# Craftsman Pro transmission? Did I buy a lemon???



## whelanbay (Dec 12, 2017)

Good day Gentleman. I was recently walking through Sears as they are closing and have some unbelievable deals on furniture, appliances and yard equipment. They had snowblowers marked down 45% and they were just flying off the floor. I recently bought a cabin up north and have a decent amount of snow to move so my three year old Ariens compact 24 was going to stay at the house in the city and I needed a bigger one for the lake. Sears had a 30 inch craftsman pro with the 420cc briggs and a full electric chute (C950-52592-0) for 1200 bucks which is a pretty **** good deal for up here in Canada. After getting the unit home I did some research and find that the transmission in this thing (part no. 1733972YP ) is a HUGE pile of crap and I can pretty much count on it falling apart every couple years. Because Sears is closing it was a final sale and I can't take the machine back. From what I've been reading most of the units from the earlier years of the transmission i.e.. 2011-2012 had lots of problems but I haven't found any threads from the new ones having the same issues. Does anyone know if the transmission was updated or is it still the same as the older ones?


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## RIT333 (Feb 6, 2014)

Is is too late to get an extended warranty...just in case. Or, might Sears/K-Mart be bankrupt by the time you need it ?

Your machine is probably made by MTD. Take a look at the transmission on yours and try to find a model in the MTD line that is similar, and do some inquiries about its reliability.


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## Cardo111 (Feb 16, 2015)

whelanbay said:


> Good day Gentleman. I was recently walking through Sears as they are closing and have some unbelievable deals on furniture, appliances and yard equipment. They had snowblowers marked down 45% and they were just flying off the floor. I recently bought a cabin up north and have a decent amount of snow to move so my three year old Ariens compact 24 was going to stay at the house in the city and I needed a bigger one for the lake. Sears had a 30 inch craftsman pro with the 420cc briggs and a full electric chute (C950-52592-0) for 1200 bucks which is a pretty **** good deal for up here in Canada. After getting the unit home I did some research and find that the transmission in this thing (part no. 1733972YP ) is a HUGE pile of crap and I can pretty much count on it falling apart every couple years. Because Sears is closing it was a final sale and I can't take the machine back. From what I've been reading most of the units from the earlier years of the transmission i.e.. 2011-2012 had lots of problems but I haven't found any threads from the new ones having the same issues. Does anyone know if the transmission was updated or is it still the same as the older ones?



Who doesn't like to get a good price on a big ticket item. As you know Snowblowers can be a tricky purchase. It sounds like you have a Briggs built Craftsman. The issue with the transmission seems like a common problem that plagues the Briggs built Simplicity/Snapper heavy duty series (not their Signature Pro Series). It is a plastic transmission I believe built by General Transmissions the same company that manufactures the DI300 Auto-Turn unit for Ariens. The entire transmission unit would have to be replaced if there is an issue as they are not serviceable. Donyboy the small engine doctor on YouTube has covered this in his attached YouTube vid.


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## guyl (Jun 12, 2016)

It seems that most failures of this transmission are due to a bearing falling apart like the one in that video. I saw the same thing in the one I took apart, although it was a different bearing. My theory is that a metal bearing in a plastic case overheats because there is no metal frame to conduct the heat away.

I got the machine for free because of this failure, and ended up doing this project:

http://www.snowblowerforum.com/foru...ission-conversion-craftsman-professional.html


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## whelanbay (Dec 12, 2017)

No extended warranty was offered and I doubt I could get one now. It still has a one year warranty through the manufacturer of the unit but I'm actually up at work for a week and don't have the manuals or paper work on me. As far as the actual transmission in the blower it is indeed the general transmission HR 300 unit. I might fire off an email to GT and see if they have had any updates done in the last two years to address the obvious shortcomings of their product. I can already imagine the reply... "We are unaware of any defects affecting longevity of our robust and reliable 300 series transmissions"... haha
Oh well I am a welder and fabricator by trade so if she does blow maybe i'll find an older unit and take the engine and electric chutes and make a frankenstein beast that'll scare all the neighbours


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## cranman (Jan 23, 2016)

The General Transmissions unit they put into the cheaper Husqvarna and Ariens and Poulan tractors is a disaster.....I've got several in my parts tractor lineup that aren't three years old and look new...but the transaxle is junk....cost more for the junk transaxle then what the tractor is worth......


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## DriverRider (Nov 20, 2016)

cranman said:


> The General Transmissions unit they put into the cheaper Husqvarna and Ariens and Poulan tractors is a disaster.....I've got several in my parts tractor lineup that aren't three years old and look new...but the transaxle is junk....cost more for the junk transaxle then what the tractor is worth......


Plain to see the shortcomings of manufacturing today. Years ago the builders all had their own designs and built to specification components, now they all jump onto the latest imported piece of junk for more profit.


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## whelanbay (Dec 12, 2017)

Well now I'm honestly pissed. I really thought it was a decent buy. Let that be a lesson, research everything before hand and avoid anything that runs on a general transmission period.


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## Yanmar Ronin (Jan 31, 2015)

Put it on Craigslist quick while it's still new, and try and get most of your coin back. If you wait until the first snowstorm you might even come out a little ahead. :biggrin:


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