[Ziggy65]

I have started to disassemble my Ariens 5/24 (purchased by my father in 1968) . I had planned on only repainting the blower assembly and replacing bearing and bushings as required. The tractor assembly paint was in decent condition, so was going to leave as is.
Once I got into it, it has of course progressed to disassembling the tractor as well :smile2:. I find it a good distraction from all that is happening in the world, to spend a couple of hours a day in the garage.
I pre-soaked all hardware with penetrating oil, and have had no issues with disassembly.
Surface prep (degreasing, rust removal and sanding the gloss off the existing paint) for priming and painting has consumed the most time thus far.

Any tips or suggestions are welcome.

 

[badbmwbrad]

You're really getting into it. I love to see these machines being refurbished and you're doing it right.

 

[Oneacer]

Looks like your doing a fine job.

While you have it apart, you want to replace those tires with the proper XTrac ones, as those lawn tires with chains are way outdated, and the new XTrac work fantastic, as all new machines come with them.

Also , you should free up the friction disc sliding tubular rod on its frame, if it is froze like most are, as that will be required to change out that worn friction disc.

I have attached a few photos of my rebuild of one of my 10000 series last year.

 

[Oneacer]

Final outcome …..

 

[dman2]

Final outcome …..

Is your paint in the impeller housing holding up? I'm thinking of leaving it alone and use some rust protection spray, like liquid wrench instead. If you have rust spots, the rust will expand to other areas underneath the paint. The paint will keep moisture in and cause them to rust faster. Not to mention, it is a lot of work to repaint.

 

[Oneacer]

@dman2,

When you do a proper paint job, the preparation is key. You have to sand it down to bare metal, use a good primer, and a good paint.

If you do not do a proper paint job, and don't clean up the rust properly, you will not have a good outcome.

Just spraying over the rust in my opinion, would not be a lasting way to do it, just my opinion.

 

[dman2]

@dman2,

When you do a proper paint job, the preparation is key. You have to sand it down to bare metal, use a good primer, and a good paint.

If you do not do a proper paint job, and don't clean up the rust properly, you will not have a good outcome.

Just spraying over the rust in my opinion, would not be a lasting way to do it, just my opinion.

I know that. That is why I said it is a lot of work. Each paint coat is like a day of waiting before you can apply another coat.
Painting over rust will only cause more problems later on.
And, if you have a rust spot in your impeller housing (of course, you would with all of the rocks and sand), that would expand to other areas. The paint only keep moisture in and cause them to rust faster.

I brushed my impeller housing with a wire wheel and saw so much more rust under that shiny paint. It is best to keep the impeller housing bare metal, so you can apply rust protection on it each year. Paint everything else so it is clean and you don't have to do a lot of maintenance.

Nothing will last forever. We just extend its life and get the most out of it.

Thanks for your reply.

 

[Oneacer]

It is not best to keep your internal housing bare metal as you state.

It should be cleaned properly, primed and painted properly.

But hey, if you want to keep it bare metal, and avoid all that work, by all means go for it.

 

[Ziggy65]

Also, a glossy painted housing and chute will help with clogging and help the blower throw snow a little further. Wax and fluid film can also help.

 

[badbmwbrad]

About six years ago, I coated a corroded wheelbarrow tub with Plastocor. The tub has not since corroded. Admittedly, this is overkill on a wheelbarrow but the Plastocor I got was being tossed out where I worked because its shelf life had expired.

You can probably get a similar type of epoxy coating for the impeller housing. NAPA sells POR-15 coating for rusted surfaces.
https://plastocor.com/home/

 

[dman2]

It is not best to keep your internal housing bare metal as you state.

It should be cleaned properly, primed and painted properly.

But hey, if you want to keep it bare metal, and avoid all that work, by all means go for it.

Based on what I have been seeing and reading from people, paint on the impeller housing is not going to last for very long. So, I was surprised that you painted your and asked if your paint is that good. Maybe because you have a low speed impeller and they don't put out rocks and sands on the street.

Like I said, if you have rust spots, then they will expand to other areas. The paint around them will act like blankets holding the moisture in. That is why when I wire-brushed my impeller housing, all paint came off easy and rust appeared.
With all of that falling out paint craps, it is harder for you to apply rust protection as well.

It is not that I want to keep it bare metal, but I'm weighting the cost and benefit here. It is also to help other people understand.

If painting work for you, then continue to do it. If you just say painting is better without explaining anything and sharing your data (what you saw), I'm not convinced. And, I don't expect you to explain anything. Your comment was okay and useful for some people.

I don't think glossy paint is going to make it smoother. It is just light reflection my friend.
Waxing and fluid film help in some areas. I don't expect it to throw farther that way. I didn't see it throw farther.

 

[Oneacer]

@dman2,

Respectfully, your opinion of not addressing a proper rust issue by removing all the rust, properly preparing it, applying a good primer, and properly painting it with a quality gloss paint does not make much sense.

You can certainly avoid all that work and just leave it as is, as many people do not bother to deal with rust properly. But keep in mind, if rust is not removed properly, it will only continue to spread.

By taking a piece of rusted metal, getting rid of the rust, priming it, and applying a good coat of quality gloss paint does not require any explanation or data. It is a known fact that that is a tried and true proper way to protect metal from the elements.

The End.

 

[dman2]

I'm not talking about the proper way to repaint something. I'm talking about paint in the impeller housing (is this worth to repaint it?) and the proper way to protect it. It is not just simple as a good rust clean up and then paint over, because it is a lot of work and won't last long. Some people suggested epoxy paint, so maybe you can suggest that to be more helpful.
I wanted to treat this as a discussion, but you seem to be annoyed and not interested. I'm logging out.

 

[dman2]

For people reading this,

I still think that rust protection fluid film is the better way to protect the impeller housing (there are some good products out there). It is easy to spray on every year. Where paint will chip off.

If paint last 5-10 years for you, maybe it is worth to re-paint. To do it properly, you would have to remove every thing, so you can clean the rust surface. If you aren't careful with the process, you can grind the metal off and make the sheet metal thinner. Is this worth it?

paint look nice, but it just wear out too soon in the impeller housing. Paint only protect it if it is a full blanket with no holes in it.

THE END.

 

[oneboltshort]

Sometimes we just need a nap:grin:

 

[dman2]

Sometimes we just need a nap:grin:

:iagree: I went out to mow my lawn. There is always things to do.

 

[Kielbasa]

I learned from experience... after I repainted my impeller area over that... the first piece of road, stone, rock or anything that will destroy your paint job. I sanded, primed, spray finish coated two or three times and clear coated. Now... I will sand, give it primer and use the brush on paint. Since it will not last, I use the easiest and quickest way to do the job. Brushing is more controlable.

 

[Ziggy65]

Degrease, sanded and applied primer to gas tank, tins and engine. Handle bars and wheels have final coat of white paint.
Highs of only 8 to 10 degrees C for next 2 weeks, so be a while before I can primer and paint the blower assembly.

 

[dman2]

I just finished painting my chute as well.

Definitely wet sand the inside of it after the final clear coat. It felt a lot smoother after I did that. New paint was rough and sticky (rougher than bare and clean metal).

I was going to polish it with a polishing compound (after sanding), but then I used the wrong car wax/finish compound. I thought it was better that way, because the car wax/finish stuck on sanded surface better. It was the car/wax finish that made it a whole lot smoother and slippery. So slippery that you can make a water slide out of it. No need to polish it and waste your times.

Just a tip for you.

 

[Oneacer]

@Ziggy,

Very nice storage cabinet wall system ….