11. Buy Critical Parts Before You Need Them
Belts and shear pins never fail at 2 p.m. on a sunny Tuesday.
They break on Sunday night in the middle of a blizzard when parts stores are closed and everyone else’s machine is broken too.
At the start of the season, pick up:
- A full set of replacement belts
- Several correct shear pins for your model
Do not improvise with a random bolt when a shear pin breaks. The shear pin is designed to fail to protect more expensive parts.
Also build a small kit with:
- Correct size wrenches and sockets
- Proper size pin punch to drive out broken shear pins
Store it with the machine so you’re not hunting tools in a storm.
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