My Snowblower Modifications

[SLM1294]

I recently found a good price on a used snowblower in good shape so I couldn't resist picking it up. I then made the following modifications to make it easier to use and wanted to share them here:

I added two stands to make it easier to remove from the tractor and store. These were made to clamp on and just used some pipe and scrap metal. I used a hairpin to hold the pipe in place. The attached picture shows them when they are fully raised while the unit is attached to the tractor.

I then added a hydraulic cylinder to adjust the chute deflector. I made some brackets out of scrap metal and bolted them to the chute. The cylinder is a 2 X 6.

I then wanted to add system to rotate the chute and I did a lot of reading on this board but couldn't find any setups that fit my situation. I ended up designing a system using a hydraulic cylinder that controlled a chain that would then rotate a pulley. A cable was then fed around the pulley and then around the chute. The system works well but the real test will be to see how robust it is when packed with snow.

 

[Tig]

Nice work. Let it snow!

 

[WilliamBos]

Nice work. Let it snow!

maybe in January..... Where in Ontario you from??

Nice Job on the blower!! Our Buhler has an optional kit, just not sure how it would work. A cylinder maybe??

 

[JDeerekid]

very nice fabrication. Now You just need a cab.

 

[kennyd]

That is superb fabrication! Very well thought out

 

[Tig]

Hey Will
I'm just moving from Ottawa to Prince Edward County.
I put hydraulics on my Buhler last year. The rotation is very simple to do.
Here is a link to the thread.

 

[Spudland_Dave]

Really nice fab work on your rotator setup....Makes alot of sense. My dad tried many variations on cylinder & cable setups, because we always had spare cylinders kicking around, but ultimately he scrapped every one of them and went with a chain around the chute base (where you got your cable) around a sprocket on hydraulic motor...Simple & Effective.
Like you said, the true test is when they freeze up solid or pack with ice & snow.

 

[Ductape]

Theres no way this can possibly work !

 

[6sunset6]

I think he has each end of the chain attached to the end of the cylinder. So the cylinder moves the chain and the chain then turns the pulley down by the cable. I thought how can this work as well when I first saw it. Look hard at the first picture

 

[Steve_Miller]

My god man, you got more monies worth of hydraulics on your tractor than my tractor is worth. Nice setup, I've always grappled with the idea of chute rotation and can never come up with something simple and easy and end up showered in snow every winter.

Steve