# Craftsman 5/22 Model 536.886540



## N3kf99 (Mar 2, 2019)

So this blower is old time. I had a slightly stuck open exhaust valve a couple years ago. Fixed that. It has the impeller kit on it. It worked like a champ again. This year it was going fine. My son pulled on the auger engage lever and felt a click. Now when the auger is spinning when you hit snow, the auger and impeller just stall. There is no engine bogging. We adjusted the auger engage cable but that is no help. I need to find a parts diagram but is there some sort of clutch on the impeller drive or is it more likely an internal shear pin might have sheared. The auger shear pins are fine. But the whole auger/impeller shaft just stalls when it hits snow. Thanks four any hints!!!!

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## N3kf99 (Mar 2, 2019)

So looking at the parts diagram it would imply to I me either an idler pulley or belt.

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## Dave C (Jan 26, 2015)

Take the cover off and watch the pulley when you hit snow. If the pulley is spinning on the shaft there's a square key that probably sheared.


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## N3kf99 (Mar 2, 2019)

Thanks Dave for the response. Looks like the pulley stays spinning but the belt is slipping. Tightened the idler pulley all the way down. It seems to work now, but the belt is still very loose even with the idler tightened all the way down. Guess it's time for a new belt. Weird it worked one day and stopped the next!!!

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## Big Ed (Feb 10, 2013)

N3kf99 said:


> Thanks Dave for the response. Looks like the pulley stays spinning but the belt is slipping. Tightened the idler pulley all the way down. It seems to work now, but the belt is still very loose even with the idler tightened all the way down. Guess it's time for a new belt. Weird it worked one day and stopped the next!!!
> 
> Sent from my ONEPLUS A5000 using Tapatalk


Most likely it is stretched.
Get 2 if your planning on keeping the machine.


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## HCBPH (Mar 8, 2011)

Another item to check is that the pulley on the auger assembly aligns with the motor pulley. If they aren't aligned, the sides of the belt will wear prematurely. It's the sides of the belt that do the gripping, if worn the belt will sit too deep in the pulley and only the bottom of the belt will make contact with the pulley, with much less grip than is required. Also some like Kevlar belts, I've not used them so I can't speak either way on them.


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## Kiss4aFrog (Nov 3, 2013)

I'd check the idler to make sure the idler bearings aren't going out. If the belt is working fine one day and not the next it just doesn't seem likely it would be belt tension alone. I could be wrong by I'd be more inclined to think a bearing was going out allowing something to shift position and give the belt less tension. The idler or the impeller bearings.
Might look to see the bushing that the round part of the arm the idler mounts to isn't shattered and fell out. Part #9 in diagram

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## FlamingSpaghetti (Jan 8, 2018)

Replace the belt, it's likely worn. My machine did this a few days ago and upon comparison with a new belt, I noticed the old belt was ground down to around half the thickness. This caused the auger and impeller to stall out completely in heavy snow.


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