Snow Blower chute not working

[dbecker]

Hello, I have a Cub Cadet snow blower with a power chute that is not working.It began to rotate slower and slower and now does not rotate at all. I don't know if it's the chute motor or the switch or a different problem. Does anyone have any info on this? Its 250.00 for a new motor and almost 60.00 for a new switch on Cub Cadets web site. Does anyone have used parts that I can purchase?
Thank you all for any help with this.

Model number: 31AH4Q3G100 4 wheel drive, 10hp 28" path

 

[nqueensland]

Darren- I fixed one of these last winter and it turned out to be the chute motor. At the time they were back ordered, so they must sell a lot of them! How I troubleshot it was to unhook the wires going to the rotator motor and put voltage to it and see if it rotates. I can't remember for sure, but I think I used a 12 volt jumper pack and a couple jumper wires and just touched it to the motor wires. You can also test the switch using a multimeter set on ohms to see if it is bad. I couldn't find any used motor/gearbox assemblies, so I had to buy a new one. It looks like you can convert it to a manual rotate setup if you buy the proper pieces. Hope this helps!

 

[proessler]

Darren B. U can place a Wanted Ad in the Classified Section...

 

[dbecker]

Nick, Thank you very much, It does help. I will try that tonight. I would love to convert it to manual, however, We have a blower just like mine at work with a manual chute and it's not very good. As snow is going through it constantly moves. The chute is the only thing I don't like about my machine. I will continue to look for a used motor. I can't spend 250.00 on that part.

 

[aschumacher]

Darren, you mentioned your company chute moved around when in use with manual swivel. I have an Arens w/b 5hp 24" unit that has manual turning. It has a type of 'friction clutch' on the center pivot that holds my chute in place nicely, but is still easy to use. As a last resort maybe you will have to go hand crank, but 'invent' some sort of holding assy. JMHO
<font size="-2">You sure the one at work isn't just out of adjustment??</font><font size="-2">Which means maybe a conversion may still be practical.</font>

 

[nqueensland]

Darren- I was just thinking about your problem some more and I remembered that I tested the motor by unplugging the motor from the wiring harness, then hooking my multimeter leads up the the wiring harness. It showed no voltage, but when I moved the switch in either direction with the engine running it did register voltage, so I knew the switch and wiring were good. When I took the motor/gearbox off they were totally locked up. I think the gearbox went out and burned the motor out. I think turning the chute when it is full of snow wrecks them.
Good luck finding a used one! I know Ariens walk behinds use a similar setup, so if you can locate an Ariens dealer and compare parts they may be able to get one cheaper.
They are a heck of a nice snowblower. I'm sure you'll miss it while it's being repaired!

 

[aschumacher]

Nick, do those gear boxes come apart? could it be possible that any grease in it turned to something solid and maybe Darrens rotator could still be saved if the motor didn't really smoke ?? <font size="-2">(Dont rotate while throwing snow!...kinda sounds like a design flaw !)</font>

 

[nqueensland]

Allen- The one I worked on was totally sealed up- no place to add or check grease. Typical for the newer made equipment. That's probably a big reason why they fail.

 

[kmcconaughey]

If you use the search function here and search for "chute rotator" you'll find lots of posts of custom electric chute rotators that people have posted using automotive power window motors, wiper motors and hydraulic motors. Please note that you should select the keyword option of AND rather than the default OR for better search results. Perhaps you'll find a suitable setup that you could fab up on a budget for use on your walk behind snow blower.

 

[proessler]

Darren,FYI there's 953-0912 chute motor on Ebay, Buy it Now, $179.95 w/ free shipping.

 

[aschumacher]

 

[lbrault]

Car window motor cost $28.00 from Amazon, $5.00 for switch form Home Depot, $3.00 for Plastic pipe parts. Looks nice, works great. Can provide details if needed.

 

[jchamberlin]

Leonard

In the spirit of the forum, you should post the pictures and an account of your modifications just for the record. How do expect to be famous if you don't tell your story?