Wheel Horse 3-12-8 Snowblower question

[Jeff Lary]

Hello everyone it has been awhile since my last post ,..I am back so I must have a problem, ha ha.
I Bought a 3-12-8 brand new in 1995 I mow in the summer and Blow Snow in the winter. This last storm was admittedly a little damp but I really did not expect this much trouble. The first pass I make out of the garage is full width (36"). After that I take smaller bites. This last storm we got about 8" of moderately heavy moist snow storm. The blower would only allow me to move forward about 2' then the snow stream coming from the Shute would get less and less till it would stop altogether. I was sure the Shute would be plugged when I go to it but it was not.
It was full of snow,.... but just resting in there kind of ,not packed in like I expected. This went on about 6 more attempts and I finally just gave up. I decided that the belt must be bad so I went and bought the correct replacement W.H. belt and put it on . The old belt and the new however measured exactly the same. So I was pretty sure the belt would not cure the issue, and it did not. From what I can tell it may ,...may be that the engine is slightly loosing power when most needed. Lets say for the sake of saying something that at wot the engine runs at 3500 rpms but now it seems to die back to about 2000 when forced into the snow? The only thing I have ever done differently to the machine is the last 2 tanks of fuel I have added a little Sea-Foam.
I think the belt is fine and if I am wrong about the rpm loss ( and I may be) what else could cause the blower to just give up throwing snow ? The blower is 36" single stage.
If you have any thoughts please share them with me. I have considered that maybe the governor is not working correctly. But as far as I can tell all governors are the work of the devil or black magic or at the very least a mystery to me. I really love my tractor and do not want to mess with the governor and make things much worse. Thanks for any help Jeff

 

[js5020]

I take it your using the single stage blower, I have a 42" single stage on a 16 auto and every storm is different, some blow easy and some dont due to the "wetness" of the snow. Hows the paint in the chute, rust in the chute will impede the departure of the material and contribute to clogging, some use pam cooking spray or wd40 in the chute and claim it helps minimize clogging. Single stage blowers need just the right ground speed at times, to slow it clogs, to fast it clogs, sometimes its hard to hit the "sweet spot". How much clearance do you have between the auger and the moldboard, to much and you lose toss power. Have you used this blower in the past or is it a new aqusition? Is your PTO clutch slipping?

I see mention that your concerned about the governor, are you getting up to full throttle, with a blower this is Key. If not its likely the root of the clogging and needs to be confirmed or you will do alot of "tail chasing" for nothing, and Kohler governor setting is pretty easy, you loosen the bolt, turn the shaft one way while holding the arm the other.

Last 8" or 10" snows were good for using the blower but the one I could travel almost full speed the other I could not get much over half speed, just the way it is sometimes. Nothing wrong with the blower or tractor, the difference was the snow.

 

[Jeff Lary]

I take it your using the single stage blower, I have a 42" single stage on a 16 auto and every storm is different, some blow easy and some dont due to the "wetness" of the snow. Hows the paint in the chute, rust in the chute will impede the departure of the material and contribute to clogging, some use pam cooking spray or wd40 in the chute and claim it helps minimize clogging. Single stage blowers need just the right ground speed at times, to slow it clogs, to fast it clogs, sometimes its hard to hit the "sweet spot". How much clearance do you have between the auger and the moldboard, to much and you lose toss power. Have you used this blower in the past or is it a new aqusition? Is your PTO clutch slipping?

I see mention that your concerned about the governor, are you getting up to full throttle, with a blower this is Key. If not its likely the root of the clogging and needs to be confirmed or you will do alot of "tail chasing" for nothing, and Kohler governor setting is pretty easy, you loosen the bolt, turn the shaft one way while holding the arm the other.

Last 8" or 10" snows were good for using the blower but the one I could travel almost full speed the other I could not get much over half speed, just the way it is sometimes. Nothing wrong with the blower or tractor, the difference was the snow.

Yes it is a single stage I agree they can be fussy and it probably was the snow it self. As far as space between auger and mold board I am not sure, but I did just buy a brand new scraper as mine has been turned once and now each side is really just worn out badly maybe that is part of the issue? How much space should there be?
She is the original blower that I bought the same day I bought the tractor back in 95.It is all original except one chain change and a few belts.
Is the pto clutch slipping ? good question how would you ever know ?? I do run the engine full throttle all the time. The inside of the chute is rough I spray it with fluid film amazing stuff. Thanks for writing back I was beginning to wonder if anyone read the wheel horse forum ha ha thanks Jeff

 

[js5020]

This seems to be one of the slower forums and I pop in from time to time now that I have a horse. I asked if the blower was a recent purchase so we can rule out that it was the reason it was sold. The new scraper blade is likely not a problem. Its really beneficial to keep the chute rust free and touch up the paint at the end of every season for one less thing to cause issue. My horse has an electric pto so I dont know how a manual pto is adjusted, however you can get manuals here,,,, http://www.wheelhorseforum.com/files/category/2-wheel-horse-manuals/
If the blower hasnt given you problems in the past I would suspect the snow condition of that particular storm, I would try it on the next storm and see if the problem persists. I have seen folks put a rubber strip on the "throwing area" of the auger to tighten things up a bit and get a better toss and stop clogging, they say it helps but I have no experience with the modification.

Pics of the 16 auto and near new tall chute 42" blower,, and one of it in action.

 

[Jeff Lary]

I did buy a new scraper blade,... but it is not installed yet. I assume the old blade is all but gone and I will replace it at the end of the season. It will be easier to do this when the blower is off and upside down. As far as a rubber strip I cannot imagine where they put it. unless it is on the flat areas at each end of the auger where they meet in the middle . I was probably just the storm when I gave up I went to get the Kubota to finish up. I was surprised how heavy the snow was, I could only go about 20' then had to bucket off to the side just to go forward again. So it was heavy.

 

[js5020]

Yes that is where they would mount the rubber strip, it tightens up the gap, especially on worn single stage blowers, on a two stage they put the rubber on each blade of the impeller. "heavy" snow requires a blower in good shape and hp,, and even then some storms are just a problem. I generally only use my blower out in the yard to clear paths for pets and to the shop or if we get more than 6" on the driveway to get rid of most of the snow then blade the reminants off to keep the piles down. Small storms I put the blade on the WH its faster,does a cleaner job and I dont tear things up as much as the big blade on the CUT.

 

[thirdroc17]

If it gives you trouble in the future, simply look at the belt and/or outer clutch housing to see if they are slowing or stopped in relation to engine speed. If they are, the clutch is slipping. They do wear over the years and need adjusting.