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

I picked up this old 1983 Toro Power Shovel for dirt cheap.  I found some info on the internet, took it apart to inspect/clean/adjust/lubricate.  Put it all back together and gave it a test run.  These things are incredible!  We've had some serious heavy wet snow here recently.  Not real big dumps.  Maybe 3 to 4 inches at a time.  Certainly deep and wet enough to be difficult to shovel.   I bought this thing for clearing off our fairly large deck.  Couldn't be happier with it's performance.  Why Toro ever stop making these with the gas engine is beyond me.   For it's diminutive size, and little 21cc two stroke engine, this thing can move a lot of snow. 

I've been looking for one of these last several weeks.  I have not come across one yet.

From what' I've seen on videos, it does fairly good job.  Very light and powerful.

They only made them for three years apparently.   The one I got is the first year of production.   When I first got it, I notice that the pull start was not working properly.  I pulled on it numerous times and it just wouldn't engage the engine.   It took a ridiculously fast pull to get the engagement palls to engage.  I could see that being very annoying.   I took it apart and saw that the machine is virtually unused.  The pull start rope was still white, everything inside was clean as a whistle.  Compression is excellent as is the power.  The snow rotor looked virtually new.    I've come to the conclusion the pull start mechanism must have malfunctioned early in the machine's life and it was put a way in a shed left for dead. 

Other than the pull start, there wasn't anything else that needed fixing.  I fixed the pull start problem by spraying WD-40 into the cap that holds the engagement palls.  Thing works like a charm and is so light and functional that it's actually fun to use. 

Nice score on that mint unit.  I wanted to get a powered shovel to clean around the deck but don't want to deal with frozen electrical cord.  Unfortunately, Toro only offer the electric power shovel, which has the power curve rotor that I like, but not the cord part.  I was thinking of combining the Toro electric power shovel with my Stihl Kombi Motor powerhead, but that would make it heavy and unwieldy.  I might try it some day just for the heck of it.

If you're ever want to unload that little Toro gas power shovel, I'll be interested in buying it.

I've got one of those units - its amazing. Great find borat! Works great for clearing off decks/patios/etc when there isnt too much snow, but you dont feel like shoveling or sweeping. A friend and I put some videos up on youtube of us using it last year in about 3 inches of snow.

Yeah, those were awesome videos.  I like how powerful they are without electrical cords getting in the way.

As much as I like it, I'd love to find a wheel kit for it. 

Anyone out there know of a kit looking for a machine to put it on?

Funny you should say "wheel kit".   I was thinking if I wanted a wheel kit for it, it would become a Toro S-200 with vanes.  I mean after using the power shovel for some time, it may become tiring and I might want it to move a little smoother or maybe pull itself forward.

Do you think a pair of skids would work better than wheels?

"Do you think a pair of skids would work better than wheels?"

I'm not sure how skids would do.  I suspect that they might interfere with the skid plate on the bottom of the machine.  The wheels allow the machine to tilt forward for full contact of the skid plate then angle back to lift it completely off the surface.   If skids were to be used, they'd have to circular and positioned similar to the wheels to get the same effect.

 I saw the video of a guy using a wheeled power shovel and it sure looked like the way to go. 

The wheel kit definitely makes a huge difference. The video you saw is at my friends house, his unit has the wheel kit. Mine does not, and it is not as easy or convenient to use as the one with the wheel kit. Mind you, its still great, the wheels just make it better. I had a thought similar you yours aa335, but after trying his unit with the wheels I was sold on it.

Yeah.  It's a pretty sweet deal the way it is.  Wheels would be too good to be true. 

I haven't ruled out fabbing something myself.    I'm going to look around for a couple small stroller wheels, some high tensile stainless steel strapping to mount a ss axle.  Figuring out the geometry will be the tough part. 

Superbuick:  Is there any way you can get a couple picks of your friend's power shovel with the wheel kit so that I can see how things line up?  If possible, it would be greatly appreciated. 

borat wrote:

Borat, Going to look at one tomorrow possibly with the wheel kit included. What would you say is a fair price for a good condition unit,original owner with manual? If I get it I'll shoot some pics for you.

Now that I know how well they work, I'd pay $100.00 for a good one even without wheels.  With wheels would be a real bonus.

borat wrote:

I'll keep you informed. Thats what I was thinking about. I will see what tomorrow brings.

Borat - I will gladly snap you a few photos. Look for a posting soon.

superbuick wrote:
Thanks.  Much appreciated.

Hasn't snowed here in a while.  Getting a little antsy. 

5 inches in Chicago this past Saturday.  Wet and heavy kind.  Cleared the neighbor's sidewalks too, about 5 houses worth, just extra 5 minutes to do.  Now it's really cold, temps in the teens.

Expecting some more snow on Thursday.  Hopefully it's a good amount and not so cold.   I got Friday off so bring on the snow.  :)

I picked one up today in very good running condition @ $110.00 wheel kit included. Here are the photos

Great find/buy Hirschallan.  Thanks for the pics, too.  These things are so rare and tough to find - you got a nice one.  You can clean that handle up real easily with some steel wool and WD40 if you want to bring back the shine.

How does it run?

Borat - I assume these pictures will suffice?  Let me know if you need some different angles or whatever though, and I'll be glad to snap them for you.

Nice find indeed. 

Excellent pics.  They are more than sufficient.  Thanks a million. 

The wheel assembly looks complicated to reproduce.  Certainly looks very robust and well designed.   I doubt that I will try to copy it.  Now that I have an idea of the geometry, I'll have to start looking around for some stuff to fab something a lot simpler.

The unit I bought for $50.00 was virtually new.   When I first got it, the pull start wasn't working right.  It took a very fast pull to get the engagement palls to throw out to connect with the starter cap.   The rope was still white and it was fairly stiff.  I suspect that the previous owner couldn't get the pull start to fire up the engine and just put the machine away very early in it's life.   This thing is close to being mint.  I completely pulled it apart, inspected/cleaned, lubed where required and sprayed some WD-40 under the engine starter cap.  That's all it took to loosen up the palls.  Thing fires up easily now and runs like a charm.  No belts on this thing.  All nylon gears.   These things will last  even with minimum maintenance.  Take car of the engine and it will probably be a lifer.  Not too many parts are available for these things.  Fortunately, the wear items can still be had.  We can still get rotors and scrapers for them.

Borat, As you can see in the pics the last two pics the springs are a little wet due to a small gas drip. Need to rip it apart to get to that. Also look at the pics and you will see the wheels have 2 positions it can be at. One bringing the wheels closer to the body and the other pushing them away. Not sure why. You also mentioned you got info off the web when you got yours. Can you please let me know where that was. Thanks,Allan

That is one robustly built power shovel.  Thanks for all those pics, hirshallan.  Does it have a replaceable scraper bar?  What is the function of those springs?

Now I definitely want to get my hands on one.  Makes a great restoration project.

Anyone guess on why Toro stopped making these after a few years?  Is it the cost?

aa335 wrote:

This is where I got most of my info:

I've tried numerous times to insert addresses as a link and it just never works.  Am I the only one having this problem?

The link below has nice diagrams etc. and show availability of parts.  Not too many available but the highest wear item parts can still be had.

http://www.partstree.com/parts/?lc=toro_consumer&mn=38350%2C+Gas+Power+Shovel+Snowthrower%2C+1984+%28SN+4000001-4999999%29

Scraper bar is replaceable as is the rotor.

They only made them for three years.  1983 to 1985.  Could have been something to do with the EPA and two cycle engines.   I've actually been toying with the idea of putting a chainsaw engine on an electric snow shove.   Get some sprockets and bicycle chain, mount the saw engine on the handles, line up the sprockets, put the chain on and see how it goes!

borat wrote:
I was having the same problems using Firefox on the mac.  Simply edit the link and paste it in the field second time, before you submit the post.  It should work that way.

Looks like there's only a handful of replacement parts available from that website.  I guess support for this product is very minimal at best.

I do like the current model electric Toro Power Shovel with the newer curved rotor.  I had thought about putting a 2 cycle string trimmer engine to it.  Is a chainsaw engine more compact and lighter?

Not sure what you mean by "edit the link"?    Would you please elaborate a bit on that?   I'm also using Firefox on a Mac. 

I doubt that a chainsaw engine would be as compact or lighter.   They're just a lot more readily available around here.  I see numerous chainsaws selling very cheaply and virtually no operational trimmers or any other two cycle engine source equipment.  The electric power shovels have double down tubes for the handle.  One could put a cross piece in between to mount an engine on.   It would be nice however if the the rotational direction of the power source was compatible with the rotation of the rotor on the power shovel.   Otherwise.......

borat wrote:
Select the text you want to link the http path to.  At the toolbar, select the Insert/Edit Link button.  A dialog box will appear, paste your link into the URL form, then press the OK button.

Right mouse click on the underlined link that was created and select Edit Link.  You will see the same dialog box again, but this time, the URL box will have some jibberish such as "javascript *(*&* "  .   Recopy the link into that box again and hit OK. 

aa335 wrote:

The springs are there for keeping the tension on the wheel kit when you collapse them as you could see in the pics. There is a hook up in there behind the bracket to hold the wheels in the collapsed position and as you can see the springs give it the tension.I'll try to do a video on the movement of the wheel kit but will need the kids to help me with the posting.I would tend to say that Toro had more problems with customers not being able to maintain these things than it was worth or perhaps the electric option was born at that time and figured it was a much more consumer friendly way to go.

"Select the text you want to link the http path to.  At the toolbar, select the Insert/Edit Link button.  A dialog box will appear, paste your link into the URL form, then press the OK button.

Right mouse click on the underlined link that was created and select Edit Link.  You will see the same dialog box again, but this time, the URL box will have some jibberish such as "javascript *(*&* "  .   Recopy the link into that box again and hit OK. "



Thanks for the instructions but I'm still having problems.  I hit a brick wall at:  " Right mouse click on the underlined link that was created and select Edit Link."

 I can past the link into the field but I don't get an underlined link and I don't get a drop down menu with an "edit link" option.  All I get is the Firefox "Edit" drop down menu.    This is the only site that I have this kind of problem with.

I'm currently on a PC now so things may not be exactly the same on the Mac as I described.  I'll try it later with the Mac and walk you through it.   

I tried all kinds of things to get links working and never was able to.

About a week later I simply pasted a link as text into a post and it showed as a hyperlink.
Now they quit doing it again.

Pictures seem the same way, sometimes it works sometimes it doesn't.

Yeah.... Inconsistency is a major p.i.t.a.  That's for sure. 

I don't have problems with images,  just links.


For those who like two strokes, check this out:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TaL4m0quPIA&feature=related

Not much snow being moved but something to see nonetheless.

Borat, If you can be so kind to send me a pic of the gas cap from your machine (inside view). I have a feeling I'm missing the inside portion of it and it leaks. It just doesn't look right to me. Thanks,Allan

hirschallan wrote:
Mine was defective also.  A picture won't help because I modified it.  The problem is that there should be a little check valve inside the cap.  Mine was missing.  I tried to make a check valve and it was partially effective but not perfect.   If you look at the cap, there are two vent holes.   On my machine, one hole ends up at the top and one at the bottom when the cap is screwed on tightly.  I blocked off the bottom hole with a plug and I don't get any seepage now. 

By the way, new caps are available at Partstree.com for less than $10.00.

I have one of these 38350 models that I bought new back in the '80s. Haven't used it for a number of years and can't get it started. Never stored it w fuel in the tank so should be able to rule out fuel problems; I put in fresh fuel. Haven't opened it up yet. Can anyone tell me if I'll be able to try starting it once I open up the housing or will I have to put it all back together each time I want to try to start it. Anyone know if there are any free downloadable service manuals on this machine. Still looking for one. With small gas-powered machines the problem is almost always in the carburetor or fuel system; that's where I'll look first, plug also of course but have never seen a bad plug in a small gas engine; it's almost always carburetor/fuel problems. This machine served me well, never had any problems with it. Probably haven't used it for over 5 years. When I moved to the country many years ago I bought a Ford farm tractor with 5' rear mount snow blower so haven't used the Toro much since then. It would come in handy around doors etc. if I can get it running. I am aware of the diagrams on Partstree.com. Would be nice to find a service manual though.

https://homeownersolutions.toro.com/portal/server.pt/community/product_center/225

Borat:  What might be an alternate to the shovel is a small Toro PowerLite.  There are 3 and 3.5hp versions, small, rubber auger, have wheels and are fun to use.  They toss 25 feet and can move watery slush or water very well.  Around here they can be had for $20 to $50 almost always with plugged carbs.

Shryp wrote:

Shryp, MANY thanks for that referral. I had checked the Toro web site and even saw that manual but didn't realize it covered my machine. Very good information there. That should get it going for me. Really appreciate your help!

aviator411 wrote:
You can start it with the cover off.  You'll just have to manually move the "on/off" switch by sliding the contact to the "on"  position and work the choke manually.  The carb looks like it could be hard to get at.  Pretty tight in there even for an allen wrench.

trouts2 wrote:
Thanks for that Trouts.

I'll keep my eyes peeled for one.  Not that I really need it due to having a Powershovel.  However, if it's two cycle, light and compact, I'll scoop it up if I see one.

borat wrote:

Thanks for that advice Borat. Removing the carb will be a last resort. I'll try to remove the needle and give it a shot of carb cleaner. Very helpful. Appreciate the info!

Check the condition of the primer bulb and primer fuel line.  It may have deteriorated over the years.  Without a primer, I doubt that you can start the machine.  That's where I'd look first.  Also check the cleanliness of the fuel system between tank and carb.    Remember the position of the choke and "on/off" knobs and line up the controls to match them before putting them back on.

Does your machine have wheels? 

Excellent find. 

As you say, the thing looks mint.  

I found that the Power Shovel really shines in moving three to four inch wet slushy snow from decks.  It's no where near the work that shoveling it would be.   Much of the snow is ejected over the railing and balusters but sticky stuff gets pasted on whatever it hits. 

Wow! That is cherry!!! I use an electric Toro Power Shovel now for my deck and that works pretty good but this would be better without the cord.

Theres one on ebay. Here is the link: http://cgi.ebay.com/TORO-GASOLINE-powered-Power-Shovel-Broom-Works-Great-/250741932604?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3a6162423c#ht_2844wt_1072

jrtrebor wrote:
Nice score, you can't get much better than that. 

I think its not a bad machine.Can't expect too much from it but it is definitely good for cleaning up from its bigger brother. Sorry for the clarity.Picture was taken through a window resulting in a glare.

I just, love, love, love my TORO #38350 Power Shovels. I collect and restore these and have 9 so far.

Normally the label says "Power Shovel", the very early super rare ones say  "PS-14".

Also super-rare is the triangular handle option # 59164.

Rumor has it that Lawn-Boy made a version that was green, but I have never seen one.

One problem I have found is that the vibration from use tends to loosen the intake screws on the stress plate, causing an air leak and causing a hard starting, poor running, lean condition. A little bit of blue loctite on the threads of these screws solves the problem.

If anyone wants to sell their Power Shovel/PS-14, I will buy!
rohmell@yahoo.com

You have 9 in your possession at the present? 

aa335 wrote:
Yes, I have 9 (nine) currently in my possession.
8 are running, 1 is a complete parts unit (scored piston, broken ring)