I've had mine for 5 years and I'm just now replacing my first drive belt on it. One thing that I ran into is that after a while, it seemed like the snowblower was less powerful than it was in the beginning. I eventually figured out that the auger drive cable had stretched and was not engaging the auger fully. This could explain broken belts that others have encountered. If the belt isn't fully engaged, it can cause it to burn where it rubs a pulley. I found that if I put extra tension on my auger drive cable by routing it around one of the knobs in the handle, I got full power out of the snowblower. I'm replacing the auger cable this year as well as the belt. Hopefully I get a few years without having to replace it again. One thing I really dislike about this snowblower is that the 3rd stage auger sheer pins break frequently. Last year I bought some sheer pins that were supposedly built for 3 stage snowblowers and it seemed to do the trick. I went through way less sheer pins once I started using the 3 stage ones.
If you lift up the friction plate, the belt will slide up easier. Thank you for posting this video as it was really helpful when I had to perform this procedure on my 2 year old 3X 26" Cub Cadet with the 357 OHV.
One quick thing that people can do to avoid what happened to this guy is, before you go to start it the next time you need it, is to simply pull out the key, hold down the auger drive handle, and see if the motor will turn over when you pull on the starter rope handle. If it turns over easily, you're good to go. If it doesn't turn because the impeller is frozen to the bucket, better get out the torch and melt the ice until it's free. You can save yourself a lot of misery with that 30 second trick. I'm on my third year of hard use of my 2X26 and it's still going strong. You're supposed to clear the remaining snow out of the impeller area after you're done just to prevent that impeller from freezing. A small amount of snow will free itself with a pull on the starter rope.
I have been having this same problem. And of course I waited for a blizzard to replace the belt and double check everything. I decided to clamp the auger lever down so that the belt would not burn up during idling. (This is not recommended safety wise, but I had 2 feet of snow to deal with.) This worked for about 50 feet and then the auger got stuck and I could smell the belt starting to burn. I pulled on the auger cable and that cleared all the stuck snow. So I used tie wraps to pull the auger cable to the frame. This gave me the added tension I needed to keep the auger spinning. The snowblower then ripped through 2 feet of snow with ease, and I got the job done. Hope this helps somebody.
Ariens uses two drive belts, I think the Teflon belt is a great move, and I like the center auger on three stage. Check to make sure you have enough tension on the pulley. Check the slack on the cable or rod if equipped, might need tightening on auger side, and your right no belt dressing. Nice video!
Yes great video, I also purchased a 3x26, biggest mistake ever it’s a POS. Customer service is useless. I go through shears pins constantly, I’m thinking the shear pins are failing more from constant start up of the auger while snow throwing, I think that the snap on start up is breaking those pins. I’m on my 3rd auger cable, what a design flaw that is, the end of the spring connects to the metal piece that pulls the auger cable tight, and the constant starts and stops thins that metal on the spring till it breaks off, I’m on my 3rd one just this year alone, I’ve found the best one at Amazon and it’s a sten cable, the end of that spring is of a thicker metal, so am hoping it’ll last longer. Now I’m on my auger cable replacement. A take note if you are replacing your auger cable Do Not over tighten that cable hook up behind the motor or you will strip those threads immediately. You can’t tell me that Cub Cadet (MTD) snot aware of these issues so many of us are having, bottom line up front (BLUF) they just don’t give a dam. I will never purchase another CC product, and I tell anyone that wants to hear it, they are crap.
I was able to follow the video fine. The need belts started to smoke after 5 mins. I did more research and adjusted the cable tension. Not it seems ok . Fingers are crossed!
Hi, i have a 3x 30hd for 4 years and i've replaced belt 5 times already. I've also used the aftermarket belt with the teeth and still the same. Wondering if you were able to figure out what the issue was with these snowblowers and the belts constantly slipping? I'm about to sell mine since i can only use it 2 or 3 times before having to change the belt again and again.
Bought a track version and have smoked 6 belts. This thing is ridiculous. Just bought 3 more. I can’t figure out the right settings to get this thing working. Seems as though you have to have the protection cover on as it helps guide the belt. But for 1800$ I got robbed. Going to take it to the local dealer and if they can’t fix it I’m going to sell and buy a Honda
I’m having auger drive slippage, same model cub cadet. The cable from the left drive handle seems loose so if I pull the cable to take up the slack I don’t have slippage anymore. Do you know if there’s a way to tighten the left auger drive cable? I’m going to dig into it this afternoon as we have a big storm coming tonight.
I have a similar situation, but after replacing the belt, starting up the snowblower, and depressing the auger drive lever, there is some vibration. The auger turns, but when I release the lever, the auguer keeps on turning -- it does not stop. If I stop the engine and then start it up again, the auger is off until I depress the lever, but then once again, it won't stop after I release the lever. I can't figure out what might be causing this to happen. I don't have any Cub Cadet dealers nearby, and their customer support has not provided the kind of help to solve this.
I just saw your post I know if you figured out the problem. On the back of the machine there's a adjustment by the cable you can slide it up and down by loosing the bolts. This is on the lower left side.
Giant pile of crap Maiden voyage of mine got 50 feet and auger cable went out. Total junk im bringing it back F cub cadet I shoulda known when my lawn mower went up in flames
I've had mine for 5 years and I'm just now replacing my first drive belt on it. One thing that I ran into is that after a while, it seemed like the snowblower was less powerful than it was in the beginning. I eventually figured out that the auger drive cable had stretched and was not engaging the auger fully. This could explain broken belts that others have encountered. If the belt isn't fully engaged, it can cause it to burn where it rubs a pulley. I found that if I put extra tension on my auger drive cable by routing it around one of the knobs in the handle, I got full power out of the snowblower. I'm replacing the auger cable this year as well as the belt. Hopefully I get a few years without having to replace it again.
One thing I really dislike about this snowblower is that the 3rd stage auger sheer pins break frequently. Last year I bought some sheer pins that were supposedly built for 3 stage snowblowers and it seemed to do the trick. I went through way less sheer pins once I started using the 3 stage ones.
I thought this was the best brand. This video was helpful thought.
Very helpful…
If you lift up the friction plate, the belt will slide up easier. Thank you for posting this video as it was really helpful when I had to perform this procedure on my 2 year old 3X 26" Cub Cadet with the 357 OHV.
One quick thing that people can do to avoid what happened to this guy is, before you go to start it the next time you need it, is to simply pull out the key, hold down the auger drive handle, and see if the motor will turn over when you pull on the starter rope handle. If it turns over easily, you're good to go. If it doesn't turn because the impeller is frozen to the bucket, better get out the torch and melt the ice until it's free. You can save yourself a lot of misery with that 30 second trick. I'm on my third year of hard use of my 2X26 and it's still going strong. You're supposed to clear the remaining snow out of the impeller area after you're done just to prevent that impeller from freezing. A small amount of snow will free itself with a pull on the starter rope.
I have been having this same problem. And of course I waited for a blizzard to replace the belt and double check everything. I decided to clamp the auger lever down so that the belt would not burn up during idling. (This is not recommended safety wise, but I had 2 feet of snow to deal with.) This worked for about 50 feet and then the auger got stuck and I could smell the belt starting to burn. I pulled on the auger cable and that cleared all the stuck snow. So I used tie wraps to pull the auger cable to the frame. This gave me the added tension I needed to keep the auger spinning. The snowblower then ripped through 2 feet of snow with ease, and I got the job done. Hope this helps somebody.
Ariens uses two drive belts, I think the Teflon belt is a great move, and I like the center auger on three stage. Check to make sure you have enough tension on the pulley. Check the slack on the cable or rod if equipped, might need tightening on auger side, and your right no belt dressing. Nice video!
Thank you very much for this video!! It’s helped me out 100%.
Yes great video, I also purchased a 3x26, biggest mistake ever it’s a POS. Customer service is useless. I go through shears pins constantly, I’m thinking the shear pins are failing more from constant start up of the auger while snow throwing, I think that the snap on start up is breaking those pins. I’m on my 3rd auger cable, what a design flaw that is, the end of the spring connects to the metal piece that pulls the auger cable tight, and the constant starts and stops thins that metal on the spring till it breaks off, I’m on my 3rd one just this year alone, I’ve found the best one at Amazon and it’s a sten cable, the end of that spring is of a thicker metal, so am hoping it’ll last longer. Now I’m on my auger cable replacement. A take note if you are replacing your auger cable Do Not over tighten that cable hook up behind the motor or you will strip those threads immediately. You can’t tell me that Cub Cadet (MTD) snot aware of these issues so many of us are having, bottom line up front (BLUF) they just don’t give a dam. I will never purchase another CC product, and I tell anyone that wants to hear it, they are crap.
Provide part numbers for both OEM and aftermarket. I'd like to order before pulling it all apart.
I was able to follow the video fine. The need belts started to smoke after 5 mins. I did more research and adjusted the cable tension. Not it seems ok . Fingers are crossed!
Damn... just got one of these second hand... second snow fall belt gone!
Good video. Just gotta find another video on how to put the belt on...lol
Yeah! And I was waiting patiently for that... and then comes the "Anyways..." and the video ends
How did the grooved teeth drive belt work? Do you have a link to the one you purchased? TIA
Hi, i have a 3x 30hd for 4 years and i've replaced belt 5 times already. I've also used the aftermarket belt with the teeth and still the same. Wondering if you were able to figure out what the issue was with these snowblowers and the belts constantly slipping? I'm about to sell mine since i can only use it 2 or 3 times before having to change the belt again and again.
Great video. Is there a big difference between grooved belt and non grooved belt. Please provide OEM and aftermarket part numbers for belts. Thx.
Bought a track version and have smoked 6 belts. This thing is ridiculous. Just bought 3 more. I can’t figure out the right settings to get this thing working. Seems as though you have to have the protection cover on as it helps guide the belt. But for 1800$ I got robbed. Going to take it to the local dealer and if they can’t fix it I’m going to sell and buy a Honda
I greatly appreciate the video but isn't that the auger belt that you are replacing?
I’m having auger drive slippage, same model cub cadet. The cable from the left drive handle seems loose so if I pull the cable to take up the slack I don’t have slippage anymore. Do you know if there’s a way to tighten the left auger drive cable? I’m going to dig into it this afternoon as we have a big storm coming tonight.
Can you add the link for the aftermarket belts. Im having this exact issue right now. Thank you
I seem to replace atleast 1 belt every year.
I have a similar situation, but after replacing the belt, starting up the snowblower, and depressing the auger drive lever, there is some vibration. The auger turns, but when I release the lever, the auguer keeps on turning -- it does not stop. If I stop the engine and then start it up again, the auger is off until I depress the lever, but then once again, it won't stop after I release the lever. I can't figure out what might be causing this to happen. I don't have any Cub Cadet dealers nearby, and their customer support has not provided the kind of help to solve this.
I just saw your post I know if you figured out the problem. On the back of the machine there's a adjustment by the cable you can slide it up and down by loosing the bolts. This is on the lower left side.
How did the automotive belt work out for you? I have the same blower and having the same problem.
Giant pile of crap Maiden voyage of mine got 50 feet and auger cable went out. Total junk im bringing it back F cub cadet I shoulda known when my lawn mower went up in flames
Thank you very helpful
how to change the rubber friction disque?
If you are leaving old snow in the impeller and auger to freeze. You are part of the problem. My belts last well. Belt dressing is a no!
Belts going on mine have nothing to do with snow left. This is an issue with , at the very least, Cub cadets.
another how to that doesn't show "how to"