I'm wondering if anyone has any info on Ariens " new" Sno-Tek blowers? Not to confused with their Sno-Thro line. A friend sent me a ad for Sno-Teks that were a couple hundred dollars less than their Sno-Throws. Doesn't make any sense to me.:confused:

I have a Craftsman 5hp Snow blower, model #536.886140 Last year it ran fine for the most part, with exception to being a little tough starting, a cracked fuel fitting near the end of the season, and a couple issues with bogging down easily. I had a few new issues this year. I just replaced the fuel fitting and line, so that is good. However, in the process, I was interrupted for a few hours, and stupidly forgot to mark down where the governor link went on the lever and carburetor. I took the opportunity to adjust it and the extension spring from the throttle to what should have been the optimal positions. After finishing, I tested it out and now has a tendency to run a little rougher at times. Anyone familiar with this model that could tell me what holes are the best for both of these? Second issue is with the auger. The bolts (the originals, not shear pins) are still intact. The impeller turns flawlessly under any load. The auger would only turn when there was no load, but now they don't turn at all. It sounded like the woodruff key, but I wanted opinions before I tore it apart. I also just replaced the Auger clutch cable and the L-bracket for it while I was updating parts, as it needed it. While testing out the carburetor, I took the opportunity to check the tension. No matter what I set the tension at, the auger belt starts smoking a bit. The belt doesn't look like it did this last year, so I have to assume it has something to do with the above issue. Anyone have any ideas for the tough starting/tendency to bog down under load? Once I get it started (after about 5-10) minutes, it won't stall out anymore unless under decent load. By decent load, I mean moving on speed 1 or 2 through 2-3 inches of decent weight snow or more. I have to use a start/stop method to get through it. This is my first snow blower, but I have worked on small engines before, just rusty. Any insight would be very much appreciated.