Honda Harmony HS 520 Won’t Blow Snow-How to Replace the Paddles and Scraper Bar

How to replace the auger paddles and scraper bar of a Honda Harmony HS 520
How to replace the auger paddles and scraper bar of a Honda Harmony HS 520
I bet there are a lot of snow blowers out there that people have deemed “no good” because they will not blow snow anymore but all that is wrong with them is that the rubber paddles on the auger are worn down and that’s an easy fix!  If your Honda Harmony HS 520 won’t blow snow then read on…  I inherited this snow blower from a friend who moved away and after testing the motor and finding out that the motor was in great shape (Honda makes good small engines), but the thing just will not consistently blow snow, I decided I would drop the cash to replace the auger paddles and get it back in good order.  I’ve written another post on how to change the oil on this snow blower:

Honda Harmony HS 520 Won’t Blow Snow-How to Replace the Paddles and Scraper Bar

Equipment:
  • Honda Harmony HS 520 Snow Blower

Parts Needed:

Tools Needed:

  • 10mm and 12 mm Sockets and Ratchet  (If you don’t have one, get a good socket set here)
  • 10mm open-ended wrench (for the nuts that you can’t get a socket on)  One of these wrenches will be included with the socket set in the item above if you need to purchase one
  • Large flat-head screw driver
  • Pliers (to hold the carriage bolts in place or if you need to bend any sheet metal like I needed to)

Step 1: Replace the middle paddles.

There are two of them.  They have 10mm locking nuts on them and have a flat-head screw driver slot on the back side so you can hold the bolt still.  Hold the bolt still with a large flat-head screw driver and take the nut off both bolts:

Loosening the bolts on one of the middle paddles
Loosening the bolts on one of the middle paddles

The bolts with shoulders:

Paddle bolts and nuts
Paddle bolts and nuts

When I got off my first middle paddle it had small washers on one side:

Small washers on one side
Small washers on one side

and larger washers on the other:

Large washers on the other side
Large washers on the other side

Once I got the old paddles off I wanted to compare them to the new ones to see how much wear had taken place, quite a bit:

Paddle wear comparison (you can also see how much thinner these after-market paddles are)
Paddle wear comparison (you can also see how much thinner these after-market paddles are)

Like I mentioned in the parts list, I do not recommend the aftermarket paddles.  They are not worth the minimal savings because they are over 20% thinner.  I must say that they were the same shape and they will blow snow, they’re just going to wear our faster:

Comparison of OEM paddle thickness to the aftermarket replacement ones I bought
Comparison of OEM paddle thickness to the aftermarket replacement ones I bought

I transferred those washers over to my new paddle and reinstalled it the same way.  I’m not positive that you will have these same washers on your OEM snow blower, the small washers seemed to be too small to actually do much but I went ahead and transferred them to the new ones anyway:

Here you can see the large washers on the bolt head side
Here you can see the large washers on the bolt head side
Here the smaller washers are on the other side
Here the smaller washers are on the other side

Put them in place as seen below and bolt down tight:

Ready to be bolted down
Ready to be bolted down

Step 2: Replace the four curved paddles.

I’d do one at a time to make it easier to keep track of what goes where.  There are two bolts on one end and one on the other (which makes it easier) and they are all held in place with 10mm hex head locking bolts.

Unbolting the curved auger paddle
Unbolting the curved auger paddle

Some of the outside ones are so close to the outside that you can’t get your socket on them so you’ll need to use an open-ended wrench:

Using an open ended wrench to remove the outside bolts
Using an open ended wrench to remove the outside bolts

Reinstalling the 1-bolt end of the new curved paddle:

Reinstalling the one-bolt end of the first curved paddle
Reinstalling the one-bolt end of the first curved paddle
The first curved paddle has been installed (note it matches up with the center one)
The first curved paddle has been installed (note it matches up with the center one)

Repeat for all four curved paddles.  Here’s the old worn-out paddles I took off mine:

The old worn out paddles
The old worn out paddles

Step 3: Fix anything else you notice on your snow blower while you are down there and looking at everything.

I noticed that there was a piece of rope wrapped around one end of the shaft:

Pulling rope off the shaft
Pulling rope off the shaft

And the metal frame of the auger was going to hit one of the bolts that stuck out because the auger was bent:

My auger was hitting a bolt
My auger was hitting a bolt

I bent the auger back with a large pliers.  The outside frame of the snow blower was bent in as well and I bent that back out:

I bent the metal frame corner back out so it wouldn't hit the auger
I bent the metal frame corner back out so it wouldn’t hit the auger

I noticed the screen circled below had the “hook” on one end broken off.  I tied some wire to the bottom of the screen and re-attached it to the hole in the frame:

The spring I repaired
The spring I repaired

Step 4: Replace the scraper bar.

This is a plastic piece that runs along the bottom back edge of the snow blower housing.  Mine was totally obliterated and it was beginning to wear into the metal housing of the snow blower.  There are 3 carriage bolts on this bar and it has self locking 12mm bolts on the back side:

Scraper Bar and bolt locations
Scraper Bar and bolt locations

You can tell the way the scraper bar should be oriented because it has an extra notch on the right side to make room for where the belt runs to the pulley inside the housing.

FYI: A carriage bolt has a square insert under the head that is supposed to fit down into a square hole to keep the bolt from turning when you tighten the nut.  In this picture you can see the square part on the bolt and the square hole:

Carriage Bolt illustration
Carriage Bolt illustration

The problem in this application is that water and salt are popular items inside this metal snow blower housing and that goes to town on the steel.  I had a hard time holding the holt still while I was loosening the nut.  I took a pliers and squeezed the head of the nut to the frame to keep it still:

Using a pliers to hold the carriage bolt in place while loosening the nut
Using a pliers to hold the carriage bolt in place while loosening the nut

Each carriage bolt should have a washer on the back side:

Scraper bar carriage bolt, nut, and washer
Scraper bar carriage bolt, nut, and washer

This is a comparison of the old scraper bar and the new one:

Old worn out scraper bar versus the new one
Old worn out scraper bar versus the new one

The tab of the scraper bar that you bolt down should go on the underneath side of the housing and the lip should “wrap” around the metal edge of the housing:

Slip the scraper bar over the edge of the metal housing (that way you wear the scraper bar out not the housing)
Slip the scraper bar over the edge of the metal housing (that way you wear the scraper bar out not the housing)

Replace the three carriage bolts, making sure the washers go on the nut (back) side:

The washer on the bottom side (from underneath)
The washer on the bottom side (from underneath)

You may need to press down on the carriage bolt head with a pliers to get it to stay still while tightening the nuts:

Using a pliers to hold down the carriage bolt
Using a pliers to hold down the carriage bolt

Now you are done and ready to blow snow (almost) like new again:

Honda Harmony HS520 with new paddles and scraper bar
Honda Harmony HS520 with new paddles and scraper bar

Other Useful Links

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4 Comments

  • Thanks for a well written article. I have a Honda 520 that is good at throwing deep snow but no so much for snow under 4 inches. Prior to this winter it worked great. Especially poor at throwing snow left or right where-as straight ahead works good. In looking at my machine I noticed I am missing a middle rubber blower paddle and the other appears to have been put on backwards. Based on your article I will order replacements parts and see if performance improves. The outer auger paddles look good.

  • Great job, I had hard time with scrapper bar nut/bolt removal. I was about to grind them off as they kept on spinning after loosening a bit. I am glad, I looked at your article.

    • Great to hear–yes, those are carriage bolts that must be held in place in order for them not to turn. But don’t use your bare finger if you are using an air or electric wrench as you can really tear up your thumb! I’m glad you were able to get the help you need to fix your snow blower.

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