Hi Jeff, You can always take a 1/2 pass going up and a full-pass down if your drive is that steep. Yes, The hydro is so strong that I can get it to slip when pushing into old snowplow drifts and working on areas that have ice underneath. The only really steep-sloped driveway I clear I keep the snow and ice off it all the time. I salt and will go out during a storm to keep it clear.

Hi Paul another question as I am getting to use my Rapid Track. Do you ever find your tracks spinning in the snow and not getting enough traction in either of the track modes? I find if I am going into a rather deep snow area or up the incline of my gravel driveway the tracks will slip unless I put my weight onto the handle bars. Doesn’t matter how slow I am going.

Everything seems in order as far as the drive cable being tight when activated. I have the the poly skid shoes adjusted to their lowest level giving me plenty of ground clearance between my scraper bar and gravel driveway.

Thank for any advice,

Jeff

Hi Jeff, Your old Ariens may not have a safety brake on it or the brake is worn out. The safety brake is a band that wraps around the impeller pulley. When you release the auger/impeller it supposed to stop the impeller within a couple of seconds and hold it when the engine is running and you don’t have the impeller lever engaged.
That’s supposed to help protect you from losing a finger or four if you are inexperienced enough to stick your hand down the chute with the engine running…

Paul, another quick question. On my old Ariens 1028 (year 2000) the impeller spins freely by hand and on my new rapidtrak the impeller does not spin freely by hand. Both machines blow snow just fine.

Is this just a difference in how the auger and impellers were designed?

Thanks,

Jeff

Ok that’s good news. Thank you for the info. After giving Ariens my model number and serial number it was manufactured in Oct 2017 and was one of the last to have the B&S 420cc engine on it.

Thank you,

Jeff

Hi Jeff, That snowblower was delivered to the dealer between August and November 2016 so it been sitting in an unheated warehouse (or even outside) since then. So a little surface rust is expected on that pulley. No, it won’t pit. It will actually develop a nice Patina that protects the steel from corrosion. (just like that old steel bridge that hasn’t been painted in 75 years)

Thanks for any info,

Jeff

Hi Paul, I don’t know when they will add EFI to the RapidTrak, but they know there is a lot of interest. We typically know in July what new models will be out that fall.

I have one question though. Can you advise as to whether Ariens plans to include an EFI option on their RapidTrack units anytime soon? Since I’m going for pro reliability and ease of use I’d like to include the EFI feature. From what I can see on the Ariens Web site they only offer the EFI on wheeled snow blowers.

Thanks!

Hi Chad, Most dealers are smart enough when you talk to them on the phone to say, “The snow blower is $3099 and there is an X amount for setup and delivery.” Typical charges I hear of are one hour labor to take the snow blower out of the crate, then go through the machine to make sure all the adjustments are correct and then start it up and test it. Labor nowadays is around $100. Then they will also charge a delivery fee. $69, 79 and up to $125 depending on where you live and (if also they sell John Deere) So, anything up to $200 is reasonable. But the attitude isn’t…

By the way, if you have a problem that needs a dealer go back to the Home Depot store where you buy the snow blower and ask the manager who their local servicing dealer is. I’ll bet it’s not that guy.

Can you put it together? You need a 3/8-9/16 socket set and combination wrenches, a needle nose pliers and a scissors. Follow these assembly instructions: Ariens RapidTrack. Then,
Check and adjust the auger and clutch cables here: Ariens Operators Manual.
If you need more help here is the Ariens Service manual: Service Guide

You can watch my walkaround video and of course, ask questions here on the website.

Buy from the Home Depot here: Ariens 28 Pro RapidTrak