[Old_Nodaker]

I've found that I could easily bog down the engine (22 hp Kaw.)
The snow was very fluffy, blower is 47" by about 24". Also it would tend to push snow ahead if I pushed it at all, probably more than 1 mph. Would the faster auger speed on the single stage handle the large amounts better? Not that I'm planning on changing, just curious. After I got through the first pass I could cut down on the width and it wasn't a problem. Do your machines run out of power? Mine has 1300 hours on it, maybe it's getting weak.

I'd added the two channel out the back for mounting a tool box or weights, but with the chains and wheel weights found it to be unnecessary. I did mount a generator on there and ran a small heater in the cab, but it had no effect so I abandoned the idea. The doors don't fit very tight and it would be difficult to fit in a larger heater. More heat might cause windshield fogging so I'll stick with warm clothes. Keeping the snow and wind off makes the cab a necessity for me even without adding heat.

<img src=http://www.hpphoto.com/servlet/LinkPhoto?GUID=708727fe-26f0-762a-5abf-3542277444e3&size=lg>

 

[ducati996]

Maybe the governor is not working right? 23 hp is plenty and it should be throwing it real far for a 2 stage....what machine is it?
have you check belts or pulleys? are the belts slipping? is any of the shear bolts broken, specifically the fan?
2 stage blower have the capability of throwing up to 70 ft....thats not limited to a certain mfg either...

More info on what you looked at as the cause...

Ducati

 

[Ingersoll444]

How is it powerd? Belt, shaft? I know with the Case single stage blowers, people used to have problems with them sometimes. Most of the time it turned out eather the belt was slipping, or the PTO clutch was out of adjustment, and slipping a bit under real heavy load. Kinda tough to find. Becouse under most cases all seem well, only slipps under real heavy loads. Also is your motor turning full revs? Maybe over all of those hours, she has slowed down a bit.

 

[Argee]

Have you checked to make sure both augers are turning? You may have sheared the pin in one of them.

 

[guest2]

My craftsman 22hp kohler throws the snow real far too but I do hear the governor kick-in if I'm in a high range gear but that would be more than 1mph and doesn't seem as if it would stall. How did it run last summer? Any problems in high grass? If not, probably just something not quite right with the blower.

 

[Old_Nodaker]

Sorry, I posted the picture thinking you all would know the setup. It's a shaft drive, no belts, the clutch is built into the transmission. Anyway, if something was slipping the engine wouldn't be bogging down. It will throw snow a long ways, it's just that I had to go real slow.

It generally handles grass ok, although with the 60" deck you can make it work in tall damp grass. I can raise the water temperature by making it work hard so I think the govenor is working. Does the fuel injection system have the same sort of govenor setup as a carbureted system?

I used it again today, snow was not near as deep but much more dense. Seemed to handle it fine. I'm guessing the real problem was that with that much snow it couldn't get rid of it fast enough and so was pushing it.

 

[DeereBob]

Old_Nodaker,
Got to enjoy some of your fridgid winter weather this week in Bismarck. In fact is was so cold even the natives were whining. As far as power versus blower I can provide two data points for you. My old JD 425 had 20HP while my new X485 has 25HP. I have used the same 46" single stage snowblower on both tractors with little problem. The X485 does better with the extra HP but it also has 26" versus 23" tires which provides better traction. I used chains on both tractors with the same 4 42lb suitcase weights on the back of each. I have noticed with my little 5HP 2-stage snowthrower that I have to slow down in deeper snow to let the impeller feeding the chute to catch up with the auger. Scaling up, it may be the same problem you are having with the tractor. With the single stage auger, this is not that much of a problem. I have found that it actually works better with deeper snow since there is more mass to throw which increases the distance it travels in the air. If the snow is say 12" or more I definitely have to slow the tractor down but not to a crawl. Your snow up in ND is usually drier than ours which increases volume versus mass. This may be another factor that creates some problems for you since heavier snow will travel faster in the machine than lighter stuff unless it is so wet that it packs the chute. Bottom line, I don't think the 22HP is your problem and since if I remember you have a JD445 or 455 compared with my old 425.

 

[Old_Nodaker]

Thanks DeereBob, thats exactly the sort of info I was looking for. You're right about the dry snow, I believe I heard that in the 13 inches they got in Fargo there would be 1/3 an inch of moisture. We had 20 plus inches and its settled now to 1/2 that.

Yeah, that cold did get sort of brutal. You know it's bad when you look forward to it getting up to 10 below. I did, however, find out that the 445 would still start at 20 below. It also led me to do buiness with the "Supply Sergent" military surplus from NorthPekin Ill. Ever hear of them? I ordered some Mickey Mouse boots as my feet kept getting cold for some reason. The boots came in at work after I'd left Friday so haven't seen them, but they had good prices and shipped when they said it would. All of the surplus stores in ND have gone out of business, claim they can't get enough inventory anymore.

It's amazing the difference the 26" tires make. I can easily mow up ditch banks that the 318 would require going around. I keep thinking I'd like to get some bar tires but just can't justify them.