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

Hi folks, great thread & site!  I'm into a snowblower purchase a bit late in the game this season.  I've narrowed it down to these 2 and was hoping to get some comments or shared experience/knowledge.  I'm in Eastern Canada and options are slim for good quality blowers this year.  The JD will run me $250 more than the Toro but I'm not sure it's $250 better.  The JD has a B&G 259 cc engine which they claim is 9HP equivalent whereas the new Toro has a B&G 250 cc, which they market as 8HP.  I'm uncertain as to which has an advantage when matched with their respective auger and impeller systems.  I believe the JD system is a twin of the Simplicity system (actually the whole blower looks nearly identical to Simplicity which is probably a good thing!).  The JD does have an electric start, light, and 2" wider bucket, and I could probably get the dealer to throw some driftcutters but is this worth $250 more?  None of these features are necessities for me (although they are nice to have), it's more about the performance of the blower, reliability, and longevity.  Anybody have experience with the new line of JD's and/or the a Toro 826?  Please share, thanks.

Have you made an offer for the Simplicity 928?  You're paying more money for the larger engine and possibly different controls & heavier duty machine.  Also, did you check the auger gear case on both the JD and Simplicity?  Are they both the same?  Some of the lower end Simplicity models (8 hp) have the aluminum gear case.  The large frame models have the cast iron gear case and likely beefier gears.  All that stuff costs more.  So, the bigger Simplicity still might be a better buy.  I bought mine from a farm implement shop out in a little village not far from town.  It was the previous year's model and I got it for $1500.00 taxes included with trading in my very much used 12 year old Craftsman. 

Yup, identical cast iron gear case, auger, impeller, & bucket on the Simplicity I looked at and the JD928E.  Basically same machine other than the differences I pointed out above and the paint color, of course. I'm hoping the JD928E really does come with the 305cc and the one I saw today was an exception with the 249cc.  Will wait for a response from the dealer.  From your comments and Snowman, it seems the 305 is a better option with this 28" bucket and auger/impeller system/setup.

Confirmed today the JD 928E does indeed come with the 305cc Briggs.  The unit we were looking at had a sticker and a card that showed 249cc but a mechanic confirmed that the engine on the unit was indeed the 305cc.  So JD 928E with the 305cc Briggs or the Toro 826 with the 249cc, smaller 26" bucket, no electric start, no light, but $250 less? What would you do?

borat wrote:

I ended up buying the JD 928E this morning.  It does have the 305cc  Briggs.  I think it's basically the same machine as your Simplicity.  They certainly look the same and the key specs are identical. The chute rotation control & mechanism is different, the wheel/axle lock-up mechanism looks different, & different size tires seems to be all that is different.  Taxes in was $1446 CDN delivered for me. Thanks for your help :).  I hope I'm as happy with mine as you are with yours.