Got my first snowblower

[natenkiki2004]

An update; I put all the old (stock) metal pieces back in my carb, instead of using the new ones in the carb kit I got. It's running pretty good now at near-default carb values. I think I'm at 1 1/4 turns out for the main and 1 turn out for the idle. Idles pretty good and no hesitation to full speed. Behaves just like other snowblowers I've seen on YouTube. There were 2 things that screwed me over and they were both in the aftermarket carb kit I bought. The first was the main needle, it was longer and had a more pointed tip to it. The second was that brass piece that the main needle goes into, it was EXACTLY the same except for one tiny hole towards the tip, so tiny it would be tough to get the tip of a sewing needle in it. The old stock one didn't have that. Also, the springs for the needles were slightly different, more thicker and it might have made it so I couldn't bottom out the screws fully. Everything else in the carb kit was great, I have no leaks or any issues with the gaskets but the metal pieces weren't exact.

TL;DR: Be careful with aftermarket carb kits, especially the needles and other metal pieces. Make sure they're the same exact, no extra holes, no extra threads, no difference in needle tip.


I still have some minor fine tuning but she starts great and runs properly now. I'll do another hot oil change and start focusing on other things like belts, shear pins and other wearable items.

 

[natenkiki2004]

I was going to edit the original post but I think the option is disabled. I contacted MTD a while back and they were able to supply me with a parts diagram for my model and it also applies to others (524, 726 & 832). Here's the link if anybody needs it:

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/464376/small_engine/Bolens Snowblower/Bolens 524 Parts.pdf

When looking for parts, be sure to remove the spaces & dashes in the part numbers. Also, I found out that the drive belt was wrong for my model, instead of a 36" I needed a 35" and that fit perfectly.