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

I am looking at purchasing my first snow blower.  My local shop carries Toro's and Ariens.  I live in northern NJ (morris county) and we had a lot of wet heavy/icy snow last year, so the wife has finally given in to the purchase. 

Our driveway is about 125' long and most of it is a about a single car lane, but it opens up to about 3 wide at the bottom.  Also my neighbor's drive way is adjacent to it and its about two cars lanes wide in front of their house and one car wide between the two houses.  So I'd have to throw the snow straight ahead when I am in the section between the two houses.

I'm currenty thinking of purchasing the Arien's 920013 (Compact 22).  Do you think a 6 HP engine will cut it, or should I be looking at a 7 HP?

You guys had some unusal weather last year - namely the weather we were supposed to get  (we was robbed)! You might be better served with a single stage for 95%+ of the storms you typically see in NJ. If you were to go the 2 stage route, a 6HP or 7HP would work fine. I used a Honda HS624WA (6HP, 24" Bucket) for 10 years and never had an issue. Like any piece of OPE however, you need to work the machine within it's designed limits or all bets are off. During very wet and heavy snowfall storms (cement type snow), I would not take a full bite as the machine was working close to full load. It would move the snow but it was working very hard to do so. Again, it served me well for the 10 years I owned and operated it - no complaints. The only reason I sold it was I came across a deal on a HS928TA that I could not pass up.

I just picked up the 920013 that you are looking at. I was drawn  to it because of the subaru motor and have heard nothing but good things about them. From what everyone has said the power should be comperable to the briggs 9.00 torque engine. Like said previously, work with the conditions. While this is not a wide machine (which may help putting limited load on the engine) rather than a super wide intake. I am still waiting for the first snowfall of the year to try it out.

Go to Consumer Reports, but DO NOT read their Ratings or Recommendations, go to their Forums under 'Lawn & Garden', find the snow blower advice, it explains everything you should know.

Honda Snowblowers work better than all the rest.  they cost a lot more, but make it for it in ability, and freedom from repairs.  All other makes use a 'friction wheel' drive system that needs regular maintenance you will need the repair shop to do.  Save yourself the aggravation, get a Honda Snowblower.   Mine is a HS 928 TAS  (9 HP -28" clearing width, Track Drive, Hydrostatic Transmission, Electric Start ) No Friction Wheel rubber to wear out, No "Drive Plate" to roughen up when it is worn smooth, No Drive Belt. I had an Ariens and a Sears craftsman (MTD), glad to be rid of both. 

Based on the particluar area you need to cover I would recommend the 29" Pro Ariens (926) as the best bullt machine on the current market.

A Pro model Ariens is the only thing you will see in every school and local community  building north of the Pecos.

Hey lets face it , when it comes to the New Jersey school district, taxpayer money has always been a spare no expense mindset and they only choose Ariens.

Just check weight differential of compatable manufacturers and you will see that Ariens Pro machines average about 100 lbs heavier.

You pay for what you get here their is no doubt about it. A little more money  but you can bank on the fact that you will not have to invest in another machine for the next 20 years.

Starwarrior

I'm also looking to purchase a snowblower for use in Central New Jersey.

My driveway is about 500 ft. long with a parking area for (4) cars in front of my garage. I have decided to find the best price on an Arien's Snowblower (new). I found this through Home Depot, Ariens Deluxe 2-Stage, 28 in. Gas Snow Blower, Model # 921022 which lists for $999.

Here's my plan of attack. I went to my local post office and requested a Change of Address Packet. In that packet is a Lowe's 10% off coupon, which I'm told Home Depot will honor. If not, I have a backup plan. I went to the Home Depot website and went to Services..................Moving............and signed up that I was moving. Home Depot also gave me a 10% off coupon.

The $999 comes down to $899.10 excluding 7% state sales tax. I have a small SUV and a trailer. I plan to go to the closest Home Depot in Delaware, which is about an hour and a half drive. I'll save $62.93 in tax. To me it's worth the trip.

I'll call the Delaware Home Depot to be sure that they have a snowblower on hold for me. I'll take a road trip to save. Interested in going on a road trip? Maybe planning for this coming Sat or Sunday?

FYI, a compact 22 is $699 for model 920013, less 10% = $629.10, no tax if you want to split the gas to Delaware from Flemington. I could help you load the compact 22 in your trunk or truck at my place.

Any thoughts?

Johnny

l would go with if possiable at least 8-10 hp 10 perffered. look for machines with 300cc and bigger.

James, we're neighbors, I'm in Passaic County. 

FYi, last year I bought a 24" Troy Built Storm 2410 with a 179cc ~6 HP blower from Lowes and returned it after the late season big storm we got.  Just didn't have enough power.

A few weeks ago I just bought a 24" Airens Platinum that I'm optimistic will handle any/all storms  we will get based on the info I've gotten here from snowmann and others.

I'm not the expert here but I've done the side by side comparison of Airens 24" models....compact, Deluxe and Platinum and I can tell you the compact model is a lightweight bare bones unit.  You might want to think about stepping up to a 24" deluxe.

Shoot snowmann a PM for advice.

New_Yorker wrote:
I strongly disagree. Friction wheel maintenance/replacement is a very simple job requiring only basic hand tools. No engineering degree required. The rubber part (on those that I am familiar with) is less than $10 and easily obtained and swapped out every 4-10 years. I've cleaned drive plates, but never roughened one up. That seems like a good way to shorten the life of the wheel.  For many, the hour of maintenance to replace a friction wheel more than makes up for the >50% price increase for a hydrostatic.

Also, while I'll never say Honda does not make a reliable machine, no present day machine has freedom from repairs - no matter who made it.

I've been using disk driven snow throwers for decades in demanding Canadian winter conditions.   Never had a problem with disks.   Auger drive belts usually  last around five seasons and wheel drive belts last forever.   I got an average of ten years of hard use out of moderate quality machines (Craftsman) and their weak point was chassis deterioration due to metal fatigue, cracked welds and parts falling off.   Propulsion and snow throwing components never failed and I have never even had to add gear lube to the auger drive gear case.   For the money,  even moderate quality units are a good buy and will last reasonably well if even modestly maintained. 

I think Honda is a great product.  However, they are NOT a great value.  I was shopping for  a new machine a few years ago.  I looked at all of the domestic brands and the Honda.  I bought a 928 Simplicity for half the price of a  Honda HS624.  I could buy a garage full of Honda machines if I wanted and I don't mind spending money.  However, I do have a problem paying more money than what I feel the product is worth.  Honda machines fall into that category.   Had the Honda been around $500.00 more than the Simplicity, I probably would have bought one.  However, being a full $1500.00 more than what I paid for the Simplicity, on a machine not nearly as big or powerful,  I found that to be overtly excessive.  Insulting actually.

Honda advocates will vehemently support their decision for spending the big bucks for whatever reasons.   To me, I really don't care what technical advantages Hondas have.   What matters is how much snow I can move in the least amount of time, with the least amount of effort and fuss and to put it where I want it.  The Simplicity does all of that with aplomb.   For what I paid, I doubt there was a better product out there at the time.  I got an 11 h.p. engine, on a chassis that's built like a tank, excellent mechanical controls, easy steer and single handed operation capability.  Everything on the Simplicity is very robust.  Massive cast iron gear case, wide diameter impeller and auger shafts, close clearance impeller and all metal constructions.  This is a top quality domestic machine and I got if for $1500.00 CDN out the door.  

I bought the Simplicity in the fall of 2007.  A guy across the street from me bought a brand new Honda 624 at the same time.   His driveway is half the sized of mine and it takes him twice as long to clear his.  For it's size, the 624 moves snow impressively.  However, it's NOT in the same class as the Simplicity for sheer volume of snow moved in a given period of time.  Nor can it throw it as far.  From what I see, the operator has difficulty maneuvering the machine due to the track drive.  Looks to me like he's struggling with it quite a bit and it is slow.   

Other than the bragging rights of being able to say "I own a Honda.", there is no clear advantage to me to own one.  Especially for more than twice the price.              

Thanks guys, but my wife spoke to my neighbor and he has a toro 1 stage and he said he's really happy with it.  I've been shoveling this thing for the last 5 years, so even if it gets a little bogged down, I can help it out.  For me (at this point) the extra $1000 bux to get a premium 2 stage vs a power clear doesn't seem worth it to me.  Guess I won't know until after a season or two.  Do you think the maintenance costs would go down with a 1 stage.  My friend said she needed to bring her 2 stage in and it cost a few hundred bux to service it.

The single stage Toro and the operator will be getting quite a workout for 125' drive.  It's doable, just takes longer.

Maintenance costs for the Toro single stage isn't that bad, I'm assuming you're looking into the 221Q or the 421Q.  That should be around $80 in rubber parts and scraper blade every two years, depending on use.   Takes about half an hour or less to put on and adjusting the belt tension.  So that's about $40 a year.  Run the gas out of the engine end of season before storing and that's basically it.  Wash it and wipe it down if you're particular.

I have a 12 year old Honda HS621 and I just did an overhaul on a machine that had virtually no maintenance on it for 8 years.  It was used with moderate hours but not abused.  Total costs was $200 in parts plus a paint job ($30 paint supplies) and it looks and works brand new.  So that's around $30 per year.  This is the result of all that hard work.  :)

Honda HS621 Refresh

My 2 stage snowblower is almost new and has very little hours on it.  It comes out to work when there's a big snowfall or punch a hole through the EOD pile.  The only maintenance so far is an oil change, wash, and wax.  It's a more complicated machine so I have to be diligent  to inspect everything over every season so small problems don't brew and spawn to become big problems.  Bigger and more complicated machines will inherently costs more to maintain, just the nature of the beast.

However, your purchase decision should be based on matching the machine to the job.  If you overtax the small machine, it will wear out faster and costs more to operate.

I live in Wisconsin, we get a boat load of snow. I would recommend an Ariens Pro series. Like the others have said, this is a long term purchase.

Just remember, you will be using it for the next 15-20 years. I know I have purchased items and years down the road, a said to myself, "why didn't I spend the $400 more and get the best".

Think about your situation and get a good value machine but certainly one that will perform for a long time. Get an Ariens model  #926037

Just my 2 cents...........

Bill

Single stage machines work great on hard smooth surfaces where the snow is not too deep.  The augers usually have a rubber edge that wears, but cleans smooth surfaces well.  If the surface is rough the machine will wear that rubber strip in short order, and small one stage machines are unsuitable for gravel drives.   But Good Luck with whatever you buy.

Copied from another thread:

"Canadian Winters would probably be significantly easier than what places like southern New England and Long Island get."

Do you think?  I could have sworn that parts of Canada are a bit north of New England.    

I live on the north shore of Lake Superior.  We get a great deal of lake effects snow. It's December 1st and we've already got over 14" of snow and almost all of it fell heavy and wet.  It rained here all day yesterday.  If it had fallen as snow, we would have received another 10  to 12" of wet snow.   We'll get snow right into mid to late April.  Last year, we received 30" of heavy wet snow on April 1st. 

Believe me, where I live, you're above statement couldn't be more inaccurate.  Machines in this neck of the woods see demanding service. 

Proper use and maintenance of the machine will go a long way toward keeping it functional.   I do my own maintenance and do frequent inspections/adjustments.  Neighbours who aren't as vigilant are packing their snow throwers into the back of their pick ups and hauling them in for service every two or three years. 

There's nothing wrong with disk drive systems.   They're simple, reliable and inexpensive to repair if and when necessary. 

New_Yorker wrote:

We do get a lot of the wetter snow here but they also get it up in Canada above us in Quebec Province. Some states tend to get a lot of powder but many States get crappy wet slushy snow. Higher elevations tend to get more powder, but not always. We rarely get powder and I'm in Central NH. The only way I can see wearing my Toro's drive plate out quickly is if I was running it full tilt into 3 foot high snowbanks of packed snow. Most pro's up here use Toro and Honda tracked machines. Drive an hour south and I have no idea what they use. Our city uses a beast of a machine for sidewalks. It doesn't throw it far but it will throw pure slush. It might throw further but they never do.

New_Yorker wrote:

What snowblower did you have?   In eastern Mass the snow is more than twice what you get and friction disks last from 10 to 30 years.  I've never heard of a drive plate having to be "roughed up",   Cleaned yes.   The sense of "never went longer than 2 years" suggests you probably went through a rubber in one year.   No machine built is that bad.  MTD is the worse I know of and down where you live an MTD friction disk should last 10 to 15 with proper use.  They do that up here.

Your machine must have had a defect and/or way out of adjustment.  If you kept replacing friction disks all the time it's like following the elephant with a shovel and not curing the problem.

>>"no easy task for a part not designed to be removed from the machine for regular service"

   It's very rare for the drive plate assembly to ever need repair.  Sometimes a bearing but anything more would be extreamly rare i.e. drive plate surface. I"ve seen lots of 30-40 year old machines and never had a drive plate surface problem unless there was some other cause which messed up the plate surface like using the machine with the rubber gone so metal to metal on the drive plate surface. 

   Making a negative generalization about friction disk based systems based on your experience is not justified.  The crop of friction disk snowblowers in use today probably makes up 99.8 percent with Honda and the rest of non-friction disk systems making up the rest. 

That pretty much sums up my feelings as well Trouts.

In all of my 30 or so years of using snow throwers and ownership of three, I've never had a disk drive problem that wasn't simply a matter of contamination on the disk, usually in the form of water from melted snow.  Other than that, nothing.  They were stone axe reliable.

It appears that some Honda owners need to justify the expense of their machines.  After all, two to three times the cost of a decent domestic machine should buy you something right? 

First off l strongly agree with trouts and borat on "friction disk dependableity" , lve been working on snowblowers for 15 years and never heard of a friction disk needing replaced yearly ever! if that was the case as trouts said there must have been something else going on there.

Allow me to suggest you buy the largest and most powerful snowblower you can afford. As usual I agree with Borat. I also have a Simplicity snowblower (924E) and am thoroughly satisfied with its build quality and performance. Honda makes an impressive product but they are very expensive and, in my opinion, not worth the extra cost.  

So, is the (921019) ST24E (24") 211cc Two-Stage Snow Blower w/ Subaru Engine good enough?  Or should I be looking at the the Deluxe Platinum ST24DLE (24") 249cc (921017)? I don't think I really need to go up to the professional grade.

My dealer still has a 921019 which is about $350 cheaper, but from what I am hearing, the platinum features and the bigger engine would be worth the price difference.

not the expert here but according to snowmann, the 2 engines are comparable in output so then the difference in price between the deluxe and the platinum is for the headlight, handwarmers, chute control and traction control.

jyanno wrote:

Your area is 125 foot 1 car wide drive with wide entrance.  You get 40-50 inches average a year which is not all that much.  It's 12 -15 less than what I'm used to.  You don't need a lot of power.   You mentioned one place where you have to toss ahead which would end up causing maybe 30 feet of partial double throw.   For the rest you would only have to throw from one side of the drive way to your land side.  No requirement for big power. 

The 211cc is a nice engine and the hp around 6 - 6.75 (probably the high side).  The tourque on that engine is claimed to be a bit higher compared to a similar Briggs.  The 921019 is nice and has the basics with 14 inch augers and 14 inch impeller.  It's got the XS gearbox which is great.  With the three car EOD you might have to take a thinner cut on some storms but will get the area cleared without a problem.   I would think you'd be fine with the 19. 

You might want more power and features in other models.   You could go 622, 724 or 824 and be fine.   With a long thin drive you won't need be turning much so no need for differential or other easy turn features.  Snowblowers are pretty easy to turn with both wheels locked.   

I had an Ariens snowblower, probably their largest 2 stage model for many years it worked well, but eventually lost its ability to drive into heavy wet snow.  I donated it to a relative who put a new engine on it, and its still working for someone out there.   The 15 Years i had the MTD -Craftsman with tracks it was fine so long as the friction wheel mechanism was recently serviced. Last few years i ended up having to help push it whenever it encountered heavy wet slush and snow.  I decided to spring for the Honda because 1- i was sick of the cold weather repair and adjustment needed to make it work, and 2- i'm not pushing anything anymore, life's too shrt and the hospital bill would be a lot more than the Honda snowblower. Light powder is never the problem, it's the wet southern New England snow that's the problem.  If the snow belt line is north, we get rain but when its close by, as it often is, we get this heavy wet snow that snowblowers struggle to throw.  If your friction wheel 2 stage does the job, great.  but for me it required a lot of extra maintenance.  That is why i bought the pricey HONDA HS 928 TAS machine.  It wasn't because I wanted to pay 3 times the price, but I have been there and tried the friction wheel machines and it just didn't Do The Job.  Say what you want, but I Know the Honda will get it done.

New_Yorker wrote:

New_Yorker: First let me state that I'm not trying to get you wound up, but there are more friction wheel drive units out there than not and most don't have the issues you describe. Labeling ALL friction wheel drive snowblowers as inferior or not up to the task of clearing snow is misleading and inaccurate. You had your MTD-Craftsman for 15 years - how did it perform for the majority of those years? You say it required " a lot of extra maintenance" but was that maintenance performed by someone who knew what they were doing? Maybe you got a lemon - it does happen from time to time? You state that your Ariens worked great for many years until it "lost its ability to drive into heavy wet snow" and then a relative replaced the engine. Not quite sure if this was engine or drive system related but it did last for "many years".  

Friction wheel drive has been around for a long time and is a tried and proven propulsion method that is used on almost every snowblower out there except perhaps for the Honda's and Yamaha's. If this system was so problem plagued, it would have been replaced with some other method long ago because people would stop buying snowblowers equipped with friction wheel drive propulsion. In reading your posts, I believe you mentioned that you have not used your new Honda in the snow yet?

I've been using Honda snowblowers for over 10 years and can tell you first hand that they are very nice, well built machines, but there is nothing magical about them. If you overwork the engine or transmission, you will have problems with your new Honda. It may be your technique that requires some thought as it sounds like your pushing the equipment beyond its engineered design limits. Forcing any snowblower into heavy, wet snow (IMO) is not the best way to work the equipment. Taking a smaller bite and slowing down to allow the equipment (namely the augers/impeller) to process the snow would be a better method. Technique and regular, routine maintenance are usually all that is required to keep any equipment operating as it was designed.

   In 15 years it might be possible to have to replace the friction disk three times.   It would depend on a few things.  

You mentioned getting lots of salt on your EOD pile. 

Clear after work and the snow had sat all day compressing and melting. 

Your area gets lots of sun. 

Maybe the road you’re on gets lots of sun making the EOD pile pretty bad. 

Possibly you’re overdriving the machine.  

The MTD was a track.  Was that because you have a steep area? 

 

With all of those working together and having an MTD with a very slim friction disk it could wear in five.  Given your average snow load per year something has to be unusual for you to have experienced the problems you have had.   

FrankMA:

Very well put. 

Rest assured that those of us who know anything at all about snow throwers or mechanics in general, will take New Yorkers posts with more than a grain of salt.   Credibility is hard to sustain when the information provided is dead wrong.   There are a lot of experienced and knowledgeable participants in this forum.  I'm certain that the combined advice of those who know of what they speak, will guide those looking for advice in the right direction.   

 

I justify the prices of my high end OPE purchases by amortizing the cost over the anticipated service life. If you spread it out long enough it barely costs you anything on a yearly basis :). The way I look at it, you're only here for so long and the work needs to be done so you might as well have OPE that you enjoy using. One other thing, always understate the true cost of the equipment to your wife - it'll make your life sooo much easier....

Yeah, I could be buying Honda machines but if I did, I'd feel that I was capitulating to the gougers.   Particularly the local dealers who smile while they're sticking it to you.  If I were ever to replace the Simplicity, I'd probably order a Yamaha.   Not locally either!   Yamaha appear to make an awesome snow thrower even though the h.p. ratings appear a bit low for the performance they promise.   Something like this would do just fine:


http://www.yamaha-motor.ca/products/products.php?model=3537&section=td&group=G#contentTop

 

When MSP (Minneapolis-St. Paul) had a snow storm about a week ago, I thought my Honda HS724WA was adequate and did a nice job but I was a bit worried about it only having 6.5hp.  I was debating back and forth then finally gave my Honda dearler a call on Dec 7, 2010 and asked if I could upgrade to Honda HS928WAS.  The Honda dearler gave me a full credit and was very understanding.  I used the HS724WA once so it was in an excellent condition.  On that afternoon I got the 8.5hp HS928WAS.  When I purchased the 724WA a week ago, the dearler had eight HS928 in stock but they only had two left on 12/7/2010.  So there are a lot of people wanting high performance Honda snowblowers.  The machine is a bit louder than the HS724 so it went from a kitty sound to a lion's roar.  Last night and today, MSP got around 18" of snow thus far and it is still snowing.  The HS928WAS was very strong/robust and can blow very far even at the minimum throttle setting.  The 928 is much faster than the 724 so it was a worthwhile upgrade.  Do I still feel stupid about buying an expansive Honda snowblower?  Not anymore after today's performance.  It is a nice and powerful toy.  My family was not too impressed with me at first but after watching me clearing our driveway and neighbors in a heartbeat, they were truly impressed and glad we got one.  When you have a high performing snowblower, blowing snow can be FUN and enjoyable to watch.

FrankMA wrote:
Excellent Post FrankMA!! It's all in the way you work your machine into the EOD!!

woweh wrote:

So I have to admit that this was the first real snow the Pro 28 (28"  15.5 ft. lbs. [approx. 10 HP]) was up against.  It was 8" (1" slush under 7" of average/powder snow).  However, being a bit proud of my new investment, being neighborly and perhaps that it's early in the season, I was in a helping mood.  Around the block corner, there is a stretch where the sidewalk recesses about 5' under the height of an embankment.  This left a drift up to the top of the bucket and I nearly had to pull up the drift cutters!

The regular areas were usually done in 3rd gear (didn't ever try to go faster).  I went straight into the EOD plow-pack in 1st .  It DID tax the engine but not ever close to the point of truly bogging it down to a stall and the snow was being repositioned a nice distance.  No problem noticed.  Too bad it was blizzard conditions or I would have tilted the deflector up a ways to see just how far it could throw? 

Here's a possibly useful tip:  This machine is so evenly balanced it will "wheelie" as soon as it's dropped into gear.  So the technique I'm trying to remember is if I stop, before resuming the forward momentum, I need to pull it back 6" or so.  This way, after it "wheelies" upon engagement, it will return the scaper down to full contact and won't miss any snow.

OK, so here's my bit of caution:  As I mentioned earlier, there was an area I was clearing that had me VERY near the top of the bucket (woo hoo!!) for about a 10' stretch.  What bummed me out was that, as was warned to us about the friction disk, it can and will slip in extreme circumstances.  When I was in this deep snow, I was in 1st gear.  The engine was taxed but my forward speed had stopped.  I thought that it was because my wheels were spinning.  As I glanced down, I noticed my wheels were not spinning.  I seriously thought that the wheels would break free before the disk, but I guess these tires really work well, even without chains!  Hmmm...time for some technique.  And it was a breeze!

All I needed to do was to tilt the machine up a little bit (back to doing more "wheelies"), maybe an inch or three.  The machine then ate into the snow; I'd pull it back 6"-12" and go at it normally so I'd get a clean scrape and repeat the process.  It made quick work of a 20" drift!  Now as the machine is pretty wide, I am pretty happy just taking two passes on a sidewalk so I was going into this drift at full width.  I suppose I should try and see how it would go had I sliced off 1/2 to 3/4 of the width, instead?  I wonder if the Platinum or Deluxe machines would remedy this disk slippage as their weight is lighter and perhaps their drive wheels would give way, first?

What was weird about this was that one of my concerns before purchasing such an evenly (read...lightly) balanced machine was that I was afraid that the nose would climb when going into a deep mound.  So far I haven't seen this but I'm going to have to keep an eye on the wheels if I happen to get "stuck" in the deep stuff.

On a side note, my neighbor must have inherited an old (the "white" ones) Ariens this year.  I saw him doing fine with his but I can tell you I can outdistance him, handily.  Hoping that mine turns out to be working that well when it is as old as that old boy!  My 210R also did well on my back porch but I did work up a bit of a sweat pushing it (I'm liking the Auto Traction Control on that 300 pounder)! 

Time to change out my 5-hour oil tomorrow.

Since you were in some deep snow do you think some could have melted and got on the friction disk somehow? That can cause slipping if it gets wet.

" JohnWI wrote:

What bummed me out was that, as was warned to us about the friction disk, it can and will slip in extreme circumstances.  When I was in this deep snow, I was in 1st gear.  The engine was taxed but my forward speed had stopped.  I thought that it was because my wheels were spinning.  As I glanced down, I noticed my wheels were not spinning.  I seriously thought that the wheels would break free before the disk, but I guess these tires really work well, even without chains!  Hmmm...time for some technique. 

HTTPs://ouppes.com

Another perspective: I don't experience the same kind of intense winters that some of you do...so I guess that makes me an amateur by comparison. I'm in central New Jersey, and our winters over the last 20 years have been anywhere from slushy / sloppy to snowfalls in the range of 12 to 14 inches, with drifts in the range of a couple of feet. Not alpine, but serious enough when it's bad to appreciate the difference between good and less-than-stellar snow blowers.

When I first bought my house close to 20 years ago, I also looked around for a snowblower, and really hadn't done much homework. I wound up buying a Craftsmen without really knowing what I was doing. Can't tell you the model number or HP, but at the time it "looked" good to me: giant front opening, nice controls and features - and it was about $650 at the time. Having no clue, I thought I was getting a bargain. After getting it home, it seemed like a good luck charm, in that we barely got any snow for the next couple of years. Finally, third year in, we got some serious snow. I filled the tank with fresh gas, checked the oil and fired it up. I was stunned at how poorly it handled the snow, especially if it was the least bit slushy (result of the road / driveway being a bit too warm when the snow hit). I was lucky if it shot the snow 10 feet, and if I only had to restart the thing 3 or 4 times before finishing the job. I had Sears check it out, service / clean it, and I was told it should run like new. The following winter I ran into the exact same experience, and finally gave up on the machine. I was ready to park it at the curb for the trashmen, but actually wound up selling it at a yard sale (full disclosure - but the buyer was convinced he could tune it up himself).

After a very frustrating few years with a mediocre machine, I started checking out reviews and local stores. Hondas were appealing, but seemed beyond my budget - until I stepped into a power equipment shop that was selling off the remains of their inventory and had an HS928TAS for sale in the mid-teens (don't recall the exact price). That was more than I had planned to spend at the time, but a significant discount off list, and I convinced myself (and my wife) that it would be worth the cost. Looking at current prices for the HS928TAS, I think I got a great price for mine.

Anyway -- snows have been more serious in the 10 or 11 years that I've been using the HS928. We had one winter with a couple of back to back storms and drifting that left parts of my 100 ft driveway covered in close to 2 ft of snow. I live on a cul-de-sac, and when the township sends a plow through, a couple of quick drives around the circle and I'm left with a 2 ft or higher wall of compressed snow at the bottom of the driveway, typically at least 2 feet thick at the base. This winter has been intense, with several snows already, with accumulations over a foot each time. Last week's storm dropped 14 inches on top of a few from just a few days earlier. So my HS928 has had to earn its keep.

The Honda has been, in a word, spectacular. I'm not a fanboy -- just appreciate a good piece of equipment when I get to use one, and I have no doubt there are other good ones out there. Just relating my experience with the HS928TAS. The only "maintenance" that I've had to do on this is maintain the oil, add stabilizer to the gas when it's not winter, and I've replaced the spark plug twice -- all in more than 10 years of use.

First start of the season may take a few seconds with the electric starter (luxury item!), but I find that for the rest of the season, only a single pull of the hand-starter is needed to crank it up. I find that, even when I've got 14 inches base, 2 ft or greater drifts, the snow plow mound at the foot of the 100 ft driveway -- I can clear the driveway completely, so quickly, that I've gotten into the habit of also clearing my next door neighbor's driveway as well. He's about my age, but has a chronic illness that prevents him from taking on tasks like this, and it's so easy for me to do (his driveway is also about 100 ft) that I can't see him having to hire a service to do this. I typically do both driveways, and both front walks (about 50 ft each). A couple of years, the snow plow did such a mediocre job that I wound up circling our cul de sac with the 928, cleaning up what the truck-driven snow plow left behind.

This year will be the first "repair" I've had to perform on the 928 in a decade. The blower shear-off bolt just gave way as I finished up after the last snow. I'll pop a new one in tomorrow, and should be on my way again after replacing this $8 part.

My first experience with the Craftsmen was so disappointing, and my experience with the Honda so positive, trouble-free and maintenance-free, that the Honda strikes me as a good deal. I know I got an unusually low price for it, so that helps -- but this machine still looks and runs like new, and I expect it to still be using it in another 5 to 10 years, although I might wind up having to replace some parts at some point. In the end, it's been a great deal for me.

- Jon

JohnWI said:  "Here's a possibly useful tip:  This machine is so evenly balanced it will "wheelie" as soon as it's dropped into gear.  So the technique I'm trying to remember is if I stop, before resuming the forward momentum, I need to pull it back 6" or so.  This way, after it "wheelies" upon engagement, it will return the scaper down to full contact and won't miss any snow."


I'm wondering if Ariens machines have varying balancing between the Compact, Deluxe, Platinum, and Pro series.  Why would they make Pro models that are balanced so much?  You'd think Ariens would not allow their Pro machines to have such a problem.

borat wrote:
Yeah, those Hondas are really nice, but they do indeed gouge a guy.

About the Yamaha:  Wow!  What a machine!  Even more pricey than Honda.  I think I'd put it in a museum just to admire it.  Where does a person buy such a blower?  Or service it?  Not in my neck of the woods.

If you live near NE Washington then you can across the boarder (near HWY 97) and buy a Yamaha (maybe next year) near Kelowna BC.  Kelowna is a nice ski resort town (Big White).

coasteray wrote:

You can only buy the $4,000 Yamaha in Canada, although I might be able to buy them through the Company I work for. I haven't tried. I've bought damn near everything, it would be a good challenge.  sadly we will never need one here.

Although probably not as satisfying as the time I had to get a specific Mil-Spec (remember mil-spec) Paint that was custom made 20 or so years prior and the only guy who could make it was retired. I did get it made and he came out of retirement just to make it.  Those were good times!