Snow Blowers? Good, Bad , Ugly.

[lpearson]

I'm in the market for a good snow blower and haven't a clue to what's good or the one's to stay away from.



I live in Colorado on the front range and we get some snow from time to time.



I'm looking for something that will handle sidewalks and about 200' of tight drive way. I have a snowplow for my truck, but for spots up against the building I need something that can handle 2" to about 2-3 feet.



Any suggestions?????



Regards,

Lowell

 

[BNH4221]

I have a 12 year old Toro 824 with the wheels that move back to shift the weight to the front. Goes thru just about anything. Never had a problem and would buy it again in a heartbeat.



Dealer also sold Ariens and said to stay away from them. They allegedly entered into a deal with Home Depot and had to cut quality to meet the Depots prices.



Hint: At the beginning of the snow season hose everything with silicone spray. Makes the snow move out nice and easy.



Best,



Steve

98 12v QC 4x4

Bone stock. I save all my money for booze.

 

[schu777]

Last year I bought a Airens snowblower - if you do some research on the web, you'll find that most people like the Airens and seem to hold up pretty well. The key for any equipment is the care it receive during it's lifetime. I believe mine is the 700 series model, lower end of it. Has 6 forward speeds, 2 reverse - all steel and has a jagged ager with it (a must with plowed in driveways)



It was a good purchase and see this thing lasting many years.



Love the silicon idea - have to do that when I move it from my little storage shed to the garage before you know what starts to fly.



Michael

 

[Mr.Goat]

I'am not very knowledgeable on diesels as this is my first one. But snowblowers, I've spent alot of hours behind many of them.

First thing to keep in mind is that MTD, NOMA, MURRAY, make the vast majority of all the blowers for others. John Deere for example is made by Murray. My blower at this time is a "Echo" made by Murray. With a 13HP Tucumsa engine, 36" mouth, with 6 forward and 2 reverse. Except for colour it's almost identical to the John Deere and cost alot less. My 1976 John Deere which at the time was I think was made for them but to higher standards lasted me until 2001. Toro, and Honda are very good machines, but very pricey. Airens was known to be also of good quality, but apparently the quality for the price is no longer there.



I fully agree with schu777, the care and maintenance you give a piece of equipment will largely determine your overall satisfaction.

Change the oil and plug and grease and oil everything on the blower that you even might think may need greased or oiled, at the start of each season. The silicone works great especially in the chute. And give it more grease and oil as the winter proceeds.



Simple is often best, just look to see how it's made. Get one bigger than you think you'll need

My engine gets a 5W30 synthetic this helps with the cold start up's. Have a nice winter! Pete

 

[parcher]

My Ariens 2 stage is over 30 years old, is well maintained and will throw snow up to 30 feet. I don't like a lot of the newer machines because they have aluminum auger drive cases, mine's cast iron. On the other hand I have a 2002 Ariens single stage that iclears snow very fast on pavement. The 2 stage machine is better in heavy packed snow (the stuff where the plow packs it at the end of the driveway) But in virgin snow the single stage is quicker.

 

[Turbo Tim 1]

Just remember you get what you pay for! I just replaced a 35 year old Ariens two years ago with a John Deere The John Deere and Ariens built now are the same machine. Honda makes awesome equipment but as was mentioned it is pricey (again you get what you pay for). When you are looking at machines, look closely at how they are built, squat down in fornt of the machine looking at the auger, can you grab the sides and flex them away from the bearings? (This is not good) Some of them are made of very thin metal and not reinforced well. From what I have seen if you buy from Home Depot or Lowes or Wally world good luck getting warranty work done if you need it. I bought an 8 horse 24 inch cut, I wanted the power but wanted it to fit up the ramps on my deck so I didn't have to shovel it otherwise it would have been bigger. If you think you need a 6 horse buy an 8, if you think you need an 8 buy a 10, etc. You can never have too much power and the bigger the machine the easier it is to handle.

 

[NETim]

JD blowers

I've been runnin' a JD 8 HP 26" cut blower for about 15 years now. It's been a good machine except that it has a Tecumseh engine on it. The engine has been OK, but the carb is a genuine piece o' crap. I guess I should see about replacing the carb, or maybe a rebuild on it but in reality, I don't have that many hours on it. Just not impressed with that aspect of it.



As has been mentioned earlier, the Honda is a good machine. I've looked at 'em but never used one. If price were no object the Honda would be my choice. No doubt about it.



I have a Honda lawnmower and a Honda outboard motor. They run. They start. They don't give me any crap at all. Honda does not make a bad product IMHO.



Tim

 

[Camara]

I have a 15 year old Ariens 824. Still starts first pull. My father has a 824 Toro. Every year we have to take it to get fixed for the same problems. Then I have to take my Ariens and do his driveway. The paint peeled so my boys painted it white to camo it. They figure if I can't find it they don't have to do the driveway. I like my Ariens.

 

[HEMI®Dart]

I am in the market for a Snowblower too. I asked my mother to go check out the different Honda Track Drive models. I kind of liked this model:



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The local price was about $3200

 

[lpearson]

Thanks!

Thanks for all the good info. Sounds like Honda would be my first choice. I too have had Honda products and love them. Have had no problems at all with them.



That track model looks like an awesome machine, but I didn't want to mortgage my home to buy one.



I'll take everyones' advise and check out the way they are made, looking closely at them and then take a run at one. I take very good care of my equipment so that's not a problem,----- getting a piece of junk, off the bat, would be.



Thanks again,

Lowell

 

[HEMI®Dart]

I went over to Home Dummies and checked out the Ariens. Looks OK. I could get a 10HP Yard Machines (MTD) for $200 less than a 8 HP Ariens, but I think I'll stay away from MTD.

 

[HEMI®Dart]

Originally posted by Camara

The paint peeled so my boys painted it white to camo it. They figure if I can't find it they don't have to do the driveway. I like my Ariens.

:-laf

 

[Shovelhead]

I bought a Troy-Built back in '96.

Again a little pricey, but solid as a rock construction.

And I loooove the heated handgrips.



Has taken everything mother nature has tossed at it so far.



BTW: PAM (the cooking spray also works well) to coat the innerds before using.



http://www.troybilt.com/servlet/BrandProduct?ID=124&CAT=14

 

[Turbo Tim 1]

Troy-bilts aren't what they were 10 years ago. We had one at work we bought back in 94, a 10 horse 30 inch I think and it was pretty bullet proof and built heavy and like Shovelhead said the heated hand grips are nice but when I was at lowes the other day I was looking at the Troy-bilt snowblowers and they are not the same machine they use to be, they look like the MTD blowers. I think I remember hearing that Troy-bilt got sold so maybe MTD is building them.

 

[Shovelhead]

I see what you mean Turbo Tim.



I went to the Troy-Built website, clicked on "Corporate Homepage" and was sent to:



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The pics they show of the new Troy-Builts look NOTHING like the quality of the older models.

 

[skobylenski]

My dad has had his Toro 824 for about 15 years now, and it still runs strong. All you need to do is put chains on it and it's great - useless without chains. Of course, my parents went out 2 years ago and bought a New Holland TC30 with a 7' rear blade - takes 1/3 the time to clear the driveway, and we can move horse $#!t with the loader, too! But that's a good chunk of change for just clearing snow.



Personally, I like the tracked snow throwers, but you have to be careful - keep it in a heated space because the tracks freeze and then you're just SOL



Good luck in the hunt.



PS - how about one of these:

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[HEMI®Dart]

My Grandmother has a 1965 Ariens 8 hp snowblower. I'd swear just the auger weighs as much as the '03, 8 Hp Ariens. NO comparison in built quality. I'd end up with a much better machine to find a good used '60-'70's Ariens and go through everything.

 

[HEMI®Dart]

A 1959 Toro Snowhound. I'll bet this would beat alot of todays Blowers.



Another neat pic: http://home.gwi.net/~spectrum/snowgallery.html



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[Turbo Tim 1]

If you want tough, find an old gravely tractor and put a snowblower attachment on it. See the picture below, my father has one just like it that is almost 50 years old and will throw snow to the moon. Not exactly OSHA approved but it definantly gets the job done. Check ebay they are on there all the time.



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