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

I was at a local Honda dealer yesterday and I was stunned by the prices on their snowblowers. In Canadian dollars, they were: 928 wheels: $3000 928 track: $3400 724 track: $3400 1132 track: $3500 I know they have tracks, hydro tranny, honda engines, etc. but they're at least $1000-1500 more than equivalent toro and ariens models. Is it gold, they re making?

Steve,

You did pretty good on the pricing of that 928TAS.  That's funny that  your wife wants in on the snowblowing action as well.  Don't worry about the 928 being wimpy compared to the 1132.  There are rare occasions when snow is deep and heavy enough for the 1132 beast to outshine the 928.

MetalKing wrote:
If you are looking for a Ariens Deluxe 24, the price differential is too great to cross shop a Honda 724.  May I interest you to consider the Ariens Deluxe Platinum 24" AND a singe stage Toro 221Q for about the same $$$ to one Honda HS724?  It may sound ludicrous, but it will become quite reasonable and smart decision later on.

The Platinum 24" at about $1300 is a good deal, all features considered.  It is quite feature loaded.  The 24", $1300 snowblower category is quite competitive so I think you are getting the best value here.  The Toro 221Q is $619, best performing single stage snowblower, IMO.

aa335 wrote:
aa335,  I don't even want to think about it.   Oh wait, great news!  I just read that we're going to pay for the US Healthcare bill by imposing a 10% tax on tanning salon treatments!!!   Whew...for a minute there I was worried that it was going to affect my wallet. 

Paul7 wrote:
I'm not sure why such high prices exists.  I believe Honda 2-stage snowblowers are produced in Japan.  Maybe US imposed protective tariffs?

Want to find out how expensive it is to buy a Harley Davidson in Japan?  You may have to slip a few Benjamins in the minister's pocket, a couple of Disneyland tickets,  and a promisary note for a parcel of land in California just to get an appointment with a sales agent.

aa335 wrote:

Thanks, I figured I did get a good deal. My wife however is less than pleased. In the snow all 2 inches of it she had so much trouble wrangling the tracks that she just quit and gave up. This was after doing less than 1/2 of our driveway and she doesn't give up easily. She says she has too hard a time to turn it. She had no problem at the dealer. Here at our driveway up and down, forward and reverse not a problem, but turning is too much for her tiny frame. She wants the Toro as it was much easier for her to turn and doesn't care that it will not throw slush. (The Toro B&S engine is a bear for her to start and forward and reverse are tough for her with the Toro). I do not want to buy a riding mower and put a snow thrower on it. That's like $5k minimum. She flat out will not use the Honda too much for her.

No clue what I'm going to do now.... Any ideas?

Steve,

Not that this will help you now but I looked at the same blower as you did and I bought the ariens 9526 dlet because as you stated the honda was too hard to turn. I wanted the honda because of their reputation but the honda's tracks are in a locked position all the time, the ariens turns a lot easier as just one track pulls in the normal mode, you can lock both tracks if you want but then you have a hard time turning it as well. I still think the honda is a great machine though.

Coldfingers

Steve_Cebu wrote:

How about a wheeled Honda?

Steve_Cebu wrote:
Steve we've all been in your situation at one time or another.  Sometimes it seems like even when we do our due diligence and research on a product there some variable that make a purchase less than ideal.  If your dealer has a 30 day satisfaction guarantee you could return it for a Honda wheeled model.  If not you might be able to sell it yourself to someone and get something close to what you paid for it, then buy a machine that your wife can use.  Or if you still have your Toro 2 stage keep using but add an electric start unit to it and get a good Toro single stage for slush clean-up.  Bottom line though is that if your wife has to do some of the snow blowing at times and she can't handle the Honda tracks then it's the wrong machine for your household.

Not sure if they are still made there but here is article from 2003 that states they are manufactured in North Carolina. http://world.honda.com/news/2003/p030107.html aa335 wrote:

Thanks everyone. The wheeled Honda same issue and wheels tend to slip in this driveway. It's paved but bumpy. I think we might go with the Toro 1028 if we can figure out what to to with the 928TAS. We've only had it a week or so. But as you say if my wife can't use it it's the wrong one. Damn shame but sometimes I am gone for a few days and my wife can't shovel the driveway, it's too much. I was thinking we could get a 2 stage and a smaller Toro for slush. I have read the single stages are pretty good. The 2 of them would equal the Honda in price, roughly. The Honda is such a nice machine to use tho. We have phone calls to make tomorrow and see what we can do. Too bad we couldn't try these units out in actual snow before buying. My wife was ok with the Honda for the time she used it at the dealer but in the actual driveway it's just too much. The Toro has skid steer so she can use that. Ariens and Simplicity have a single skid steer on one wheel. I know my wife was excited before she began but too much machine for her to wrangle. Shame.....

Thanks for teh suggestions we will be trying them out.