FINALLY! An extremely well spoken guy who tackles these types of jobs. Sorry, but most guys with these types of videos are complete yokel hicks with their annoying southern drawls, extremely unsteady, jarring camera work, long, heavy breathing pauses whilst tacking a particular point of a project. Thank you for the clear, steady, focused, well lit close ups and patience, steady demeanor. Great work!
The friction disc on my Ariens blower started giving me trouble today but I remembered watching this video so thanks to Don no worries. The new disc is on order and I'll be changing it as soon as it arrives. 👍 🇨🇦
I wish we had good small engine repair shops like yours were I live.I can tell you care about your work and do a good job. Your videos are very informative and easy to learn Thank you
As others have said, this is one of the best videos I have ever seen. Didn't have a way to transport my Ariens 921013 snowblower to the dealer so had to try this repair myself. Luckily I found this video and made my life a lot easier. FYI - Only difference on my machine is it has washers on both sides of the friction disk unit.
You are an excellent teacher. I might have to watch this 10 times before I get up enough courage but I can't afford to pay someone $200 so this is my only option!
For those that read the comments, I would like to emphasize Don's great advice about anti seize on the axles. I had an Old Second Hand snowblower that didn't have proper maintenance. I was using at 2 ton press with heat and still couldn't get the wheel off the axle. Now every spring I take the wheels off my new snowblower. Go over the axle with Emory cloth and put anti seize.
Similar advice for the auger shafts. Those things will rust up to the point where shear pins can be removed and they'll still work normally. At least Ariens has zerk fittings on the augers, economy brands may need the front end disassembled to get in there.
@@TheOtherBill Both the auger shafts and the axle shafts can be coated with any general purpose grease. The oil in the grease will serve as a rust inhibitor. Anti seize is overkill and a bit expensive to use on axle shafts.
@@TheOtherBill I use the zerks too I have two machines an old Toro 421 and a 1996 Noma 5/24 and they have grease fittings on the augers. I have to take the Noma apart this spring to do some repainting and I will make sure to put grease on the auger shafts before I put it back together. The zerks tend to send the grease towards the gear case and not to the outer bushings where it is really needed.
Excellent video with super camera angles. You care about ensuring your audience can see exactly how you are performing these repairs. Thank you very much!
I just used this video to replace the friction plate on my 2013 921017 (035000 - 074999) Deluxe 24 Platinum. Great instructions, Thanks! There were a couple of differences on my unit. My unit used T40 Torx screws instead of 1/2" hex screws. And, instead of square piece on the top of the Drive Disk Carrier mine had a washer on top (same as the bottom). And an additional tip I can add, I used a 3/8" drill bit in the right axle hole to hold the sprocket in place. When I pushed the axle through from the left, the sprocket was perfectly lined up. It would have been a lot harder with out this video!
This demonstration on the friction disc was wonderful! I am going to have do that someday. I'm glad I know that it's as easy as you say, and I will look up your excellent video when the time comes. My only problem is that my machine is a 28" rapidtrak So it will be a little more complicated. I'm an 82-year old woman, 4ft 11" tall, 115 lbs so I needed to come up with my own way of getting the beast into service position. Struggled doing things with it in "normal" position. Now I use two car jacks and a motorcycle lift. I got this beast three years ago and it worked fine for one and a half years. then I tried to get warranty on it but you have to pay to have it transported. I live in the boonies and dealer is 25 miles away. So I learned to fix it myself.
Great video. Just a note of caution. I know your very safety conscious. Keep in mind when using gasoline that you and many out there, including myself, heat with wood. A live flame and gas fumes will have no mercy. I’m a retired firefighter but not immune to complacency. Thanks again for the great videos.
Our snowblower started moving sporadically so i came to RU-vid and found this video. I ordered a friction disc, followed along and easily completed my first small engine repair ever after 50 years. Thank you for such a fantastic video and happy to donate for saving us an expensive repair bill.
As always, @donnyboy73 has created an excellent DIY video. 3 things: 1: I always take pictures before I start a job for reference when reassembling. 2: I use cheap plastic food storage container (Dollarama) to keep parts in so I don't lose them. One for the belly plate screws, one for clips and keys from the drive wheels, etc. 3: Before reinstalling the friction disc, release tension on the drive clutch cable. As the old disc wore, you probably snugged up the cable, but now, with a new disc, there won't be enough clearance between the new rubber and the friction plate to reinstall the shift mechanism.
I remember doing the axle bushings on a late 60's, all by hand. I was prob 11 yo, dad was a stickler for working with Ur hands and head, if it was put together You can take it apart and put it back together. "The Greatest Generation" Thanks for the refresher!
Taking off my hat! This is one of your best videos on this in recent years! Great announcement and explanation of what is happening! Even a beginner can repeat this. The only thing that was forgotten was to link to my previous video on adjusting the speed of the Snowblower. Regards, Oleg.
@@donyboy73 Sorry, and I think that those who are interested will not be hurt at least to know that many years ago there were such videos already, and they were no less interesting and useful.
Hi Don, The small clips limit the travel (left and right ) of the friction disc assembly . They keep the disc from travelling too far into the center or off the edge of the drive plate. Great video as always !!
My six year old Ariens 24" in Minnesota was making chatter while operating in lower gear setting, higher gear settings were slower speed and felt like slipping was occurring. I took off the lower back cover, it was filled with black rubber bits from the disc wearing, it had less than 1/64" layer of rubber left. I located a new disc at an Ariens parts store. I watched your perfect video of how to replace the disc. Total time to fix was 2hrs, the Ariens works like new ! Thanks for your excellent help, the Best DIY video I have ever watched.
Great video. I had to replace the friction disc on a Deluxe 28. I ran into a problem with the right side bearing. It would not release from the shaft. I tried WD-40, tapping it, prying it. No go. I ended up cutting the bearing off with a Dremel tool. Don's advice on the anti-sieze is spot on. I don't want to have to do this bearing extraction again!
Your video is worthy of mention, as much for the quality of the procedure of the work to be done, but also for the quality of the image, the lighting, the shots, the detailed explanations with precise terms and the pronunciation of TV announcer. I had just watched the video produced by Ariens to accomplish this same task, and the mechanic's hands too often hide what we would like to see clearly.
I’ve noticed the OEM friction discs on the recent machines don’t last very long like the ones on older machines. I’m a female repair technician (15 years on the job) here in New England and love my job. Fall and Spring super crazy busy here. Love your channel and Chickanics channel as well.
I made this repair in October 2020 on a classic 24. No keys nor clips but snap pins. The drive wheel is different as is the actuator connector - no clip-shaped top washer. I really appreciate the detail of this video and the use of anti-sieze. This change was applied after two winters clearing nearly a half-acre maybe 15 to 20 times. As a heads-up, I add about 2-3 oz of Marvel Mystery Oil per 2 gallons gas. Following mfr starting protocol, it starts EVERY time w one or two pulls. Blessings to you and yours, and to all those who are stewards over God's blessings to us.
Thank you so much for this video. When I pulled out the driveshaft, the clip and washer on the disc assembly fell out before I could see how they were attached. This was a lifesaver
Excellent video, from Ohio we get lots of snow too, just completed the replacement friction disc, and you are spot on, and precise with everything you explained, great video..
Master of his craft…. His working on a snowblower not the damm space shuttle … this is almost as basic as it gets … yes is he doing a good job but for a “master” this is child’s play… not saying he’s not way more skilled … but let’s not give this job more credit then it’s due
Thank you Don. Big snowstorms this year in Boston. Have a 2012 Ariens pretty much the same model in your video. Blower was making a scraping noise when I engaged the drive. Worked fine just a real bad noise. Thought it was the gear oil since I never added any and had seen it drip from time to time. Bought some but did not fix. Stumbled on your video and took a look at mine. Rubber in wheel looked torn off in one section. Was metal on metal. I really did not feel comfortable doing it myself but with pending storm and not wanting to give it to dealer for a month to fix. I decided to try. Took everything apart, not too bad but my disc has screws with star shape not easy bolts like yours. Got one of the three off and off to dealer to buy disc and hope they could help. They did. I reassembled (took twice as long) but persevered and crossed fingers. It WORKED. Expecting 3 to 6 inches tomorrow so I'm ready. BTW, the service guy at the dealer told me they are only a few days not weeks to fix blowers since season has already started. Not sure I believe that since they were very busy in all depts. Too late now. Mine is fixed thanks to you.
Where were you guys at 23 years ago, received a brand new 8/24” snowblower (Kmart) for Christmas after we moved into our first home and built the garage with a 28’X40’ approach, kept up on the oil changes and gas during storage time, sure could have used these videos to do the preventive maintenance on it, such as the anti-seize applications, the friction wheel cleaning and greasing, keeping the cables lubed and clean, adjusting the scrapper bar height at the skid shoes, and on! It lasted almost 18 years until the bearing wore out on the main shaft going to the auger assembly, and it was completely rusted in place, no amount of heat or penetrating lube helped. Finally sold it for parts and bought myself a new zero turn 8/26” model from Craftsman. Note: did muttle my way through some of the things mentioned, friction wheel replacement (wore out), cables and spring replacement (rusted and broke), scrapper bar replacement (wore it down past the housing metal, oops) and the skid shoes, those are a given wear item... Love the videos, you go into detail and keep us informed without being boring or quick to judge! For that I thank you. And yes the videos are much better to watch than the owners manuals are to read, hands on it the best learning tool for me.
I am absolutely blown away about this video. I took the bottom cover off my Ariens and what I thought was a grease smear turned out to be the hairy material left of from the friction disc everywhere inside my machine. Followed the instructions, a little preventative tips like you said and put it all back together in 35 minutes, including clean up! I can't believe it, when I did the traction test it was literally pulling out of my hands! For your info, I actually got my disc at the local Husqvarna dealer, the disc part number L1800 RT-300 6" OD fits Noma, Ariens, JD and Snapper. Thank you, thank you, thank you!
Great video, my tips are these: those wheel shafts have a plastic liner "bushing" that can and should be replaced if there is play on the wheel shaft. Also the top larger gear that you grease with the grease fitting also has inner metal bushings that should be replaced if there is play on that shaft. These things should always be inspected while you're in there. I know that's not what this video but might be good as a follow-up one. Take care.
I have watched several of your videos and they are all very clear and very helpful. I just replaced the carburetor on my 12-year old Craftsman snowblower. I had no prior small engine repair experience. You provided the confidence to get the task completed. I was successful largely thanks to your expert advice and encouragement😊. All the best. John Z
I think I owe you another case of beer Don. The friction disc went again yesterday on my Ariens. But this time I knew exactly what was wrong, the part numbers and I had this video saved. 20min to install the new one!!! Your videos are amazing! See you in the spring with the beer and we can do that motorcycle ride we discussed! Pete
Another well documented video. Here are a few tips that you can save time with. I use the plastic my newspaper came in to screw under the gas cap on all my equipment. Full tank and no leaking. Nice to see that Ariens has abandoned their incredibly stupid 45 degree shift fork setup that I inherited from a customer. I have also found in my past heavy construction repair jobs that antisieze not only gets on everything you don,t want but it will dry up over years and become totally useless. I use a quality ep2 grease on all my repairs on all equipment except brakes. Always enjoy watching your stuff , Don.
A great video on repair again by you. Thank you. Sure wish I could find snow tires like on that blower. Those so-called ice radials work good when new on ice but in wet snow they are useless.
hey donyboy just completed my 28'' Ariens disc replacement thanks. it was a walk in the park. I have one tip when using the never seize. I did one side of the axle at a time . that stuff sure is messy, doing it this way I was able to line up the key way without playing in the never seize. it's a lot easier using the wheel to rotate the axel and keeping things clean.
Just replaced the friction disk on my Ariens ax245 following these directions exactly. Went off without a hitch, and I’m not super mechanical. Thanks Don!
At 8:15 you can see the plate the friction wheel rides on. I clean and lightly sand that using emery paper. Removes any residue from previous use. Good to the point instructional video!
Thank you ! Day after Blizzard of 2022 here in Rhode Island, snow blower doesn't want to move. Your very informative video led me to find the culprit ( slipped traction belt ). Thanks again Donyboy !!
This video is fantastic, I just used it to swap out the friction disc in my snowblower. The Arien's company video was good, but your video had the close-up detailed view I needed to see how to reattach the washers on the fork/shifter arm. Thank you, sir!
Letting you know after watching your video I was able to change the disc on my machine and all went very well. Great videos. Well explained and good camera work
I want to thank you for the video on how to replace a friction plate. Never attempted this and was nervous. Watched your video several times and then went for it. It was a piece of cake. Thank you so much for the clear instructions. The hardest part was thawing out the wheel axles to take the wheels off. Had to use a torch to melt the ice. Thanks again! Great job.
I had trouble shifting. Opened up and the washer and top washer aka anti rotation tab, were laying in the pan. You are the only one with a video showing exactly how these 2 pieces go back in. Thanks a ton.
Correction that piece is called a “Bracket formed shim” .... my bad. My problem is that when I shift to highest speed, it all falls out of the shift forks before it even comes close to the stop pin.
Just finished the job. Took about 2 hours. Took my time. Relatively easy job. You can do it. You WILL want latex mechanic's gloves. There is messy stuff in there. Be sure to have torx wrenches to remove and replace the friction disc. Pliers and a 3/8" wrench. The blower pulls like new.
Good info! My 20 year old Ariens Deluxe 28" still performs as it did on day one and is in perfect condition. I am religious about maintenance and make sure to lubricate the space between the short differential axle and long axle so the auto turning is very smooth and less load on the diff plates. It gets lots of use here in Upstate NY so I must be doing something right. Even if the diff wore out it is only $115 for a new one.
I seriously can't thank you enough for this video. I was able to change my friction disk and get my Ariens moving again. The explanations and camera work were top notch. Thanks again!!
Following this fantastic video I just replaced the friction disc on my Aries deluxe 28 snow thrower with ease. Thank you very much for putting this out there!
Outstanding video! I found your channel by searching for this very topic. You made the job a piece a cake. Great videography showing each step, along with a no nonsense explanation. Yours is far better than the video by Ariens. The only other tip I would suggest is to ensure you adjust the traction drive cable to accommodate the fresh friction plate. My used Deluxe 30 model was a negotiated item with a recent home purchase. The previous owner had the traction drive cable pretty tight to accommodate a severely worn disc. Prior to even being able to fit the new disc, the traction drive cable had to be loosened quite a bit. Thanks again! I'm sure I'll be watching many of your videos in the future.
I swear, your videos keep me looking like the Hero at my job. Being able to repair our equipment vs sending them out for service has helped me out alot over the past few years , with your help; just wanted to say thanks again.
Excellent video!! This helped me out tremendously when my folks snowblower wheels were failing to engage during the last storm. The friction wheel luckily was in stock at a local hardware store. I'm pretty handy and the actual repair took about an 1 1/2 hours as the rubber was everywhere. We spent a bunch of time cleaning everything from the rubber debris. The job went remarkably well thanks to your easily explained thorough video that anyone could follow!
Another great video, Don. Everything explained so well. Near the end of the repair, I was going to ask why not just use grease on the entire shaft instead of grease + anti-seize - and before I could type, you answered my question. You always provide extra tips and good-to-know info and it is very much appreciated. Cheers!
Thank you for the well put video on how to change the friction disc on a Ariens snowblower I have the exact model and it was a breeze do change thanks to you it out took about an hour to do and saved myself a few bucks much appreciated keep it up with your work on your awesome video's
I did not read all the comments, I’m sorry for answering a question twice, how can I take care of my disk so I don’t have to replace it in the first place ? Your channel is the best anyways .
Make sure wheels are always turning when drive lever is down. If wheels get too much traction and stop turning it can wear the disc in one spot. The disc is a wearable item like the tires on your car.
You are awesome and your videos allow me to do the work, and I am not very mechanical and often pay for this work, thank you!! Great quality instruction.
Great directions, completed my in just an hour. The pin I pulled out was a bugger though, the gear is bigger in mine and gets in the way of pulling and reinserted it. Thank you!
You ROCK DB!! I just bought a (early Jan 2022) new Ariens 8/24 Dlx. This vid will come in handy in the near future!! I love your easy-going manner, & showing detailed views of parts. I've been a subscriber for yeeeeaars! I think you should mention good Fuel practices more frequently. I'm a huge Seafoam fan! Living in Fargo, ND.....it gets pretty COLD! I put a little SF (1/4 cup) in my 1 Gal refill can. This way, my small engines ALWAYS have good gas. My existing Tecumseh 8hp Snowking engine is 25 yrs old & runs STRONG!
thank you for all your great vids and knowledge on repairs you have saved me tons of cash and learn alot about small engine and blower and mower repairs
Excellent tutorial sir. Great advice on cleaning the friction plate and using anti-seize. I´ll avoid a lot of unnecessary effort, such as completely removing the drive shaft, thanks to this video. Gord McDonald's advice below about tuning up the axles is also worth your time. Thanks again.
Fantastic video! I had no idea what a friction drive disk even was but by following your steps on my Ariens Deluxe 30 I had this job complete in about 50 minutes and saved about $100 in repair labour. Thanks for the video
I like the concise step by step procedures very informative. I have learned a lot having 2 machines.824A BOLENS over 40 years old still runs.The other is a 824 Troy Bilt 27 years old, I keep them running,Thank you Dony Boy.
