Way back in the 1990's I was thinking I could improve the lift of my QA42 snowthrower on my 125 so I made an adjustable lift rod to easily test different lengths.
Here's the adjustable lift rod installed:
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Here's a drawing of the lift rod, the washers are welded to the rod, a second washer is placed on the back side before installing the hairpin clip:
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Here's an improved version that I drew up but never made:
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In the end after extensive testing I settled on a length that gave good lift but allowed some down travel. I then measured it and it was exactly the same length as the stock lift rod. Go figure. Now, it's entirely possible that the blade or snowthrower that you have somehow got the lift rod mixed up, especially if you bought it used.