# Auger Pulley Movement



## Oskarol

Hey guys, recently purchased a 24" craftsman 205cc briggs 2 stage blower (model is c950-52946-0).

My auger belt keeps slipping off the auger pulley. This happens even when I am not actually blowing snow. When I pulled the pulley cover and watch the pulley and belt with the auger engaged, the auger pulley actually moves back and forth on the shaft as it spins and even contacts a metal spring nearby (causing sparks to fly). There are two set screws on the pulley which secure it to the shaft, they are tight. Anything else I can check?

Any help would be appreciated.


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## 43128

your impeller bushing/bearing is bad. pull off the bucket, remove the pulley(thats the fun part where you get to get the pb blaster and rip out the torch, and fight with it for hours), and replace the bearing. the hardest part will probably be removing the pulley, but the rest is pretty simple. use anti seize when your ready to reassemble


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## Oskarol

Thanks for the quick reply! Would that be item 491 on the attached diagram?


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## 43128

yup, thats the part you need


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## Oskarol

So I got out to the machine today to have a look. When I grab the shaft at the impeller end, it feels solid with pretty much no play. Is there any other way to check that it is the impeller bearing without pulling apart the machine? It really looks to me like the pulley itself is going back and forth along the shaft (towards the auger then towards the engine about a 1/2 inch of movement at a set frequency)... But that isn't possible if the set screws are tight? And I guess the entire shaft could be moving back and forth?

Thanks again.


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## Zavie

Perhaps the set screws are frozen in position and not tight at all on the shaft.


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## ELaw

As Zavie said, I'd check the setscrews further.

If the entire shaft is moving, the impeller would move with it - that should be pretty easy to check.


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## Kiss4aFrog

Video would be great but photos with it pushed forward and then backward would give us an idea of what you're seeing and a better grip on how to advise.


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## Oskarol

I just went out to have a look and it is definitely the shaft moving in and out and not the pulley sliding around. The entire assembly can be seen at the gearbox moving in and out about 1 inch of travel, translating all the way back to the pulley. I can get a video in daylight tomorrow. Problem with bushing in gearbox or impeller?


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## Oskarol

Here is a link to a video of what I have been describing. Thanks for letting me know what you guys think.


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## cpchriste

Your auger shaft is bent


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## Kiss4aFrog

That hurts just looking at it. It's very likely something became wedged behind the auger, between the auger and the housing and bent one or both of the shafts outward. Whatever was done to remove it may have made it worse.

What's happening is the front augers and gearbox are rotating the way a skip rope does. The two ends are fixed in bushings but the assembly has a bow in it so it's going forward, down, backward, up and forward again as it's rotating because the assembly isn't straight.

You'll need to take it all apart and check the augers and auger shafts to see what's bent to cure your problem. I'd also inspect the two side bushings the assembly spins on to see if that wobble has caused any unusual wear on them.


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## Oskarol

Okay, makes sense!

So basic procedure... As I am new to snowblowers...

Split the unit, undo the set screws in the pulley, remove the pulley, undo the bolts securing the auger assembly to the housing, then the entire assembly auger, gearbox, and impeller shaft should slide out?


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## Kiss4aFrog

That should work. Then it's a matter of figuring out what's bent and if you can carefully straighten it , have someone straighten it for you  or replace it .


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## classiccat

ooh that's rough...a "dislike" button would be appropriate for that video.   

double check the part numbers but here's a 



 that matches-up with a similar model (C950-52948). 

Starts to get pretty expensive when you add-in the gearcase gasket, bushings and seals. Hopefully none of the gears are trashed.


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## Oskarol

Making progress here!

Pulled off the auger assembly this morning. Was able to get it off without splitting the unit. The pulley slide right off (my guess is previous owner had it off recently!!). All the shafts (impeller and each of the auger shafts) look straight, all the bearings and bushings seem tight and spin freely. No real movement of the shafts as they enter the gearbox.

The one thing I see is that the pulley is warped. Not sure how that would even happen. Would a warped pulley transfer that motion all the way through the entire assembly? Wouldn't the belt 'absorb' that motion as opposed to letting it transfer through? Here is a video of the pulley, I would love to hear your thoughts on if I should tear the gearbox apart or if the warped pulley is the likely culprit.


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## Shryp

Your video is private.

A warped pulley wouldn't make everything move like that. It has to be the auger shaft.


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## Oskarol

Sorry about that. Video should be public now.


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## Kiss4aFrog

+1 w/Shryp

That pulley is a problem but there is still something bent up in the augers.


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## Oskarol

Thanks again for all the advice and help guys!! I stared for hours at these 3 shafts after taking them all apart. all looks to be dead straight. When placed against a rigid straight edge, it all lines up. Not sure where to go from here... I guess it's time to take it to a service shop.


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## Toro-8-2-4

Oskarol said:


> Thanks again for all the advice and help guys!! I stared for hours at these 3 shafts after taking them all apart. all looks to be dead straight. When placed against a rigid straight edge, it all lines up. Not sure where to go from here... I guess it's time to take it to a service shop.


Don't give up so easily! You have lots of help here.

You will have to disassemble the gearbox and remove the shaft to properly inspect it.

Try rolling the shaft on a flat table or flat floor. You should be able to see an out of straightness condition on a shaft that long.

It is a chicken and egg story. What came first? I would guess the bent auger shaft caused the pulley to get damaged.

It also seems like the auger bearings could be worn or loose. You may also have some damage to the gears and gear box bearings.

I don't know how common your machine is but being a 24" Craftsman I assume pretty popular. You may have luck finding a used whole gearbox auger assembly in good condition on CL. Slap it on and you are done.
Good luck!


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## Oskarol

Alright! Pulled apart the gearbox and pulled the gear off the auger shaft. You guys were right. Definite wobble in the auger shaft when rolled on the floor, with the low spot at the gear. Tough to see by eye, but it's not straight. Gonna take it to a machine shop and see if it can be straightened. The gears and bushings look good.


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## Toro-8-2-4

Ok...nice find.
Sounds like it bent were the gear is installed. The keyway can be a stress riser so give it a good inspection to make sure it is not cracked down in the keyway.

The shop should be able to straighten it in a lathe and confirm it is back to being straight as an arrow.

Good opportunity now to clean out the gear box and replace the seals if they are worn. There can be very small pieces of brass shavings in there. Install fresh 00 grease or gear oil and you are back in business.


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## Hankfard

Oskarol said:


> Making progress here!
> 
> Pulled off the auger assembly this morning. ....
> 
> The one thing I see is that the pulley is warped. Not sure how that would even happen. Would a warped pulley transfer that motion all the way through the entire assembly?
> 
> 
> 
> WOW, Your impeller looks like it tried to chuck a rock or ice ball out the chute. That's where the PRIMARY warp is - that's causing the in-out motion on the pulley. The back side of the impeller is probably scraping the back of the auger housing too...
> 
> I have personally experienced & repaired this problem while restoring my used 5/23 Craftsman blower.
> 
> The keyway on the impeller shaft is stout and 2"long, so it doesn't break easily. That can account for the excessive shock being transferred to the pulley causing it to warp as well. Take a good look at that impeller shaft key. If it is marked up, twisted, loose, or too tight to remove easily, then you must replace it AND the impeller too!
Click to expand...


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## Kiss4aFrog

Oskarol, If you have the time it's helpful to have pictures to go along with the narrative


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## Oskarol

I had the shaft straightened back out. The keyways on both the auger and impeller shafts look good. The impeller does show some slights scuff marks on the back side where it contacted the housing. 

I'm waiting for a few parts to arrive, then I'll put it back together. I'll get some photos along the way to post them and let you guys know how it goes.


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## Oskarol

Just to update the thread. Straightened out the shaft by just pounding it out and replaced the auger pulley. Everything went back together relatively well and fire the machine back up. Still had a snow bank left in the yard so tested the machine in that. Worked without issue, all the pulley motion and wobble in the shaft is gone. We'll see how it holds up next winter. 

Thanks for all the help along the way.


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## Eyeboltman

Cool , Glad you fix it ! Great guys on this site !


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