Convert walk behind snow-thrower into a "ride on"?

NormL · Jan 5, 2014

Well, I put the traction aides to the test and they worked really well :cool2:- for about twenty minutes.:smiley_aafz: At that point one side came off and it looked like the other was about to follow suit.:grumpy: The link method between the v-belt sections and the bent wires was not durable and many were coming apart. Sooo...back to the drawing board?!? Maybe some day.

Right now I need this contraption to do the job without constantly getting stuck! The twenty minutes of trouble-free operation was enough to prove to me that good traction to those wheels was what was missing to make this project a success.:thumbsup: Fortunately I had enough of the yard blown out so we could come and go without getting stuck. Tomorrow I'm off to the city for an appointment and I'll look for a set of chains at PA. Yeah, I know; I'm "coppin' out".:ashamed: Sometimes ya jest gotta move on!!

NormL · Jan 7, 2014

Time to tie up some loose ends and wind up this thread.:thumbsup: Chopperhed; my apologies!

The price for those chains were what you said they were. The pair I got are for wheels that are 2" wider and 2" higher than the ones on my machine. Beneficial to my needs on at least two fronts: I was able to move the cross chains closer together, and because the side chains mounted further down the side of the tire and closer to the rim, I don't have the clearance issues I was worrying about.

The contraption works fine with some limitations. It's great for blowing out the driveway and the loop in front our trailer. Not so great for blowing out parking areas where I have to blow out a path and then back out to line up for another pass. For that a walk behind is still the best and I have a small one for that once I get the carb done on it.

Chopperhed · Jan 8, 2014

Good to hear you're getting the job done

NormL · Jan 8, 2014

Chopperhed said:
Good to hear you're getting the job done

I should also mention that the numerous ideas floated while I formulated the approach I would use were both entertaining and useful - as is typical of TBNers!:thumbsup: Thank you everyone.:dance1:

NormL · Jan 18, 2014

NormL said:
The contraption works fine with some limitations.

Actually some very important limitations!:thumbdown: We've just had back to back storms rumble through here, the kind where you try to park whatever you're driving on the other side of where you know the yard blows in because those drifts are both high and hard. It turns out the contraption is pretty useless after such storms. I'm constantly getting stuck with it. Granted, the ordinary walk behind blower is little use in hard blown snow banks either.

Bottom line, back to the drawing board!

I welcome any and all ideas, crazy or otherwise. In the meantime I've got some shoveling to do!:muttering:

KubotainNH · Jan 19, 2014

Stick it on the front of a 4 wheeler? Oh...budget...right.

NormL · Jan 19, 2014

KubotainNH said:
Stick it on the front of a 4 wheeler? Oh...budget...right.

Right!:grumpy: My budget SEVERELY limits my options. However, it goads me on in the realm of creativity and every now and then daydreams become projects.

Short of going back to snow clearing with a tractor and FEL, how do I chew my way through drifts solid enough to support my considerable weight? The snow thrower just climbs up them and them bogs when the wheels dig down. What comes to mind is a device similar to rototiller teeth mounted ahead of the auger and wide enough to chew up a path for the snowthrower to blow away. Has it been done? If not, should it?

aczlan · Jan 19, 2014

What if you put a set of "teeth" on each side of the bottom that angled down (ie slanting down from the blower to the ground) so that they dig in and pull the nose down into the snowbank?

Aaron Z

NormL · Jan 20, 2014

aczlan said:
What if you put a set of "teeth" on each side of the bottom that angled down (ie slanting down from the blower to the ground) so that they dig in and pull the nose down into the snowbank?

Aaron Z

Hmm.... You know, that would certainly be more helpful than the runners that serve as height adjusters and are bolted to each side of the blower right now. Even a couple of short lengths of bed-rail angle bolted on in place of those skids and poking into the snow a few inches ahead of the auger could make a difference.:thumbsup: Gonna try that! Thanks Aaron.:cool2:

aczlan · Jan 20, 2014

NormL said:
Hmm.... You know, that would certainly be more helpful than the runners that serve as height adjusters and are bolted to each side of the blower right now. Even a couple of short lengths of bed-rail angle bolted on in place of those skids and poking into the snow a few inches ahead of the auger could make a difference.:thumbsup: Gonna try that! Thanks Aaron.:cool2:

An example might be the "tooth" on the leading edge of a Rome Plow: Rome plow - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Aaron Z