# Auger handle adjustment



## Snowcone

Hi everyone, my Honda 928 needs adjustment. Usually when you hold the left drive lever down then hold the right auger lever down it will stay down and you can then use your right hand to operate the speed lever. However, recently my auger lever won't stay down on its own and needs a bit of adjustment. Unfortunately I don't know what needs tightening. Do you? Thanks for your assistance!


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## [email protected]

The auger (right side) lever can be held down by the drive clutch (left) lever. There's a shaft that connects the two of them, and a cam lock boss and spring that makes the mechanical connection. 










If the auger lever isn't staying put, start by inspecting the linkage, and pay close attention to the cam lock boss. Make sure nothing is binding or stiff, and is properly lubricated with a light touch of general-purpose grease where indicated. 

Be sure the return spring is in place, as well as the washers, cotter pin, and the small ratchet hardware is okay. Inspect the bushings near the cam lock boss for wear or slop, and be sure all hardware is properly tightened.


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## chaulky45

[email protected] said:


> The auger (right side) lever can be held down by the drive clutch (left) lever. There's a shaft that connects the two of them, and a cam lock boss and spring that makes the mechanical connection.
> 
> 
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> 
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> 
> 
> 
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> 
> If the auger lever isn't staying put, start by inspecting the linkage, and pay close attention to the cam lock boss. Make sure nothing is binding or stiff, and is properly lubricated with a light touch of general-purpose grease where indicated.
> 
> Be sure the return spring is in place, as well as the washers, cotter pin, and the small ratchet hardware is okay. Inspect the bushings near the cam lock boss for wear or slop, and be sure all hardware is properly tightened.


Its an easy fix, had to take mine of the 3 hondas I had and have,just clean up all the old hard dirty grease that was preventing the cam lock from moving and clean up the spring, I used 5 w30 cause it was thin to lubricate it,all worked fine after, grease tends to get dirty and hard,and on cold days goes thick and cam wont lock into place


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## Snowcone

Thank you both for your replies and instructions! You're what makes the Internet an invaluable tool for everyone!

I appreciate it a lot!

Regards


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## pjw73nh

Robert, (et al)

Thank you very much for posting this. I had the exact same issue yesterday with our 30" of snow. 

The auger clutch lever would not stay engaged with the drive lever engaged. I will tend to this later this week when I have time.

I have another (most likely related) question.

My unit is a wheeled HS928 from 1999 (I bought it brand new as a left-over in 2000). I am truly amazed by this piece of machinery. In the 15 years I have had this (with no exaggeration) it has started on the first compression stroke EVERY season. I add a few drops of oil in the cylinder and STABIL in the fuel before I put it away for the summer. 

Anyway, last year I had an issue with the auger lever not DISENGAGING when released. It felt like stiction, or a binding cable perhaps. I examined it as best I could and lubed the questionable points but to no avail. This is a safety issue, as when I release the auger lever, it stays engaged for quite some time until vibration eventually causes it to release. 

The only way I could find to alleviate the issue was to remove the (auger clutch lever spring as pictured above.). I know this is only a band-aid fix, and was hoping for a more permanent solution.

Could the two issues be related, and I just need to disassemble the levers and shafts, give them a good cleaning and lube?

Any advice much appreciated.

Thanks.

P.../NH


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## kaseri

I had the same issue on Tuesday. My machine is a 724 and it took 5 mins to rectify. I just removed the ratchet cover, bolt, lever, collar and spring. Sprayed all those parts liberally with brake cleaner then applied Fluid Film to the parts and reassembled. Problem solved.


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## [email protected]

pjw73nh said:


> Anyway, last year I had an issue with the auger lever not DISENGAGING when released. It felt like stiction, or a binding cable perhaps. I examined it as best I could and lubed the questionable points but to no avail. This is a safety issue, as when I release the auger lever, it stays engaged for quite some time until vibration eventually causes it to release.
> 
> The only way I could find to alleviate the issue was to remove the (auger clutch lever spring as pictured above.). I know this is only a band-aid fix, and was hoping for a more permanent solution.
> 
> Could the two issues be related, and I just need to disassemble the levers and shafts, give them a good cleaning and lube?
> 
> Any advice much appreciated.


First, for safety reasons, you should not use the machine until the auger-not-stopping issued is resolved. 

Next, it could be a simple fix, like cleaning and lubricating the lever/linkage, inspecting the cable for binding, rust, damage, etc. 

Going deeper, the auger engagement is done by a tension roller that tightens a belt that drives the auger gearbox. There are four springs, and an a rather complex system of pivots, rollers, and a brake system that are used to start (and fully stop) the auger. Failure, wear, rust, grease, etc. of/on one or more of these parts might cause the auger to not stop quickly when the lever is released. 

A complete inspection of the auger engagement lever and possibly the tensioner/brake is needed to really find the true cause. Due to the safety aspect of this problem, I'd *really encourage* you to have a Honda dealer go over it and do a proper diagnosis. 

You can find a dealer close to you with this link:
*Find A Honda Dealer*


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## pjw73nh

Hello Robert,

Thanks for the reply. Yes, I realize the safety issue here. I am VERY safety conscious. I want to note though, that with the the spring removed as mentioned above, upon releasing the lever, the auger DOES stop in less than two revolutions. I realize this is a temporary fix until I can find the issue and put the return spring back on. Though i will say, even since new, I have never noticed any kind of direct braking of the auger when releasing the lever. Are you saying that there is a definite auger brake system that stops the auger instantly when the lever is released? If so, I don't think I EVER had that on my machine. But I could be wrong. 

I have been down in the area of the auger engagement pulley & belt before. I had to replace a drive belt and I was looking for the source of the auger lever binding as well. It was a while ago, so I don't exactly remember what it looks like. I don't remember seeing very much down there, maybe ONE spring. certainly not 4. I do remember seeing the engagement pulley and the "swing lever" it is mounted on, it appeared to be "free and not binding" when I moved it manually. The auger lever itself also appears (by feel) to be free of binding. Maybe it *IS* the cable, though the accordion seals appear to be intact. 

Can you elaborate on the multiple spring system a bit for me? Maybe a diagram or picture? 

Thanks again for taking the time to reply. 


P.../NH


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## wwjd1332

pjw73nh said:


> Hello Robert,
> 
> Can you elaborate on the multiple spring system a bit for me? Maybe a diagram or picture?
> 
> Thanks again for taking the time to reply.
> 
> 
> P.../NH


The easiest way that I found to look at these 4 springs, is to go to Boats.net and find the parts/diagrams for your machine. I have a Honda HS624K1WA-A
and I found the 2 tension roller springs on the handlebar diagram and the other two on the Tensioner Arm diagram. The bottom two are called returns.

Another great site is YouTube and DonyBoy73. He has a lot of videos that I have found VERY helpful!

All Years HS624K1 WA-A Honda Snowblower TENSIONER ARM Diagram and Parts

All Years HS624K1 WA-A Honda Snowblower HANDLEBAR Diagram and Parts

https://www.youtube.com/user/donyboy73


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## pjw73nh

wwjd1332, Tnx for the links to the pictures. Very helpful .


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## ZOMGVTEK

My 624 auger does not generally return fully most the time, it goes about half way. The return springs look a little corroded, and they don't feel like they have as much tension as the ones on my 828. I had the thing tore apart and everything looked fine, so I assume it's a worn return spring. A very simple repair, and it's probably a good idea to make it work properly. If the spring is missing or broken it would do the same thing. The spring is important since it pulls a brake onto the belt so the impeller stops. Otherwise it spins down on its own accord, and this can take a while if its unloaded. I got in the habit of pulling the handle up, since I don't let off the auger much anyways. But replacing that spring is on my to do list.

And for the handles not latching, one of mine wasn't latching when I got it. I dumped some oil on all the suspicious moving bits and it works great now. The one that was working was a little less 'positive' than the newly lubricated one, so I did that one too and they both snap in nicely now.


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## jrom

From my experience, if I had to get into the engage and return springs area by the belts, I'd replace all four springs ($16.70 + shipping).

I had a drive clutch return spring snap a few years ago and it shredded the drive belt. I ended up replacing all four since it was cheap enough at the time.

The only bummer I encountered was _no one_ had the one spring I needed in stock. It took 2 months to get it. I now have an extra new one and I kept the old ones I took off. 

Spares can be King at my house.


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## Thorenn

Tried out my brand new HSS928A for the first time today and the auger clutch lever will not stay down after holding down the drive clutch lever. All the solutions mentioned above pertain to cleaning and greasing parts. Since mine is a brand new machine, I do not think that is the problem. During the training stint conducted by the Honda dealer, the auger lever stayed down after holding down the drive clutch lever, but there was no snow to try it out fully at the time. Any guidance on perhaps adjusting a few things in the mechanism would be much appreciated.


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## orangputeh

Thorenn said:


> Tried out my brand new HSS928A for the first time today and the auger clutch lever will not stay down after holding down the drive clutch lever. All the solutions mentioned above pertain to cleaning and greasing parts. Since mine is a brand new machine, I do not think that is the problem. During the training stint conducted by the Honda dealer, the auger lever stayed down after holding down the drive clutch lever, but there was no snow to try it out fully at the time. Any guidance on perhaps adjusting a few things in the mechanism would be much appreciated.


Take to dealer if under warranty if you dont want to do what is listed above. Do not assume anything.


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## Thorenn

orangputeh said:


> Take to dealer if under warranty if you dont want to do what is listed above. Do not assume anything.


Thanks for the reply Orangputeh. I drive a Camry and so have no way to take the snowblower back to the dealer. The dealer charges $450 to transport the snowblower to the dealership for repairs, which I cannot afford. I paid the crazy high price for the Honda 928 because I wanted a very reliable machine that would not cost me more in repairs. This is a brand new Honda 928 and I never expected it to fail just a couple of days after it was delivered to me. I don't think I will ever buy a Honda product again!


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## orangputeh

Thorenn said:


> Thanks for the reply Orangputeh. I drive a Camry and so have no way to take the snowblower back to the dealer. The dealer charges $450 to transport the snowblower to the dealership for repairs, which I cannot afford. I paid the crazy high price for the Honda 928 because I wanted a very reliable machine that would not cost me more in repairs. This is a brand new Honda 928 and I never expected it to fail just a couple of days after it was delivered to me. I don't think I will ever buy a Honda product again!


okay.......you quit easily.


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## tabora

Thorenn said:


> Tried out my brand new HSS928A for the first time today and the auger clutch lever will not stay down after holding down the drive clutch lever.


This thread is about a different issue and the solutions here will not be helpful to you. Go back to the other thread and follow the instructions there. They work.


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