How many spare shear bolts for MF 2360 snowblower?

[Citydude]

Yep, I'd try the small engine mechanic.

Nah, I live in a small city, 10K pop, in Canada, and it's either my local "industrial" supplier, or online. Even the MF dealer is hours away. I will contact the dealer and get their pricing on Monday. Or I could follow another old thread on this forum ( https://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/parts-repairs/186845-making-your-own-snowblower-shear.html) and make my own.

If getting a reasonable and not-too-expensive source proves difficult, I'd probably make my own. Obviously, I'm hoping to break very few, but I'll want them here when I need them.

I keep forgetting my small engine mechanic. He'll likely have a source for these.

 

[Citydude]

Oh, and to answer your question on how many? I have a couple on my tractor and a handful at my shop. I've busted 2 so far this year on ice chunks.

 

[irvingj]

I usually keep a half-dozen of each --fan & auger-- on hand each winter. Some years they go fast, others I may need to replace only one or two (live on a dirt road).

There are two schools of thought:
1) "By the pound," inexpensive grade 5 shear bolts. Tractor Supply, for one. Hardware store or auto parts store for another.
2) The "real" OEM gold or silver shear bolts with groove(s) cut in them: Yeah, they ain't cheap... but I've found Kubota prices to be much more reasonable. RAD Technologies makes the blowers for M-F, Kubota, and others, and I have a Kubota dealer only about 15 miles away. (Nearest M-F dealer is about 1-1/2 hrs away....)

Whichever you use, remember to only torque them down enough to squish a split lock washer flat -- torque too much and you place undue stress on the bolt and it'll break more easily/quickly.

 

[seville009]

My general experience is that if you have only a few replacements available, you値l use them up right away, but if you get a bag full of spare pins, you値l never break another one for the rest of your life...

 

[irvingj]

Yeah, yeah, what he said!! :laughing:

(And your last one will always break on a Sunday during a big storm....:confused3:)

 

[PILOON]

My general experience is that if you have only a few replacements available, you値l use them up right away, but if you get a bag full of spare pins, you値l never break another one for the rest of your life...

LOL, it's called 'INSURANCE'

 

[MF RED in MT]

I live over 100 Miles from my nearest Massey Ferguson Dealer, and the small town where I live, 1500 pop., does not offer much.

I call my MF Dealer and order the MF shear pin bolts, they come in a ten pack each for the silver and the gold, in the US Mail.

In the last ten years I am still working on the first 10 pack of gold shear pins, and I am on my 2nd 10 pack of silver shear pins.

Ice sized bowling balls in the spring, and a neighbors 5 gallon bucket filled with tire chains buried in the snow, etc..., are the main causes of my shear pin failures.

KC

 

[Imold]

My general experience is that if you have only a few replacements available, you値l use them up right away, but if you get a bag full of spare pins, you値l never break another one for the rest of your life...

Ain’t that the truth!

 

[mgstevens]

Yep, I'd try the small engine mechanic.

Looks like these tractors/attachments are in that size range that is too big for the small engine market. Same result from the local industrial supplier, both have up to about 2" in length, for the walk-behinds, but not the 2-1/2" these bolts are wanting to be.

Dealer wants $9 Cdn Pesos per bolt so I don't think I'll be getting a whole bag of them, but enough to feel like I can get through a season.

Still no winter in these parts...

 

[Jaylegger]

I live over 100 Miles from my nearest Massey Ferguson Dealer, and the small town where I live, 1500 pop., does not offer much.

I call my MF Dealer and order the MF shear pin bolts, they come in a ten pack each for the silver and the gold, in the US Mail.

In the last ten years I am still working on the first 10 pack of gold shear pins, and I am on my 2nd 10 pack of silver shear pins.

Ice sized bowling balls in the spring, and a neighbors 5 gallon bucket filled with tire chains buried in the snow, etc..., are the main causes of my shear pin failures.

KC

Rocks, hockey pucks, (a couple dogs on a long chain..kidding) but worst for the past few years for me are those f'n flyer packages thrown on driveways that lazy home owners don't pick up prior to snowfalls. I'm on my second 2360 blower, have gone through close to a hundred pins or more over the past years. At first it was primarily rocks then I modified shoes (those on the 2360 are terrible) which helped but since then those gosh darn flyer packages became popular. Sometimes they pass through in a "blurp" sometimes it takes an hour or more to extract the package wedged between the fan blade and housing.

I've been purchasing the Kubota equivalent shear pins for many years now as the dealer is much closer and less expensive. No kidding, I've probably spent 700-800 dollars on shear pins over the years.

 

[mgstevens]

Rocks, hockey pucks, (a couple dogs on a long chain..kidding) but worst for the past few years for me are those f'n flyer packages thrown on driveways that lazy home owners don't pick up prior to snowfalls.

I'm fortunate that I live on semi-rural acreage and never have objects in my drive that just randomly appear. Hopefully that will save me both in shear bolts and [yikes!] actual snowblowers. I will wait until this season passes to make any lofty claims.

I saw another post somewhere about grooving your own shear bolts, and picked up a non-grooved grade 5 bolt (auger spec) for $0.25 to give it a try. Hopefully that would not be shear foolishness.

Until I feel more comfortable with the DIY route, I'll get a set or two from the dealer...

 

[MF RED in MT]

Rocks, hockey pucks, (a couple dogs on a long chain..kidding) but worst for the past few years for me are those f'n flyer packages thrown on driveways that lazy home owners don't pick up prior to snowfalls. I'm on my second 2360 blower, have gone through close to a hundred pins or more over the past years. At first it was primarily rocks then I modified shoes (those on the 2360 are terrible) which helped but since then those gosh darn flyer packages became popular. Sometimes they pass through in a "blurp" sometimes it takes an hour or more to extract the package wedged between the fan blade and housing.

I've been purchasing the Kubota equivalent shear pins for many years now as the dealer is much closer and less expensive. No kidding, I've probably spent 700-800 dollars on shear pins over the years.

Wow, 2nd snowblower, Ouch, $$$$, if I was going through that many shear pins, I would consider a small HF bench top metal lathe ( 7" x 12" Mini Metal Lathe ) and would be turning out my own shear pins?

B.T.W. I'll bet you can change out a shear pin blindfolded faster than NASCAR can change out a tire, ha ha.

KC

 

[Jaylegger]

Wow, 2nd snowblower, Ouch, $$$$, if I was going through that many shear pins, I would consider a small HF bench top metal lathe ( 7" x 12" Mini Metal Lathe ) and would be turning out my own shear pins?

B.T.W. I'll bet you can change out a shear pin blindfolded faster than NASCAR can change out a tire, ha ha.

KC

I actually did think of it. Almost bought one of the Mini lathes at Princess Auto but then talked myself out of it. Instead I purchased a hundred grade 5 matching bolts without the grooves thinking I could use a grinder with cutting wheel to make the grooves. The bolts were too hard and I could barely scratch them. Without the grooves I'm guessing any burr created from the shearing would likely make it very difficult to exact the broken pins.

 

[MF RED in MT]

I actually did think of it. Almost bought one of the Mini lathes at Princess Auto but then talked myself out of it. Instead I purchased a hundred grade 5 matching bolts without the grooves thinking I could use a grinder with cutting wheel to make the grooves. The bolts were too hard and I could barely scratch them. Without the grooves I'm guessing any burr created from the shearing would likely make it very difficult to exact the broken pins.

I know what you are saying, ten years ago I made up a few shear pins using a drill press with a jig holding a sawzall blade, they seem to look ok, but with the money I had invested into the MF2360 snowblower, I decided it was not worth the risk to use them and have been using the MF shear pins ever since.

KC

 

[mgstevens]

I know what you are saying, ten years ago I made up a few shear pins using a drill press with a jig holding a sawzall blade, they seem to look ok, but with the money I had invested into the MF2360 snowblower, I decided it was not worth the risk to use them and have been using the MF shear pins ever since.

KC

Interesting! I have one off-the-shelf Grade 5 bolt here so I will try to groove it to see the degree of difficulty. The DIY post I saw suggested creating a jig with some angle for clamping in a vice, with a short length of pipe, cut with a notch where the groove lay welded to the angle, and using a drill to spin the bolt while a hacksaw blade (hacksaw attached..) cuts the grooves to a pre-marked depth.

I'm sure beyond getting the groove right, there is nothing unique about the shear bolts, but it's probably not worth hurting a $4000 blower over a $9 bolt.

 

[Captain Dirty]

I'm sure beyond getting the groove right, there is nothing unique about the shear bolts, but it's probably not worth hurting a $4000 blower over a $9 bolt.

I'm jumping back in without reading the intervening pages, but why not get the appropriate grade bolt in the reduced diameter and a full-diameter drift to drive out the remnants of a broken pin?

Perhaps one should start the shopping process looking at the maintenance costs, i.e shear pins, chain links, PTO U-joints, bearings, etc.

 

[mgstevens]

Perhaps one should start the shopping process looking at the maintenance costs, i.e shear pins, chain links, PTO U-joints, bearings, etc.

Not sure which shopping you are referring to, but when you have a MF SCUT, and want a front mount snowblower, your shopping choices are "MF2360" full stop. The shear bolts are common to all snowblowers, and the rest of the list have not seemingly been a problem for most folks here from what I can tell...

 

[Captain Dirty]

When you have a MF SCUT, and want a front mount snowblower, your shopping choices are "MF2360" full stop.

Sounds like MF has joined the appliance people and much of the rest of the world: Brand your product, require branded spare parts or accessories, and the customer is your captive.

 

[mgstevens]

Sounds like MF has joined the appliance people and much of the rest of the world: Brand your product, require branded spare parts or accessories, and the customer is your captive.

W.T.F?!

I see you are a Kubota owner, and if you had the same class of Kubota, and wanted a front-mount snowblower, you'd also have *one* choice, and the snowblower comes from the very same factory. So I guess the companies are all the same, huh?

I want a reliable machine to handle a ton of heavy jobs, not some fantasy throwback to a non-branded, non-captive-customer time, that simply did not exist. The bolts are larger than most snowblowers, so not widely available.

Want infinite, non-branded choice? Build your own machine.

No? Thought so.

:muttering:

 

[Jaylegger]

I know what you are saying, ten years ago I made up a few shear pins using a drill press with a jig holding a sawzall blade, they seem to look ok, but with the money I had invested into the MF2360 snowblower, I decided it was not worth the risk to use them and have been using the MF shear pins ever since.

KC

Agree. I placed the bolts into the chuck of a 1/2" drill chuck then secured the drill into a vise. Turn on the drill and then, using a hand held grinder with a cut off wheel (which had same width of oem groove) rotating in opposite direction attempted to make grooves. Nothing happened after about half an hour I gave up, shook my head, and had a soul searching moment of why I continue to justify spending hundreds of dollars to save 10.