# Craftsman Professional Transmission Issues



## camaroz28 (Apr 24, 2013)

I have a 2011 Craftsman Professional Series Blower Model #C950-52133-0 with a Briggs and Stratton Engine, 30" cut 16.5. I beleve these were made by Murray?? It is now on its 3rd transmission. It has had only a few months use since i bought it but it continues to have transmission problems. It is hard to shift gears and after a bit of use it becomes impossible to shift. When it is in 1st or 2nd gear and you press down on the throttle lever it starts to go in reverse. Sears service has been horrible to deal with. On the repair order it says a Briggs Transmission was installed WF71-277 Part number 733972YP. Has anyone had similar problems? The services guys from Sears say all these snowblowers had to have the transmissions replaced from that year. Obviously they are only replacing it with the same unit so its bound to fail again. I'm told it is a sealed unit and cannot be fixed but must be swapped out. The question is what to do with it now? With only one year left on warranty is it worth keeping? The transmission is said to be $500 plus 2 hours to install it.

Any thoughts?


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## sscotsman (Dec 8, 2010)

hmm..IMO Craftsman should not put the word "professional" after any of their snowblowers..its sort of like claiming this is a professional-grade pickup truck:










Craftsman is a very low-end name these days..not a high-quality brand anymore.
Since its still under warranty, is there any chance you can return it for a refund?
if you can, IMO that would be the best option..
then buy an Ariens, Toro or Simplicity..

It probably isnt going to improve with age..

Scot


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## Snowmann (Dec 24, 2012)

Scott, you should probably not recommend a Simpicity to this fella.

Parts and Diagrams for Murray 1696103 - C950-52133-0, Craftsman 16.5TP 30" Dual Stage Snow Thrower (2011)

Parts and Diagrams for Simplicity 1696238-00 - H1730E, 16.5GT 30" Dual Stage Snowthrower

Note the transmission in his Murray is exactly the same as the one in the "Heavy Duty" Simplicity H1730E. This is an all plastic transmission including the gears. All Briggs built models (Simplicity, Snapper, Murray, Brute etc.) with the "dual trigger steering" system will have this. It is not serviceable and must be replaced as a unit.


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## Pythons37 (Nov 9, 2012)

It's NOT a Murray. They closed in 2005. Briggs and Stratton bought the assets. They have started up the Murray name, again, but the mowers are all made by MTD. I don't think that's an MTD blower, but I'm not at all positive. American Yard Products (AYP) is making Sears mowers. There is little quality in these lightweight machines, no matter what kind of fancy names they give them. Any idea what your machine weighs? I use the weights of these things to compare them with others. The heavier it is, the more content there is in it. A non serviceable gearbox should not exist. But, to meet a price point, that's what is provided. Stupid. Good luck with this. It is a troubling and very sad story.


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## Snowmann (Dec 24, 2012)

Looks like $389.14 for the transmission without labor, just parts.


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## HCBPH (Mar 8, 2011)

*Tranny*

That's one transmission I've not seen before. Though I prefer a tranny blower over a friction disc drive, if you're having that many issues, I'd be inclined to see about getting it fixed under warranty then sell it.

I've got a number of the older Craftsmans with the Tecumseh Peerless transmission and they're rock solid, but they in no way look like the one the schematic shows yours has.

As far as what machine to consider as a replacement, that depends on you and what you can do and want to put into it. There should be a number of older machines coming onto the market now that winter has ended plus many places will likely be clearancing out last years models. Depends on whether you want to fix or rebuild something vs buy another one.

By the way, that machine looks alot like a Noma (in appearance) a friend brought to me to fix, but it definitely was a friction disc machine


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## camaroz28 (Apr 24, 2013)

The warranty says that if you have more than 3 repairs in the same calender year then Sears will refund the purchase price OR replace the blower with another one. If they have the option I'm sure based on the service I received so far they will not grant a refund. Probably give me a replacement with as many problems as the current one. So far I have had 2 transmissions replaced along with another service call to replace a plastic sprocket under the bottom cover. Who builds snowblowers with plastic parts??? We blow snow in -20 celsius (-4 Fahrenheit) weather in Canada!

I will definately warn people to stay far away from Sears snowblowers based on my experience.


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## sscotsman (Dec 8, 2010)

Snowmann said:


> Scott, you should probably not recommend a Simpicity to this fella.
> 
> Parts and Diagrams for Murray 1696103 - C950-52133-0, Craftsman 16.5TP 30" Dual Stage Snow Thrower (2011)
> 
> ...


Wow..so much for Simplicity's good name..
I see now that Briggs has really let the name slide..that's too bad..
plastic transmission gears?? wow.. 

and yes, it's now clear that the OP's (original poster's) Craftsman is in fact a Murray..His model number matches the diagram that Snowmann posted, so no question its a Murray..

(When it comes to snowblowers (and garden tractors) when we say something like "Its a Murray" or "Its a Noma" it doesnt necessarily mean it actually has to have the Murray or Noma brand name actually on it..we are talking about the design of the snowblower..the original pattern it was made under..) Its the same way you would say a Mercury is a Ford, if referring to the parts that make up the Mercury, and who designed it..

This Craftsman "is a Murray" in the sense that it was built by Briggs using a Murray snowblower design..the fact that Briggs "retired" the Murray name in 2005 is irrelevant..its still a Murray! 

I would still try to get a refund! Its only a year old, and its clearly a lemon..cant hurt to try!
Failing that, then I would go with the second idea suggested here..
fix it under warranty, then sell it..
even if you have to take a small loss, it would be worth in the long run just to get rid of it..

Scot


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## Pythons37 (Nov 9, 2012)

It's got a Murray Badge. It is not a machine made by the Murray company. That company no longer exists. It's not that big a deal, but it is when you are looking at a ten year old Murray product compared to a new Briggs/Murray product. I've got a Murray built blower of similar size to this one. It is a good machine. It is repairable. It is 13 years old. It blew about 6 feet of snow this winter. All different types. Didn't break down once. That's why I mention it. Certainly a better value than a new "Murray".


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## sscotsman (Dec 8, 2010)

Pythons37 said:


> It's got a Murray Badge. It is not a machine made by the Murray company.


right..but in the context of this thread, (and in the context of the way we always talk about "who made this snowblower")
it *is* a murray! 

We are both right..
It is a Murray, and it isnt..depending on you define "Murray"..
To be really specific, its "a Murray made by Briggs and Stratton, under the Craftsman label." that should cover all the bases! 

There is probably a Snapper or Simplicity machine, identical to the Craftsman, which would then be "a Murray made by Briggs and Stratton, under the Snapper label."

Scot


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