Ok guys so my dog found a small piece of 2x4 and I busted the shear bolt for one side of the auger after she left it on the back sidewalk under 2ft of fresh overnight snow. Anyways...easy fix right nope not my luck. got a near shear bolt today after work but I couldn't for the life of me find the hole or any evidence of the middle section of the bolt in the shaft. I tried lining it up with the other side but I couldn't see anything and spun it around looking as well. Any tips on how to find it? Does the auger remove from the housing easily if I have to pull the auger off to see the whole shaft to punch out the bolt.

Stick a sharp center punch or nail in the empty auger hole and hold it there while you slowly turn the auger backwards. Usually it'll catch on one side to get you in the ball park to inspect closer.

What brand blower? any pictures?

it's a craftsman c950-52677-8.

Make sure you use the correct replacement shear pins. If it is an 8/25, the hole in the auger is a bit larger than the one in the shaft. this is for the collar that goes on the bolt. Be sure to snug them up as well. Last year I did not and a rock jammed in the auger of my 8/25. It tore a slot in the auger about 1/2 inch long that I had to get welded. Removing the auger means taking the whole front section of the blower apart. The impeller shaft is one piece from the pulley to the gearbox.

JTClays had a good solution. There is also a bit of sideways play in the auger so it may take some fishing.

After you get the bolt fragment out, and since it's half apart anyways, be sure to grease the auger shaft via the grease zerk fitting, and spin it around several times to distribute the grease. Keep shoving grease in there until it oozes out the end of the auger shaft near the gearbox a bit. Do the same on the other side. Grease the shear bolts when you put them back in as well so that the next time you find a dog toy, the fragment will be easier to get out.

Also suggest you put a 30 inch stick with a bright orange flag on all random bits of 2x4 on each side and edge so you can find em. Might even discourage the dog from playing with them.

well guys I fixed it. kind of lol. So for two days I tried looking for the pin in the middle with no luck on the third day I got home from work to 3feet of fresh snow. said to heck with this I'm buying a new one next year anyways I threw the snowblower in my truck brought it down to the welying shop my mom works at and had them plug weld the one side of the auger solid. now hopefully I don't pick something up and cause unfixable damage between now and spring.

Not what most on this forum would have done, I'd guess.

You gotta be kidding, right..???

I have a welder and I never would have, it is too irreversible, you needed to have found it even if you had to bring it to a mower repair shop, it's there.