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

Why must Ariens always try to give the appearance that you are getting more with their snowblowers?????For instance,Toro power max 1028OXE has a 305cc B&S engine.But Ariens has a" 305cc Ariens Polar Force Engine by B&S on their  Pro 26"Am I missing something ??I doubt B&S manufactures .a special polar force engine for Ariens lol.Also they have an ice drill manual chute control translation ...chute rotator and they have an (xs aluminum gear box )translation....aluminum gear box....Memo to Ariens your not fooling anyone into believing that yours is better  lol....That's what I like about Toro and Honda they keep it simple and their products speak for themselves....

Truthfully, Mikie sounds like some sort of middle or high school child. I wouldn't waste too much time trying to convince someone like him that he is wrong, it'll just turn into more childish mud slinging. I think we all acknowledge that Ariens makes a good product, and that every company has their little naming quirks to try to make something as boring as a snowblower and its components (to the mainstream) sound interesting and unique to get the sale.

well jviera thats your opinion.Its sad that u actually think that the sno tek chute is as good as toros.I guess u also work for ariens lol.And you are also privvy to toros testing of their chutes...

I have a Toro 1028 with the joystick and yeah the chute is plastic but durable and according to my local dealer they don't really break unless you hit it with something.

I can't speak about brands i haven't owned but I've seen some plastic chutes on machines in Home Depot that looked ultra cheap.

All the companies make Low, middle and high end machines. So I seriously doubt that a $200-300 snowblower will equal a $1,300 snowblower. You tend to get what you pay for.

I like everything about the Toro 1028 I have. Honda has screwed itself by not putting a differential lock on their machine IMO.

If you like Sno-Tek or whatever brand buy it. But if it doesn't work as well as other brands well.....

I like Toro, Honda, and Yamaha. Ariens has dissapointed me wit their reduction in quality from what I saw at the dealer.

Oh and they sold out of Toro before Ariens. That doesn't mean Ariens isn't good but it does offer some things the Ariens doesn't.

In that price range they  are all pretty darn good machines.

Vote with your wallet. :)

Mikie, I didnt say anything about the SnoTek machines... I simply commented on your immature posting style and the fact that a similarly priced Ariens is every bit as good as a Toro. SnoTek units are cheaper than equivalent Toro units, so you really cant compare them fairly... they have their place. I'll take the metal chute over the plastic one on the Toro, and the control on the Ariens I just feel like will work in icy conditions better than the joystick. Ive seen stories of those joysticks freezing up from time to time. I think Toro makes a good unit, as well as Ariens. Mikie's bashing of Ariens is about their naming conventions and a pitiful apples to oranges comparison between SnoTek (budget) models and Toros models which are in the price range of the higher end Ariens series.

jviera1298 wrote:

Honestly I don't see how the Toro is going to freeze up after using mine even in freezing rain. Maybe a few might freeze up but that's because water got into the cables and that can happen with any machine.It's an easy fix just spray some stuff into teh cables and the water is gone and retighten. I also disagree with the metal chute is better, it's not. The plastic sheds sticky snow better. Plastic nowadays doesn't mean cheap and breakable any more. I'll take the Toro plastic chute over the metal chutes on any brand.

Mikie boy, You are way over the top and out of your league. Chill out and find something productive to do. You hardly can make any convincing discussion other than juvenile knee-jerk ramble.

I owned two 10 h.p. Craftsman machines for over twenty years.  The plastic chute was the last of my concerns.   The first machine rattled itself to death in ten years but I bought it used from a brother-in-law and it had seen lots of hard service and little maintenance.   The second machine I bought new and put a solid ten winters work on it with no real issues other than metal fatigue cracking primarily at the welds and shearing of the drive wheel axle pins in its latter years.  The plastic chutes on those machines held up fine other than the entire chute would fall off of the first machine if I used it in heavy wet snow.   There's really no comparison between those Craftsman machines and the Simplicity I have now.  The quality of the Simplicity is heads and shoulders above the Craftsman machines and the price difference between the two was only $300.00.   From what I see, the Simplicity offers twice the machine for the $300.00 premium.   The Simplicity is an outstanding value.  Too bad they're not making them as well either.  It seems that all the domestics are sliding down the quality scale.

how does ariens track system compare to hondas?

mikiewest wrote:
A bit off-track from current topic (pun intended), but here's the link:

http://www.abbysguide.com/ope/discussions/34096-A-1.html

Also, ask coldfingers about his Ariens tracked.  I think he's the only one on this forum that still has this snowblower.

There's a $600 retrofit kit to convert wheeled to track.

borat wrote:
Or Sno-Tek??  Good call, brother!