# Not so fantastic plastic !



## Mike C. (Jan 28, 2016)

I just watched Donyboy73's latest video and I saw something I can't believe and never knew existed-a snowblower transmission with a plastic housing and all plastic gears.That's disgusting.

I believe Don said it came out of a Murray blower.It's broken and no INTERNAL parts available from the maker.He had to replace the whole unit at $400 CAN.Surprisingly.on opening it he found a bad ball bearing,not shattered gears.

I took the model number of the transmission,did a search and found something else that horrified me.The Simplicity H1226E uses the same unit.I never thought Simplicity would stoop so low.

I know nothing about the newer models,maybe plastic transmissions are common in lower-priced units,all I know is I'll never own one.


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## detdrbuzzard (Jan 20, 2012)

what was the model number of the transmission


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## Mike C. (Jan 28, 2016)

General Transmissions 1733972

The manufacturer rates it for up to a 15hp blower.Sure.


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## Kiss4aFrog (Nov 3, 2013)

Mike C. said:


> The manufacturer rates it for up to a 15hp blower.Sure.


The big question I have is for how long ?? Might be like carbon fiber and be something the grand-kids inherit or more likely fall apart just after the warranty's up. :blush:

Have the same feeling I had when someone mentioned a plastic impeller and I figured they were confused ... then I looked it up and the machine did have one that's plastic.


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## td5771 (Feb 21, 2011)

It isn't just the cheap brands. All are guilty of using that quality stuff. 

Here is this one from an ariens.


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## td5771 (Feb 21, 2011)

There was another ariens friction wheel model that had plastic drive gears as well. Ariens are great machines. Just buy the high end ones. The low end you might as well buy a craftsman and save some money.


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## Kiss4aFrog (Nov 3, 2013)

To be honest it might be a great thing that's easier to manufacturer, lighter, stronger and will still be working in 40 years. I just have a knee jerk reaction to the word plastic when it's replacing metal.

They can make a great transmission out of plastic I'm just worried it's only done to be cheaper.
Same thing with stuff from China. If they just put a little more into the snow blowers they make they could have a much better reputation and make good money. :icon_cussing_black: My 2 cents.


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## detdrbuzzard (Jan 20, 2012)

how many of you have changed the timing gears on your old v8 ford or gm only to find out that the gears were plastic


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## Mike C. (Jan 28, 2016)

And I thought the world was ending the first time I saw a blower with an all-plastic chute.How long do you think it will be before the first all-plastic hopper appears on a two stage?


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## sscotsman (Dec 8, 2010)

Kiss4aFrog said:


> Have the same feeling I had when someone mentioned a plastic impeller and I figured they were confused ... then I looked it up and the machine did have one that's plastic.


I saw a plastic impeller on a 2-stage in person..on a new Craftsman in a Sears store..it was 4 or 5 years ago, before I had a smart phone, so I didn't get a photo..but yes, they definitely exist.

scot


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## td5771 (Feb 21, 2011)

I have seen the plastic impellers. Haven't seen one in a while. Maybe manufacturers did something right and sent the impellers down the same road as the recalled plastic rims with pneumatic tires.


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## bad69cat (Nov 30, 2015)

detdrbuzzard said:


> how many of you have changed the timing gears on your old v8 ford or gm only to find out that the gears were plastic


Not plastic - they did have a nylon coating over the gear teeth which was meant to reduce engine noise...... ultimately the nylon gets old and brittle chips away, and then the chains got loose and jumped. Not one of the better ideas!! 

I guess I will withhold judgment on the transmissions until I see evidence of high failures...... gotta admit I am expecting that to be the case. I would avoid buying one for the time being.


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## brickcity (Jan 23, 2014)

bad69cat said:


> Not plastic - they did have a nylon coating over the gear teeth which was meant to reduce engine noise...... ultimately the nylon gets old and brittle chips away, and then the chains got loose and jumped. Not one of the better ideas!!
> 
> I guess I will withhold judgment on the transmissions until I see evidence of high failures...... gotta admit I am expecting that to be the case. I would avoid buying one for the time being.


they sure looked like plastic to me not metal with nylon coating back in the day. white and plastic.


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## Cardo111 (Feb 16, 2015)

Mike C. said:


> I just watched Donyboy73's latest video and I saw something I can't believe and never knew existed-a snowblower transmission with a plastic housing and all plastic gears.That's disgusting.
> 
> I believe Don said it came out of a Murray blower.It's broken and no INTERNAL parts available from the maker.He had to replace the whole unit at $400 CAN.Surprisingly.on opening it he found a bad ball bearing,not shattered gears.
> 
> ...



I was just going to post a thread on this and then I found yours.

This is disturbing to say the least, I think they should be recalled or the warranty extended to at least 7 years. This company in donyboy73's vid General Transmissions is also the manufacturer as I mentioned in several of my posts of the DI300 aka Auto-Turn in many of our late model Ariens machines. I hope that the differential gear they manufactured for Ariens proves more reliable than these plastic transmissions being used in many Briggs products.

I would like to give a big shout out to Donny (in addition to providing us with great how to vids over the years) for bringing this issue to our attention and showing us an inside look of the actual construction of these transmissions. I have read reviews over the past couple of years where there were issues with these transmissions but never got to see what is really going on with them. I can only say to the fellow members if you are going to get an automatic transmission in your snowblower stick to a machine and manufacturer that uses Hydro-Gear transmissions.

All the best.


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## Cardo111 (Feb 16, 2015)

td5771 said:


> It isn't just the cheap brands. All are guilty of using that quality stuff.
> 
> Here is this one from an ariens.


Just out of curiosity what model and year Ariens is this?


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## 43128 (Feb 14, 2014)

do any of you guys remember the ariens metro?

http://www.snowblowerforum.com/forum/general-snowblower-discussion/1456-ariens-push.html

total piece of crap got one from the curb a few years bag and stole the auger gear from it and put it back on the curb. super brittle plastic when i got it the impeller fins were cracked and bolted back together


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## Vincent_Diesel (Feb 15, 2016)

Maybe I'm the minority here, but I think there may be benefits to using plastic for SOME parts. I mean, high grade plastic has come a long way. I know in the RC world where the power to weight ratio is exponentially greater, plastic has proven to be quite durable and has benefits compared to steel counterparts.

Some benefits include:

• Requires little to no lubrication.
• Quieter especially where gear meshing is required
• Fights rust and oxidation
• Potential to not freeze
• Weight savings
• Cost reduction
• Plastic is resistant to bending/warping


I'm no expert here, but I understand why engineers and manufacturers would consider plastic.


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## Bob E (Jun 9, 2014)

Last time I paid attention rc cars were running around with engines that displaced about 1/8 of a cubic inch...


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## Shryp (Jan 1, 2011)

Funny though, when he takes apart the transmission that is 95% plastic, he finds it is one of the metal ball bearings broken.


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## sciphi (May 5, 2014)

I have a GT plastic CVT transmission on my Deere riding mower. It is supposedly more reliable than the K46 hydro units on the more expensive ones. I've had it two years and 50 hours. We'll see how it works longer-term.


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## Bob E (Jun 9, 2014)

It might not be so bad if it was also inexpensive to repair, but when you have to replace the whole unit for $400... Dang. That is going to be a trip to the scrap yard for anything but a relatively new snowblower. 
I just hope this will drive the prices down on used horizontal shaft engines in the not so distant future :smiley-whacky017:


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## td5771 (Feb 21, 2011)

Hey cardo111, Models 939001, 939002, 939003. I don't recall the friction wheel model that had the side drive gears as plastic. I just remember being disappointed it was on an ariens. That pushed me away from ariens when I went to buy a new snowblower to clear other driveways and keep my oldies for my own fun. I couldn't cough up 2k for a high end one.

Added info, in their defense I have never seen a broken plastic gear (plastic transmission internally yes) and I feel plastic does have its place almost anywhere. 

The other models that use a plastic drive gear are 932XXX models.


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## Cardo111 (Feb 16, 2015)

Thanks td5771, good to know.


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