I haven't used every snowblower ever made. I would have liked one of the older Simplicities, or an older whatever. Strip it down, new motor new paint and I'd have a better snowblower than 95% of what is being sold today. Honda's are a different approach to building a machine to handle snowblowing. Instead of parts+weight the need for the part is removed. I waited 2 years to find one used because I wouldn't pay the new price of 3k for a 1132tas.
Honda snowblowers may not be worth the money. Here's 10 things wrong with them
. 1.)They are WAY expensive to fix.
2.)They're a smaller/lighter machine with less steel.
3.) They may be uncomfortable for a user over 6'.
4.)They don't come with handwarmers, or a battery start as even an option.
5.)The light is pretty weak.
6.) If you get a trac model its difficult to turn on dry pavement compared to a wheeled version.
7.)They don't come with a differential, so a wheeled version is more difficult to turn than a competitor's on dry pavement
8.) The transmission doesn't really unlock even when you disengage it, so if you have to push it around in the Summer, you're going to end up starting it up-unlike its competitors which turn and are very manuverable when the engine is not running.
9.) The auger gearbox aluminium instead of cast iron, and its not as beefy as the competitors.
10.) They only come in one color.
Here's 10 things that make them better than other snowblowers, and why the 10 things I could find wrong with them don't count.
1.) You don't have to fix them because they don't break. The Honda GX motor has been the de-facto commercial small engine for about a zillion years. Its worth about three Snowkings and an Intek. If you use your equipment much you'll even notice the savings in gas.
2.) Because they don't weigh their machines down with an extra 200lbs of steel to make up for weak de signs, they can put the weight forward and you can still move the machine. Some ORANGE machines ride up at the first sign of packed snow because the weight is under the wheels instead and will ride up no matter how hard you pull up on the handles to try and dig through a snowbank.
3.) Well, what do you want, all the handles are the same height.
4.) They're so much faster to use you're not going to be out there long enough to get cold hands. Who the hell doesn't wear gloves? Altenators and batteries are another waste of money/weight and are more parts to make up for the cheap motors used in manufacturing that don't decompress on startup.
5.) This is mine, but I think the new ones are coming with LEDs which will last forever and are much brighter because of the efficiency.
6.) Who the hell uses their snowblower when there's no snow on the driveway?
7.) Again, the lack of extra weight makes this a non issue for anyone healthy enough to be using a snowblower or walking for that matter. Kinda neat in the showroom, but a differential is more parts and more weight again.
8.) I don't take my snowblower for walks in the Summertime. I may be alone in this, but this is a useless advantage.
9.) The gearbox doesn't need to be that strong, because Honda's shearpins are actually designed to be CHANGED, UNLIKE OTHER AUGERS!!!!. When you hit something with a Honda the shearpin is going to break, shear off and fall out. I can change one in the dark with gloves on and one wrench. You spin the auger, line it up, place the nut in the pocket, put in the bolt and tighten it. You DO NOT have to line up the auger and knock out the old bolt before you replace the new one. Good luck with that at 2:30 AM at the end of the driveway.
10.) I don't mind red, but some folks who prefer the two-toned orange+rust of some competitors may be out of luck, because other than spots where the inside of the bucket has been scratched there is no rust on a Honda.
This message was modified Mar 12, 2010 by nhmatt
and people in the East are calling it Snowmageddon, where's my snow???