The Ariens 1960's and 1970's Sno-Thro info site.


The Ariens 1960's and 1970's Sno-Thro Photo Archive . PROUDLY MADE IN THE U.S.A. Page 12. Snowblower Restorations

Page 12.
Snowblower Restorations.

I started this page in 2009, and since then many fellow "snowblower enthusiasts" have emailed me, and posted on the snowblower forum, about restorations they have done to classic snowblowers! The "antique snowblower hobby" is still quite small and obscure, not nearly as common as classic cars and restoring garden tractors or farm tractors, but it's catching on!

This page 12 will be dedicated to showcasing some of the fabulous work guys have been doing with restoring old snowblowers. If you have one you would like to share, just let me know! and any snowblower brand is welcome on this page, not just Ariens. (my only stipulation is: original (or close to original) engine..no chinese clones.)

And while we are on the topic, what exactly qualifies as a "restoration"?
well, its a grey area! ;) somewhat subjective and open to interpretation. In my opinion, and for the purposes of this snowblower restoration page, a snowblower will count as "restored" or "refurbished" if it meets these qualifications:

1. More than just a paint job! ;) parts that are worn out should be replaced, rust removed, engine improved as much as the owner is able. (some people can do a full engine rebuild, others might only have the tools and skills to do a carb clean and perhaps a carbon deposit clean for the engine head, others replace with a better engine of the same, or very close, model..skill levels and abilitys are all over the map, which is fine.)

2. Engine should be original, or as close as possible to the original model.
(there is a seperate page for engine swaps/replacements, which is really a different topic than a restoration.)

The goal to work toward is to make the machine as close as possible to its original configuration! as close as you can to its "show room new" state. I don't require perfection! ;) (as I am hardly an experienced restorer myself) If it's greatly improved from its previous state, and the goal was to try to get it back to an original state, then that is what counts for me!

1962 Ariens model 10M-L60

Here is a beautifully restored machine to represent the 1962 model year!
Chris L. of Newtown, Connecticut owns this machine..it was purchased brand-new by his father in 1963 or 1964. (The first of many examples on this webpage of multiple generations owning and using the same snowblower! handed down from father to son..and sometimes even grandson!)

Chris fully restored this snowblower back in 2004, here is Chris to tell us the story:

Hi Scot,
Interested in pictures of a full frame up restoration of my Ariens? I restored it on the 40th anniversary in 2004, rechromed handlebars, etc. Let me know and I"ll send them along.

I made all the decals myself (drew them on AutoCAD, printed them on either clear or white vinyl, then covered them with clear vinyl to protect the color). I thought it was interesting to find someone as excited about their Ariens as I was about mine. It is by far the best snowblower in the world. I wouldn't trade this for anything. My dad bought it brand new in 1964. I used it for years growing up to clear all the driveways on our side of the street. When we built our house, my dad gave it to me, and I cringed for 2 years using it on a gravel driveway. After that we paved it. The machine always started on a dime, and ran like a champ, but it looked old. It had rust, flaked paint, it needed some TLC, and I thought if it's that reliable, if I enjoy using it so much, it should look appreciated. So I talked it over with my wife, and allocated $300 to restore it from the ground up. I replaced all bushings, bearings, and seals, and the Ariens dealer down the street used to let me just walk through their parts department picking up old parts, drive disc, shear pins, this odd piece, that strange part. I called Ariens in Wisconsin because the model number plate was missing, and I got this old guy who answered "Ariens... Parts..." I said I wanted all the manuals for my Ariens, but didn't know the model or year. He said "Does it have a round or square shute?" I said "round." He said "how many horse power?" I said "6." He said "how wide is it?" I said "24 inch". He asked "Are there were half circle pieces bolted to the front of the auger?" I said "Yes." He said "1964 10ML-60D." He knew his machines... Anyway, I asked how much I owed, and he said I could put a check in the mail when I got his package! Old fashioned service!!! So, with parts book in hand, I got all the new parts I needed from around the countryside, and set to tearing it apart and restoring it. Total cost was $305. Try to buy a snowblower of this quality for $305 today... I think I did a pretty nice job on the restoration, and it runs like it always has. Always starts on the 3rd pull.

Only three things that are currently wrong with it:

1) The electric starter cover is rusted. It is supposed to be zinc plated, and it'll be too expensive to chrome it, so I leave it off, it's on the shelf in the shop.

2) The exhaust was changed in the mid 80's from a pipe and can exhaust to the square type, so the shop that did the work for my dad cut the cold weather carb cover to make it fit. I have another cover, just haven't gotten around to cutting out a chunk of steel and welding it on (wrong year cover so I won't put it on my '64 intact, I'll use a piece of it to fix the old one)

3) I've followed tag sales all over the place to find an original throttle handle, I just can't find one, so I have a modern "backwards" throttle in place (full forward is off)

I don't mind those three problems... It makes me think of my dad when I use it, and that's fine.

Chris

here are the photos:

Thanks Chris! beautiful job on the restoration!

Chris had assumed his machine was a 1964 model..but with a lot of emailing back and forth, we have come up with a theory that I believe pegs it as a 1962 model..
Chris's snowblower does not have its original engine..his dad replaced it back in the 80's.
So we dont have a tecumseh engine tag to date the machine..but Chris's cousin also bought a snowblower on the same day as his Dad, and Chris still has that engine! it has a tecumseh serial number of 2334, which means "the 334th day of 1962" which is December 1, 1962.
Thats the date the engine was assembled at Tecumseh..This would make the snowblower a very late 1962 model..It's also possible that this engine was on a 1963 Ariens, and Chris' cousin bought a '63 while his father bought a "new '62" that hadnt been sold the pervious winter.

Chris also has a Tecumseh engine manual, that came with his snowblower when his dad bought it, that says "revised July 1963"..which would mea 's snowblower is a very late 1962, built in December 1962 or January 1963 (either way, it would still be a 1962 model) and since it was built so "late" it probably didnt sell that winter..it had to wait until the following autumn to be sold. So then Chris's father purchased the machine in the late summer or autumn of 1963, (when it was still brand new and only a few months old) which fits the "revised July 1963" notice on the tecumseh paperwork. Chris also has the original manuals that came with the machine! It came with both a 1962, and a 1963 manual! Forms ST-62-I-R and ST-63, which also supports the theory of "a 1962 model bought in the autumn of 1963" or perhaps even early 1964.

Another reason I believe this is a 1962..it is now known that the "half-circle" scoop was only used in 1960, 1961 and 1962, and the "half teardrop" was used on 1963 and 1964 models..So this would have to be a 1962 model purchased the winter after it was built, late '63 or early '64, which is a very common phenomenon which still happens today.

1969 Ariens model 10962

This is a 1969 Ariens 10,000 series, model 10962, 7hp, 24" bucket. This machine was restored by Paul X10 of Spencerport NY. Paul has done classic car restorations! He has all the equipment and skill to do excellent work on snowblowers! which is a new hobby he got into a few years ago..Paul restored this machine for his friend's father in 2014. Here is Paul to tell us the story of this machine:

1969 Ariens 7/24 Model #10962; Serial #011668

I started on this machine for my good friend Eric's father, Tom, who needed a second machine to have at his lake house. He already has a 2012 Ariens Premium with heated hand grips at his home. He just needed something to have on hand for when they have to get in there to work on, and check on the place over the winter season.

Well, Tom has an Ariens background, as he started working at a hardware store called Country Gentlemen when he was 12, back in the mid 1960s, and they sold and serviced new Ariens Snow Blowers. He worked on setting up brand new Ariens Snow Blowers, and eventually learning how, and doing the service work on them for many years; a true, hardcore, devoted Ariens owner with many wonderful stories to tell! So, for me to 'fix-up' an old Ariens for a man with those 'credentials', pretty much put me in a perspective and need to do this one a bit extra special.

I asked Eric if he'd want a newer model, or 'old school', and he didn't hesitate with saying 'dad would definitely want old school'. Since I had quite a few to choose from, I pointed out an old, rusty 1969 7/24 with a great engine, and he said.....okay, that will do the job. I told him I'll go through it and change the oil, belt and rebuild the carb, and anything else it needs to be reliable.

I tried to do only what I said I'd do, but me being me, and the new owner having such a 'history' with Ariens machines, I had to try and make it look a little better....it was just so rusty. I had been working at it a little at a time, and it was basically apart, and being November, the weather here in upstate NY was wet and chilly. Then the weather report said we'd be in the upper 60ºs and sunny for a few days, and that made my decision to just go for it, because if I'm going to paint everything, I really need to do it outside due to the mess the Rust-Oleum overspray makes, as it's very slow drying, and sticks to everything.

Having done the restoration on a 1979 8/24 for my brother over the summer, I had a system down pretty good, and knew how to expedite things a bit better, as a 'weather window' isn't going to last. I finished dismantling everything, and got busy sandblasting, power sanding, wire wheeling, and cleaning. I just wanted to get all the paint work done, so the parts could be drying for a few days while I worked on the engine and other components.

There's a couple items I had to swap out from other year machines due to condition and better function. The auger assembly is from a late serial number 1974, as that is when Ariens redesigned the discharge impeller/fan to the 'less is more' blade design. These have a scoop at the 4 ends only, instead of the full sized 'V' scoops used from the beginning in 1960. I wanted that for the efficiency/improvement, as those evacuate the snow better and throw it farther, as this machine's purpose was to be used.

I also used a set of decent chrome handlebars from a 1971 model, which are different because they did away with the clutch handle lock button around then. I thought about drilling it, but the original process was a punched hole, and the depressed area from the punch process was actually needed for the button to work correctly.

I added the extended dipstick as they are simply so much easier to use, and 'inspire' checking the oil! The red plastic gas cap is a replacement snowblower item, as it's designed to keep snow/water/ice from plugging the vent hole. The original is painted metal with a crossed cover welded on over the vent hole to prevent ice from plugging it. I found out just how important the cover is, as the cross fell off my father's old machine, and as I was using it, ice formed on the hole, and it vapor locked and died!

One item nobody will notice is, I used the worm gear for the discharge chute rotation from the late 1974 model, because Ariens changed it from a 4 tooth to a 6 tooth design, which rotates the chute further with less revolutions of the crank handle.....small thing, but there is a difference in how much faster it is!

Note: I wrote about restoration techniques and materials I used for the 1979 Ariens 8/24 in another article in this section, so refer to that for more about what I used and how I did certain things.

The 'off-white' on this machine was done using Krylon Gloss Ivory (#51504) over a red oxide primer. With it not being an 'engine enamel', some discoloring occurred around the muffler area, but it's well hidden by the carb heater box. After painting the whole engine, I thought about the gas tank, and any spills will likely affect the paint. One thing I've learned is to 'heat cure' paint, and it's durability and resistance to chemicals improves dramatically. Knowing that gas tank was absolutely gas free, I spent some time heating it up with a heat gun a half dozen times to the point it felt hot; my estimate around 200º. I did find out it worked, as gas was spilled on it, and didn't affect the paint.

The toughest aspect to deal with of this era machine are the handlebar panels with the Ariens embossed logo. Finding a nice one isn't easy, if not impossible, as they are thin aluminum, and are usually bent, cracked, faded and corroded. Restoring one really isn't an option with the raised decaled embossing and thin material. They are a discontinued item, but Ariens has a 'replacement', and they're about $100. They are not like the original, as it's a panel they used on a rototiller, and they 'fit', but are made and look totally different. The one on this '69 is the best I could find, and with a little straightening, epoxying two small cracks, and a touch-up of the off white along the top and bottom edges, it was 'just presentable'. The old part number is 002033000, and is superseded with Ariens #50203400, which is an Ariens rototiller part.

My father bought a new 10M6 Ariens on January 24, 1966, for $259.95, (and went back 3 days latter for a set of tire chains for $8.50), just a couple weeks before the 'famous blizzard' hit the Northeast; I was 10 years old. That machine was used every year, a lot, until 2013 when it was time to retire it even though it still ran with its original engine, never rebuilt.

One thing my father did the first year was to remove the panel from the handlebars, as it 'got in his way trying to pull start the engine'. It ended up in his tool room at the old farm house, only for me to rediscover it in 2012, in excellent condition. It was different, as the '65/'66 model year had the mounting holes (slots) only a quarter of the way down from the top edge, with later versions having the holes on center. Also, it was an almond color, and the paint was very nice. I matched the color to Rust-Oleum Almond (#7770), and this panel is now on a partially restored 1971 7/32, now in the possession of Scot. I looked up the part number, and Ariens Parts Radar shows the same number as the later panels that I mentioned in the previous paragraph, which means this earlier design is not available, either. That's one rare panel on Scot's Ariens!

The other 'tough aspect' of this era are the chromed handlebars. The decent ones I used were cleaned up to look as good as I could get them, but they're far from perfect. I talked to my Ariens dealer if they're still available, and they are, but the right hand lower now only comes painted black. They're quite expensive, too. Re-chroming is also very costly, and having a set that's not rusty & pitted to start with is important, as the work to get the tubes smooth and pit-free is an extra plating cost. Some machines from the late '60s came with the almond or off-white painted bars that I've found are on machines that came without the factory differential option. Having decent used painted bars make it a bit easier to do a repaint, as the chromed bars would have to be sent to a plating shop to have the old chrome removed if you wanted to just paint them.

I wish I had taken more pictures of it 'in progress', but didn't know it was going to end up getting so much attention. With all I did, documenting this would have resulted in having almost 100 pictures. The engine was in very good condition, but I did dismantle it for the basic rebuild and cleaning, lapped the valves, new gaskets, rings, connecting rod, and such, because I had them on hand already. It got a new belt, bushings, bearings and rubber drive wheel, so this is as close to 'new' as I could get it.

There's a few decals I saved by masking them off during sandblasting or sanding. The best part was putting the big Ariens SNO-THRO decal on the corner of the bucket over that new paint!

I do feel calling this Ariens 'restored' is fine, but the real meaning of that word is "to return something to it's original state". In my decades of classic car work, I've done restorations in preparation for judged events. It's very hard and tedious work, and expensive. I basically had more fun on the ones that didn't have to be 'factory correct', as it's a bit more relaxed, and creative. There's a word that I use, and it's not in the dictionary, but I wish it was, as it's used by some to help categorize something that's done to bring a car back close to it's original condition, but with a few creative touches, and the word is 'restified'. It means "to return something close to its original state".

Delivery day was fun, as they didn't know I went this far. I had it in my shop covered up with old blankets in a lineup with 5 other old Ariens machines, just to be able to say 'which one do you want'. Eric was suspicious, as he's known me for years with all the classic and muscle car work I've done (including his own big block Chevelle SS), so when I took the cover off, Tom saw it, and he said 'I think I want that one', and was thrilled. Many discussions, stories and 'silly name calling' erupted from that point, as this machine had been on the Snow Blower Forum and our Ariens Dealer's home page for almost 4 weeks at this point, and I could finally tell them! It got put to use two days later with our first real snow storm, and it did what an Ariens does....and did it very well!

I wanted to say here, that a good part of my inspiration in doing these, and taking this on as a hobby, is knowing there's others out there that do appreciate these older Ariens (and other machines), and thanks to this web site and the Snow Blower Forum, this 'hobby' will likely continue to grow, and many more of these great machines of yesteryear will be saved, preserved, used and appreciated.

Long Live Ariens!

Thanks Scot!

Paul X10

November 2014

Beautiful job, thanks Paul!

1970 Ariens model 10962

And here is a beautifully restored 1970 Sno-Thro! Tim H. of Middleton, WI, purchased this machine in 2008, fully disassembled, restored and repainted it. He kept the original engine, but chose to re-paint everything in the more modern "Orange & Black" scheme! (as opposed to the original Orange & White.) I like it! looks sharp! Here is Tim to describe his machine:

Scot,
Good evening and thanks a lot for your excellent website! Last year I picked up a 1970 Ariens Sno-Thro (24" cut) off Craigslist for $140 and it worked awesome last winter. Since it was a bit rusty all over, I wanted to restore the entire machine, so that's what I've been doing the past couple weeks. I completely disassembled and am sandblasting all of the sheet metal and engine components, will prime and repaint, etc. They built these machines so well that it's a shame to have them rust away. Mine is a 1970 model with model number 10962 Sno-Thro Transmission and 10995 Sno-Thro Attachment (blower).

I disassembled the transmission/friction drive system just enough so I could get it out of the sheet metal housing. Unfortunately, I didn't take the best record of where a couple of the bushings are supposed to go. Had I been thinking better beforehand, I probably should have taken some digital pictures of the entire inside and made a record of where each part came from. I should know better...I'm a mechanical engineer who used to design engines for Ford, H-D, Kohler!
*snip*
Thanks again,
Tim H.

Scot,
I just finished up my 1970 Ariens this morning and took these photos. I ended up taking the entire snowblower and engine apart, sandblasted every part, primed, repainted, and clear-coated with actual Ariens Orange paint. I replaced the belt, muffler, all engine gaskets, crankshaft seals, all fasteners, etc. After all the parts had been cleaned, I regreased everything, so I think it's operating smoother than ever. I had to have the blower sheet metal welded in a couple areas and then bought a new blade, too. As you can see, I went with the look of the new machines with black engine components and augers, but overall it turned out great.

In any case, I thought you might like to see them.
Have a great holiday season!
Thanks,
Tim H.

December 2009

Wow! thanks Tim, beautiful job!

1979 Ariens model 924040

This is the second snowblower on this page restored by Paul X10 of Spencerport, NY.
This one is a 1979 Ariens model 924040, 8hp 24" bucket. Paul restored this one for his brother..take it away Paul!

1979 Ariens 8/24 Model #924040; Serial #004303

I started this project as a gift for my brother John, as he was in need of a decent sized snow blower at his horse farm. It's what I refer to as a 'Big Wheel' design, as it uses a tire and rim twice as large as the standard size. What Ariens did to accommodate the 'Big Wheel' with the axle in the same location is a story in itself. My brother's long driveway isn't paved, and the need to be in 'off-road' mode made this machine a better fit to his terrain.

The decision to make it 'look better' didn't happen until it was partially dismantled to service everything, and it seemed the 'right thing to do' as it was for my brother after all. My shop is set up for doing classic and muscle car restorations, as that's been my niche for many decades, so I just couldn't help but to just go after every part.

Also, having already done the tractor portion of a 1971 Ariens 7/32 (now owned by the author of this web site, Scot), I had a feel for the approach, techniques and materials needed, and the knowledge that reproduction decals were available. I also have a bit of a 'collection' of older Ariens, including parts machines and new parts, as I've been fixing them up for others to have. (A little bit of an Ariens junk yard going on here....).

Finding aerosol paint to match original Ariens colors is a bit tough. The orange and off white shades changed through the years, so there's a few shades to seek out. The orange of choice for me was what I had plenty of; Chevy Engine Enamel Orange, and the most durable, but not easiest to work with, was Rust-Oleum (#248941). I mention that it's not the easiest to work with, due to the overspray will stick to everything in your shop, and it's a slow drying paint. (Note; There's a Chevy Orange-Red that is too dark/red). The Ariens 'off-white' of this era is more of a 'dirty white', and through trial and error, I ended up using Rust-Oleum Biscuit Appliance Epoxy (#210372) as it's a little lighter than the ivory. The Biscuit isn't an engine enamel, and is affected by the engine heat near the muffler, and will discolor somewhat, but is covered by the carb heater box.

The plated levers and rods were prepped and painted with Krylon Matte Aluminum (#51519) as it replicates the original plating nicely. It looks great, but isn't a high quality paint, and isn't resistant to oils. Even after it's dry, rubbing it will result in a dulling, but otherwise it's a decent choice. There's other silver paints that are more durable, it's a matter of choice. Bare aluminum parts that were glass beaded or wire wheeled got a coat of clear. The muffler was sandblasted and painted with Eastwoods exhaust paint, but black or silver high heat header/manifold paint is cheaper.

Anything that would fit in my sandblasters got blasted, including the handlebars. I thought about having the auger housing and auger rakes professionally sandblasted, but decided to just go after them with wire wheels and power sanders. This was the toughest and most time consuming, but it did give decent results. Rust and pitting is something to address with 'how nice' do you want it to be when you're done. I did use some auto body skim coat fillers on things like the handlebar banner panel, the carb heater box, engine fan shroud and head top shield. I kept telling myself, 'this machine is going to get used like it was meant to be', but the results were what I wanted. All in all, it took 8 cans of orange and 4 cans of Biscuit, with an average of 3~4 coats, to do this machine.

The auger assembly and housing have many angles and challenges to getting everything painted in one shot. I did the auger assembly using an old end table that I drilled a 1" hole in the center, and after painting the back of the impeller/fan, I placed it with the bearing/pulley shaft through the hole, and it sits there nicely on the impeller/fan backside. As you paint, you can rotate the auger rakes by (slowly) spinning it on its shaft, which in turn, rotates the rakes so you can see and get to all the surfaces, nooks and crannies. For the housing, I inverted a metal garbage can and placed an appropriate sized piece of plywood on it that will fit/support the housing mounting area. I painted the housing mounting area first, let it dry for a while, then turned it over and set it on the plywood with the bucket facing straight up. I did all this outside on a warm, calm day, well away from the ill affects of the overspray. If you have a spray booth, that's even better!

I did make a few modifications, as the improvements were to my liking. The most obvious is the use of a discharge chute from a 1994 Ariens ST824, Model #924082. It's a newer design that's a bit straighter at the base, and about 4" taller, it's a direct fit, with the addition of a 4th retaining shoe. I've used one on my '78 8/32, and the improvement is noticeable. I also added an extended dipstick to help 'inspire' the checking of the oil before each use. Just for a custom touch, I painted the choke pull and the primer bulb base orange. I used non-original hardware in many places with stainless and nylon lock nuts. The original Flange Whizlock nuts and bolts are available at certain hardware stores, which I ended up coating with some clear paint brushed on, just because 'rust never sleeps'. The skid shoes are the new design that's double sided, as the originals were single. One decal bothered me that Tecumseh applied to the carb heater box; the Tecumseh information decal at the rear corner originally faced rearward, and I felt it to be harder to read, and just didn't look right....so I rotated it 90º to face the left side of the machine.

The engine and carb got a full rebuild, even though it didn't really need it....it was all apart, and I had all the rebuild parts on hand. All bearings, bushings and wear items throughout the machine are new.

When I started putting decals on, it took me over 2 hours. (I'm sure they didn't spend that much time at the Ariens factory....but, they sure 'look it' with random crooked ones). Laying out the location on the handlebar panel was the toughest. The dash control ones would have been easier to apply before it was assembled, as the levers are a bit hard to work around. The plastic emblem on the auger housing needed the white lettering redone.

I've saved many decals on other machines that were still in great condition. I would cover them with Duct tape before blasting or power sanding, leaving 1/8" ~ 1/4" of paint around them to hand sand/feather edge after removing the Duct tape. Then, regular masking tape before painting, trimming with a razor blade at their edges. Note; remove the masking tape before the paint is completely dry, usually within 24 hours. Be aware that unmasking can start to peel the decal itself off.

With it all done, I just felt good about it, and really enjoyed doing it, as it's in me to 'Dare to be Different', and bringing an old rusty Ariens back to it's original glory is gratifying.....

My brother used it for the first time a few weeks ago with our first real snow of the season, and said it performed great!

Thanks,
Paul X10

The "before" photo:

2014

November 2014

Thanks Paul!

1980 Ariens model 924050

This 1980 Ariens is owned by Ingo R. of Michigan.
This one is very interesting because of its very low serial numbers!

The snowblower itself is:
Model 924050
Serial 000117

and the scoop is:
Model 824007
Serial 000103

It is known that Ariens never actually began a model series with serial number 000001.
they usually started it with 000100. (in which case the actual first unit would "look like" number 100 as far as the serial numbers go..see the chart below for conformation on this.)

This makes Ingo's machine the 17th snowblower built in the 1980 924050 model run!
and the scoop is only the third built in it's series! wow!

Its also one of the very earliest machines to wear the new "Orange & Black" scheme,
first introduced in 1980.

Ingo bought the machine in November 2010, and proceeded to do a full refurbishmnt and repaint! Here is Ingo with the story:

It was the first week of November and I went hunting on Craigslist for a decent two-stage snow thrower (they're technically snow throwers rather than snow blowers because they first collect the snow by means of slower-turning augers than feed into the collection pipe and that then gets thrown out the chute by means of a high speed impeller). Anyhow, I stumbled upon this gem of an ad that was already a month old and though I knew the unit had likely been sold already, added "Yes- I'm interested if you still have" to the heading in my reply and it turns out the guy had a hundred emails, but had to go away on business right after he placed the ad and mine was the first one (and most current response) that caught his eye.

Here's the body of his ad (might belong in the best of Craigslist -- lol) Needless to say, his wife was not amused:

"Allow me to introduce you to "The Beast." I bought this item used about four years ago, and it continues to be a total stalwart workhorse for me. Starts up on first or second pull, and seriously throws snow like it's angry about something. Oh, I'm not gonna lie about it. It's one of the ugliest monstrosities you'll ever see. It's old, shows the wear, and as of this past off-season, requires its left tire to be patched or replaced. In a lot of ways, it's like my mother in-law. She's the ugliest b**** you'll ever meet, and simply will not DIE. The carburetor has had a tiny leak since the day I bought it. But the reality is - they just don't make them like this thing anymore. It's SOLID and you can tell just from feeling it that it's built the way these machines are supposed to be built.

The $80 is firm, and requires you to come out my way to pick her up. She's big and heavy, so have a pickup and a ramp if you plan on taking her. If you're handy, I'm betting you can get this thing back to peak performance for just a few bucks. As it is now, it runs well (with the tire issue noted).

Hope to hear from you!"

Now even though this is a 30 year-old machine, they are indeed workhorses and routinely sell for $300-500

My buddy Eric helped me pick her up with his Dodge Ram Pickup Truck that night (It was Voting day) and she started on the second pull. Tire was off the rim and he'd said the electric start didn't work. As soon as I got the unit home I went to see if the tire just needed reseating (there were a few cups of water in the tire) -- and I was able to successfully reseat it. Also, the Sno Thro had the optional electric starter option, which supposedly didn't work -- wanna bet?

So I proceeded to disassemble the tractor from the bucket and all related components including bearings and auger assembly. Time to remove all the rusty bits down to the bare metal, including all of the motor sheet metal pieces, and commenced painting and sanding operations (over the course of 2 weeks -- outside when weather permitted -- otherwise inside). Multiple coats of primer, plus 3-4 coats of Chevrolet Orange Engine Enamel (Rustoleum). Love it when a project comes together. Oh, also treated her with a fresh oil change of Royal Purple in the engine and synthetic gear lube for the Auger differential/worm gear and greased all parts, adjusted the reduction gear chains, etc. Carb only needed adjustment and the standing water removed from the tire that came off the rim and cleaned up the rim bead surface of the wheel and tire.

Also, like I said, this would appear to be an extremely early build for this model, as it is a 924050, serial # 000117 (they start at 000101) and the bucket is the third off the line (model 824007, Serial # 000103 - which would make it the 3rd off the line! (see attached pics)

Regards, Ingo (waiting for snow)

Wow, thanks Ingo! thats a great story..and a great deal for only $80!

Here are Ingo's photos: first, in the condition it was in when he bought it..
a little rough, but not too bad for 30 years old!

Ingo took the machine apart, removed all the rust, sanded and primed all the parts, and did a full repaint:

and the finished product:

thanks for sharing!


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