# Impeller Mod for Troy-Bilt 2410



## tpenfield

My TB 2410 does OK, but I thought that it could do better throwing snow with the addition of an impeller modification kit. So, I ordered a kit, which arrived today and I had some time on my hands. 

I removed the discharge chute for better access to the impeller.










The standard impeller is a bit rounded on the edge, and has about a 3/4" gap between it and the escape chute housing. So, that explains why it tends to be a bit incapable with lower volumes of snow and the heavy wet stuff.



















By contrast the impeller on my Toro 521 is much more like a clever and is tight to the discharge chute housing.









The mod kit is comprised of rubber paddles, metal backings and related hardware. I cut and shaped the backing plates to the shape of the impeller blade.









Then it was a matter of cutting the paddles to the proper size and shape.









Continued on next post . . . .


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## tpenfield

Next post . . .

I did some measuring and figured that the paddles should extend from the edge of the impeller by about 3/8". So, I made a makeshift fixture to position the paddles on the blades for drilling of the bolt holes.









I had to remove the base of the discharge chute to get better access for drilling









Then I was able to drill the holes . . .









Here are the paddles installed.









The clearance on the bottom of the impeller housing looked OK.









But the clearance at the top of the housing was a bit tight.









So I did a bit of sanding to reduce the interference fit. and things looked OK. Here is the modified impeller with the discharge based re-installed. The clearance is much tighter.









So, I got the machine back together and thought that I would run it for a while to check things out and "break-in" the paddles.

*Bad News: *I may have not provided enough clearance or something, because 2 of the 3 paddles fractured after a few minutes of running. I think part of the problem is that the rubber paddles are not fiber reinforced, so they are likely to fracture.

Perhaps I should get some reinforced rubber strips and replace the paddles . . . :icon_scratch:


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## YSHSfan

I am about to use baler belt for impeller mod (as Kiss4aFrog always suggests). I got it delivered today.
It should be very durable and it's also inexpensive.
What some members recommend for "break in period" is to lightly coat the auger housing with grease and run the blower for a few minutes for the padles to seat in.


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## 43128

get some baler belt from tsc


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## E350

I searched and found this, is it what we should get?



Jackmels said:


> I've done many impeller seals on 10000 series. I first did only 2, but 4 is more effective. I use baler belt from Tractor Supply.
> 
> http://www.tractorsupply.com/en/store/baler-belting-2-ply-4-in-x-60-in


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## tpenfield

Thanks for the tip on the baler belt guys. I will be out and about over the Thanksgiving weekend (Black Friday, etc) and will see if I can find a Tractor Supply Corp. Would Harbor Freight have anything like it?

Here is a picture of one of the fractured paddles . . 2 of the 3 fractured during break-in, but I am thinking the other would fracture under the load and the cold.

I was thinking this might happen since the kit had plain rubber and not fiber reinforced.


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## nwcove

i used ( but not yet tested) some pieces cut out of the sidewall of a light truck tire.


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## YSHSfan

E350 said:


> I searched and found this, is it what we should get?


Yes, that is what I got (I payed more since the one I got was 6" wide, ordered 10' and had to pay shipping).
What you posted seems to be the best value (and it should be good for about either 5 or 10 3 blade kits).
You can always order on line or just walk into a store and buy just one foot of it.


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## tpenfield

nwcove said:


> i used ( but not yet tested) some pieces cut out of the sidewall of a light truck tire.


Actually, I think I found something that I can use . . .

I have a 2-foot section of "Trident-Ply" 4" diameter Marine Exhaust Hose, which has several layers of ply in it and then more fiber ply on the outside. It is left over from my boat engine rebuild and has been sitting in the garage for about 4 years. 

The impeller paddles are about 2" x 3", so I can cut 3" off the end of the marine hose and then cut that into 2" sections. They will have a bit of a curve to them, but I do not think it will matter much once they are clamped to the impeller.


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## GtWtNorth

tpenfield, you may need to do something about those 2 bolt heads. That may be what caused your kit to break off. Search around for some replacement flat head bolts like this.
http://www.amazon.com/National-Hardware-4-Inch-Carriage-12-Pack/dp/B002KFZUJE


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## JnC

I used the following set up for my HS924, shown is the impeller from the HS1132 (same 12" impeller) it worked like a charm last season. I wanted to use bolts but decided to just drill and tap the holes using self tapping SS screws that I had, the rubber pieces need to be trimmed a bit for snug fit. Pieces were cut from mud flaps made for trucks and are fiber reinforced. By the way there is no way to drill/tap honda impeller while its still installed in the housing.


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## jermar

While the rubber in the kit may not have been the best, I don't see the need to follow the curve of the impeller blade. That bent rubber may have caused it to fail early. Note how JnC placed the rubber across only the flat part of the blade. That's how I did mine, but I used the paddle from a single stage for the rubber.


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## tpenfield

GtWtNorth said:


> tpenfield, you may need to do something about those 2 bolt heads. That may be what caused your kit to break off. Search around for some replacement flat head bolts like this.
> National Hardware V7652 1/4-by-20-by-1-3/4-Inch Flat Head Garage Door Carriage Bolts and Nuts, Zinc, 12-Pack - Hardware Nut And Bolt Sets - Amazon.com


Not sure how the bolt heads make a difference, but please help me understand.

Is it that the rubber paddles are flexing back an hitting the heads? I will look for some carriage bolts instead.


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## tpenfield

jermar said:


> While the rubber in the kit may not have been the best, I don't see the need to follow the curve of the impeller blade. That bent rubber may have caused it to fail early. Note how JnC placed the rubber across only the flat part of the blade. That's how I did mine, but I used the paddle from a single stage for the rubber.


The only reason that I followed the curve a bit in shaping the paddles and the backing plates is that the area is quite small to begin with. It seems to be smaller than other impellers.

What is interesting is that on the 2 paddles that broke during break-in, the curved part remained while the flat part is what broke off.


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## YSHSfan

jermar said:


> While the rubber in the kit may not have been the best, I don't see the need to follow the curve of the impeller blade. That bent rubber may have caused it to fail early. Note how JnC placed the rubber across only the flat part of the blade. That's how I did mine, but I used the paddle from a single stage for the rubber.


I've done a few impeller kits and on the ones I've done, the impeller blade was about 4" wide, if only the flat area was done I will end up with about 2 1/2" area, if done with the curve I can get nearly the full 4" impeller blade area. It worked that way for me JMO.


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## Kiss4aFrog

I get mine at FleetFarm as they sell by the foot. I can't pull it up on line but they have it in the store.

I'm not sure about TSC, seems 60" is the minimum. Baler Belting, 2-Ply, 4 in. x 60 in. - For Life Out Here
But I could be wrong.

http://www.farmandfleet.com/products/725525-apache-3-ply-baler-belt-cover-x-cover.html

I tried tire sidewall but it's hard to cut and it's not consistent. It thins out as it goes from tread to bead. It can be done but I don't think the effort is worth the savings unless you have no way to get baler belt or something similar. 

If you can't find it in your area or don't want to buy 60" let me know. I'm guessing for under $10 I can buy and ship a foot of it to you. That's about 3 snowblowers worth unless you have an opps! :facepalm_zpsdj194qh


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## Jackmels

Baler Belt form TSC works well, 6' x 4" $20, enough to do probably 4-5 machines. I attach one blade, spray impeller surface liberally with pb blaster, and run at low speed for a bit to break in, then repeat until all blades are sealed. I can't believe anyone actually pays for a kit.....Baler Belting, 2-Ply, 4 in. x 60 in. - For Life Out Here


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## jtclays

tpenfield said:


> Not sure how the bolt heads make a difference, but please help me understand.
> 
> Is it that the rubber paddles are flexing back an hitting the heads? I will look for some carriage bolts instead.


Just to be clear, I think GtWtNorth is referring to these 2 bolt heads holding your plastic shroud for the chute on the left.








Just thinking outloud, but I'd pull the auger belt and hand spin that impeller without the kit on to see if it's out of round fore and aft (the backing plate of the impeller) just spin it and watch the back plate to back of auger bucket clearance as it goes around. Also grab hold of the impeller shaft and see if you can get any up and down and side to side movement, as in if the impeller bearing is egged. I spray silicone inside and on the paddles before first run. Then BEFORE you engage the augers, make sure you point the chute away from the white siding of your house:wavetowel2:


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## skutflut

jtclays said:


> Just to be clear, I think GtWtNorth is referring to these 2 bolt heads holding your plastic shroud for the chute on the left.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Just thinking outloud, but I'd pull the auger belt and hand spin that impeller without the kit on to see if it's out of round fore and aft (the backing plate of the impeller) just spin it and watch the back plate to back of auger bucket clearance as it goes around. Also grab hold of the impeller shaft and see if you can get any up and down and side to side movement, as in if the impeller bearing is egged. I spray silicone inside and on the paddles before first run. Then BEFORE you engage the augers, make sure you point the chute away from the white siding of your house:wavetowel2:



There are also two more bolts holding the top of the impeller chute, so there are 4 steel edges that the rubber is going to hit on the way around. I was looking at mine, and once I find some rubber, will try it out. I will whittle the edges of the rubber to clear those bolt shoulders. I figure on leaving a 1/8 gap between the rubber edge and the wall of the impeller in an attempt to keep the paint on the inside of the impeller housing and to allow for any slop that may be present, and any out of round condition. Still better than the over 1/2 gap there now. 

I think the carriage bolts, even though that edges are more tapered, will still pose a problem because the crown of the bolt has a higher profile than the existing bolts, so while the rubber may ride over the edges better, it will have to flex more to get over the centre of the bolt head.


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## E350

Okay Guys, this has been the best thread I have read so far about the impeller blade mod. Thanks *tpenfield*! But one question still open for discussion is:

*Should the baler belt follow the curve to the end of the impeller or only be attached to the flat part of the impeller blade?*

I would like to hear the pros and cons and your thoughts and experiences on this*.*

I usually over-do things, then in testing my work find out why it shouldn't be over-done and then dial it back to how it should've been done the first time. So, unless you guys tell me not to follow the curve of the impeller blade, that is what I will do on the Ariens. Then I will be doing it on the three impeller blade ATV Kimpex. (I just bought the steel to make the stinger pusher to hook up to the trailer hitch on the 6x6 Ranger which hitch in need to fix because I overloaded it a couple of years ago...)

Looks like we got about 12-16" during this last storm. Tomorrow I will be using for the first time our new to me ST1032 Ariens with 2-link V-bar chains on our inclined dirt driveway. I caught the plow operator for our local tree faller by cell phone and he cut the US HWY 50 CalTrans EOD berm down and plowed up the driveway about 20' but the next 100' or so are all me. Happy Thanksgiving to you all!


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## tpenfield

Just to be clear, the bolts that hold the chute base onto the impeller housing are carriage style bolts. So the flat rounded head faces into the impeller housing and should cause some, but less interference. So not a lot of options to change what is there.

My plan is to set the replacement paddles based on the upper portion oft dimpled housing and provide some clearance. Hopefully the results will be better.


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## Normex

tpenfield said:


> Just to be clear, the bolts that hold the chute base onto the impeller housing are carriage style bolts. So the flat rounded head faces into the impeller housing and should cause some, but less interference. So not a lot of options to hangs what is there.
> 
> My plan is to set the replacement paddles based on the upper portion oft dimpled housing and provide some clearance. Hopefully the results will be better.


Yes that is how I would have them the round head inside the housing.
However I think your original rubber fractured like this because your housing is somewhat egg shaped and the rubber got pinched when the gap closed more. That said I would definitively try to run it by hand to see if you have a pinch situation. Be careful and remove your spark plug wire to be safe.
Good Luck


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## tpenfield

Yes, I was thinking and hoping that the impeller housing was circular , but it seems to be not so perfectly round. So I will work to the smallest dimension to avoid interference fit


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## nwcove

idid read, or see a vid where the installer tapered the rubber extensions where they contacted the housing, just to make break in a bit easier. ( tp...do you still hang out down the street at iboats ? )


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## tpenfield

nwcove said:


> idid read, or see a vid where the installer tapered the rubber extensions where they contacted the housing, just to make break in a bit easier. (* tp...do you still hang out down the street at iboats ? )*



Yes, I am there most days. Don't see you there so much lately ?

I cut the new paddle pieces this morning before taking off to relatives house for Thanksgiving. I used the marine exhaust tube and they seem pretty tough and durable. So, I'll probably re-do the install on Saturday and make sure the clearance is better.


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## dbert

I'll say I thought it was looking perfect, up until it broke. When I saw you could remove the piece that attaches directly to the impeller housing I was thinking that was very convenient for this task. Now I'm wondering if MTD didn't make the impeller gap extra wide in the first place just to clear these carriage fasteners that attach this plastic chute mount. Boo to them if so.


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## YSHSfan

dbert said:


> Now I'm wondering if MTD didn't make the impeller gap extra wide in the first place just to clear these carriage fasteners that attach this plastic chute mount. Boo to them if so.


Husqvarna had the same design (possibly most of the blowers that have plastic chutes have that design). IMO I think the carriage bolt is just what they were left with on that desing. You can not weld studs as if done it will be phisically impossible to install or remove the plastic chute base due to the different angles the studs will be pointing to (unless they cut slots on the chute base mounting holes which will put the assembly at risk of sliding out).


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## nwcove

dbert said:


> I'll say I thought it was looking perfect, up until it broke. When I saw you could remove the piece that attaches directly to the impeller housing I was thinking that was very convenient for this task. Now I'm wondering if MTD didn't make the impeller gap extra wide in the first place just to clear these carriage fasteners that attach this plastic chute mount. Boo to them if so.


imho, the failure had everything to do with material/rubber used.


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## YSHSfan

+ 1 with that.


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## tpenfield

nwcove said:


> imho, the failure had everything to do with material/rubber used.



+2 definitely . . . even though there was probably some interference with carriage bolt heads on the upper part of the impeller housing, I think that fiber reinforced paddles would have worn in as needed and not fractured.

I have already made new pieces and will install them later today, if time permits . . . after Black Friday shopping


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## tpenfield

Based on the discussion in this thread and re-visiting some of the pictures, I can see that the carriage bolt heads probably have little to do with the fracturing since they are pretty much out of the way (to either side of the impeller path) at the top of the housing and at the discharge area, the paddles clear the bolt heads by a decent amount.

As you can see in this picture, only 1 of the bolts will barely knick the rear of the paddle as it travels by them. Just noticed that as I was looking through the pictures. . .










The bigger issue is probably the slight interference that 2 of the paddles had as they transitioned from the discharge opening to the top of the impeller housing.


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## jtclays

tp, Went back eyeballing the pics again myself. Hard to tell from the angle, but how far does the top part of that plastic chute overlap the metal cut out? (In your last pic, that point where you show the good paddle near the vacant carriage bolt holes). Just wondering if that does have a lip that extends into the metal area, it may be just enough, and at just the angle that it's catching your paddles in a more upright position here causing the fractures. The combination of the collision course with the solid rubber material may be the perfect storm scenario? I'd try the TSC baler belting as tight as you had the others and see what happens. It's thinner and layered with reinforcing fabric.


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## dbert

tpenfield said:


> As you can see in this picture, only 1 of the bolts will barely knick the rear of the paddle as it travels by them. Just noticed that as I was looking through the pictures. . .


It would be easy to determine if we were actually there in person, but the location of the lower carriage bolts looks to be in the path of the impeller. 
We're just armchair quarterbacking. A different material may be all that is needed, but there was a 3/4 inch gap and the impeller did not appear to be worn.


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## Shryp

I have done 2 of these. The first one I bought the kit and the second one I got the $18 roll of baler belt from TSC. For both of them I just curved the rubber around the curve on Ariens impellers. Both are working fine so far. For the home made one I cut up a piece of sheet metal to make the top covers. I was just going to use washers, but the dip in the impeller kept causing them to sink in. After the first blade of the first kit I learned to leave them a hair loose and then they don't really need much of a break in.


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## tpenfield

I was a TSC today, but did not see any baler belt. Wasn't looking too closely for it since I have the new pieces made and ready to go.

I will check for any other areas of interference based on the recent comments, etc. I am thinking the new pieces, being fiber reinforced will do the trick.


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## tpenfield

I got this thing figured out . . .

After replacing the paddles with better material and checking the fit, I still had some interference that could be heard when the augur/impeller was engaged.

It turned out to be a flange on the discharge chute base that hangs down into the impeller housing. With the standard impeller, it clears the flange easily, but with the modification the paddles hit the flange slightly. I think @jtclays mentioned something to this effect a few posts up 

It took me a while to figure it out since I was checking the clearance with the chute base removed from the machine.

So, I took my belt sander and ground the flange down a bit . . . put it all back together and the interference noise is gone.

Here are a few pictures of the new paddles and the flange that was causing all of the troubles.

The new paddles
























The flange that was causing the interference and breakage of the standard paddles.








Now that I have things sorted out, I probably could adjust the paddles out for a tighter fit. I'll see how it works as is and then decide if any adjustments are needed.


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## DaHen

After all the changes and adjustments that you have made on your Troy-Bilt, I hope we do get some snow this winter to make all your work worthwhile. 

I put the impeller mod kit on my John Deere as well last Summer. Seemed to work during a dry run under power. 

Now that our machines are ready, bring on the snow................. :wavetowel2:


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## tpenfield

DaHen said:


> After all the changes and adjustments that you have made on your Troy-Bilt, I hope we do get some snow this winter to make all your work worthwhile.
> 
> I put the impeller mod kit on my John Deere as well last Summer. Seemed to work during a dry run under power.
> 
> Now that our machines are ready, bring on the snow................. :wavetowel2:


We should be careful what we wish for . . . I just hope we do not get the snowmageddon that we got last year. I would like to see a decent snow fall so that I can get a good feel for how well the impeller mod is working.

I think my 521 Toro w/ Predator 212cc re-power is still going to win the throwing distance contest between my 2 machines.


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## tpenfield

Finally got some snow so I was able to try out the TB 2410 w/ the impeller mod. Just a couple inches of dense granular snow, but it seemed to throw it about twice as far as before.

So far, so good.


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## dp2826

tpenfield said:


> Finally got some snow so I was able to try out the TB 2410 w/ the impeller mod. Just a couple inches of dense granular snow, but it seemed to throw it about twice as far as before.
> 
> So far, so good.


How is your mod working? I have a 8526 I was thinking about trying this out on. It also has a plastic flange on the chute base.

Seems like the results of this mod would be much more noticeable on a machine with a steel chute, being able to close the tolerances to next to zero.


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## tpenfield

dp2826 said:


> How is your mod working? I have a 8526 I was thinking about trying this out on. It also has a plastic flange on the chute base.
> 
> Seems like the results of this mod would be much more noticeable on a machine with a steel chute, being able to close the tolerances to next to zero.


Good news/Bad news is that there has been hardly any snow in my area so far this winter. So, I have not been able to give the machine a decent test. In the small amount of snow that we have had this year, the impeller mod seems to be helping. I am just waiting for a good 6"+ storm to see what it does with a decent amount of snow.

The Troy-Bilt machine has quite a bit of clearance between the impeller and the chute. . . that combined with the rounded edge of the impeller blades, allows for a fair amount of by-pass of snow.

If/when we get a good dumping of snow, I'll try to post an update.


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## tekapo

I have an old John Deere I did this to about 6-7 years ago. I bought the kit from Canada and it has made a huge difference. After reading this threat, I would just get the bailer belt as you did. I've never heard of it before. I get a large can of PAM cooking spray and lube the shoot and paddles. I'm sure some guys have better stuff, but it works on the blower and the shovels. Thanks for starting this post.
Charlie


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## tpenfield

Update:

We had a couple of snow storms over the past few days, which has given me a chance to try out the impeller mod in more typical conditions.

The results are dramatic. It throws every type of snow quite far as compared to before. Heavy/wet is about 2X. On the lighter snow, the best it could do previously was about 25+ feet. . . now it throws that stuff 40 feet. So, about a 50% improvement in distance. The snow also goes very high.

I have a side walk that runs by the front of my house and a picket fence that runs parallel about 35 feet back from the sidewalk. While clearing the sidewailk, the machine as original would throw snow to within 5-10 feet of the fence . . . now it reaches over the fence.

The engine seems to handle the load fine, so I think the OEM impeller is just a bit inefficient.

Anyway, the TB 2410 is a nice machine as original, but it is a monster with the impeller mod 

If I get a chance to take some videos, I'll post them.


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## ndamenti

I used the sidewall of a light truck tire. Worked great.


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## Big K

Completed impeller mod to my 30"
Troybilt last week. I used baler belt I bought from Tractor supply with bolts not self drilling screws. I did cut off the plastic from the chute collar that protruded into the drum, and cut the paddles so they barely touched the heads of the two bolts protruding into the drum. Even with that cut, the paddles did lightly touch the drum in locations around the drum because the drum was not perfectly round. 
Tried it in the new fallen snow last night. What a difference. It's throwing the snow atnleast 50% further. And it was throwing the sludge that was in the street at the bottom of the driveway without clogging. 11 year old blower now functioning a lot better than it did when it was new. 
Inspected the paddles this morning, no issues with wear, splitting, or deformation.


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## Kiss4aFrog

Welcome to SBF ndamenti & Big K











ndamenti said:


> I used the sidewall of a light truck tire. Worked great.


Tire sidewall will work but there is way more chance of slicing your finger, hand or arm trying to cut those squares out. In my experience they also vary in thickness as the tire sidewall will thicken toward the tread.
If you can find *baler belt* IMHO it's just a better way to go.
See post #16 in this thread, first page.


.


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## PlOM

What about using pop-rivets to attach the rubber flap to the impeller?

I'm working on the front end of my Yardworks/MTD, and along with new bushings, bearings etc, I have a new impeller (three paddle). During the last winter I installed flaps on the original impeller using self-tapping stainless steel screws. This was done through the chute opening (with the plastic chute base removed). It worked better afterwards, but I wonder what impact the heads of the screws, or bolts, has on the flow of snow. 

With 1/4 or 3/8 inch of rubber, and heads/washers that might add another 1/4 inch, there's a significant impediment to the snow sliding along and off the end of the paddle. My thought turned to lessening the effect of the heads by using pop-rivets. These would be 1/4 inch, steel or stainless steel, with flat washers. They would add very little height beyond the rubber flap itself, and with the back edge of the flap (nearest the center of the impeller) cut on an angle, this reduce the impact on the movement of snow along the paddle.

Bolts and self-tapping screws (hex head) are easy to install through the chute opening (as demonstrated here and in numerous videos). But even with the impeller installed in the bucket, the flaps on my MTD are well exposed, especially when the plastic base for the chute is removed. If a rivet has to be removed, it can be drilled out easily through the same opening.

I've looked through several of the long threads on installing the flaps but didn't find any mention of using rivets. Although I would think the rivet would be as secure as a self-tapper or bolt, I'm no where near having any expertise in this. Consequently I thought I'd ask: Any comments, suggestions, concerns, with using pop-rivets?

(Incidentally, I also looked at using carriage bolts which could also have a relatively shallow head, but adding a steel plate to hold them from turning negates some of the benefit.)


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## Yanmar Ronin

No reason it wouldn't work I think... decent size washer on the rubber side ftw though. If it flies it'll come out through the chute, no foul.

Alternatively there is a wide variety of round-headed allen bolts.


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## Oneacer

Like this .....

Hillman #10-32 x 3/4-in Allen-Drive Cap Screws (3-Count) in the Machine Screws department at Lowes.com


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## Oneacer

Funny you mention the impeller mod ... When I worked for Amtrak, I obtained used track pads, ballast machine belting, and I even have reinforce truck mud flaps ... along with all sorts of metal for the hold downs.

I still have all that material sitting on hand, and I never even performed one mod yet ..... I never felt a need , maybe if I have time this summer, I'll check and perform a mod on a machine with the largest gap .... lol, not a priority, but if I think of it .


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## PlOM

Thanks for the great replies. Gave me more ideas . . .

Stores are closed here (still in "stay-at-home-mode" due to Covid-19), but when they reopen in a week or two, I'll stop by the local fastener supply, to see if they have the domed Allen-drive cap screws suggested by @Oneacer in post #49 above. According to the linked page, Hillman also Allen-drives with a flat head; that might be close to the pop-rivet as to height, and still retain the top-side (of the paddle) install/remove functionality in case a rubber flap has to be replaced.


On a related area, my blower is the same as @tpenfield 's Troy-Bilt in regard to the dome-head carriage bolts that intrude into the impeller housing about 1/8-inch. It means the flaps have to be trimmed to clear them.

I'm going to see if the fasterner shop has flat-head carriage bolts similar to the one suggested by @GtWtNorth in post #10 above; looks as if they would reduce the 1/8-inch intrusion by at least half. Any concerns about using this type in place of the dome head type?

Also, instead of a plastic extension of the chute base coming down into the impeller area as in the OP's case, my unit has a metal plate at the top of the chute opening, presumably, to protect the leading edge of the impeller housing and the plastic chute base:










The plate adds another 1/6-inch to the overall intrusion of two carriage bolts that hold it and the upper part of the chute base.

When I installed the flaps last winter, I had to cut them back to clear this, so the remaining gap all around was as much as 3/16-inch. I'm thinking that if this plate could be left off and if the flat head carriage bolts would work in place of the domed ones, I could reduce the remaining gap significantly. I seem to recall one post where someone mentioned leaving the plate off. I'd like to follow up with the poster, or any others, to find out if there has been any excessive wear to the leading edge of the impeller housing opening or the chute base. Here's the area with the plate removed:










(Incidentally, the white deposits are residue from the car wax I used on the inside of the impeller housing, bucket and chute.)

Again, concerns, suggestions etc., welcomed.


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