Relative Something

At the end of December, I posted a description of the human-powered snow plow I got for Christmas. It is one of several great presents I received. The thing has been working superbly, right up until the second time I tried to use it.

I was making great progress clearing snow, but after about 10-minutes into the job, something seemed different. It was subtle, but I sensed that something was amiss. I figured out that the handles seemed lower. The main shaft was bending!

Talk about a weak link. This is the critical load bearing arm of the device. How could they design it with such a fatal flaw? I love this plow so much that I immediately began thinking about how I could brace it, to protect the thin tube from needing to bear all the weight. I really want to be able to keep using it.

I disassembled the parts to get down to the failing piece. Then it occurred to me that I should probably contact the manufacturer before modifying it with my own crude methods of attaching something for support. Especially, I thought, in the off-hand chance they knew of this weakness and already had their own fix in the works.

Luckily, I was successful in making contact with a service person, and without hesitation, she offered to replace the failing part. Unfortunately, that meant they didn’t have a fix in place yet. I prodded to see if they knew it was a problem, and she admitted that there have been other calls related to this situation.

I suggested heavier tube, or a support bracket, but I don’t think I was talking to the right person, I needed the responsible engineer. She told me she would have someone look at the weld of the replacement part before they send it to me. I’m not sure looking at it will make much difference.

I’m going to continue with my plan to devise some sort of bracket to keep it from bending at that spot. Everything else about this device has won my favor. The wheels work great, even though it seems like they would slip. The blade/scoop is a good size and shape. I like the dual hand grips. The quick adjustment for angling the blade is simple and functions well. The entire plow is not too heavy to lift. In fact, if it got heavier by way of using a more robust tube for that one piece of the main shaft, the added weight would be well worth it.

This is where John wishes he knew how to weld. And, had a machine to turn down the outside diameter on the one end. And, a way to cut square holes in the sidewall of a tube. I’d make the replacement part myself.

As it is, I will need to rely on the good will of some talented acquaintances, just to come up with a bracket I will be able to attach with common hardware. If it works, maybe I can sell it to the manufacturer of the hand plow.