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

To all,

I was wondering if I could get perhaps a little input, I have done some searching since January on purchasing a snowblower and used this forum quite a bit.  I am down to a couple of brands/models and was hoping for a little input.  I have only chosen these models due to availability/pricing and requirements, many brands like snapper/simplicity/Husq and Poulan for some reason are unavailable/not found yet in my area (200Km radius).

I am looking for approx 27-30 inch bucket with anywhere from 9 - 11 HP (not sure of Torque conversion), I am not much for features so hand warmers, auto-chute and power steering are of no real concern to me at the moment.  I am still young enough to tough it out (except shoveling :-) )and don't want to spend more than I need for comfort options right now and just want reasonable reliability.

Craftsman 13.5 torque B&S OHV, 27 inch - $1,299 - I have no model number (Made by AYP)???
Ariens 927LE 9HP Tec L, 27 inch - $1,149 (From HD, local retailer has the same one for more money and further distance)
MTD brands, numerous names like MTD, YardMan, YardMachine, Troy - 999 - 1,299 (Most widely available in my area) ips

I am trying to get some pricing (CAD) on a John Deere 928E (Frontier Equp??) but have no information on that yet, the dearler is almost walking distance from my house.  Unfortunately the local Toro dealership I find way to expensive, the cheapest was an 8HP for $1,899 and price was not flexible so ruled it out.  Same reason for ruling out a honda, I like there cars and have one myself but ther blowers seem overpriced to me. 

I can also get a used 12 year old Noma 10 HP tec/30 inch for about $300, needs some work and has some rust but apparently blows snow as is.  I don't mind picking away at a machine but I don't want to be fixing it all over winter with the work schedules of my wife and I.

Right now I am leaning towards the Ariens from HD when they have their purchase snowblower get a gift card special which should be between now and the 2nd week of Oct, I have a heated garage to store it in the winter.

Thoughts?

Tired of shoveling!

To all,

Well I purchased the 927 LE from HD when it came on sale for $899, I seem to have issues with my dual interlock function however?  I press and hold the attachment leaver, then press and hold the wheel engagement leaver and let go of the attachment leaver and it does not lock down for single hand operation? 

Can someone explain to me what the remote wheel lock function is?  From what I understand in the manual it either unlocks or locks the left wheel to allow engine power to be distributed to it or not for steering assistance?

SG

Hey SG

I nearly bought that Ariens too. I didn't dare look at the machine in person. Being somewhat impulsive when it comes to anything with an engine, my wife had me on a short leash. While I can't answer your question, I'm curious as to the long term results you'll have. You should write a review after a few outings with the new machine.

John

To JhonnyBoyupNorth,

Glad to see another maritimer, I will definetely post another review as soon as I get to take this bad boy out in the snow.  Although I don't have much of a baseline to compare since my experience has been limited to a 12 year old MTD when visiting my parents.  The other one of interest I was finally able to get a price on a 924SBE Husqvarna blower which seemed pretty sturdy, going for $1,149 here.  Nice 9HP tec with 24 inch cut and cast iron gear case, for $899 I could not pass up on this sale.

So far this 927LE seems to be a fairly sturdy machine, just appears to need some initial adjustments.  Even little things like the oil was just dripping while the blower was in the box because the bunk was not properly secured when the unit was shipped, cables are loose and need to be tightened a bit as per manual....

Will write back in December when we get our first foot of snowstorm.

srgallan wrote:
The interlock only works for one hand and not the other, try holding down the attachment lever. I don't know why they did it that way, holding down either one should keep them both down, that lets me make the decision as to what I can do with the free hand, not them.

The remote wheel lock is a toggle lever, press it once an the left wheel runs free, press it again and it is locked. With both wheels locked to the axle you have more traction since both wheels are getting power. It is harder to turn since both wheels want to revolve at the same rate and the inside wheel on a turn needs to revolve less. That's why cars have differentials on the driven wheels.  Releasing the wheel before you make a turn makes performing the turn a lot easier. On less sophisticated blowers they use a pin lock system, you stop the blower, reach down to the wheel hub, pull the pin out and put it in its alternate position. The remote control makes it a lot easier. The so called professional Ariens models use a true differential.

I would get the john deere 928e, its not a frontier but rather a simplicity painted green which makes it better than an ariens of similar price. I also have the 927le which i got at 899 on sale at HD and the interlock does not seem to work right either. you can get the 928e at lowes too

To Snowblowerguy:

Regarding your Wheel Lock Device, Snowmann, who is an engineer for Ariens wrote this on another forum:

Sounds like the cable is still too loose. The manual states to take all the slack out of the cable, then to loosen the jam nut 1-3 turns. This was to be revised in a newer revision manual to a new specification (looks like it hasn't been published/revised yet). The setting currently listed in the manual will make the cable too loose. When you take the bottom cover off, grab the ratchett gear (the one with the external teeth, it's against the frame) and rotate it fully so it snugs against the spring loaded finger mounted on the pinion gear shaft. Now remove the slack from the cable, then tighten the jam nuts. It's important to note that while it is best to remove all of the slack to make this mechanism work right, if you pretension the cable by going a bit too far, that will also cause it to operate improperly. In reality, the operable range for this setting is like 0-1 thread turnback. It's a precision setting, but it will work great when properly set. The stroke on the trigger is just enough to index the "clicker" mechanism. If the cable is too loose (causing wasted stroke from the trigger), the ratchett gear will not index (causing the problem you describe). This mechanism is only in its second year. It doesn't surprise me that some dealers are unfamiliar. I hope this helps.

don1

I figured if I did not post my feedback now I would completely forget.  I got passed some of the initial hurdles from when I received it by getting it serviced by the local retailer of Ariens equipment.

So today we received 15 cm's of snow in my area of the east cost which equated to about 14-18 inches if wet snow/slush in my driveway.  It performed flawlessly, struggled a bit at the end of the driveway if you were taking it in too quick but going at a decent speed while using 1/2-3/4 of a bucket worked like a charm.  For such wet snow it threw it a good distance, better than I expected.  It was just fair in control I would say and since it did not have power steering it could be tiring for bigger driveways or someone much smaller than I am.  The chute control (manual) was great and the wheel lock system worked perfectly once setup correctly.  It took about 30 minutes to clear a double width 3 car length driveway taking my time on the slow speed.

All in all I was quite pleased with the price/performance ratio and doubt I could of gotten any better.  We'll see towards the spring how it held up over the winter, we have another similar dump of wet snow forecasted for tonight so I'll be taking it out tomorrow morning again I assume.

SG

Something that I got caught on at first. The throttle on the blower really only sets the "idle" speed. There is an governor that gives the engine more gas when when the throttle is fully open and the engine comes under load. When I first used my blower I had wet snow that dribbled out the chute, I tried going slower to no avail. I finally gave up , put it in the 6th ( high) speed setting and started towards the garage, the engine started roaring and the snow started flying. I hadn't put enough of a load on it to have the governor kick in. I tend to start at the fastest speed, If I start to get bogged down I go to the next slowest, repeating as necessary. That way you have the highest speed that the blower can go while handling the most snow. Given the thickess of the heavy wet stuff you probably had it set OK. Listen for  the engine picking up and actually starting to work, if its not happening then try a faster speed setting. Once you ge tthe hang of it it becomes second nature.