# Obsolete Drive Plate Repair Craftsman II 10-32



## deezlfan (Nov 8, 2017)

History: My blower was my grandfather's and then passed to my uncle. He traded it to me for a tiny little track drive Noma blower years ago. It was well worn when I got it but functional. I removed the track system and replaced them with tires 8 or 10 years ago. Every year I dig it out of storage, remove the covers and evict the mice, top off the oil, fuel her up and use it. 

This blower has never had a functional reverse since I got it, as the drive plate was heavily worn. I put a new drive wheel on it but that did not fix the problem. The drive plate is obsolete and when they do pop up they are too rich for my blood. Not that I would want to try to replace the plate anyway as it is quite a job to get to it. 


http://www.snowblowerforum.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=113881&thumb=1


I've been contemplating this repair for quite a while but when I saw a 5" aluminum disc on ebay I pulled the trigger. The idea is to epoxy this disc to the drive plate and create a smooth surface for the drive wheel. 


http://www.snowblowerforum.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=113889&thumb=1

http://www.snowblowerforum.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=113897&thumb=1

So I sanded the high spots off the drive disc and cleaned it with brake clean. After a final clean and time to let everything dry, I mixed up some 5 minute gap filling epoxy. I tried to clamp it tight but there is no room so a heavy weight was placed in the center and the disc centered carefully. 

http://www.snowblowerforum.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=113905&thumb=1

http://www.snowblowerforum.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=113913&thumb=1

I will give it 24 hours and see if I want to use any additional fasteners but looking good so far.


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## TheFanMan (Oct 10, 2017)

Wow... that looks great, hope it holds up and functions like new.


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## cpchriste (Jan 19, 2014)

Sorry to **** all over the hard work you've already done but I'm wondering if this is really the root problem. A rough friction plate will provide more grip rather than less.

The craftsman trac system was plagued by corrosion of the driving axles within the plastic bushings. When you removed the trac system [because it wouldn't turn?] that still left one bushing per side where the axles exit the housing. I bet those two are still semi-bound up and [as I've experienced] that friction can be enough to overcome the reverse gear in the transmission.

The solution is to remove those bushings, sand the shaft, lube, and reassemble. But these steps may be nearly impossible because the bushing cant be pulled off the shaft. The ******* workaround is to drill the bushing and install a grease zerk [while assembled] then hope the introduced grease can do enough good to let it run well.

BTW, thanks for giving enough details up front that readers can understand what is going on.


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## deezlfan (Nov 8, 2017)

The bushings on the driveshaft have been replaced by bronze bushings by grinding the bearing plate flat and drilling the hex portion to 1". They are held in by a spacer cut to length when I ditched the track system. The wheels and axles are free to move as intended. The tracks were removed because they split after the blower was stored on top of some broken bricks or similar sharp edged object. 

http://www.snowblowerforum.com/foru...-plate-repair-craftsman-ii-10-32-dsc03984.jpg

Unfortunately my photos did not illustrate how badly worn the drive plate was. The valleys [grooves] worn in the drive plate were directly under where the wheel would ride when the unit was in reverse. When the wheel was shifted across to the forward side of the drive, it tended to ride on the ridges except in 3. It would not move in that position. I even tried moving the adjustment of the shift rod without much success. I had to adjust the cross slide slightly because the plate I used was 1/16" thick. I eyeballed it while twisting it with a pipe wrench. Here it is with the drive wheel reinstalled. I want to give it 24hrs to cure before the road test. 

http://www.snowblowerforum.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=113969&thumb=1


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## HCBPH (Mar 8, 2011)

I hope it all works out for you, a creative solution. More a question than anything, I'm wondering if a friction plate from another brand of machine might be a substitute for yours? Second thought is I know there's something called spray welding to build up metal parts, I wonder if there's something similar to that for aluminum and if that could be done with friction discs?


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## JLawrence08648 (Jan 15, 2017)

I like the idea of epoxing another plate on. Would you report back at the end of the season how this worked? I would have tack welded another plate on, easily cut round with a jig saw, but I like your idea better.


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## TheFanMan (Oct 10, 2017)

deezlfan said:


> Unfortunately my photos did not illustrate how badly worn the drive plate was.


Something like this for example? This is off my dad's early 80's Ariens blower, still in use... i had never seen anything like it, noticed this when i offered to perform some basic maintenance on it. 1st and reverse are useless but 4th functions, he just leaves it in second.


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## deezlfan (Nov 8, 2017)

I'm sure a different brand of disc could be adapted but that goes back to having to disassemble the drive mechanism, a project I was really trying to avoid. 

Spray welding is still way past the worth of this machine. It too would require disassembly and additional machining. 

Welding would be a possible solution. The problems I see include the fact that the drive disc is cast aluminum of unknown composition and the plate being welded on is so thin. It certainly could be done by the right person but I am not him. I suspect a good welder would expect compensation in line with his talent. Again, well past my financial comfort zone. 

Anyway, the machine has been reassembled and given a 15 minute road test. I need to buy a rod end for the shift rod as the bottom keeps popping off when I try to shift. A temporary repair shows I have reverse again. Once I fix the shifter I will adjust the tension on the drive wheel and wait for snow. The epoxy repair didn't budge.


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## deezlfan (Nov 8, 2017)

TheFanMan said:


> Something like this for example? This is off my dad's early 80's Ariens blower, still in use... i had never seen anything like it, noticed this when i offered to perform some basic maintenance on it. 1st and reverse are useless but 4th functions, he just leaves it in second.



Nah man mine wasn't near that bad but it does illustrate the exact problem I was having. Looks like he must be in a sandy area.


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## deezlfan (Nov 8, 2017)

Well it's three years on and the repaired drive plate is still working. The shift mechanism that controls the movement of the wheel across the plate will need some attention this year as there is some play in there somewhere that makes shifting a little jukey. The epoxy held perfectly.


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## deezlfan (Nov 8, 2017)

> Sorry to **** all over the hard work you've already done but I'm wondering if this is really the root problem. A rough friction plate will provide more grip rather than less.


I don't know why I didn't respond to this comment way back when but NO the friction plate was quite porous and collected all sorts of dirt and grease. I had quite a time cleaning it out in order to get a clean surface for the epoxy. See photo 3982 above. 

.


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