Neglected Troy-Bilt Snow Blower Basket Case - Will It Run? 

James... The best way to clear snow is with a cup of coffee in your hand looking out the window watching your son doing it

Normally, I do not like super long videos but James is such a good instructor that I just can not get enough of his videos.

The snow king motor was LEGENDARY for being durable. The power equipment shop near my home surmises that my snowblower will rust to bits before the engine is worn out. My father purchased it 30 years ago... and other than oil changes/lubrication.... it's just kept going. Every season I pull it out THINKING it will finally need carb service... and the dang thing just starts and runs properly.

She went though that wet, heavy stuff like a champ! The proceedure was a success, doctor.

My father had a Troy-Bilt blower. When the city put sidewalk in on his street he had to put a 3 foot high retaining wall because his lawn was higher than the sidewalk. The Troy-built never threw snow very well, especially heavy wet snow. The one you have there has a tool to clean out the chute. He was going to buy a new blower. We took it apart and changed the pulleys and belts to run the impeller faster. We also added an impeller modification kit that added pieces of belting to cut down the gap between the impeller and the housing. After doing that, the blower not only blew wet snow over ten feet high but also the melt water.

you took that old, beat up snowblower from something most would have thrown away, to almost new condition.. I agree, the older machines were built much more solidly, its worth taking the time to do a full restoration, great job 👍

Properly maintained these engines will run forever, Tecumseh’s are definitely some of the best snowblower engines. The engine will definitely outlast the actual snowblower. Fluid Film works really good for lubricating the drive assembly on snowboard, as long as you don’t get it on the desk, but if you do, make sure you clean it off.

Hello James. Chris from Pennsylvania. Last year in July I bought a Toro 8 horsepower snowblower. It had good compression but did not run. I bought it really cheap. Once I got it home I took the bottom pan off 5 hands full. mouse nest. By the way I use Anti-Seize on axels it just works better. 🤗

James, love your attention to detail and desire to make things right in all of your projects.

As a motorcyclist in the 1960s, my Dad said he used to remove his chain every few weeks and just soak it in oil. Thank god for O-ring chains!

You need to lubricate the tire bead when installing it with a tool like that. They make specific tire mounting lube but Armor All or something equivalent would work also. It makes it seating on the rim easier. I also coat the tube with some talcum powder so it won't fold up on the inside of the tire. Installed hundreds of motorcycle tires with a Harbor Freight manual machine.

Love watching how you do your analysis to figure out what's wrong with a machine. You made me wonder why I threw out my old snowblower, but I didn't know what I didn't know so ....

Wow, that came out looking like new! Kudos for adding the model/serial labels. Refreshing to see such attention to detail! I'm a software engineer, and it brings me joy to see someone take pride in their work regardless of field

That was the era where powder coating was used instead of paint. Once powder coating gets a scratch in it, moisture gets underneath and it starts rusting and peels the powder coating off. Western used powder coating on their snowplows too and they ended up paying for many customers to have their plows sandblasted and painted.

This is probably well known by most living in the rural West, but in areas where mouse borne hantavirus is prevalent, don't do what James does at 22:10 or so, and blow out a mouse nest with compressed air. Saturate the area in a bleach solution, and wipe out. Not a dig at James, rodent spread hantavirus is pretty unheard of in the NE. It's not exactly common in the West, but it's a really nasty disease and it's usually acquired by stirring up mouse waste by sweeping or vacuuming and breathing in the virus.

"Earned it's oil change" always makes me smile!

James. I really enjoy the thoroughness of your videos. you take the time to include all aspects of the rebuild. Very complete and educational. You do a great job!!

I do a lot of chain saw puttering. When I get an old saw with a rusted chain I soak it in vinegar overnight to remove the rust. It works quite well to free them up.

You’ve got the skills to pay the bills. Nice job.!

Love it when you have " an oversight on my part". That is so typical of so many of us. Since joining your site, I have found my self taking those extra few minutes to do the job right. I feel like I learn something new during each video. Please keep them coming.

I love this channel. Your troubleshooting approach has already helped me with my own lawn mower. I thought I'd take advantage of the winter and just finish it off. It turned out that the carburetor was completely dirty.

Warts and all. I will feel less bad after pulling my project back apart after putting it together in the wrong order. Nice work as always

Hi James, dirty oil is what I like to see before working on engines that someone else owned, new oil usually means that the owner caused engine failure. the carburetor is most likely made of a zinc alloy like many auto carbs from the 60's. you might want to check the grease in the auger gear box, probably ok. Rich

Mice like the drive train box as well as the blower housing for building nests , so always give a once over before winter .

I live in a apt. Complex where people are always throwing appliances out that actually are fixable.I hate seeing still dry usable expensive items tossed out. I once fixed a top of the line Keurig coffee maker that had a bad pump. Keurig made the machine so that it was nearly unfixable because disassembly was ungodly. It took me days and days to get it apart.

Great refurbishing James. I did the same repainting with an old snow blower and put apart the engine, auger, and drive mechanism. Took me 2 and half weeks for painting it with two coats of primer and two coats of finishing paint, but the outcome was amazing. Sold it for $490.00. I was happy and the buyer too, since it looks like new.

RU-vid is amazing. I once had an old 2 cycle motorcycle that was balky to start, and eventually wouldn't (start). After watching this video, I'm convinced it had a bad coil. Alas, I sold that classic machine and have regretted not being being more talented to diagnose it properly.

Boy, does this bring back memories - that is the same snowblower I had when I lived in Canada...except mine was labeled Canadian Tire.....

Spraying some teflon or silicone spray in the bucket really helps with snow not sticking

35:17. I always find watching the ultrasonic do its thing in double time oddly satisfying.

Hello Jamea well done. The old TroyBuilt is Ready for another 20 years service.

I wish all mechanics were as conscientious as you are. Great job!

This guy is really passionate in fixing anything he does truly appreciate these informational videos

These blowers were AFAIK all built by MTD and are fairly common to see rebranded as troybilt, craftsman, and several others. I have one that's near 20 years old that was given to me this summer and it's identical aside from the cowling. The motor runs like a champ. Tecumseh made good stuff

Well done. Now has a good second life. It may not have been used much, but it was left outside and neglected. I have an Ariens snowblower purchased back around 2007. This has powder coated paint which is holding up very well. I keep the machine in my garage when not being used. This has the heated grips which I thought would not be used, but now I am a convert. I use the heaters even with gloves. A big help in keeping the gloves dry on the inside and warm.

Whenever I've used PB Blaster I always let it soak for at least an hour, giving it an additional spray every 15 min. It had never let me down. For very stubborn items I'd let it sit overnight. Again, always worked with patience on my part.

You have one of the best channels on RU-vid but probaby don't even know it. Thanks tremendously pal..

James, I'm so glad you spent the time to paint the body. It looked so good. Excellent job.

*wakes up not remembering what day it is, blearily drinking coffee… checks youtube* It’s Thursday! And a nearly 2h video!

I love your longer videos. I feel like I can watch you work for hours. Oh, wait, I just did! LOL. That snowblower is a beast.

Another award winning resuscitation! Great work!

That pan would be easy to fabricate. A piece of galvanized metal would be best. Great videos Cheers

I really liked the dish soap idea, Dawn might be a good choice.

On a tire tube install, you are supposed to coat the tube with talcum powder to prevent wrinkles on installation 😊

James, I really enjoy watching your videos! You keep them interesting and are very thorough! I live in central Texas and watched the whole video of you working on the snowblower! I work on mowers, string trimmers, and leaf blowers as a hobby. I don’t see many (any) snowblowers around here, but did enjoy your video! One of these days I’m going to tackle a generator. I see them all the time on marketplace for sale for around $100. Thank you for your videos!

a cup wire brush for your grinder is a game changer compared to your drill

I can smell the spray pain from here. Great job!

I have a Husqvarna snow blower with the same motor. I had it sitting in my shed for about literally 10 years. I always run the carb dry but was expecting a clogged carb. The machine needed the starter motor gear replaced, the stator replaced and some parts in the blower assy all of that I replaced/fixed. Then drained the fuel tank and refilled with good gasoline. Motor started with ease. Used it last weekend we had about a foot of snow first of the season.

James, you do a really nice job and looking at the weather you’re gonna get a chance to use that in just a couple days

Another good video Jim! a little soapy water on the bead area of the tire should help your tire changer put the bead on easier. I realize.it is an old tire, but it should help some. Also you missed lubing the grease zerk on the shaft where you put the new chain, and cleaning the drive wheel to remove any grease that may be on it. I may have missed seeing you do these things. Nice machine. I have a 2021 TroyBilt Storm...works great!

I got my father's Yard King snow thrower & it has that same exact 10 HP Tecumseh Snow King engine. He bought his brand new in 2001 from the Home Depot. That engine now has 178.41 hours on it. I just ran an extension cord out to the shed as we have a winter storm heading our way with bitterly cold temps. So, Lake Michigan snow make it happener machine will be kicking into high gear here soon. They are talking about a foot, maybe up to 2 feet of light fluffy lake effect snow & 60 mph wind gusts.

I just recently got done doing one of these free from a friend snow blowers. It's ready to go now, so it probably won't snow.

You put a heck of a lot of work on that, and then showed us an ad for a slightly lesser machine being offered for free. Talk about ironic ! Lovely job though I enjoyed all of that, thanks :)

For these style fuel tanks, I like using the "right angle" version of the fuel shut off values and use a very short piece of fuel line to connect from the tank to the valve

James is the best on youtube when it comes to every little detail. And he is a wonderful person. Thank you so much James. God bless you and your family

Congratulations Jim! Another great, lucid, clear, well-produced teaching video - with no ego. Thanks

EvapoRust makes those chains like new! You need a Chain Breaker and Spinner Jim!

As always a lesson in applied common sense. We can hope a lot of youngsters follow, and can't wait to get their trainee paws on tools to *make things or make things work.* Thus fulfilling the primary definition of a man.

Great job, James. What looked at first like a snow blower that was not worth fixing up, ended up being a decent snow blower. Sense it is an older Troy Bilt, it is a much better built machine compared to the newer ones. And those Tecumseh Snow King engines if not neglected are great engines. I have two 1980 Toro snow blowers that my dad bought new with Tecumseh engines that are still going strong. I was the one who kept them maintained for my dad. Now that he and my mom are passed on, I still use them every winter. Another thing that you could do to increase performance of the Tory Bilt, especially in heavy wet snow, is install an impeller kit. Excellent and very entertaining video. Thanks for sharing.

Honestly pls keep the videos coming, the way u construct your videos is flawless. I know it’s not easy to construct the videos so thank you 🙏

Thank you Sir learning a lot about generators from your channel still confusing and complicating but learning as I watch your channel hope you keep making videos and hope you your channel going

The most impressive part is, the amount of paint in that one can. ;)

I am a hvacr hospital tech just love your troubleshooting skillset watching from the Caribbean 🇱🇨

I have a 45-year pld Roper snowblower that internally is identical to that one. Same engine, yours has fancier controls but you can tell quality has dropped over the years. The frame and belly pan on mine is 3/16 steel. You do not want to drop that pan on your foot. Don't ask. Great video getting an old machine new life. Bought mine in 1979 still runs good just haven't had the snow to dig it out.

What an excellent piece of work! Thank you

Rust , the reason I bought a sand blaster. Don’t use it often but it’s worth it when I do . I also cook chains like that in pan oil on the BBQ. Impressed how thorough you are !

As with all your projects, very nicely done.

did a rebuild last year on my 30+ year Craftsman track drive blower (made by MTD). Went through everything & re-painted it. The Tecumseh Snow King engines are tough. Mine starts first pull every time (even sitting for months). Important item to add is a fuel shut-off valve.

Aways a treat to watch you diagnose and solve the problems while educating us (me) thrown in. Good to see the Endo files are helpful for you, I have tons more--let me know if more needed. Thanks again

Easy off is what I use for cleaning aluminum! Leave it on for 5 minutes and wash off! I also use it on the bottom of my aluminum boat to get scum off from sitting in the water for couple months!

Man, what a great job James! MTD uses the crappiest paint right from the factory plus they don’t prep the metal before shooting it. Just about every MTD product I’ve ever had or worked on has had paint come off in sheets like it’s latex interior house paint. Chances are the rust started forming after the paint peeled off, and of course leaving it out in the weather really did it in. Anyway, great job and it looks like you may get another chance to give it a workout this Tuesday!

What a beautifully made machine. Great job refurbishing.. One quick point, clip leads Do go bad so always check them if there's an issue.

So, it was intended to be serviced ! I like stuff like that, I was given three lawnmowers over the years, all cylinder,as is our habit. All of them worked without a flaw despite being left out in the garden for years, and all Suffolk Colts. Gave them away as to other's needs, all running and sharp, never had grassboxes, I wonder what people do with 'em ?

As a old tire guy when you get a hard bead like you had. I suggest you use a mix of blue dawn and water. Then spray it down. it'll act like a lubricant that washes off. also helps you see if you have a bead leak and spray valve to check for any leaks from valve stem

Aloha James. Great job on this snow blower. I wish I had someone give me a 10 hp snow blower like this one! I have an older Ariens 4 hp 24" snow blower that I use here in New Mexico, but sometimes I need more horsepower than the 4 hp snow blower that I have. When the snow does get really deep, I just take a partial pass and it works well for me. For the rusty parts on this snow blower, you need a Roto-Strip wheel that goes into your drill, and it will take the rust and flakey paint right off right down to bare metal and make it ready for priming. If you have a drill that will run 3,000 rpm, the Roto-Stripper will work even better and quicker. It will even get down into the pits of rust in the metal and get the rust off the surface. I have a coarse wheel and a fine wheel Roto-Strippers and they work great for removing rust and flakey paint. Also, you should do the paddle upgrade on the 2nd stage impeller blades and install rubber on the ends of the paddles with the rubber screwed to them, and then you can send even really wet and slushy snow back to where it came from. My snow blower used to clog up on wet and mushy snow, but after doing the paddle upgrade with self-tapping screws, now it doesn't clog up at all, and you can throw the snow much further. The small gap at the end of the paddles inside the 2nd stage cylinder causes the snow to gather inside it and clog up the discharge chute, and that jams everything up with a big mushy plug of solid ice in the outlet chute. The paddle upgrade will prevent this from happening, and you will probably never have to clear a plugged up chute ever again. It is easy to do working through the discharge chute opening, and for you it would be a piece of cake, and it will make your machine perform much better in the wet and slushy snow. Watch some videos on line and you will see just how easy this modification to your snow blower will be, and you will be pleased with the results. Way to go on this job!! I really enjoy all of your excellent commentary as you work through a problem, no matter what it is... Aloha..

34:18 also known as the Money Hole! The o-rings on the plastic emulsion tube are standard -006 o-rings available anywhere for pennies each vs 632547 Tecumseh O-rings which are $$.

Hi James, Great video, I have nearly the same thrower, but Canadian Tire model I bought 25 years ago , do 18 driveways and sidewalks every time it snows here in Ontario. Always starts just run premium fuel , had to replace some parts over the years but that's to be expected, Put rubber extensions on the impeller cleans tub out real good, biggest problem was throttle control engine would not stay revved up, Put a cable control up to the console , Works great, Hope I never have to replace this machine. Gord Ontario Canada

From snow free, Melbourne, Australia, that looks impressive !! Thank you.

for the first time I was ahead of you... these machines have a Primer Bulb Button that you have to push 2-3 times to prime the carb... that's why your starter fluid worked... 👍... just a piece of aluminum sheet metal and you could just make a new panel...

I purchased a “99 TroyBilt 8hp snow blower in “17. It was like new condition. Paid $325. It’s an absolute beast. It’s the all metal version with the metal chute. We had over a foot of snow today in Wisconsin. The machine bulled through it with ease. I service it every spring before tucking it away. Mine has a hood, hand warmers, and headlight. It’s an awesome machine. Thanks for posting this.

Just a little tidbit Johnson, Evenrude 2+4 cleaner works good on the inside of the carburetor if it’s not very green it can be bought at your local marina or at the Sporting Goods department at Walmart. breakaway spray really helps with removing and installing tires.

I wish I had the same meticulous mindset, but I do not - I do enjoy your videos. The editing really seals the full package. Very Well Done and thank you

I have come to your channel not that long ago. And I just find myself lost trying to watch all your videos. Please don't stop doing what you love and sharing theses videos. Well done sir. And thank you for sharing your time and knowledge with us

i have one just like this in the shop..mines a ten speed with rev..a 2 stage...i bought it off a guy near Pitts..he said he could not get it running.it was like new..so i brought it home.it had no spark,,,.it took a plastic key to turn it on,,that moved two pieces of steel apart,to unground the coil..so guess what,,the two pieces of steel were rusted to each other..not ungrounding the coil..so i put fresh gas in it...and fixed the key switch,,like throw it away..haaa,,i put a switch on it...i dont use it a lot,because i have a blade on my 4 wheeler...but it is a backup...a nice buy for 75 bucks id say..i used it for 2 years,,does it throw the snow.. you brought back memories James..great video..

A fine job as always, only one thing caught my eye, I believe it to be the intermediate shaft on the right side seemed to have some movement in the mount, keep in mind I could be wrong

A good ultrasonic cleaning of the carb and you should be good for a snowy season!! 😁 Usually I use diluted simple green in my ultrasonic cleaner.

Dang I’m a sucker for snowblower repair videos. I don’t know what it is. Probably a psychological problem. But I love them.

Just think Jim, with the big blow coming your way this week end you'll be able to get alot of use out of this unit. Have fun. Earl in Michigan

Looks like a new bench vice! Cool. Amazing how a good vice helps get things done... Happy New Year 🎉 Hey for rust removal and paint prep I recently got a cup wire wheel for the hand grinder. It works really well for stuff like the bucket because you can apply pressure toward the surface easily.

I have a 20yr old Ariens 1128 snow blower with a Tecumseh engine, never missed a beat !

Great job James 👏 love the work it looks great 👍 and runs very well

Very nice!! The third word in the description is supposed to be "troy" just FYI ;) Thanks James!

Putting tyres on. I've always used washing up fluid to ease assembly, after a while in the open, it gets rinsed away. Never had any problem with it on rubber, that's a fallacy at these concentrations. I dust the inside of the tyre with talcum powder, too, makes life so much easier. 👍

After that California premium fuel came out of the carb I was really surprised how clean it was inside! Pretty cool older machine, definitely a fun video! Great work as always James

I live north of Philly. What amazes me is the number of new snow blowers sold at Lowes and Home Depot every year. The reason I say that is in last 4 yrs or more we have not had more than 3 inches of snow on the ground at one time.

Brilliant repairs and restoration. Nice clean machine and other saved

A testament to how good your videos are is that when I started watching this one, there were only 21 likes. By the time I finished, 762 likes and 4,462 views. Great job, James! I only wish all those viewers would hit that like button.

Since the 80s I've used baby powder to get inner tubes into tires. Powder the tire and the tube and they slide right in and don't bind up. Makes the job a ton easier. Great video, as usual!

I always pull the wheels off and coat the axles with "Nev'r Seez." I also grease the augur shaft. Also there is a tiny allen screw with a spring, on the linkage pivot plate on the blower housing, that when turned in, will increase your full-speed rpm. You did a really nice job on this excellent older machine. These are so much easier to work on, and I expect they will outlast several Chinese machines you can buy nowadays.

Hi James, just a tip, put some talcum powder on the inner tube first, you will have a better day, keep it up 👍