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Four inches of wind blown/packed snow will just whet it's appetite. I clear a 70' path around the back and side of the house to the area where the gas & water meters are so they can be accessed by the readers. This area is particularly prone to drifting and packing. If I get a foot of snow on the driveway, I'll have two and a and a half at least back there. This is one of my favourite places to blow snow. I have the whole back yard to blow it and can use the wind to my advantage. The Simplicity goes through drifted/packed snow with consistent ease. The engine changes tempo but rpms don't drop past 3500 to 3550. It just keeps pumping a solid stream of snow until the job's done. After a big snow, it's not unusual for the snow thrower to run a good two hours with only brief interruptions of max power demands. It might not be the best snow thrower out there but I don't see too many on my block (and there's lots of them) that are out-performing this machine. Even the guy with the new Honda isn't moving snow like this thing. I will admit however that his Honda looks a bit small. Might only be a 7 h.p. That combined with inexperience might be contributing factors.
I remember my old Craftsman machine even when it was new, didn't have the overall power, balance and efficiency of this thing. As it got older, it began to loosen up and you could feel the frame and handle flexing, vibration increased and even though the engine ran well, efficiency fell off considerably. I suspect that as the machine aged, wear was taking it's toll and the sloppier it got, the more it worked against itself. I guess only time will tell how weld this machine holds up. It's on it's second season with about 25 hours on it and it's still running like new.
A job that I used to do reluctantly has now become fun. The more snow that falls now, the better. "Bring it on." I say!
