Rear mount snowblower...need some ideas

[Shaner]

okay...i figure its time to break out the welder and torches for another idea that i just randomly came up with after surfing the local craigslist.

what i have: i found an Ariens 48" two stage snow blower made for the heavy duty GT18 and GT20 ariens tractors on craigslist for $75...little rusty but tight non the less. everything turns smooth and it came with the chute rotator, PTO shafts and the chute tip cable to control the angle of the top tip of the chute. so for $75, i don't think i did too bad even if i can't use it, i can sell and double my money

my idea: someone posted a John Deere 317? with a rear mounted snowblower that i thought was an awesome idea...ive always liked the idea of a rear mounted snowblower for ease of use and its out of the way because i find front mount snowblowers to be kind of cumbersome and bulky and just plain inconvenient! well...my idea is...i have a 782 cub cadet, with a cat 0 three point, with a Johnson loader on the front. id like to mount this blower up to the category 0 hitch on this 782 and run it that way.

my dilemma: what can the category 0 hitch lift? this blower is HEAVY! right at the moment, i have a weight bracket which weighs probably 20lbs, two IH suitcase weights weighing 125lbs each, and one IH suitcase weight weighing 75lbs. the three point will lift all that fairly easily, but im not sure what the max rating on that little cylinder is going to be...i guess if needed i could add some sort of spring assist. which may help.

one more thing i had to think about, how am i gonna power this thing? i really wish the 2072 had a cat 0 with a rear PTO...id be in business then. but alas, all i have is the 782. so...i have found a Vangaurd 16HP Vtwin on craigslist, with its own fuel tank, and starting system that came off of one wicked gocart. in order to keep the weight on this blower down as much as possible, i was wondering if i could hook the starting and charging system on this vanguard up to the battery on the 782.. would that hurt anything charging wise on the vanguard or the Mag18 in the 782? the keyswitch and choke and throttle are all located on the face of this engine. if i were to use it, i would move the keyswitch, choke, throttle and chute tip control all onto one panel which id have to make, and bolt it to the fender of the 782 so its right at a comfortable arms reach.

one more thing would be...getting power from motor to blower. i did a little research, and i found this!
http://www.mfgsupply.com/h1p3.html?s...PXEhoCyHXw_wcB
a clutch like this would allow me to idle the engine down, thus the blower would stop as the clutch would release the belt...when i want the thrower to start all i would have to do is throttle up...it says its rated for 13HP 4 cycle engines, but i wonder what 3 extra HP would be on it?

to turn the chute on the ariens blower it is cable driven with a spool that winds up one side, unwinds the other and it rotates the chute. ive been looking at the big blowers for farm tractors and they use a hydraulic cylinder hooked to a half moon looking bracket, which turns and the cable wraps up one side while pulling on the other, turning the chute hydraulically. i have rear hydraulic ports on the 782...so that sounds like a cool idea to try as well.

this is all still in the idea stage. i have the blower, im in the process of inspecting it and going over certain things on it which may be an issue. so far, i havnt found any. so im looking for some input. thanks in advanced! if i do get this project rolling, ill start a build thread in the custom or implement section.