[29 Chev]

So I picked up a 41" rubber tarp strap at the hardware store to see what I could come up with as a homemade version - the strap was $6.00 including tax so if it fails to function I won't be too upset but I think it will serve the purpose. Of course some modification is required.

Since the end of the strap is bulkier where the hook goes through I cut the strap at the point where the strap started to become the same size - about 3/4" from the end of the rubber. A pair of tin snips cut the rubber nicely after I used the square to provide a nice straight edge at the end. Then I clamped the strap in place around the duct swivel where it would sit and marked where the strap would meet to join together flush. I removed the strap and marked it 1/4" shorter for a cut line so that when joined together the strap would have to stretch a bit so it would be a snug fit on the duct swivel.

The resulting piece was 21" long and I marked two hole locations 1/2" from each end and 1/4" in from the edge where two 1/16" diameter holes were drilled in the rubber. Then I grabbed my roll of 18 gauge mechanics wire that i keep on hand.

 

[29 Chev]

I cut two piece 3" long and formed a 90° bend about 1/2 from one end in both pieces. They were inserted into the two holed in the one end as shown and then I measured 3/8" from the end of the rubber and placed another 90° bend to form two U shaped staples.

Then I brought the other end around and inserted the wires into the two holes there to stich the strap together (similar to the way a flat belt is laced). The ends were then bent over to form two closed staples and I did a test fit on the duct swivel. The strap appeared to be a nice snug fit on the swivel and would did not slip and turn on it.

 

[29 Chev]

Removed the newly formed seal and trimmed the ends of the wires so they no longer overlapped as this will allow the inside face of the seal to sit flatter on the duct swivel. The ends of the wires should be tensioned enough on the inside to keep them from unbending and once the seal is installed for the final time a little bit of weatherstrip adhesive can be applied in spots to hold the seal in place so it doesn't try and walk upwards on the duct swivel if necessary. I did a final test fit with the join placed at the rear of the duct swivel.

The width of the strap may make it a bit taller than the original seal causing it to sit up slightly higher but I don't think that will matter and it should keep the majority of snow from getting down in the opening around the duct swivel where it goes through and turns in the gear cover. The seal appears to sit flat on top of the cover as it forms what I will call a rectangular shaped seal. Since the mechanics wire is not protected form rusting I gave the staple area a couple of shots of black paint. The rubber strap material is solid rubber, designed to be stretched, used in an outdoor weather applications (holding a tarp down) and measures 1/4" x 3/4" on the surfaces. Thinking I have the seal figured out and hope it will help prevent any more chute rotation freezing.

 

[29 Chev]

Decided to modify the way the seal was joined - used a similar style but I am thinking it will last longer - time will tell.

Removed the two pieces of wire and then used a utility knife to slit the rubber on each end between the two holes. Then I touched the ends wit the sander to clean and roughen the rubber up where it mates. Once that was done I used a small flat screwdriver to spread a thin layer of weatherstrip adhesive on each end of the rubber.

After the adhesive had gotten tacky ( about 10 minutes) I clamped one end to a piece of 1/8" x 3/4" flat steel, pushed the other end of the rubber against the first end and applied a second clamp to hold it in place as the adhesive formed a bond. As the adhesive cured I cut a piece of sheet metal about 3" long by 1/4" wide and formed it in a U to create a new joiner - then the U got a splash of paint on the inside surface.

Did some other stuff and then came back to the seal after about and hour removed the clamps and now had a seal that was glued together at the join.

 

[29 Chev]

Went to try and insert the U and found I had to reshape it at the bends so they were further apart to match the slits in the rubber. I also used the snips to create a taper at the end so the metal would slide through the slits easier.

Got the ends of the U inserted and started to fold them over - ended up shortening the ends so they didn't overlap and then finished flattening the ends out.

Did a test fit on the duct swivel and it is still a nice snug fit so I removed it and gave the joiner another splash of black paint and set it aside for now.

 

[29 Chev]

To remove the top gear cover piece on the snowcaster and the gear case assembly with the snow caster not mounted to tractor is fairly straight forward but when the snowcaster is mounted on the tractor it require more agility than I posses as there are two bolts that must be inserted from the inside of the cover once it is in place. One 5/16" x 7/8" hex bolt and nut along with a couple of washers supports the upper portion of the gear case bracket to the cover - this must be installed once the cover is in position. The other is a carriage bolt that must be pushed up from the bottom through the housing and the cover to hold the one side of the chute control support. The cover can be removed easily enough by removing the nut on top on this bolt and letting the bolt drop down (usually into the snow below) but trying to put it back in with the unit on the tractor is quite a challenge as you have to try and go into the opening at the back and there is very little room for ones arm between the opening and the tractor. The same can be said about the top gear case support bolt and nut. Since I have found in the past that it is sometimes necessary during the winter season to remove the gear case to replace a broken roll pin inside the gear case I have been thinking about a way to make it so the cover and gear case can be removed easily with the snow caster still attached to the tractor. The other thing is that the gear case slides forwards and backwards to tension the drive chain so the two holes at the bottom and one at the top of the gear case bracket are slotted to accommodate this. The bottom two nuts for the gear case are also a challenge to access once the top cover is removed with the snow caster sitting on the floor and I usually end up removing the snow caster and flipping it up at the rear to get to the bottom two nuts and the upper cover bolts. I think I have come up with a plan that will work to allow me to remove the top gear case cover and the gear case - time will tell.

Today I tackled the carriage bolt area where it goes through both the housing and the cover at the outer edge for the one side of the chute control. I am assuming that Bolens decided that having the outer carriage bolt pass through both the housing and the cover would add a bit of strength in the area.

I first set a carriage bolt in the housing hole with the head up and scribed around the head where metal need to be removed so that if the head was sitting on the bottom side of the cover it could sit down in a recess to allow the cover to fit flush on top of the housing. Used the die grinder with the cut off blade to slice though the area around the bolt hole in the housing and then used a pair of vise grips to wiggle it up and down to remove it.

The piece will be set aside and saved just in case I choose to put it back in at some point in the future if I see that the area has been substantially weakened. Once the piece was removed I rounded the two corners so they would not be as sharp and checked to make sure that the cover could now be set in place, slid forward until the carriage bolt head cleared and drop down in the recessed area so the cover would sit flush. Things looked good so I decided to add a bolt just ahead of the chute control location to add a bit of strength back to the cover - it got marked out with a center punch.

 

[29 Chev]

Drilled a 1/8" pilot hole in the cover and housing after the cover was bolted in place to make sure all the other bolt holes were aligned. Then the cover got removed and the hole in it enlarged to match the other cover holes (11/32") and the hole in the housing got enlarged to 5/16". A 5/16" NC bolt and nut were then placed in the hole so that the nut could be tack welded to the bottom side of the housing after I had wire brushed the underside area around the hole.

The nut got tacked in place (not my best welding - hard to see with sweat running in your eyes) and the area where I had removed the metal got filled in a bit with weld to return some strength and fill in a gap that had been created where the side edge of the cover did not seal up.

The weld got removed where it was hitting the head of the carriage bolt and sanded on the top and side a bit to level the weld. Did a test fit of the cover and everything looked good and the new bolt started into the new hole so gave things a splash of paint to make the area look a little nicer.

This will now allow the top gear case cover be removed with the chute control bolt still in place - will probably still have to loosen it but that is ok. Next I hopefully tackle the gear case bracket bolt areas so that they can be removed easily.

 

[29 Chev]

Brought the gear case over and set it in position on the mounting plate - as I had thought there is enough room for me to get my big hand down beside the mounting bracket from the top to start the bolts from the top side. Originally Bolens used the three 5/16" UNC diameter bolts and vibration nuts to secure the gear case once it was positioned so the output shaft was straight in line with the housing tunnel. I have been using lock washers and regular nuts as that was what was installed when I got it so I am pretty sure that I can use a flat washer and lock washer against the head and install the bolts from the top.

Set two 5/16 UNC hex nuts in position on the bottom side of the housing bracket after I cleaned them and the bracket around the holes up with the wire brush. I used two 1" long bolts and two hex nuts on the top side so that the bolts only extended through flush (so that any weld splatter would not get on the bolt threads or in the nut threads) and the nuts got welded to the bottom side of the mounting plate. Tried to keep the bolts centered in the holes so that the bolt threads would not touch the sides of the hole. Seemed to have done a good job because after things cooled I could thread the bolts out by hand. Cleaned up the welds with the wire brush.

Things looked good so touched up the welded area with some black paint and threaded the bolts in from the top side. Now I can figure out a way to install the top mounting bolt so it can be threaded in and tightened after the cover is installed - think I have a plan.

 

[29 Chev]

Had a visitor in the driveway this morning - not very often they are this close during the day. There were three but by the time I got the camera out there was only one.

 

[29 Chev]

After he disappeared I tackled the task of making the upper bracket slot area support a nut that could hold itself from turning. Thought about using a J clip but didn't want anything between the top of the bracket and the bottom of the cover. I was also thinking of slotting the cover and welding a nut to the upper slotted area of the bracket but since the bracket metal is thicker than the cover I decided to retain the slot in the bracket.

Took a short piece of 3/4" x 1/8" flat steel and marked a hole location on it that the center would be just past the front of the slot with the end of it about 5/16" past the rear edge of the bracket - I also scribed a line even with the rear of the bracket edge. The slot itself is about one inch in length so I then moved the piece to where the center of the hole would be just past the rear and marked another scribe line flush with the front edge of the bracket. I then marked another line 5/16" further away from it which would be the cut line.

A 5/16" diameter hole got drilled and I used the hack saw to cut about half way through on the opposite side where the inner scribe marks were as these would form the bend lines. I have never had much luck in doing short tight accurate bends with very little metal extended past the bend line so this way I was able to bend the ends upward using the vise as the cut area was the weakest part. The cuts will be welded back in to give strength back where the bends are.

Once that was done I verified that the hole in the piece could travel the full distance of the slot but that the bent up ends would stop any more travel.

 

[29 Chev]

A 5/16" UNC nut was added and welded to the bottom and the two cut lines were welded back in. Once things had cooled and things were sanded I then I checked again to make sure I had full slot travel with a bolt installed. I also checked to make sure I had removed enough material so that the upright ends would not hit on the cover but remain lightly below the top of the mounting bracket surface.

Things looked good so I cut a piece of 1/2" x 1/8" flat steel 3-1/4" long to form the back side of the well that the sliding piece would sit beside to keep it from turning. It was clamped in place and then welded to the front and rear edge of the mounting bracket with the sliding piece in position so it was a loose fit so there would be a bit of wiggle room. The welds were then sanded.

One more check to make sure the bolt and piece slid easily from front to back of the slot.

 

[29 Chev]

Things looked good so I cut two pieces of 3/4" x 1/8" about 1/4" long to form an outer edge to complete the trough. They were clamped and welded in place - again making sure that the piece with the nut had a bit of wiggle room so it could slide back and forth. Things still looked good so I cut two pieces of 1/2" x 1/8" flat 1-1/2" long to serve as cross pieces underneath to support the sliding piece and trap it in the trough. They were clamped and then welded in place - used two short pieces of the .023" mig wire to provide a bit of top to bottom wigle room so the sliding piece would not be tight in the trough.

After I finished welding them at both ends I found that the piece with the nut had gotten tight so I waited until things cooled and used the sander and wire brush to clean things up as best I could. Must have been a bit of weld splatter on the surface of the sliding piece because once I did that it started to slide easily again. Verified that the bolt would still thread in and it could travel the distance of the slot which it did so I was happy.

 

[29 Chev]

Things got a splash of paint and called it a day. Noticed that I had a puddle of gear lube coming from the output shaft area so guessing that seal is not doing its job. Did not leak much all winter when it was in use but I am thinking with the warmer temperatures and the fact that the shaft is not supported at the other end right now may be factors so I will probably have to repalce the seal before things go back together.

 

[29 Chev]

Found a bit of time to tackle the output shaft seal as the gear case was leaving a puddle wherever I set it down. First I removed the two set screws in the drive coupling that mounts on the output shaft and then I clamped the coupling in the vise. Used a piece of short piece of 1/2" round stock set in the hole of the drive coupling and a hammer to gently tap the output shaft from the drive coupling as I supported the gear case with my left hand. The coupling is a nice snug fit (probably because the shaft and key have some set screw marks (burrs) on them) but it does not require much effort to remove the shaft from it. Once the drive coupling was removed the woodruff key was next on the removal list.

I have found that a pair of large vise grips clamped at the inner end of the woodruff key will sometimes start the key to roll in the seat causing the key to lift up a bit at the outer end. Using regular vise grips will leave jaw marks on the surface of the shaft and the key so today I tried the large C clamp style vise grips. These did not leave a mark but the key did not roll much so I used a 1/8" pin punch to catch the outer edge of the key and start it on its upward journey out of the seat. Once I had it rolled up a bit I was able to get a small flat screwdriver underneath the bottom edge of the key and pry it out leaving the bare shaft.

Figured before I went much further I had better make sure I did have a new seal - ordered a complete bearing and seal kit when I purchased the new spiral gear set up from Bolens Parts & Supplies but had only used the new shaft and gears when I installed them back in January. Found the new seal and checked it for size and things looked good - it is a double lip design which is how the seal I removed was constructed. Took a flat file and gently filed the edges of the key seat and the set screw mark on the shaft to remove any burrs.

 

[29 Chev]

The snouts on the aluminum gear cases where the seals and bearings press in are not very robust and can be easily broken if pried upon trying to remove the seal so I used the sheet metal screw trick to pull the old seal. Used the 3/8" cordless drill (as it has a small profile chuck) and a larger diameter drill bit (5/32") to start two pilot holes in the center face of the old seal. Using the large bit let the drill chuck be square with the seal since it was longer in length so the bit didn't walk on the seal surface. Once the holes were started I switched to a 3/32" diameter bit to finish drilling the holes through the seal - had to hold the drill on a bit of an angle but since the holds were already started the bit didn't walk. Wanted the holes to be a very small diameter so the sheet metal screw would have to cut its own thread for maximum grip of the seal. Once the holes were poked through gear oil began dripping out which flushed any cuttings and I laid the gear case bracket down flat and reclamped it to the u channel piece I had clamped the bracket to before.

Threaded the screw about a turn into the hole in the seal so it had a good bite, clamped a pair of vise grips under the head and while supporting the vised grips at the screw end with my hand gave the middle area of the vise grips an upward whack with the hammer and the screw moved up a bit out of the one side of the case.

Then I threaded the screw into the other hole and repeated the procedure and after a couple of whacks the seal came out of the case. Checked the seal and it was not a very tight fit on the shaft so probably with the warmer temperatures and normal wear it was due to be replaced. Wiped the inside of the snout area around the shaft out with a rag and everything looked good with no damage to the case where the new seal would be pressed in.

 

[29 Chev]

Set the new seal with the spring side up and filled the void with a layer of grease. I have learned that the grease will keep the spring form rusting if moisture gets into the area and another mentor once told me that the grease will tend to keep the spring from popping off the inside lip if someone gets aggressive installing the seal. Then I lubricated the output shaft surface and the lips of the seal and pushed it onto the shaft so it was sitting against the housing. The new seal was a nice snug fit.

Found my 3/4" deep impact socket and it fit over the shaft and once I cleaned the dirt out of it I used it and a hammer to gently persuade the new seal into the gear case so it was sitting just below the end of the snout surface. The socket was then removed from the shaft and I turned the gear case upright and let it sit to see if there was any evidence of leakage while I went in search of a new woodruff key. Probably could have reused the old key but since it had set screw marks on both ends (as well as a few vise grip marks I figured it would be prudent to install a new one.

No sign of any leaks so I set the bottom edge of the key into the seat keeping the key centered as best I could. Used the C clamp vise grips to slowly press the new key into the key seat until it was centered and level. The C clamp vise grips worked well as there were no new marks on the new key or the shaft when I was done.

 

[29 Chev]

Used a wire brush to clean up the outer surface and a flat file to gently remove any debris from the inside of the drive collar and did a test fit on the shaft - to my surprise I was able to push it on by hand all the way so I started the two set screws back in their holes and then cleaned up the surface of the gear case to remove any grease guck and oil. Washed the components with thinners and then they got a couple of coats of black paint. After I was done spraying paint I used a rag moistened with a bit of thinners to wipe the vent area off so that breather would not be plugged up with paint.

I will have to install the rotor drive shaft with the outer bearing before I can adjust the drive coupler placement on the output shaft so that the shear pin holes align in the coupler and the shaft before I can tighten the set screws to lock the drive collar back on the output shaft again. I noticed when I was taking the shear pin out during disassembly that it was very snug as if there was a bit of side pressure on it so I want to make sure I get the holes properly aligned this time as I think I used the old set screw mark on the shaft to align it when I installed the new gears and this may have resulted in the hole alignment being off a smidge.

 

[29 Chev]

Remembered to take a picture of the gear case vent after I cleaned off the paint. Things still looked dry around the gear case so think that replacing the one seal cured the leak. Will wait until the roll pin breaks again to replace the input shaft seal as that will make removing the input shaft much easier than removing the U joint and PTO shaft.

Warm day today with very little wind so I was not feeling real ambitious but I figured it was a good paint drying day so the housing got cleaned up with the wire brush and some sand paper and then washed off with thinners and painted. Got 3 coats of paint on the inside of the housing where the rotor sits as this will be where the paint will get abused the worst.

Then I let the paint dry and flipped the housing up so the backside could get some paint applied to it.

Not the prettiest but since this is a refurbish rather than a restoration my main concern is fixing that which needs attention, trying some modifications / upgrades and keeping things from rusting.

 

[29 Chev]

Once the paint had dried I removed the masking tape I had applied over the decals. The decals are "tender" as the model number and shear pin ones are starting to lift at the edges and the FMC one it appears someone decided to paint over at some point.

 

[Mark 149 J.]

Nice work.
Should be like new when you're done.