# Non marring/non scuffing materials



## micah68kj (Oct 8, 2011)

Been considering making my own non-marring snow blower skids for my old Gilson since I decided to keep it. Any idea how heavy Nylon or phenolic blocks would hold up? I was hinking of making a bigger pair, somethingon the order of snowblower skids® only in plastic form. Any comments on how something of this mawterial would wear? Does anybody or any compan already manfacture them?


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## Blue Hill (Mar 31, 2013)

If you can find some high density polyethylene (HDPE) it wears like a pig's nose, especially at lowish temperatures, but would definately be non-marring.
We used to use it for slurry lines and even at 90 degree elbows it would last for years.


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## CarlB (Jan 2, 2011)

I used UHMW and this stuff wears better than steel and will not mar. Here is a link to some on ebay and the price isn't bad because this stuff isn't cheap. I used 1" thick and it works great. I even made a pair of Roller Skids using this stuff. It cuts easily but wears great. You can get two pair from this piece.

UHMW SHEET1''1 2 4''5 8 x 23''7 8 | eBay


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## Blue Hill (Mar 31, 2013)

Joe, take a look at this thread on another forum.
Urethane skids and scraper on a snow blower?
It looks like they are discussing just what you are looking for.


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## micah68kj (Oct 8, 2011)

Thanks for the replies Carl and Bluehill.
If I get themmade I'll post a pic.


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## GustoGuy (Nov 19, 2012)

micah68kj said:


> Thanks for the replies Carl and Bluehill.
> If I get themmade I'll post a pic.


II git a set pf Robalon's they are nice and only 19.99 I have posted on the about 1 month ago


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## Engraver1 (Oct 10, 2013)

Like Blue Hill says, you can't hardly wear out HDPE- The guy who delivered our hot tub last year had a 1/4" sheet of the stuff, about 3' wide and 15' long he used as a sled to move tubs. Slid effortlessly across our driveway. He said he'd used it for 4 years so far and it barely showed any wear.

And just last weekend I made a set of HPDE skids for my old MTD 5/22. I had some 3/8" thick handy so that's what I used, but 1/2" would work great. HDPE isn't all that expensive either. 

Yeah, the bolts I bought are too long


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## GustoGuy (Nov 19, 2012)

Engraver1 said:


> Like Blue Hill says, you can't hardly wear out HDPE- The guy who delivered our hot tub last year had a 1/4" sheet of the stuff, about 3' wide and 15' long he used as a sled to move tubs. Slid effortlessly across our driveway. He said he'd used it for 4 years so far and it barely showed any wear.
> 
> And just last weekend I made a set of HPDE skids for my old MTD 5/22. I had some 3/8" thick handy so that's what I used, but 1/2" would work great. HDPE isn't all that expensive either.
> 
> Yeah, the bolts I bought are too long


Cool. How hard was it to drill out the slotted holes and cut them to length? If the material is cheap enough it would be a good substitute for the Robalons at $26.99 including the $7 dollars I needed to pay for shipping. If it's too time consuming to cut and slot them I would for convenience sake just order the Robalons and slap them on since they are made to fit my MTD 5/322. I just bought a set of Robalon's for my MTD 5/22 since they were $19.99 which is about the same price as the stock steel skids which leave rust stain marks (which I hate) on my epoxied Garage floor in my heated man cave of a garage. Right now I am restoring an old Montgomery Ward 8/26 unitrol to it's former glory and beyond complete with a homemade baler belt impeller kit.


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## Engraver1 (Oct 10, 2013)

I cheated and had one of my engraving machines make the slotted holes for me, but it wouldn't be a big deal to just hog 'em out on a drill press-- they ARE just snowblower skids, after all! 

I went to my plastics supplier last year and bought the HPDE I used, I got 2 strips, 4" wide by 8 feet long, to use on the bunks of a boat trailer (haven't done that yet). I cut 6" off of one strip, then split it in half with a radial arm saw, so the skids measure 1-7/8" tall x 6"... That means I can make 30 pairs of skids out the material I have handy, and if memory serves I paid less than $25 for both pieces... pretty reasonable!


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## Blue Hill (Mar 31, 2013)

Maybe a router for the slots??


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## GustoGuy (Nov 19, 2012)

micah68kj said:


> Been considering making my own non-marring snow blower skids for my old Gilson since I decided to keep it. Any idea how heavy Nylon or phenolic blocks would hold up? I was hinking of making a bigger pair, somethingon the order of snowblower skids® only in plastic form. Any comments on how something of this mawterial would wear? Does anybody or any compan already manfacture them?


 *I see that Robalon skids are not available for the Gilson's*. I can understand since the exited production in the late 1980"s. The Montgomery Ward 8/26 unitrol is a big heavy machine and good non marring easy to slide skids would be nice on this machine. The difference between the 1/2 in and the 3/4th inch is pretty hefty so I will order the 1/2 inch thick for $28. Since it is a 4 foot length I could do it over and over again and I could also do the MTD once the Robalon's wear out. You can also make them custom length too or cut them so they have rounded edges if you like similar to the Robalon"


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## Shryp (Jan 1, 2011)

GustoGuy said:


> *I see that Robalon skids are not available for the Gilson's*. I can understand since the exited production in the late 1980"s. The Montgomery Ward 8/26 unitrol is a big heavy machine and good non marring easy to slide skids would be nice on this machine. The difference between the 1/2 in and the 3/4th inch is pretty hefty so I will order the 1/2 inch thick for $28. Since it is a 4 foot length I could do it over and over again and I could also do the MTD once the Robalon's wear out. You can also make them custom length too or cut them so they have rounded edges if you like similar to the Robalon"


You could always double them up too. Then you have 1" instead of 3/4"


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## GustoGuy (Nov 19, 2012)

Shryp said:


> You could always double them up too. Then you have 1" instead of 3/4"


I will do that. Thanks great idea. Another thing these big heavy machines could use is a 14 inflatable tires instead of the semi pneumatic 12 inch for better traction and ground clearance. The gear case is only 1 3/4 inch off the ground and the wheels are in the middle instead of in the rear like my MTD. The MTD has an additional 1/2 inch of clearance over the Montgomery Ward. I have caught it on the edge of the sidewalk at my house while cleaning out the rust removing gel residue with the hose and high pressure sprayer.


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## micah68kj (Oct 8, 2011)

Blue Hill said:


> If you can find some high density polyethylene (HDPE) it wears like a pig's nose, especially at lowish temperatures, but would definately be non-marring.
> We used to use it for slurry lines and even at 90 degree elbows it would last for years.


You got me thinking, Blue Hill. I have been reading up some on HDPE and that's what I'm going with. I got out our old cutting board (14"x16") and the wheels started turning. It's made from.........HDPE. Was just saying to the wife yesterday that I'd like to get a new cutting board since this one IS getting a little scored and stained even though I wash it with Clorox. I just found my skid material! This board is about 1/2" thick so I'll double it and make a bulletproof set of non-marring, rust free skids. 
Stay tuned.


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## GustoGuy (Nov 19, 2012)

micah68kj said:


> You got me thinking, Blue Hill. I have been reading up some on HDPE and that's what I'm going with. I got out our old cutting board (14"x16") and the wheels started turning. It's made from.........HDPE. Was just saying to the wife yesterday that I'd like to get a new cutting board since this one IS getting a little scored and stained even though I wash it with Clorox. I just found my skid material! This board is about 1/2" thick so I'll double it and make a bulletproof set of non-marring, rust free skids.
> Stay tuned.


 Great way to use an existing material. I would like to use the HDPE to make skid plates for the Montgomery Ward that I am restoring. The inside back of the auger bucket especially the impeller drum was sort of heavily surface rusted only and I spent way too much time cleaning that up.


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## dbert (Aug 25, 2013)

Step one. Buy one of these
http://www.amazon.com/Plastic-HDPE-Cutting-Board-Thick/dp/B00FX82GN8/ref=sr_1_12?s=kitchen&ie=UTF8&qid=1382048628&sr=1-12
Step two. Cut it up with your table saw and sell extras to your neighbor.








Step three. Profit


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## Blue Hill (Mar 31, 2013)

micah68kj said:


> You got me thinking, Blue Hill. I have been reading up some on HDPE and that's what I'm going with. I got out our old cutting board (14"x16") and the wheels started turning. It's made from.........HDPE. Was just saying to the wife yesterday that I'd like to get a new cutting board since this one IS getting a little scored and stained even though I wash it with Clorox. I just found my skid material! This board is about 1/2" thick so I'll double it and make a bulletproof set of non-marring, rust free skids.
> Stay tuned.


I Like It! What a great idea.
I have a fair bit of gravel to go over, so I was wondering about bolting the HDPE on the flat to piece of say 1-1/2" angle iron. I would use countersunk bolts to keep the heads from rubbing.
Larry


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## Simplicity Solid 22 (Nov 27, 2012)

This might help

Click here: Natl Hdpe Cutting Board Sheet Plastic Sheets


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## micah68kj (Oct 8, 2011)

This has NOTHING to do with the current topic but I'm gonna hijack my own thread. My Pastor had a full can of TRIPLE expansion foam in a big work bag. This is a big, heavy canvas work bag that held his carpentry tool belt, misc. snips, shears, screw boxes , etc. Guy helping us is cleaning up and is tossing tools into the canvas bag that has the can of TRIPLE EXPANSION foam. You ever see what one can of TRIPLE EXPANSION foam can do to a huge work bag once it has a tiny puncture and sits for 24 hours? I laughed so hard I could hardly help him clean up everything.


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## dbert (Aug 25, 2013)

That is seriously hilarious.


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## GustoGuy (Nov 19, 2012)

Blue Hill said:


> I Like It! What a great idea.
> I have a fair bit of gravel to go over, so I was wondering about bolting the HDPE on the flat to piece of say 1-1/2" angle iron. I would use countersunk bolts to keep the heads from rubbing.
> Larry


I went out and bought a cheap white cutting board made out of HDPE it is 1/2 inch thick and it only cost me $9.99. I marked off 1&1/2 inches on the bottom and cut it off with my variable speed jig saw. I then took the existing skid from the Gilson/Montgomery Ward and the 1&1/2 inch wide 1/2 inch thick countersunk the stainless steel screws and mounted it to the bottom of the original skid making it just as wide as the total skid. It should be durable and way more maneuverable than the original steel skid


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## micah68kj (Oct 8, 2011)

I never thought about doing it that way. What I had thought of doing was cutting out two pieces per side and bolting tbhem together for a 1" thick skid. Was going to make a ski type profile on the leading edge so they won't catch on anything, but would simply ride up over any obstruction. Maybe get them done some time this week.
Thanks for posting the great pics. 
Go back to first page and look at engraver1's pictures. That is something like what I had in mind but double thickness, a little longer leading edge with a beveled profile on front, like a ski tip.


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## micah68kj (Oct 8, 2011)

dbert said:


> Step one. Buy one of these
> Amazon.com: Plastic (HDPE) Cutting Board - Red - 16" x 16" x 1/2" Thick: Kitchen & Dining
> Step two. Cut it up with your table saw and sell extras to your neighbor.
> 
> ...


Yep! Something that looks like this profile.


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## Blue Hill (Mar 31, 2013)

GustoGuy said:


> I went out and bought a cheap white cutting board made out of HDPE it is 1/2 inch thick and it only cost me $9.99. I marked off 1&1/2 inches on the bottom and cut it off with my variable speed jig saw. I then took the existing skid from the Gilson/Montgomery Ward and the 1&1/2 inch wide 1/2 inch thick countersunk the stainless steel screws and mounted it to the bottom of the original skid making it just as wide as the total skid. It should be durable and way more maneuverable than the original steel skid


Gusto, that's exactly what I was thinking of, although Joe's idea of beveled front and rear edges is good too, to keep it from catching on sidewalk cracks etc. If you take a scrap of your cutting board and use a heat gun, can you manipulate the HDPE and have it hold a bit of a curve when it cools?


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## GustoGuy (Nov 19, 2012)

Blue Hill said:


> Gusto, that's exactly what I was thinking of, although Joe's idea of beveled front and rear edges is good too, to keep it from catching on sidewalk cracks etc. If you take a scrap of your cutting board and use a heat gun, can you manipulate the HDPE and have it hold a bit of a curve when it cools?


I could see if it can be bent while heating to see if it can be reshaped. The metal ones sort of just grind over the stuff anyway so I was thinking this would work. I guess a bit of a ski tip could help clear objects such as sidewalk cracks. I did round the edges so I thought this would help it to clear. The original ones only had about 1/2 to 3/4 of an inch rounding on the metal stamped factory wear skid


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## micah68kj (Oct 8, 2011)

*Finally* got around to making the HDPE skids/shoes. HDPE is pretty easy to work with. Cuts and drills easily. Sanding was just a bit more of a problem. Here ya go. Need to get longer carriage bolts since I doubled the thickness. Angle is cut t0 22.5 deg. since my saw has a lock there and it was very close to metal skid angle. I believe they'll work real fine and won't mar up my worn down driveway.


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## TimY (Oct 27, 2013)

That stuff is great both(HDPE and UHMW) cuts like butter wears like iron. I use UHMW for my table saw inserts router bases no marring skids on my circular saw and Jig saw.HDPE is what milk bottle are made of.You want to find straight HDPE if your going to use it for skids. the composite decking is made with HDPE mixed with wood fiber filler not as strong. look under plastic suppliers I have a local supplier I can get smaller cut offs from, sorta reasonable. Or look under restaurant suppliers the plastic cutting boards have to be made 100% HDPE they have the thicker ones Walmart or Kmart etc. carry the same cutting boards but the're not as thick Just drill ahole both ends of the slot cut the rest out with a jig saw or coping saw


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## micah68kj (Oct 8, 2011)

TimY said:


> That stuff is great both(HDPE and UHMW) cuts like butter wears like iron. I use UHMW for my table saw inserts router bases no marring skids on my circular saw and Jig saw.HDPE is what milk bottle are made of.You want to find straight HDPE if your going to use it for skids. the composite decking is made with HDPE mixed with wood fiber filler not as strong. look under plastic suppliers I have a local supplier I can get smaller cut offs from, sorta reasonable. Or look under restaurant suppliers the plastic cutting boards have to be made 100% HDPE they have the thicker ones Walmart or Kmart etc. carry the same cutting boards but the're not as thick Just drill ahole both ends of the slot cut the rest out with a jig saw or coping saw


Not quite sure what you're saying. These *are* made out of HDPE cutting board. It is close to 1/2" thick and I doubled them up. Just measured. They're 3/4" thick.


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## Blue Hill (Mar 31, 2013)

Brilliant work as usual Mr. Edison.   I hope your wife doesn't notice that her cutting board has gone missing.


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## micah68kj (Oct 8, 2011)

Blue Hill said:


> Brilliant work as usual Mr. Edison.   I hope your wife doesn't notice that her cutting board has gone missing.


Hah! I found a really nice *American made * replacement before I even started. I'm not the sharpest knife in the drawer but I'm not crazy.


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## TimY (Oct 27, 2013)

Joe
I didn't want to sound redundant; by the time I got my post in everyone got in with the same idea.(slow typist and my big mitts hit four keys at once) anyway my point is that there are different grades of this stuff. I've used both UHMW and HDPE for twenty years.Cutting boards are mostly made of HDPE without any fillers and can be used in restaurants due to the fact you can disinfect them. Most of the cutting boards you find in regular stores are 3/8" thick. You can find the thicker ones at the restaurant supply places. The place I get the HDPE I use stocks 1/16" to 2" thick, even have it in angle. They make liners for dump trucks that carry anything from gravel to asphalt. I put a thinner sheet on my assembly table glue doesn't stick and cabinet cases are easy to move around and it doesn't scratch them. I've used UHMW to replace wore out bearings on huge commercial hinges still going strong. A friend of of mine has pavers for his driveway and walks welded extensions to his skids (looked like elf shoes) the put UHMW on the bottom very much like GustoGuy worked slick, been a couple of years hasn't replace the plastic yet.


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## micah68kj (Oct 8, 2011)

TimY said:


> Joe
> I didn't want to sound redundant; by the time I got my post in everyone got in with the same idea.(slow typist and my big mitts hit four keys at once) anyway my point is that there are different grades of this stuff. I've used both UHMW and HDPE for twenty years.Cutting boards are mostly made of HDPE without any fillers and can be used in restaurants due to the fact you can disinfect them. Most of the cutting boards you find in regular stores are 3/8" thick. You can find the thicker ones at the restaurant supply places. The place I get the HDPE I use stocks 1/16" to 2" thick, even have it in angle. They make liners for dump trucks that carry anything from gravel to asphalt. I put a thinner sheet on my assembly table glue doesn't stick and cabinet cases are easy to move around and it doesn't scratch them. I've used UHMW to replace wore out bearings on huge commercial hinges still going strong. A friend of of mine has pavers for his driveway and walks welded extensions to his skids (looked like elf shoes) the put UHMW on the bottom very much like GustoGuy worked slick, been a couple of years hasn't replace the plastic yet.


I understand now Tim. Thanks. I believe that with the double thickness and being able to flip them, along with the fact that I have a very small driveway and I'm already an old coot, they'll last my lifetime! (Now if I could only find some thin, semi-stiff rubber for my other "Clarence" kit.)


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## TimY (Oct 27, 2013)

Hey us old coots gotta stick together. My kids think my first Navy ship had sails,my first new car was a Model T and my first airplane ride a guy named Orville was the pilot. I haven't put one of the zero clearance yet. I was going to see how TNTM Toro was going to handle that wet stuff;the Eskimos have 200 words for snow I only have one for that.I had concerns about freeze up and balance but I guess those issues have been pretty much addressed. Anyway the local Fleet Farm sell baler belting it's for conveyor belts on farm equipment it's about 1/4" inch thick rubber has a nylon fabric core.They have it in bulk sell it by the foot. A guy I know that installs garage doors uses it to isolate openers under living spaces(hangs them from pieces of it) so pretty tough. Hard to drill through because of fabric, leaves a messy hole,he just uses a hole punch. It comes in 4", 6" and 10" the 6" is $3.00/ ft(lifetime supply).


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## Blue Hill (Mar 31, 2013)

I have some 1/8" thick white belting Joe and it's pretty stiff. Being as inexperienced as I am with the world of snowblowers, I think it would work but I'm not sure. I can drop a piece in the mail if you want to give it a try. You could PM me your info.
Larry


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## micah68kj (Oct 8, 2011)

Blue Hill said:


> I Like It! What a great idea.
> I have a fair bit of gravel to go over, so I was wondering about bolting the HDPE on the flat to piece of say 1-1/2" angle iron. I would use countersunk bolts to keep the heads from rubbing.
> Larry


You still need some HDPE? Let me know. PM me


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## micah68kj (Oct 8, 2011)

*They're done! Installed too!*

Here ya are fellas. Finally got 'em done. As usual, set them with a paint stir stick.


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## GustoGuy (Nov 19, 2012)

micah68kj said:


> Here ya are fellas. Finally got 'em done. As usual, set them with a paint stir stick.


 Hi Joe, Those skids really turned out nice. I paid about $26.99 total with shipping for my black non marring Robalon's for my MTD and only $9.99 for a HDPE cutting board at 1/2 inch thick and I cut 1&1/2 inches of the bottom and sanded it round again and I still have a nice cutting board that my wife uses a lot as well as a set of non marring skids for my MGW 8/26 too. I like your double sided skids design since you can always flip them over once they get too worn on one side. This winter I will be comparing my Restored Montgomery Ward 8/26 to my 1996 MTD this coming winter with a video of snow blowing ability. I am pretty happy with the MTD now that it starts every time on the 1st or 2nd pull and runs great. I like your idea about making skids that only cost $10 or so for material and a small amount of sweat equity and voila a nice set of non marring skids for the blower. You are very innovative and resourceful and I like to see that since I am always looking for new ideas on how to do things.
Good work on the skids

Mark


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## GustoGuy (Nov 19, 2012)

micah68kj said:


> I understand now Tim. Thanks. I believe that with the double thickness and being able to flip them, along with the fact that I have a very small driveway and I'm already an old coot, they'll last my lifetime! (Now if I could only find some thin, semi-stiff rubber for my other "Clarence" kit.)


Joe
Baler belt from a fleet farm type store works great to make your own impeller kit and it only cost me about $7 or $8 total in materials including the fender washers and the stainless steel locking nuts and bolts. It is about 1/4th of an inch thick and it is chorded like a tire and my baler belt extensions still look great one year later and after blowing a large amount of snow last year with a total of 81 inches last winter in central Minnesota

Mark


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## micah68kj (Oct 8, 2011)

GustoGuy said:


> Joe
> Baler belt from a fleet farm type store works great to make your own impeller kit and it only cost me about $7 or $8 total in materials including the fender washers and the stainless steel locking nuts and bolts. It is about 1/4th of an inch thick and it is chorded like a tire and my baler belt extensions still look great one year later and after blowing a large amount of snow last year with a total of 81 inches last winter in central Minnesota
> 
> Mark


Yep. I hear you , Mark but when I went in to my local TSC and asked they looked at me like I had sardines sticking out my ears. I have some of that material here next to me. William (Detrbuzzard) sent me a Clarence kit he didn't use. That kit is going to be installed on my Toro 521 today but I need some material fo my Ariens 5520. Not to worry. I'll find some of it somewhere. Going to make a set of those HDPE skids for theToro today too.


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## MnJim (Jan 26, 2014)

micah68kj said:


> Yep. I hear you , Mark but when I went in to my local TSC and asked they looked at me like I had sardines sticking out my ears. I have some of that material here next to me. William (Detrbuzzard) sent me a Clarence kit he didn't use. That kit is going to be installed on my Toro 521 today but I need some material fo my Ariens 5520. Not to worry. I'll find some of it somewhere. Going to make a set of those HDPE skids for theToro today too.


 Baler Belting, 2-Ply, 4 in. x 60 in. - Tractor Supply Co.
More then you need but if you use the sku# you can at least show them they handle the stuff
I had to show them where it was at my local Fleet Farm and how to cut it using there cutter but they sold it by the foot.


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## M1A2 Hahn (Feb 27, 2014)

micah68kj said:


> I understand now Tim. Thanks. I believe that with the double thickness and being able to flip them, along with the fact that I have a very small driveway and I'm already an old coot, they'll last my lifetime! (Now if I could only find some thin, semi-stiff rubber for my other "Clarence" kit.)


I say old coots are wise coots (nobody listens to me except the other wise coots.)
Your skid construction is elegant, and a perfect use for the material. You're going to make the aftermarketeers uncomfortable. 
Thank you for sharing your perfect idea!


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## Mr Fixit (Nov 19, 2013)

I like that longer skid for badly aged driveways and sidewalks. But I would add a non-scratching piece under the skid's bottom with a small bolt at both ends. I see this has it's place but the rust marks in storage and marking concrete is not resolved. 
See: SnowBlowerSkids


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## MnJim (Jan 26, 2014)

Mr Fixit said:


> I like that longer skid for badly aged driveways and sidewalks. But I would add a non-scratching piece under the skid's bottom with a small bolt at both ends. I see this has it's place but the rust marks in storage and marking concrete is not resolved.
> See: SnowBlowerSkids


 Someone needs to start making these out of plastic.


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