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

The 16" is sold as a Cub Cadet here, and as a Sears Professional. You can google for reviews.

You've been shovelling 4000 sq ft in Canada?

There is a post in another thread where I talk about the issue: http://www.abbysguide.com/ope/discussions/49850-0-1.html

I'm not an MTD fan, although if you surveyed most owners you would probably find them satisfied.

Greater width is an advantage when the unit can handle it. If the volume is too great, it will have to run slower or use a partial scoop width. You may prefer a smaller, easier to handle unit.Smaller units often have less power though. On large units, the same engine is often used for all models 30" and up although Toro puts the Briggs 342 on its 28" top of the line model (the biggest snowblower they make)  and MTD uses a 420cc on a 45" model.

Ariens has two 30", one with handwarmers. While lots of high end models have that feature, is it really a critical must have?

I have a similar sized driveway and have been looking at 30" models from Ariens, BASCO (Simplicity/Deere/Snapper), and Husqvarna. All are fine, in the US the Deere 1330SE appears to be best value and may be the most ruggard; the Husqvarna Crown 16530EXL may be the most effective at snow removal but may not be available in Canada, and the Ariens is easiest the handle. The Toro 28" may be even easier to handle but its not my prefered unit for other reasons. I've looked at the MTD's and have rejected on construction quality and some design issues. Reading the reviews of the 33" 16" auger MTD on the US Sears  or as Cub Cadet should be revealing.

Troy-bilt vs Ariens: I'd go Ariens. But for the Deluxe or Platinum model not the Professional. Ariens. The 30" Platinum and Pro models have the same engine and it is unlikely you would notice the 7% difference in width.

Bob,

If you have not made your inquiry yet please ask about the auger rotation speed along with the impeller speed and post them. 

 

I essentially agree with comments of the prior poster except for robustness of the build.  The MTD is lighter than better machines but at a price break and will last with no problem if used properly i.e. don’t drive into rock piles.

 

For your area the Craftsman 28” 277cc engine could be a consideration.  It has essentially the same features as the big Troy Bilt machine (which is the same as Craftsman model 88835).  They are all made by MTD.   The 28 inch would be fine for your area judging the size at 7 feet per year.  It’s 5.1 feet here so close and a 28 would be fine here for an area similar to yours. 

 

The distance figure spec gets the most attention but keep in mind that it’s given for the best conditions which don’t happen often.  Just guessing I would think this machine would throw 25-30 most of the time but I’m not familiar with the newer MTD models.  You are doing your homework on the big machine and can make your own estimates on what you might end up for distance.  If 30-40 is and essential requirement for you then you would need to dig into the 28 also so see if it could be a candidate for distance.

 

One factor that might be important for you is the trigger “power steering”.  It’s a nice feature.  The new models have the same basic design MTD has used for many years and is fine.  This model has the same drive components as the big machine.  The tire grip on the 28 should be fine doing your area.   

 

Outside of wanting great distance a huge machine for your area is not so essential.  It would be helpful if some people with newer MTD based machines would post what they get for distance most of the time.

Thanks Trouts2 and DavidNJ.,

Trouts2, my only fear with the 28" machine, is that the 12" impeller might not throw far enough. Mind you, over the majority of the driveway, I wouldn't really need to throw long distances. 20' to either side might be ok. I'd probably go with the Ariens Platinum or Deluxe in that event.

BTW, the 357cc/ 33" Troy-Bilt I've been looking at, does indeed have the "power steering" feature.

I went to the store today, to have a second look at the Troy-Bilt, but took a little side-trip to a Honda dealer. OMG, are these machines ever nicely put together. I looked at the only one they had in stock, the T724(?). Built like a Swiss watch. Prices seem a bit crazy up here however. If you buy it with the electric start, it's $3500. plus 15.5% tax here in Quebec, Yikes. The salesman told me, "once you go to a machine with tracks, you'll never want to go back". Hmmmm. Mind you, at that price, I may as well hire someone to do my driveway. I'd be good for 7 years, and no maintenance/storage/repair costs, and I wouldn't have to lift a finger. ;-))

As for auger rotation, I'll try to get that info for you trouts2. I presume it's 1/10th the impeller speed. I already sent my request, and should have an answer in the morning. They were very quick to respond to my first question.

I guess it's also worth mentioning that the closest Ariens dealer is 35 miles away. In my area, almost everyone sells MTD under one banner or another.

BTW Trouts2, what are your thoughts regardaring "tracks" vs wheels?

DavidNJ,

Yes, I've been shoveling here in southern Quebec, for the last five or six years. It doesn't take me long actually, but that of course, depends on the conditions and accumulation. Under 3" takes me anywhere from 1 1/2hr-2hrs. The worst part is always the mouth of my driveway, where I get plowed in. An 8"+ snowfall, can take me up to 8 hrs. Good way to keep an ole' fella like me in reasonable shape, don't ya think? ;-)) I've been retired for over 12 years, so there's never much hurry. Mind you, I've recently taken a full-time/part-time job locally, so that can be problematic in a storm situation.

 As for checking out  "reviews", like anything else, you have to be careful with those in my opinion.. I usually take those with a grain of salt. Same with complaints. I also see a LOT of inaccurate speculation in a lot of threads. Example; people who complain about throw-distance, yet they don't do routine maintenance, such as checking belt condition, etc. I sometimes wonder too, if some people store their machines in a heated garage, then go out into the frigid air, only to have snow melt and freeze to their augers and impellers, or impeller housings. Hmmmm. Do that with a shovel, and the snow sticks to the shovel like glue. I keep mine outside at all times, or in an unheated shed. I'll probably do the same with the snow-thrower.

Tomorrow, I'm off to take a look at the Ariens machines again, and I plan on making a side-trip to a John Deere dealer. Problem is, these guys aren't exactly "next door" if I need service/parts. The Troy-Bilt warranty-service shop,, is 10 minutes away, and there's another MTD dealer who's 3 minutes away. He sells mostly Columbia, and some Troy-Bilts. (both MTD I believe).

I know very little about the Poulan machines, but Costco seems to have good pricing on those. They're also close to the Ariens dealer. The Poulans I've seen, have 12" impellers however..

As for MTD machines in general, I'm aware that most people don't care much for them, yet I do see quite a few satisfied owners. Most of the negative opinions i've come across, seem to come from non-owners. They may be right, but I certainly have seen a lot of misinformation regarding the MTD machines too, especially as far as motor and gear components are concerned. Mind you, I'm only now getting into this game, so I'm late for the parade. The machines I'm seeing are all new, with new motors, etc.

Although I had hoped to buy a machine this coming weekend, I won't take the plunge 'til I'm satisfied that I've chosen a reasonably performant and durable machine, at an attractive price. Who knows,,,, maybe even the Honda (now lemme see,,,,,,winters in Florida,,,, or,,, stay home and blow snow with my Honda,,,,, :-))

>>Trouts2, my only fear with the 28" machine, is that the 12" impeller

 

   Starting in the middle of the driveway the toss distance is ½ the driveway width which is not far for a 1 or 2 car wide driveway.   For a few areas you may want a toss much further and even further than your snowblower can do.  If your area does not have many very long distance spots then you can double toss them.  For most storms going over a few double tossed to places is not a big deal.  For a few storms when the snow is high and wet it will be a struggle but also get done.  Getting a monster machine to cover worse case isn’t required.  You’ll be clearing mostly smaller storms during the year.  Even for 12 inch levels double tossing is not a problem for average weight snow.

   A 28 would probably take care of you.  Companies have a ballpark number for tossing speed out of the chute.   A 12 or 14 inch impeller machines usually have different size drive pulleys that make the final fan speed approximately the same.  Smaller fan big pulley.  Big fan smaller pulley.  Both run at roughly the same ft/sec output.  The numbers are worth looking into when you go to dealers.  The bigger machine with 14 inch usually come with bigger motors so an advantage for distance.   

 

>>I'd probably go with the Ariens Platinum or Deluxe in that event.

   You can get the manuals online for any Ariens you are interested in.  The spec’s section of the operators manual lists the fan speeds.  Ariens run 1300 rpm fans on 12 inch machines and 1075 on 14 inch.  With the drive pulleys different both machines output is about 3900 ft/sec so that element alone equal.  The 14 machine may come with a larger motor.   

 

>>BTW, the 357cc/ 33" Troy-Bilt I've been looking at, does indeed have the "power steering" feature.

    In case you missed it the 28 Craftsman has power steering also.   Craftsman has 28 models with and without it.  

   The 4 way chute on the MTD machines is not the best.   For a low angle on the chute hood the joy stick is down and forward and moving left or right from that position ok.  For a high hood setting the joystick is up and hard to move left and right.  It requires putting some force on the joystick.  There's a lot of slop in the movement and if it were to be used in the high position all the time would take it's toll over the years.  If you go back to check out the 33 inch try moving the joystick with the hood down then up and you'll see that I mean.  The feel is not the best. 

 

>>Honda.  Built like a Swiss watch. Prices seem a bit crazy up here however.

    I’ve been told and it was years ago that a Bently was one of the cheapest cars to own over the long haul.  It’s tough to layout the money for such a car.   I’ve also been told that people in Japan buy a snowblower and expect it a lifetime purchase.  They expect quality and put up with the initial cost. 

 

>>As for auger rotation, I'll try to get that info for you trouts2. I presume it's 1/10th the impeller speed.

   Generally that’s the case but not always.  Some Ariens machines run 130 rpm on the augers on machines that have 12 or 14 inch impellers. 

 

>>BTW Trouts2, what are your thoughts regardaring "tracks" vs wheels?

Wheels or tracks are both ok depending on your area.  MTD’s can come with triggers like on the Troy.  MTD uses the same trigger drive on wheels and tracks.  They are a breeze to use. 

Honda and Yamaha don’t have powered steering and a bit harder to turn than a wheeled machine especially wheeled machines that have some sort of free wheel or differential.  Most of the time your underway and guiding a track is no problem.  When not running the motor and trying to move one they are a pain.  You have to get used to using them.   

Trouts2,

Thanks again for the info. I also checked-out your website,,,, nice work.

Regarding the chute/deflector on the 33" Troy-Bilt, there are two separate controls. The joystick controls only the deflector. There is a separate hand-crank for chute rotation. I like this arrangement, since it's probably easier on the cables. On some machines that I'vce seen, the handcrank can be a little stiff to turn, but, that's usually an installation/assembly issue as far as I can see. The hand-crank shaft passes through an eye-bolt with a plastic or rubber insert (eye), and if that eye is not perpendicular to the hand-crank shaft, it can cause resistance. Simple adjustment.

Re; snow accumulation,

I'll probably only use the thrower when snowfall exceeds 2 1/2". I'm so used to doing it by hand with a scraper, that it probably wouldn't be worth the effort to use the thrower. Mind you, I'd probably use the thrower for "pushing back" the snowbanks along the perimeter of the driveway after several light snowfalls, and for doing the EOD.

re; studded tires,

It's a shame you don't see these things offered as an option. For hilly driveways like mine, where ice/freezing rain can be a problem, I'd imagine these would be quite handy. Apparently, the Ariens dealer I spoke to offers this option through a private installer. The guy charges $100.

Ooops!!! One more point regarding the deflector on the MTD/Troy-Bilt machines. The deflector tilt can get a little sticky, and that is caused by the end of the chute, rubbing on the inside of the deflector. This occurs when using acute deflector angles. A simple touch-up along the top edge of the chute with a file, would deal with that issue quite easily I would think.

>>On some machines that I'vce seen, the handcrank can be a little stiff to turn, but, that's usually an installation/assembly issue as far as I can see.

 

   Yes, once adjusted they are fine.  The setup is simple and inexpensive but lasts forever.  The 33 I looked at would not even turn the chute at all.  Great display setup by Sears.

 

   You probably won’t need chains or studs.  Chains work very well and are much cheaper. 

I'll check out chains today. Last time I looked, they were $70. plus tax. I'm sure I can do better.

RE chains / studs;

My driveway entrance has a substantial slope for the first 50' or so. When it's icy, it can be very tricky to walk on. I have to sand that hill in order to take my car out, otherwise, it slides down the hill.

I've actually fallen while shoveling, and slid right down to the EOD snowbank. Had that snowbank not been there, I might have slid right into traffic. Pretty scary stuff when it happens. The street in front is a main thoroughfare, so plenty of traffic.

Welcome fellow Quebecer. My response would be to get the right width for your situation (if you read trouts website you are already well informed) then go for the biggest motor they have on that width machine. I've seen 24" machines with 10hp and 32" machine with 10hp. Which will perform better when trying to take full width cuts?
I think that like any other machine and longevity, it's how you use and maintain it that counts. I'm close to your age & I got tired of shoveling (was pretty easy last year). But I'm cheap so I stuck to used machines, so I've seen some well maintained and some not so much. With respect to the cost of new vs a contract the question is, will the contractor always be there promptly? Besides, I think it's almost therapeutic blasting that snow across the yard.

Good luck in your search.

Thanks GtWtNorth, and possibly fellow "hoser"  Hello from Lachute.

Well, I went shopping again today. Looked at a Poulan Pro 27" at Costco, some Toro's, and Ariens Deluxe & Platinum series at Home Depot,  and a couple of Ariens Pro's (28" & 32") at an OPE dealer. I'm trying to calm myself down here, cuz this is getting out of hand pricewise. I got offered a couple of good deals on the Ariens Pro's $2400.tx incl. on the 28", and $2900. tx incl. on the 32".  Ariens is also offering a "win your Ariens snow-thrower" contest. Your name goes in a draw, and 2 lucky winners will have the price of their purchase refunded.

There was more to the Pro series than I had originally realized; for example, the impeller/auger pullies (dual pulley drive). The gear hub for the auger is massive, with cast-iron gears. I was a bit surprised to see 14" impellers on these Pro Series throwers, since I thought I had read somewhere that the new-model Pro Series machines had 16" impellers this year. The ones I saw today had 16" augers, but 14" impellers. Hmmmm. I'm wondering if these were last years models, with new engines (Briggs & Stratton). Financing is available,,, at 0% for two years. Not bad. The dealer is expecting another shipment of Pro Series machines next week, and we're going to compare the impellers to his current floor models. As for tires, I was also a bit surprised to see 4" wide tires on the 28" Pro model. The 32" machine (and larger), gets 6.5" wide tires.

This $3000. price-range is nudging me closer to a Honda 928 (uh oh). The HS928TC has tracks, and is $3399. No financing deals however, and the dealer is selling at full MSRP. Typical Canadian dealer I'm afraid. I can't seem to find any detailed specs on the Honda's. like impeller diameter, rotation-speed, etc. All I'm seeing is throughput in metric tons. As for promotions, Honda is offering a chance to win an all-terrain vehicle.

My head hurts.