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

I did a search and found a few references to this machine but no answers.  Any one have one of these?  15.5 snow max engine, heated hand grips, 30" wide.  I can't find a listing for auger diameter or impeller diameter.  I called John Deere and the guy that was suppose to be the snow thrower expert didn't know either. 

What is the Easy Steer drive system?  The literature says: 

Easy Steer® drive system giving continuous power to both wheels and auto speed adjustment

Is it similar to the Ariens auto differential? 

I've heard that the units are built by B&S which translates to Simplicity.  They do have cast iron gear cases like the Simplicity.  The chute control is different than the simplicity and so is the turning method so they are not exactly the same.  I'm trying to compare the Simplicity L1530E to the JD 1130SE.  Any help would be appreciated.

Rick

I have the JD 928, which is the 1130’s little brother. It also has 14 inch auger and a 12 inch 4 blade impeller. The chute rotation is the same as on the 1130, which is done by a worm gear turning against a ring gear mounted to the bottom of the chute. Once I adjusted mine it works good and is likely more reliable that many of the other schemes.

As for the Easy Steer® drive system, the 928 doesn’t have it and I was assuming the 1130 uses the same system as the equivalent Simplicity. With only $200 difference in price between the 928 and the 1130 and given the larger engine, and hand warmers on the 1130, I would be worried about the robustness of some really cheap differential that might be used on the 1130. I would go the JD dealer and have them explain exactly what it is.

Turning? I consider the machine relatively easy to turn for its size, I do however need to mucle the machine a bit. If you get the opportunity to handle the machine at a dealer, you will be able to judge the amount of force needed to turn. Whether the machine is running or not, it takes the same amount of force to turn it. 

Chute rotation? I did need to properly grease the chute, as Lowes only had a squirt of grease on it. Once I correctly greased the chute and the worm gear, the rotation is effortless.

Grease zerks? There are grease zerks on both augers (left / right)

Bushings / bearings? The friction disk definately turns on bearings (from manual). The auger appears to turn on bearings, but I would check with JD to verify.

Differential? I am hesitant to comment on the robustness of this feature. It works well so far, but I have only use the machine for a couple of months, and have no other machine for comparison. If JD sent you a brochure, the inside of the machine is pictured at the top of the second to last page.

A subtle difference between the engine on the 928 and 1130 other than size is that the 1130 is the Snow Series MAX which has throttle adjustment.

Here is a link to the JD snow thrower literature that has a picture of the Easy Steer mechanism.  http://www.deere.com/en_US/ProductCatalog/HO/media/pdfs/jd_snowthrowers_brochure_eng.pdf

I was able to talk to the service depart at the local John Deere dealership that spoke very highly of the 1130SE even though they don't have any to sell in the store.  They have been sold out for months.  What was funny is that Lowes pays the JD dealership to come to Lowes and set these units up.  Lowes employees don't set up the JD products like the Home Depot employees set up the Ariens products.  The JD dealership also provides local service for the unit and the service manager said that they have had no return on the product and it has been a trouble free unit.  That was nice to hear.  The Easy Steer was a popular option the manager said. 

While the chute rotation isn't quite as convenient as some models of quick turn cables etc, I would have to agree that the design with the worm gear, while not being high tech is probably very durable. I haven't seen anything that makes this JD a no go product.  While I won't likely be able to tell the difference between the Briggs snow max 14.5 and the 15.5 bigger is usually better.

Rick

Bought the John Deere 1130se.  Chute rotation isn't bad at all and it turns as good as an Ariens in the short run that I took it on in the driveway when it came home.  I think that it is a winner.  I aked for a better price on the unit from Lowes and while he said that they are still selling 20 units a day after a good snow fall and wouldn't be able to discount the unit he did give me a coupon worth $50 of any purchases over $500.  $1450 and I am officially Green now.

Rick

That certainly looks to me like it could be a differential.  This
would be interesting since Simplicty doesn't offer one to my
knowledge.

You can buy a engine block heater as an accesory.  First time
I've heard of that on a snowblower.

You know Clay, I think you've found the perfect strategy.  If you
keep it up you'll have had a different machine for every storm
and all you'll have to do is return the last one and the winter
won't have cost you anything

Paul

pvrp wrote:

I'm driving my wife crazy.  I have never returned this much stuff in my whole life and this is not standard operating proceedure.  My old snow thrower  lasted 21  years and I didn't want something that wouldn't be around.  Truth is for under a grand that Craftsman 14.5 is still a heck of a machine.  This was 50% more than the first one.  The problem is that each machine has become more expensive.  The first one was around a grand, the second one $1200 and the third one $1500 after tax.  By the way Lowes does have a 30 day return policy and if this thing treats me like crap or I have 3 service calls in 3 weeks you don't even have to guess where it will end up.  So yes, I will take all of the ribbing anyone wants to give me.  I have had a very unique selection process but I don't recomend it to anyone else.  The first unit I bought out of state, but was able to return it locally, the second unit was bought out of state and returned out of state and the third unit was bought about 30 miles away.  Luckily gas prices have been down too.  The first unit I did an oil change with synthetic oil and lubed up the wheels with grease etc.  While it might sound fun to some, this has been a royal pain in the rear.  I just want a machine that works and I can get parts for after the warranty ends.  Is that really too much to ask for $1500 of my money?  If I wasn't going through this myself and I was reading my threads, I would be laughing my rear off at me, so I don't mind the friendly poke in the ribs.  I probably deserve it.

I did turn on the heated grips and they made me smile tonight.  More to follow after we get some snow and I can play with it for real.

So how does it turn ?    

Paul

pvrp wrote:

I'm very happy with how it turns and I don't have to pull a lever.  I was also very happy with pulling a lever on the Craftsman 14.5, which turned with power to one wheel and it let you choose which wheel had the power unlike the Simplicity which always releases power to the left wheel so that the right wheel is under power.  In other words with the JD, you can turn to your left or to your right with similiar ease.  I like it. 

Truth is that it is still too new to tell.  Give me a couple of 8 to 12" snow falls and I can write a better review with very realistic thoughts.  I don't want to say it is the greatest thing since sliced bread, because I really haven't even used it in the snow yet, just running it up and down the side walk.  I'm looking at taking that B&S snow max with 15.5 pounds of torque and 342cc and seeing what it will do with a heavy snow and lots of it.  Proof will be in the pudding as they say.  Until then, I have a positive outlook with a sense of reality as well.  I just like that the local service place told me that they can turn around most jobs in 2 to 3 days if the part is on hand and if not about a week with parts shipping.  When it takes 3 weeks minimum to get your machine looked at, I don't call that much of a warranty. 

Price is good and construction looks impressive and I have local service.  I'm betting on all of that being a winning combo.

About 8" of snow fell between last night and this morning which gave me a chance to run this unit for real for the first time.  The engine was powerful and quiet.  I was concerned or had questions about two areas.  One was the chute control since it was not a quick move kind of chute control and was a worm gear instead, the second was how the unit turns.  The chute control was both smooth and worked fine and I feel that it will be more durable in the long run than some of the quick turning mechanism that I have seen up close and personal lately.  The turning was a pleasant surprise and turned as easily as the Ariens 1130 DLE that I had the opportunity to try.  The heated handgrips along with the snow cab made it a pleasant stroll in the park to do the work this morning.  I was having so much fun playing with the new toy that I did 5 houses next to me.  Just couldn't stop blowing snow.  Hopefully the neighbors will be happy.  The next door lady already brought me over cookies and some home made Kahlua coffee liquor.  Life is good in Wisconsin with the John Deere.

One interesting thing happened when I was removing snow from the driveway and parked the car in the street.  Two plows came by in tandem, one right after the other and plowed in the car in the street.  This would have taken hours in the old days with the 5 horse.  I walked right through that stuff and the engine was so powerful I blew the snow from the center of the street, over the car and into my front yard.  The job was done in minutes.  Very happy with the 15.5 torque rated snow max engine. 

Rick

If your JD is the same as my Simplicity 9528 for build quality, you will see that the impeller has very close tolerance to the impeller housing.  I looked at mine and it looked to be about 1/16" of an inch.  That in itself will promote good snow ejection.   Your engine is the 305cc right.  if it is, it's the same thing I have.  I like the way it gets on the torque when you put a load on it.  I like to watch my electronic tach when the machine is put under heavy load.  It will go from 3600+ down to 3550 or 3500 hundred rpm and just keep chewing.  I was never a big fan of B&S nor Tecumseh before buying this machine.  I always respected the old Tecumseh's for their durability but never felt it was in the league of the Japanese brands.  I never had much experience with B&S engines because I'd buy equipment with Japanese engines to avoid them.  This new B&S has changed my views somewhat.  I now view the brand  with a little higher level of respect than I had in the past.   If it holds up as well as my Japanese engines, it will garner full respect.