Snowblower Augur Repair

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We got about a foot of snow in this area of Long Island last weekend in snow storm Nemo.  While using my father's snow blower to clear a friend's driveway, my car keys fell out of my pocket and wound up going through the snowblower.  I never noticed the keys falling out of my pocket and also didn't notice any hiccup in snow blowing (it was a huge driveway).  I only realized they were missing once the snowblower ran out of gas and I had to get in the truck to go get more, and a-hah, no keys.  I checked the snowblower for signs of the keys and found this damage on the right half of the augur (pictured below).  I have never looked closely at the augur before, so it's possible the damage was pre-existing.  Either way, I knew I had to fix it.I thought this was going to be mostly a welding repair project.  I now understand this is a lot of wrench work with some welding in between.  I had to use a torch (mapp gas) to get a pulley, a shaft key and the bent augur bolt out. Reading Farmersamm and Zapster's (among others) threads has made me feel more comfortable with using heat for repair purposes. Attached Images
Reply:Rest of the pictures.  Welding repair on the ripped part of the augur will be for tomorrow.  I havn't figured out how I'm going to do it yet, but I'm not really worried about it. Attached Images
Reply:Looks like some one in the past replaced the shear bolt with a grade 5 bolt. The shear bolt is there for a reason. It's supposed to break off if the auger gets jammed and prevent damage like this. My guess is at some point either the original bolt broke off, or it fell out and some one simply replaced it with whatever was at hand. I do keep a spare set of shear bolts in my box for exactly this reason even though I almost never use my blower. Almost every time I've loaned it to a family member or friend to use they usually end up sucking up something that jams the auger. My aunt ate up one of those linked rubber door mats within 5 minutes of me dropping it off for her to use one year on my way out to plow. I even specifically mentioned she needed to pick up the mat before she got to the door, but she forgot. I got called to come back and unjam the blower and replace the sheared bolt....No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:Wow, your more ambitious than me. I would have just fed some wire in there with the mig, put a new bolt in and maybe gave it a shot of black paint and done within 15 minutes.
Reply:I blew my gear box with the old grade eight bolt as a shear. Oops.Bruce DeLaetHeavy Equipment Mechanic and Welder1948 SA-200 short hood1949 LincWelder 1801963 SA-200 red faceMiller S-32-P
Reply:That damage wasn't from your keys, unless you work in a prison.  Like already mentioned, the shear bolt would have sheared off, preventing the damage.  Pick up a half dozen and check the other ones on the auger. I have spent many hours of quality time with my snow blower.  This winter we drove from Washington State to Florida, haven't even seen a snow shovel...
Reply:Yep, that my friend is why we run shear pins Miller Diversion 180Hobart Handler 140 (Soon to be replaced with Miller 211?)Miller Spectrum 625 Extreme
Reply:After all the work you've gone thru I imagine proper shear bolts look pretty cheap. Even a chunk of ice can shear them and that's why they put them there.                                               MikeOl' Stonebreaker  "Experience is the name everyone gives to their mistakes"Hobart G-213 portableMiller 175 migMiller thunderbolt ac/dc stick Victor O/A setupMakita chop saw
Reply:Hey... There's alot of car interested people here too! We want to know how the story ends for the car keys too!
Reply:Are you shure that shiny new looking machine isnt still under warrenty?Miller thunderbolt 250Decastar 135ERecovering tool-o-holic ESAB OAI have been interested or involved in Electrical, Fire Alarm, Auto, Marine, Welding, Electronics ETC to name a just a few. So YES you can own too many tools.
Reply:Originally Posted by dumb as a stumpAre you shure that shiny new looking machine isnt still under warrenty?
Reply:Just put a shear bolt in there and bend it up a bit and say "I don't know why the bolt didn't shear like it was supposed to." lolI wonder if our snow blowers used to have paint on them.
Reply:Originally Posted by el bob Reading Farmersamm and Zapster's (among others) threads has made me feel more comfortable with using heat for repair purposes.
Reply:Thanks for all the replies.  I will write more once the rush to get this done before the end of the weekend is over. Attached ImagesLast edited by el bob; 02-17-2013 at 01:18 PM.Reason: Pics out of order
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Reply:Nice welding job...........Hope to God you see the Sunday "Newspaper" the next time it snows. You'll either (hopefully) shred it, or jam it in the impeller for a "real treat".Pete Attached Images
Reply:Originally Posted by fpsNice welding job...........Hope to God you see the Sunday "Newspaper" the next time it snows. You'll either (hopefully) shred it, or jam it in the impeller for a "real treat".Pete
Reply:Did we get shear bolts or are we going to learn the lesson the hard way... .No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth! Ronald Reagan
Reply:Job's done for now.  Shear bolts still pending. Attached Images
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Reply:Originally Posted by DSWDid we get shear bolts or are we going to learn the lesson the hard way...
Reply:Originally Posted by VPTWow, your more ambitious than me. I would have just fed some wire in there with the mig, put a new bolt in and maybe gave it a shot of black paint and done within 15 minutes.
Reply:Well lets see some shear bolts at a few bucks or a new auger at a few hundred bucksThats a hard one what do you think, el bobwww.georgesplasmacuttershop.comPlasma Cutter and Welder Sales and Repairs--Ebay storeTec.Mo. Dealer Consumables for the PT and IPT torch's
Reply:Nice repair. I really doubt your keys done this damage. Id say someone hit a log chain or concrete step corner to do that damage. but the bolt should of sheared. I have seen some of the ppl at lowes home depot ect who put these things together. being that new probably done at set-up time.Miller 250DX HTP 221 DV AC/DCHenrob O-A Miller 180 MigMiller 150 Inverter   Hobart 10,000 Welder-Generator   Have a good day!!!Yep, the keys didn't do this.During Nemo, I discovered a 2lb ball peen hammer that I had accidentally left on the ground.When the machine stalled, I pulled a 6" piece of hammer handle out of the impeller, and found the rest of the handle in the auger.  It took until the snow melted for me to find the head about 30 feet down the lawn.  You must be in Nassau like myself.  Where I work in Setauket got a solid 30" of snow (drifts way above that).  Tall road cones in the parking lot disappeared.YES, you need shear pins.  Oh, and the space between the tube at the center of the auger and the shaft, should be liberally greased.  That way when a shear pin breaks, things are able to spin freely.
Reply:I don't get to have any of this fun with our single stage blowers. Its just the same old replace the chain every other year and the bearings every 5 years.
Reply:Shear bolt or shear pin really-really-really should be in there.http://www.snowblowersdirect.com/sto...ow-Blower.htmlAnd your keys probably didin't do that.  Especially if you found anything left of the key(s) and they still looked like a key and worked.  As to the claim 'our gearbox is tough', maybe but you still don't want to jam up the auger or impeller and then have any gearbox parts be the weak link.  Couple of bucks for some shear pins/bolts and they protect the rest of the mechanical things.  The best laid schemes ... Gang oft agley ...
Reply:Great repair, looks good as new, even stronger because of the great weld. Will last many more snow storms.
Reply:Originally Posted by Ironman50Great repair, looks good as new, even stronger because of the great weld. Will last many more snow storms.