Abby's Guide to Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more)
Username Password
Discussions Reviews More Guides
Abby’s Guide > Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more) > Discussions > Ariens 11528DLE will not drive all of the time, help!

Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more) Discussions

Search For:
brjl


Joined: Jan 2, 2009
Points: 23

Ariens 11528DLE will not drive all of the time, help!
Original Message   Jan 2, 2009 7:23 am
Bought this Ariens 11528DLE last year, in January. For some reason, the forward and reverse drive will stop working. The friction wheel is fine, and there is no adjustment for the belt. I brought it to the local Ariens dealer, and of course, they could not reproduce the problem. They were nice enough to look inside, clean the wheel that the friction wheel drives with brake cleaner. Next snow storm, same thing, one pass down the driveway, and it stops. The dealer says, never heard of this one, maybe water is getting inside.

Paid lots of money for a machine that is touted as one of the best, I wish I could figure out why it is happening. Any suggestions???

Thanks

Brian from NH

Replies: 11 - 20 of 46Next page of topicsPreviousNextNext page of topicsAllView as Outline
pvrp


Joined: Nov 14, 2008
Points: 151

Re: Ariens 11528DLE will not drive all of the time, help!
Reply #11   Jan 9, 2009 1:36 pm
My experience points to the first gear being too high which puts undo stress
on the contact between the rubber and the plate, either while blowing snow
or moving the machine on an incline.   Any kind of water getting on the plate
would just make things worse.  I wonder if the new texture recently added by
Ariens to the drive plate's surface has anything to do with this as I haven't
had any problems with the completely smooth aluminum drive plate on my
10 year old Ariens (though its first gear is also lower).

This and the fact that because first gear is too high when dealing with deep
heavy snow  you have to engage/disengage the drive constantly.

Nobody with the tracked DLETs seems to have problems, and they have a
40% gear reduction on 1st gear compared to the DLEs.

It may also be due to sloppy parts assembly.  The drive plate on my old
Ariens is mounted on a sliding cylinder with ball bearings at each end
whereas the new plate is mounted on a swing plate that's just attached
to the frame.

Paul
This message was modified Jan 9, 2009 by pvrp
MacLorry27


Joined: Dec 23, 2008
Points: 54

Re: Ariens 11528DLE will not drive all of the time, help!
Reply #12   Jan 9, 2009 2:18 pm
brjl wrote:
Mac, I keep the machine in an unheated shed, they same place that I have kept my John Deere snow blower for the past 15 years and with no problems. The John Deere has the same set up with the friction plate. There is absolutly no reason for this problem. Cables have been adjusted and friction plate cleaned a number of times. I just hope I can get some satisfaction from Ariens, but after reading Bob's post, I am not feeling too good about that.

I wasn’t sure if you kept your machine in a warm garage or not.  I only mentioned that as a possibility as your description of the problem is what happens to a machine kept in a warm garage under the right conditions.  When I say warm, I don’t necessarily mean heated.  Some people have insulated garages which can hover above freezing.  That’s not your case, but there is a reason for it.  It could be the material the friction wheel is made from as nibbler stated.  I wonder if the rubber from an older model that doesn’t seem to have the problem would work in the 11538DLE.  Maybe Ariens changed suppliers and the rubber part of the friction wheel has more plastic and less rubber in it.  You would think Ariens would be hard at work trying to solve this issue rather than taking the hit on their reputation.
brjl


Joined: Jan 2, 2009
Points: 23

Re: Ariens 11528DLE will not drive all of the time, help!
Reply #13   Jan 9, 2009 2:28 pm
Mac, you hit the nail on the head, you would think that Ariens would be hard at work to fix this problem, but it doesnt seem so. You cant believe how recommended Ariens was when discussing a choice of snowblowers at work and on the internet. Best machine ever made. My dad had a 13 horse Ariens back in the 70's, and of couse, I got the most use out of it as part of my chores. That thing was a monster and nothing could stop it. I thought I made the right decision by choosing Ariens, but maybe not.

Brian NH

pvrp


Joined: Nov 14, 2008
Points: 151

Re: Ariens 11528DLE will not drive all of the time, help!
Reply #14   Jan 9, 2009 3:06 pm
I think that we'd have to give Ariens a chance to do something about it if
there is indeed something to be done.  I have not seen the issue mentioned
for last year's models so it could be something new, and winter just started.

Paul
brjl


Joined: Jan 2, 2009
Points: 23

Re: Ariens 11528DLE will not drive all of the time, help!
Reply #15   Jan 9, 2009 3:46 pm
pvrp wrote:
I think that we'd have to give Ariens a chance to do something about it if
there is indeed something to be done.  I have not seen the issue mentioned
for last year's models so it could be something new, and winter just started.

Paul



You are right Paul, I am giving them a chance, I guess the frustration of pushing the machine, after spending a lot of money for it, is hard to take. I can tell you, the dealer that is helping me with the problem is not the dealer I bought it from, but they willing to help me in any way they can, really good people and I know it is not their fault.

Brian NH

borat


Joined: Nov 10, 2007
Points: 2692

Re: Ariens 11528DLE will not drive all of the time, help!
Reply #16   Jan 9, 2009 4:33 pm
I'd have more than a bit of a problem waiting for Ariens to find a fix.  It's a fairly new machine,  manufactured by a company, that in the minds of many ,is thought of as being one of the best.    If their product fails to the extent that it will not work, someone had better be loading another machine (of any brand) onto a truck and be delivering it to me to use while my machine is being repaired.    Not sure if the owner is shoveling by hand or has been fortunate enough to have a neighbour helping him.  Either way, I'd be mighty p!ssed if this was happening to my new Simplicity and I'm expected to "wait" for the manufacturer to figure it out .   
newjerseybt


You want it done right?...You better learn how to do it yourself!

Ariens 1128DLE
Ariens 8526LE
Honda HRC216
Bosch 3221L
Craftsman DYT4000
Stihl FS90R


Location: Honesdale, PA
Joined: Dec 19, 2004
Points: 171

Re: Ariens 11528DLE will not drive all of the time, help!
Reply #17   Jan 9, 2009 9:47 pm
What I would do is place the machine in the service position. (follow your manual)

Remove the cover exposing the drive wheel mechanism. With some WD-40 spray on the metal tube in which the disk drive wheel mechanism is guided (rides) on. The drive disc movement when squeezing the drive handle is maybe 1/4 inch but my guess it is binding just enough to prevent the springs from applying adequate pressure to allow enough friction between the rubber disk and metal drive disk.

That would cause problems in both forward and reverse. This is a guess, but I like to do things that are cheap and easy to do first.

I had a problem that was very close to your problem with my 1136DLE. Snowmann gave me the fix and it worked. Never a problem since. My problem was slightly different as binding occured in both engaging AND disengaging in forward and reverse.
mech12


Joined: Feb 20, 2006
Points: 273

Re: Ariens 11528DLE will not drive all of the time, help!
Reply #18   Jan 10, 2009 9:26 am
http://www.snowblowerguide.com/manuals/ariens_snow_thrower_manual_1.pdf
brjl


Joined: Jan 2, 2009
Points: 23

Re: Ariens 11528DLE will not drive all of the time, help!
Reply #19   Jan 10, 2009 2:43 pm
mech12 wrote:
http://www.snowblowerguide.com/manuals/ariens_snow_thrower_manual_1.pdf


Ok, I'll bite, looks like my manual.
Snowmann


Joined: Dec 3, 2003
Points: 494

Re: Ariens 11528DLE will not drive all of the time, help!
Reply #20   Jan 10, 2009 6:28 pm
brjl wrote:
Ok, I'll bite, looks like my manual.

Brjl, this is not your manual. 924,XXX platform went out of production in 2004. Your's and Bob1031's are completely different machines.

Also, NewJerseyBT's problem is not the same as your's, so don't try to replicate his fix. He has the 924,XXX platform machine. Transmission is very different.


PK
Replies: 11 - 20 of 46Next page of topicsPreviousNextNext page of topicsAllView as Outline
Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more) Guide   •   Discussions  Reviews  
AbbysGuide.com   About Us   Terms of Use   Privacy Policy   Contact Us
Copyright 1998-2024 AbbysGuide.com. All rights reserved.
Site by Take 42