# Skid shoes bolts issues



## spookyneo (Jul 11, 2017)

Hi,

First time poster and I am here to seek your help. I did a search but didn't find anything about my issue, so hopefully you can help me out.

It was my first winter as a new home owner. We bought our first house last summer and I bought a second hand snow blower (Craftsman/Husqvarna). It is a 2-stage snowblower 27 inches wide with a 298cc LCT engine.

As it was my first winter with a snowblower, I did run into some issues. I used many times a snowblower before, but never had to maintain/service it myself. As a matter of cost saving but also to learn more about engines and mechanic, I'm doing all the work on the snow blower. I work as an IT technician and I am no where near being a mechanic. I do however love to learn new stuff and having the full summer season to dismantle the snowblower and repair it is an excellent opportunity to learn.

I've been able to fix most of the stuff that was wrong on the snowblower, but I'm having an issue with the skid shoes bolts. These are bolts with a square shape lock mecanism to lock into the auger housing. The holes in that housing are getting a bit more round and the bolts are turning when trying to loose the nuts on the shoes. So I can't adjust the skid shoes easily and it was a challenge last winter. This afternoon, I had to chop off the bolts in order to remove the shoes and inspect the bolts and holes in the housing. Buying new bolts won't make it really, as the issue is with the holes in the auger housing become rounded/loose. What could I do to fix it other than soldering the bolts to the housing ?

I did think about sliding the bolt in the housing with some metal-to-metal epoxy on the inside. So the epoxy might hold the bolts tight, but I don't know if this would be enough.

As I said, I am no mechanic. There might be a very simple solution and hopefully, this is where you guys come in 

Thanks for your help,

Guillaume.


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## orangputeh (Nov 24, 2016)

would it be possible to use a lock washer or a lock nut?

i had a similar problem where I had to reposition the shoes and drilled new holes in the housing for that and just used new hardware with lock washers and nuts.

are these skid shoes on the sides of the housing?


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## spookyneo (Jul 11, 2017)

orangputeh said:


> would it be possible to use a lock washer or a lock nut?
> 
> i had a similar problem where I had to reposition the shoes and drilled new holes in the housing for that and just used new hardware with lock washers and nuts.
> 
> are these skid shoes on the sides of the housing?


Thanks for your reply.

Yes, the shoes are on the sides of the housing. Using a lock washer or a lock nut should be possible. If these could prevent the bolt from turning inside the housing when I need to adjust the shoes, that would do it. Would a lock washer sits between the skid shoes and the nut or would it fit between the beginning of the bolt and the housing hole ?


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## jtclays (Sep 24, 2010)

Are you needing to adjust these shoes repeatedly over the winter for different surfaces, or are they just slipping out of adjustment? The simple solution if they are just slipping out of adjustment is to use a regular bolt/nyloc nut and two wrenches or sockets. If you want to try and get more bite on the inside of the bucket you can use star washers. If you really want the same setup of one side wrenching, go up a size on the carriage bolts and snug them to fit first, then install the shoes. The larger shank and corresponding lock square will fill the rounded out square hole. Do you have metal shoes or polymer? If you have polymer shoes I've found many are so slippery they require the use of the star washers to get them to settle in a spot.


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## UNDERTAKER (Dec 30, 2013)

:smiley-signs009: Anyhoo ALOHA from the Paradise City.:smiley-rpg027::smiley-rpg027::smiley-rpg027::smiley-rpg027::smiley-rpg027:


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## dbert (Aug 25, 2013)

If you want to use the square neck of a Carrige Bolt you could possibly go up one size. Square holes are much easier to make than it looks. A minute or two with a small file and you can have a new square hole.


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## dbert (Aug 25, 2013)

Here is an example of a square hole I made with a small file.


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## orangputeh (Nov 24, 2016)

what are you doing with that chute that needs a carriage bolt there?


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## dbert (Aug 25, 2013)

orangputeh said:


> what are you doing with that chute that needs a carriage bolt there?


There is a guard/grill that goes over the lower third. I don't have a good photo with this guard attached.
Held in place with the knobs.


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## JLawrence08648 (Jan 15, 2017)

Cut a slot in it with a hacksaw and use a screwdriver.

Push, squeeze, fit some thin sheet metal in the hole and bang the bolt in with a hammer, maybe for the metal use house drip edge, flashing may be too thick.


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## HCBPH (Mar 8, 2011)

There are several things that can be done to a carriage bolt and hole when the square hole is wallowed out. One is to cut a little slice off either side of the head of the bolt so you can grip it with a wrench. Another (if you have clearance) is to weld a nut onto the head of the bolt. Another way is to weld up the hole then use a grinder and files to reform the hole (a copper paddle behind the hole while welding works well). You can use a larger carriage bolt and open up the holes to fit the new hole. You can slot the head of the bolt to work with a screw driver. You can weld a short tab onto the head of the bolt so you can grab it by hand while loosening or tightening.


That's a few options available.


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## micah68kj (Oct 8, 2011)

dbert said:


> If you want to use the square neck of a Carrige Bolt you could possibly go up one size. Square holes are much easier to make than it looks. A minute or two with a small file and you can have a new square hole.


Yep. I have done this same trick a couple times myself. Quick, easy fix.:smile2:


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