Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more) Discussions

I've been researching for a couple of months now.  Today is the day you help me make the decision.  I live in Southern Ontario, Canada, where we can expect numerous snow storms and good accumulation during the winter.  I have a 2 car wide, 50' long drive way.

I have narrowed my search down to the Toro 1028LXE and the Ariens 1130DLE.  The Toro up here is $1899 and the Ariens is $1749.  I would like to make a decision today and buy one of these units with your help.

I'm leaning towards the Toro because of the plastic parts (yes, I think they are a positive, especially after reading posts in this forum) and the Chute control.

Your opinions are appreciated.

Thanks!

I had the Toro 828 LXE and 1028 LXE on my list as well for a while.  My neighbor across the street had an 828 LXE and the joystick was a really slick feature to have.  He just bought it last winter, so it only got used maybe 4 times.

The main reason I crossed them off my list were the plastic parts.  Another neighbor down the street had a craftsman snowblower (not sure what model) with a plastic cute that cracked down the middle when large ice chunks kept hitting it when clearing his EOD.  His snowblower is maybe 3 years old so it wasn't caused by aging of the plastic.  Perhaps Toro uses a different composite with their plastic parts, but I have always had bad luck with plastic when the temperatures get cold.  Plastic just gets too brittle when the temps get really low.  If the temps stay close to 32 degrees F, then this probably won't be a big issue.  I remember when I had a Honda HS35 single stage snowblower and installed a brandnew scraper bar that was plastic.  The dang thing kept breaking where the bolts attached.  The original scraper bar was metal/rubber and was way better.

I would go for the Ariens 1130DLE.  Compared to the Toro 1028 LXE, the 1130DLE has all metal construction, an extra 2" clearing swath, automatic traction control, handwarmers, and an additional year of warranty.  I may be slightly off on this, but I believe the Ariens also has a 3-tooth 14" impeller versus the Toro 4-tooth 12" impeller.  This means the Ariens impeller can toss snow much further given that both impellers are spinning at the same RPM.  I've also been told the 3-tooth design is superior in cases where large chunks of ice and snow move into the impleller.  The 3-tooth design has larger spacing allowing these chunks to fall inside and be thrown out the chute whereas the smaller spacing of the 4-tooth may have to grind down the chunks first.

Thanks for the reply.

I'm honestly not worried about the plastic Toro parts, I actually prefer them.  They won't rust, and they're easier to replace IF something goes wrong with them.  I find it hard to believe that Toro would use sub standard parts on their machines, especially safety affecting parts such as chutes, etc.  However, I could be wrong of course.

The chute control is slick, but you bring up a new point surrounding the impellers.  I'll have to look into that further.

Thanks again.

There has been discussion here about the plastic parts that Toro uses and the consensus was that its very robust. There was a problem with the chute intake when they first converted. Toro redesigned the part and replaced the defective parts for free. I haven't heard anything since then to indicate a problem.

To me the main advantage of the Ariens machine is the differential which is supposed to make turning much easier. They have come out with a new "automatic" differential which means you can no longer lock the wheels if you want to but the direction of power to the wheels is even better than before.

The stick shift on the Toro has sold a lot of machines so I can understand why you appear to be leaning that way. Either machine will probably work very well. If possible try taking each machine for a powered test drive and see how the two stear and whether or not the stick makes a big enough difference while the machine is in motion.


The other thing to consider is parts availability and dealer support, which is better in your area.

Just a note, both the Ariens and the Toro have 3 tooth impellers, I double checked last night.

I'll be purchasing the Toro this afternoon. 

Thanks for your input everyone.

splitslim wrote:
The Ariens deluxe models or pro models have 4 impeller blades except for the 36 inch pro which has 6 impeller blades.

I have a new toro 1028 and a 3 year 1028 white commercial.........the toro is much lighter and easier to handle,,,but the white, like the ariens  is much stronger and heavier.....both run tecumseh snow king engines.. its a matter of  what you want.....

I just bought a brand new 9.5 h.p. 28" Simplicity for $400.00 CDN less than you paid for the Toro.  It has the B&S overhead valve engine, trigger release wheel lock, cast iron auger gear drive housing, excellent chute and deflector controls and it's built like a tank.  I used that hammering, noisy Tecumseh L head  for 12 years and I'll tell you, the OHV engine is a real treat by comparison.  You would have done yourself a favour by looking at the Simplicity.  Four hundred bucks will buy a lot of gas.