# A different auger belt question



## tfkjones (Dec 20, 2010)

Great suggestions in the previous thread! I hope that your collective expertise can help with my issue.

I have a 14-year old Craftsman 8.5 horse snowblower (mfd. by Murray). Last weekend, while clearing out from the blizzard that hit Minneapolis, I noticed that the auger wasn't keeping up, so I replaced the auger belt with a OEM Murray belt from Sears. After clearing my sidewalk, I again noticed that the auger wasn't keeping up. (I bought it when I lived in the UP of Michigan, and it handled snowfalls like this beautifully.)

The idler is adjust to maximum tension, but the belt is still loose. Today, the auger stops with the slightest resistance. I took off the belt and measured it, and it's a quarter-inch longer than the spec (38-5/8 instead of 38-3/8). Could it have stretched that much so quickly? (It's now about the same as the belt I took off, which was 4-years old.)

Any ideas?


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## dakota60 (Oct 20, 2010)

I find it hard to believe that a belt could stretch a quarter inch in a week. However, if it was me , when buying a new belt of the correct part number, I would not think to measure it, and would assume that it was of the correct length. Thus , unless you actually measured the brand new belt, we don't know that it actually stretched. How does the belt sit in the sheaves ? it should sit flush with the edge of the pulley - if the edge of the belt is below the edge of the pully, it is too narrow. Also there may be an adjustment on the auger engagement linkage to take up some slack, or sometimes the idler pulley itself can be loosened and slid in a little more to compensate. Good luck. Larry


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## indypower (Oct 28, 2010)

belts do not stretch even tho that is the term used. They wear on the sides, causing them to sit lower in the pullies. I believe that you were given the wrong belt.


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## BOSMECH (Dec 16, 2010)

I know for a fact that any shop will sell you a belt even if they dont have the right one, so they check the size and then try to find one that is close to that size.
I had a guy sell me a belt for my Snapper rear engine rider and it worked for a bit then began to slip so I took it of went to the Snapper dealer and got the correctone and work like it suppose to now. As far as the belt the guy sold me well while he was at work I tied it around his doors to the back of his shop.


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## tfkjones (Dec 20, 2010)

Thanks for the comments. Unfortunately, it's the OEM belt--I cross checked it with the manual, the Sears parts website, and the computer at a hardware store.

I'm stumped. The auger system is so simple: a drive pulley, a driven pulley, and an idler. The former two cannot be adjusted (as far as I can see or tell from the manual), and when the idler is engaged, the lever drops into a curved slot, so the only adjustment is the position of the idler on the lever--and it's as close to the belt as it can be.

If you think I might be missing something, please let me know.


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## dakota60 (Oct 20, 2010)

Couple of things - Your shear pins are okay, right ? and usually the rod or cable that goes from the lever on the handlebars down to the back of the machine is adjustable. I have an old craftsman (Roper built) from circa 1975. It has a rod that you unhook from the lever ans screw/unscrew from the bottom arm. depending on style, newer machines have a cable/ rod that either does the same or some connect into multiple holes at the bottom lever. Sometimes this has a plastic covering.


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## tfkjones (Dec 20, 2010)

Yeah, the shear pins are intact--that was my first thought (and hope, actually, since I have a couple of extra sets). The cable is adjustable, but the way the pivot arm--which I called a lever in my earlier post--connects, it's basically engaged or not-engaged. I tightened it just to be sure.

I was able to get the auger and impeller spinning by pushing on the belt (very carefully) with a broomstick, and it worked great until I had to disengage it. While it was working, there was a clanking sound, and the pulley looked like it was wobbling--it feels tight, which makes me wonder if the pulley is bent (looking closely, I see that it's two pieces of stamped metal, rather than a forged pulley). 

Any thoughts?

Thanks again for the replies so far.


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## indypower (Oct 28, 2010)

can you post the model number of the snowblower? Usually found on the back panel between the tires.


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## tfkjones (Dec 20, 2010)

Craftsman*model*number
536.886650

I was wrong about the pulley--it's one piece. It's also the only variable left, so I ordered a new one from Sears. 

I put some belt dressing on it today, and it worked long enough to clear my (small) driveway. I kind of wonder if the increased power after my tune up has something to do with it!?!?!?


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## dakota60 (Oct 20, 2010)

You should check the back bearing/bushing in the auger box, just ahead of your bottom pulley. If it's worn it may allow the pulley to raise toward the engine pulley and decreasing the distance between the two. I'm reaching a little here, but your last post said something about clanking and wobble.


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## BOSMECH (Dec 16, 2010)

Good one dakota60, and yes I seen that happen on my nieghbors and it was kind of a pain to change since the auger pulley did not want to come off.


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## tfkjones (Dec 20, 2010)

Thanks dakota60, I didn't think about the bearing--nor did I see any mention of it anywhere. It didn't take up all the slack, but it brought it back to about 70% and eliminated the rattling, and now that I've replaced the auger pulley, it's almost as good as new (@BOSMECH--I got the pulley off by tapping it gently, and then less gently and prying somewhat with the handle of a breaker bar [making sure to keep track of the square key that holds it to the shaft], and then removing the bearing with a suspension bearing [pickle] fork).

Here's my analysis of what happened--for anyone who found this thread by googling the problem and looking for a possible solution; it's not that interesting otherwise.

Ten years of wimpy winters (in Minnesota, of all places) meant not using it enough to justify a tune up, and even using Sea Foam didn't keep the carb from slowly gumming up. It was losing power slowly, a fact hidden by replacing the auger belt a few years ago, which revitalized it. However, by the end of last winter, it would run only on full choke.

This fall I had it tuned up (though procrastinated until Sears had a special), and now the engine runs better than ever--especially on non-oxygenated premium gas, which I've used in my boats forever, but didn't think of using for the snowblower. 

Over the years, the cheap construction of the auger pulley had caused the V-groove to expand over time--it was about an eighth-inch wider than the new pulley. Although I hadn't used it much in the last decade, its first few winters were in the UP of Michigan, where we got 272 inches of snow the year I bought it, so it has seen a lot of action.

Anyway, I think the increased power from the tune up stressed the bearing, and probably pulled the belt deeper into the pulley as well (meaning a shorter path, and thus more slack), leaving me with no auger power during the biggest snow we've had in Minnesota in almost 20 years.

The auger drive train is simple--a pulley on the engine's driveshaft, connected by a belt to a pulley on the auger drive shaft, which turns within a bearing. The bearing's only $6.99, and the auger pulley is $29.99 plus $7.99 shipping, and I learned a lot about the machine while installing it (before removing the bolts that hold the auger half to the engine half, be sure to disconnect the rods that turn the chute, or you'll deform the plastic piece that holds the screw that turns the chute--learned that the hard way, but was able to use C-clamps to hold it in place, and then leave a light under it for heat overnight, and then turn off the light in the morning and let it cool and then remove the clamps.)

If it were 1996 again, I would spend the extra $$ on an Ariens (the guy at the service shop couldn't tell me anything about their reliability--he had never seen one brought in). For now, however, I'm glad that it's working, even if the $50 tune up special cost me another $50 in repairs, but that's the irony that pervades my life.

Thanks again for the advice!

Walt


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## dakota60 (Oct 20, 2010)

Always happy to see a successful ending. Congrats on a good repair, and all you've learned while doing it. Larry


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