although it had a bracket that looks like a manual rotator could go on. After considering several rotator options (thanks to all the posts here) I picked up a Harbor Freight 2000 lb winch, on sale for $60. (I just got the January sale flyer and they now have a 2500 lb winch with remote control for $50. How is this possible?)

I made a bracket from heavy flat bar and drilled a hole in the housing to mount it (1st photo). I made a carrier bracket from angle to hold the winch, the control box and the fairlead. I put slots in the bracket so it's adjustable (2nd photo). I made a control box from a plastic project box. I made a bracket to hold the winch switch and the control box that will bolt down to the ROPS base. While I was doing the wiring, I added work lights. The box has 4 switches - front lights, rear lights, power to the winch control and a spare if I need to add something like defroster fans later. I also put in a 12 volt outlet while I was at it. (3rd and 4th photos). Everything is connected to the box with SAE plugs and run in wire loom.

I'm not sure If I'd use this winch for real loads, but it seems to be working OK in this no load situation. I'll show the lights in the next post.

 

[KennyG]

For lights, I ordered four 27 watt LED flood lights from Amazon. Because I don't expect to need them in the summer, I mounted them to the cab. The front lights are mounted to threaded connectors I put on the bolts that hold the hard top of the cab to the frame. The rear lights are mounted to the clamp bolts that hold the cab frame to the ROPS.

 

[Mendonsy]

Basically the same as mine, except that I mounted the winch horizontally.

 

[PHPaul]

Ooooooooo, I LIKE it!

I've thought about rigging mine with a hydraulic cylinder, but the way things are set up on my tractor, the controls would be even more inconvenient to get at than the crank.

This is an elegant solution that allows me to put the control box wherever it's most convenient and get auto rotation without spending a wad of money.

Thanks!