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

Has anyone used the little Toro Power Clear 180 yet?  It has the 87 cc engine 4 cycle engine on it. 

Well I tried out the Toro 180 today.  We only had an inch of snow, but I thought I would give it a try.  I'd have to say that using it with only an inch is useless.  Instead I used my snow shovel to push the driveway snow into a deep windrow that stretched across my 3 car width driveway.  I started up the 180 and used it to blow the windrow off the driveway.  It worked pretty well and seemed to have plenty of power for this job.  Next I'd like to try it out with more than an inch of snow.  I'll report an update if that happens.

This morning I blew several piles of snow that were 6-10 inches deep and about 15 feet long.  The snow was neither fluffy nor wet today.  I would call it a medium weight snow.  The 180 blows this very well.  I used a second pass to scrape down to the asphalt.  I measured the distance thrown with a tape measure and the majority was thrown 20-23 feet.  Distance thrown is very dependent on the volume.  If you aren't throwing much snow the distance is very short.  If the volume is high it throws the 20 plus feet.  Next I cleaned the sidewalk and pretty much had the same results.  I did notice the rubber paddles can put rubber marks on the cement sidewalk if moving too slowly.  My experience is limited, but my opinion at this point is mostly positive.


Pros:
* Power seems very adequate for this snow.  Wet snow is TBD.
* Throwing distance is good.
* Starting - Pulling the recoil is very easy and has an electric starter as a backup.
* Unit is extremely light.
* Chute is easy to adjust.
* Price seems reasonable.
* Handle folds to make a very small footprint for tight spaces. 
* Small size fits into small places.  This could be a pro or con depending on your needs.  In my case I like the small size because it fits under the handlebars of my 2 stage.

Cons:
* The 180 is too small if this was my only blower, but this is totally dependent on the area needed to be cleared.  You get what you pay for!
* Choke lever seems flimsy. 
* Changing oil doesn't look as easy as it should be.  I'm probably going to add a 2" galvanized pipe to make it a little easier to drain oil.

* If blowing an inch of snow, just get out a push shovel instead.  This probably applies to most snowblowers.

* Sidewalk rubber marks.

superbuick wrote:
Well, after having seen the Toro 2450 in person, I can really see what you mean.  The newer Toros are bigger (bloated), and more complicated.  I'm not sure what you mean by dumber? 

I'm having second thoughts now, I'm beginning to like the 2450 more so than either the 221/421.  The 2450 seems to be more nimble and less front nose heavy than the 221.  Although I'm not too fond of the design of the 2450 belt cover.  Seems cheap and not integrated.

Well, we finally had some snowfall here in Grass Lake MI, around 6 inches. I bought the little Toro to clear my deck and walks, and I must say that I am quite impressed. It is the perfect little machine for the job, light weight, so it is easy to get up the stairs and small enough to get into the corners. As far as the electric start I opted to pull start, like was said, 2 primes and she started right up in two pulls, but it was the first time I had used it. Once she was warm, a light pull and she started the first time. We had roughly six inches of snow during the day on Thursday and into the early morning. Not really wet but not dry either. I broke out the Toro at 10:30am Friday morning to clear my deck, temps were in the 20's.

She cleared the snow as expected, tracked straight, did not want to pull you left or right like its bigger brother two cycle does and trew the snow a good 15 feet if not more. I did bog her a bit in roughly 10 to 12 inches of snow. She did not stop working, but I could tell she was struggling, I backed off and she then plowed right through the little drift. All in all, I am very pleased with the purchase of this little guy, as it handles its intended duties with ease.

As far as the chute, it worked with ease, no issues there. Did not try the electric start, so no comments there. The choke, yes it looks a bit flimsy, so you guys that like to slam and bang things on a regular basis will need to be careful there. Overall construction seems solid, nothing I can see that would break or fall off in normal usage. I would highly recommend this unit if you need to clear a small area or walkways. I would think it would be well suited in say an older suburban 1950's type neighborhood or for light duty work around a larger home where you would not be able to use a two stage or say a 21" single stage. I paid $399 locally in Jackson MI, and yes, it's a keeper.

Waterloo wrote:
The  flimsy lever that you see is an extension of the choke lever.  It is designed to flex and give and prevent damage to the choke lever itself. 

For the anti-plastic crowd, if this extension is broken, you can still actuate the choke lever.  If you break the choke lever, well, highly unlikely.  You're more likely to damage something more serious internally.

aa335 wrote:
Yes, I should have stated that fact regarding the choke, thank you for clarifying that. And I could see why Toro stuck that little wiggly piece of an extension on there, as I had a pair of winter shooters gloves/mittens on, and it was very easy to turn on and off with those gloves in mitten mode.

Waterloo wrote:
Yes, when I first saw the choke extension lever, I thought it was flimsy.  However, after a little bit of thought, it made sense.  Now, I don't remember how it was attached to the choke itself and how easy to replace it in case it breaks.  Hopefully it's a fastener-free smart snap fit.

Thanks for the writeup on the 180 performance.  The paddle is virtually the same as the 221/421, only scaled down.  If the 180 had the "blue" quick chute gizmo, I'd be getting one myself. 

Toro marketing department, are you listening?  Give me a 180 with quick chute and recoil start for $399 and 5 year GTS.  :)  While u're at it, integrate the deflector with the quick chute too.  :)

aa335 wrote:
Yes, the quick shoot would be nice on the 180 as it would have sped things up quite a bit for myself, especially in all of the nooks and crannies of my deck and walkways. The quick chute is something I would have paid extra for after using the one on my 221QE.

Also, it is kind of a back breaker turning the chute on the little Toro if you are tall, as the chute is right down below my knee level. And that blast of cold air up my jacket when bending over isn't much fun either. And no, my plumber side was not exposed.

Waterloo wrote:
Well, since you got that side covered, I'm not going there.  

I might have to get both the 180 and 221Q.  All reviews of the 180 have been favorable.

Bought the electric start model Dec 22, used only twice since then, today discovered it is leaking gasoline on my garage floor. Emailed Toro, they said to take it in to the dealer. Now I have to talk my wife into letting my use her minivan to haul a machine that is leaking gasoline, and take time out of my day to do it. Oh, and the shop said it will take a week to fix, let's hope it doesn't snow in the meantime.

Do not buy this machine. The external parts are cheap plastic, it doesn't plow down to the pavement, and oh yeah, it leaks gasoline after two uses. I bought a Toro on their reputation for quality. Big disappointment.