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stresst


Location: The Village in the Middle of New York
Joined: Dec 11, 2010
Points: 213

What do I do??
Original Message   Oct 28, 2011 10:52 pm
Many of you know I have been throwing the idea around of either selling my Toro 826OXE or having an 11hp from the 1128OXE installed. Anyway I had it up for sale but people wanted to pay like 600 bucks! Mind you I paid nearly 1600 less then 10 months ago!

So with the first reports of snow falling north and west of the city I have the snow blower loaded in my fathers van ready to go to the dealer. Do I just have it serviced and continue to try and sell it (really dont want to invest more $$) or do I have them install the 11HP engine?

The dealer wants 120.00 + any parts to do the service. Now if they swap the shortblock this 120 gets washed away as they need to do an oil change, new plug, adjust belts, etc once they install the new engine block.

What do you think I should do?

TORO 826OXE
Replies: 39 - 48 of 48Next page of topicsPreviousAllView as Outline
bus708


Location: Maryland
Joined: Jul 24, 2010
Points: 321

Re: What do I do??
Reply #39   Nov 1, 2011 9:05 pm
stresst wrote:
I hear ya I am actually quit handy but the problem is it was running a bit rough last year. The last few weeks of the season I drained the gas out and put fresh gas in but the same thing. The other day I put some gas in for the first time with a new plug but it was the same......Plugs and oil are childs play....... but carb adjustments im lost! As far as belts go I probably could have done that as well but I figured let me get everything checked out......last season I ran a ton of crap over including the outdoor carpet which stopped the motor, about 25' of 10/3 extension cord & a 2lb steel ashtray which shut the motor down as well. A screw rattled loose on the black cover which covers the belt.........figured it couldnt hurt to get it checked out! Trust me I didnt want to cough over 120! As long as I dont run anything over this season this will be the last time this thing sees the dealer!

Do they make service manuals for theset things? Would like to know which carb screws adjust what, as well as how much tension should be in the belts........


What was the engine running like?  Does it sound funny under no load, when you engage it, or under load wile snow blowing? What does it sound like. You said your blower is 10 months old!  That being is should be under warranty.  If you ran a bunch of stuff in your machine enough to stall the engine then you might have bent something.  With your belt disengaged try turning your impeller.  Check for any binning. I assume your engine is a Briggs Call them with your model # and serial # tell them what it  is running like. They can walk you through the carb adjustments.  There are usually only 2 screws . One for your idle speed and the other for your mixture. For your mixture. Start it up normally and let it warm up. Then tighten the mixture screw by  turning it in until your engine stops running. Unscrew it 1/4 turn and restart your engine.  Now  Listen to your engine  and continue to unscrew the adjustment screw until it smooths out. It should run well at idle and wide open. Replace your belts. It sounds as if they burnt  when you got junk jammed in it.  I would try and get it fixed under warranty. The worst they can do is say No. They can show you the adjustment screws and you can pick up your belts too. As I said  check for anything rubbing ,loose or worn.
samdog


Joined: Feb 9, 2010
Points: 55

Re: What do I do??
Reply #40   Nov 2, 2011 2:12 pm
borat wrote:

It's amazing how we like to complicate simple things made to do simple jobs.....
How many SS machines are made with lights and hand warmers?  To me, the less there is to a machine that will be working in a difficult environment, the better. 


It's obvious that the MTD handwarmers I've seen are not useful, and are merely marketing ploys (I havn't tested and can't speak to any other manufacturer's grips). 

However the heated seats in my car are excellent. Thet have 5 heat levels, and have been competely reliable going on 7 years now. They are quite enjoyable on a cold winter morning.

It should not be that hard to put  reliable, multi-stage heat elements into snowblower grips. If someone does it right, I would certainly consider it as an option and I imagine so would many others.

Regarding the OP's question:

Considering the number of yard items your machine has eaten, and the investment you already have in it; I would choose to install the larger engine, provided the auger and impeller check out OK. Perhaps you could sell the smaller engine to the shop or some small equipment guy. 

This message was modified Nov 2, 2011 by samdog
aa335


Joined: Nov 29, 2008
Points: 2434

Re: What do I do??
Reply #41   Nov 2, 2011 5:09 pm
stresst wrote:
Last year I came close! Some dumb EFF sanitation plow truck came flying down my block last doing about 45mph with the plow down, this SOB buried me up to my thighs in ice and snow it was like a wave at the beach blind siding you nevermind the blade was about 18" from me! Either he didnt see me or he didnt care either way I thought I was gonna get hit!

On a side note I asked the dealer today about the clarence impeller kit but he never heard of it! Should I order one?


I'm surprised he hasn't heard of clarence impeller kit.

It's probably most dealers are not performance shops.  There's a liability issues hot rodding snowblowers.  Who's responsible?  Not worth it for dealers.  They rather deal with 5 regular customers (at $200 a pop)  than 1 hot rodding customer.

Anyways, with all the crazy objects your snowblower has taken in and the plow truck incident, and you're still here and no one got hurt.  Consider yourself lucky.  Count your blessing and BE SAFE !!!
This message was modified Nov 2, 2011 by aa335
Steve_Cebu


Joined: Dec 17, 2009
Points: 888

Re: What do I do??
Reply #42   Nov 2, 2011 6:03 pm
aa335 wrote:
Really?  I thought they made it easier to spot mailboxes so you can whack them with a baseball bat. 



That too.  They also make great targets for passenger side mirrors as well. I replace mine every year up at the EOD. I've had my mailbox batted, run over and plowed over and that's just at this house.

My last house the city plow made a habit of running it over so I asked the post office precisely where I should have it. They came out and showed me exactly where it should go. Then we dug down 10-11 feet with a power auger thing and put in a post that was 3/4" thick steel pipe. Took 4 of us to get it in the hole then we filled the hole and the pipe with concrete and bits of rebar and other assorted metls from the machine shop I work at. Then we welded the mailbox onto the top of the pipe and painted it white. A few months later the city plow guy who liked to knock over all the mailboxes on the street hit it soild doing about 35mph and totalled the plow. I mean the plow was bent like it was origami. Wow was he mad! The city did an investigation and tried to get me to pay to fix the plow but the post office backed me up that the mailbox was in the correct place. I think the frame on the plow truck was also bent.

I moved from there that summer but I'm sure that guy lost his job. Tough, that's what you get when you do stuff like that. This was back around 1984 so it's been awhile. But I'd love to do that here!

"If you have more miles on your snow blower than your car, you live in New England."  "If you can drive 75 mph through 2 feet of snow during a raging blizzard without flinching, you live in New England."
Steve_Cebu


Joined: Dec 17, 2009
Points: 888

Re: What do I do??
Reply #43   Nov 2, 2011 6:06 pm
aa335 wrote:
Maybe you should place fake deere or moose on the side of the road to slow people down. 


Oh God no! That's all they need, another target to aim for! 

"If you have more miles on your snow blower than your car, you live in New England."  "If you can drive 75 mph through 2 feet of snow during a raging blizzard without flinching, you live in New England."
aa335


Joined: Nov 29, 2008
Points: 2434

Re: What do I do??
Reply #44   Nov 2, 2011 7:47 pm
I guess I'm lucky that our city plow drivers are courteous and safe.  I live within school zone speed limit so any reckless behavior like mowing down mailboxes will not be tolerated.  The streets are plowed first here because of school bus route. 
This message was modified Nov 2, 2011 by aa335
Steve_Cebu


Joined: Dec 17, 2009
Points: 888

Re: What do I do??
Reply #45   Nov 2, 2011 9:54 pm
aa335 wrote:
I guess I'm lucky that our city plow drivers are courteous and safe.  I live within school zone speed limit so any reckless behavior like mowing down mailboxes will not be tolerated.  The streets are plowed first here because of school bus route. 


Well I suppose nowadays too many people would be worried about losing their jobs doing things like that. Our road is one of the last ones plowed in the city. We are too remote for them to care I guess.

"If you have more miles on your snow blower than your car, you live in New England."  "If you can drive 75 mph through 2 feet of snow during a raging blizzard without flinching, you live in New England."
stresst


Location: The Village in the Middle of New York
Joined: Dec 11, 2010
Points: 213

Re: What do I do??
Reply #46   Nov 2, 2011 10:11 pm
samdog wrote:

It's amazing how we like to complicate simple things made to do simple jobs.....
How many SS machines are made with lights and hand warmers?  To me, the less there is to a machine that will be working in a difficult environment, the better. 


It's obvious that the MTD handwarmers I've seen are not useful, and are merely marketing ploys (I havn't tested and can't speak to any other manufacturer's grips). 

However the heated seats in my car are excellent. Thet have 5 heat levels, and have been competely reliable going on 7 years now. They are quite enjoyable on a cold winter morning.

It should not be that hard to put  reliable, multi-stage heat elements into snowblower grips. If someone does it right, I would certainly consider it as an option and I imagine so would many others.

Regarding the OP's question:

Considering the number of yard items your machine has eaten, and the investment you already have in it; I would choose to install the larger engine, provided the auger and impeller check out OK. Perhaps you could sell the smaller engine to the shop or some small equipment guy. 

I got a call today and was told the impellar/auger is fine and nothing is bent either. My plan was to do the swap then sell my motor but the only direct replacement is a shortblock which means I need to remove my head, carb, fuel tank etc which means I probably couldnt sell my motor. Between this and losing my warranty I am going to wait it out, if I get my price I will let it go and buy what I really want if not I will just keep it for now. In a few short years once the warranty is over then I will proceed with the swap.

TORO 826OXE
Snowmann


Joined: Dec 3, 2003
Points: 494

Re: What do I do??
Reply #47   Nov 3, 2011 12:04 am
The parts on your 249/250cc will not retrofit to a 305/342cc shortblock.
stresst


Location: The Village in the Middle of New York
Joined: Dec 11, 2010
Points: 213

Re: What do I do??
Reply #48   Nov 3, 2011 8:14 pm
Snowmann wrote:
The parts on your 249/250cc will not retrofit to a 305/342cc shortblock.


I really dont know.....all I know is what the dealer told me......he did say the alternator is probably differant.....

TORO 826OXE
Replies: 39 - 48 of 48Next page of topicsPreviousAllView as Outline
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