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

First time posting, hope you can help me decide.

What is it about the Suburu engine that causes you concern? Suburu small engines are generally considered one of the best one's out there. If money is a concern and you want a new snowblower, you may want to check out the Ariens Sno-Tek line. They're built on the same platform as the higher end Compact line but without some of the bells & whistles. They are powered with an LCT Chinese engine which I've read is on the higher end scale of Chinese engines/Honda clones. IMO, I would stick with either the Ariens or the Toro as both have good track records and are the ones who manufacture the product they sell.

You should read through some of the postings here to get some good insight from the people who own, repair and operate this type of equipment. You'll read raves, rants and recommendations but it allows you to form your own opinion. Good Luck!

It wasn't too long ago that I was faced with the same decision and I did quite a bit research and information gathering beforehand. What I did not want to be faced with was the impossible task of finding parts like I encounterd with my last machine. Cost is always important but believe me, today more than ever you get what you pay for.

Since a snowblower is not going to break down in the middle of July I realized that sooner or later I was going to end up with a new yard ornament until the snow cleared. Quite frankly the thought of my age vs. having to finish up by practicing the good old mechanical method of snow removal is what prompted me to make an out with the old and in with the new decision.

The first thing I looked at was what the the heavys were using (i.e. schools, municipal yards) and the answer was simple, 99% of the time you will find an Ariens Pro in the maintinance shed. When I asked why Ariens Pro I was told that the life expectancy of the machine was around 20 years and they were built like tanks. The stresses that a snowblower is put under can be incredible and you don't  find out about a units shortfalls until you break it in. Another important reason why the Ariens Pro is so popular in the municipal arena is because parts are always available.

Now since I chose Ariens as my company of choice I needed to figure out what model wanted to purchase since they have 3 or 4 different models available.

Knowing that this is most likely going to be the last snowblower that I will ever buy I researched them all.  What I found was quite interesting, the weight differential between similar Ariens Pro and Platinum models was incredible (almost 100 lbs) and since the equipment and engine were similar I knew right away that it had to be the either the guage of the steel or different internal parts. This was as far as I was concerned a key as to why  schools and municpal yards  were choosing Ariens Pro over all the others. Well, my mind was made up. The Pro model certainly will cost more but when it comes the incredible stresses that these machines are put under the heavy duty construction will prevail and should prove to be well worth the extra money. Quite honestly my research found that certain manufacturers replacing maintinance servicable with maintinance free parts on their lower priced models so they have an inherent shelf life built into them and eventually will have to be replaced. A sales tactic that I don't particularly agree with but very prevalent in today's manufacturing industry. Very much for the same reasons why they continuously change carrier configurations on printer cartridges and replacable battery packs even though the same internal components and technologies are being used. Simply put it forces the consumer back to the parts desk.

Secondly something that I learned quite some time ago was not to buy a tractor when you only need a lawn mower. You have to keep focused on what you need to accomplish. A 30" clearing path is fine for a driveway  but may be entirely to wide for walkways and areas that need some detailed manuvering. 

As far as extended service contracts go.....Save your money and put it into the machine. If anything goes wrong it most likely happen within the manufacturers warantee period and believe you me, the manufacturer will be sending you extended contract renewal forms well before the original warantee expires. 

My unit of choice for the area I have to cover was an Ariens Pro26 (926037) .

Reviews for this unit can be found at

http://www.ariens.com/products_snow/s_professional_group/s_professional_26/Pages/default.aspx

and

http://www.snowblowersdirect.com

Good Luck

Starwarrior

I was just at my local HD and they had a 24" Ariens Sno-Tek for $ 599.00. They also had a 24" Ariens Compact for $ 799.00. I looked over the Sno-Tek and it looks like a pretty decent "get the job done" machine for the $$$.

Craftsman is made by a number of different manufacturers.  I had an MTD manufactured  Craftsman 26" track drive for 14 years.  It was decent, but the friction wheel for my heavy snow removal became labor intensive for me.  It may not be for you given the size job you have.  The ariens are good machines, and in the friction wheel department probably more durable than my old craftsman.  Learn how to store the machine, and do it properly each year whatever you own and it will serve you longer and better.  Learn all the adjustment features as soon as possible, and don't assume the person who did the final assembly had e clue about what he was doing, check over everything, adjust the skid shoes, make sure everything that should be greased or oiled, has been, drain any gas they put in immediately and add your own fresh gas with Stabilizer in it.  Run the gas out after each use, or drain the tank. ( I had to buy and install a fuel shutoff on my Craftsman after I bought it so I could run the gas out)  It will make starting each time you need it, easy and simple.  let the gas go bad and you can get out the old back breaking snow shovel.  Good Luck !

Thanks for everyones replies. As far as the Subaru engines go, I never heard of them. Ive always heard of the Briggs and Tecumseh so I was a little concerned but guess it was just my ignorance. As far as the Ariens Sno-tek go, I have been to two local dealers picking there brains with questions trying to decide and they both had horror stories about not being able to get parts for the engines. They both said they will not be ordering anymore nor will not be carrying them next year. They said they "thought they were a less inexpensive option for consumers not looking to break the bank". Later on went on saying "whats the use if you cannot get parts". One dealer told me he sold one cutomer an electric starter for cost and instaled it for free cause he couldn't get him a spring for the recoil. So obviuosly sno-teks are out. LOL

I dont see much talk about John Deere blowers? I kinda like the Deere 827E but not sure I like the wide width. Any opinions?

If you had to decide on the Ariens 24" Platinum 921917 or the Toro 826 OXE 38624W which would you choose?

stresst wrote:

Toro's are easy to get parts for and all my local dealers have a full stock of parts. It's powerful and the auger system actually allows the snow to recycle if it's too much for the chute. Ariens has the name but in real world usability the Toro won me over. Ariens is a big heavy tank of a machine but steers worse than a tank. I want to drive my snowblower not muscle it around the driveway. Love the fact it start on first pull and you really don't see too many complaints about Toro. The Joystick whips the chute around and places it exactly where you want it and that's a must for me in certain areas or I'd lose a window. Love pulling the trigger and the machine turns. I've driven mine into hardened plow berms and it just chewed them up and spit them out. I don't know there are so few Toro 2 stage supporters in this forum but it's easy to overlook the fact that Toro makes one hell of a nice machine. Ariens is good but doesn't impress me. Just being heavy for the sake of being heavy seems like a waste. Also I LOVE the plastic chute forget the nonsense that says they aren't good. This isn't backed up by the real world. Snow doesn't clog up in the chute. Try them out and buy the one you like, just don't underestimate Toro because Ariens has a lot of vocal fans.

Something seems fuzzy. Just for yucks I looked up the spring mentioned (I used the SX21 on the Ariens 724). It’s available all over the net, even Amazon for $6. Right, this is now the story was “then”. Not questioning you stresst but something does not sniff right with “no parts”.

@ trouts2

Is stresst not talking about engine parts for a Sno-Tek's Chinese LCT engine, and not parts for a Subaru engine on a real-deal orange Ariens?

trouts2 wrote:

Ok.......so what the heck are they both talking about?? Hope its not some BS ploy to get me to spend double the money nevermind I dont think home depot would carry a line if parts were not readily available but you sort trust what local dealers are saying.........I cannot wait to go back there. Do you have the part number for the spring? I want to go there with a print out and see how he responds.

NotMoneyGuy – stresst said Subaru so…   Ariens these 920402 920403 Ariens SnowTek 24 & 28 inch slow with LCT

 

and

 

these 921020 with Subaru.

>>so what the heck are they both talking about??

 

   Who knows?? The reasons could be all over the place and with justifications spanning fantasy to real.  Where are you located? 

    It could be their supplier/warehouse was out or does not stock things they needed.  Maybe it was all unlucky coincidence.  Maybe they trashed their relationship with Stens.  Whatever.  Two dealers saying they are dropping a line for the same reason is interesting and a surprise. 

 

http://robinamerica.com/smanuals.aspx?sid=59

You can get the user and parts manuals there and get the spring number.   On taking a quick look it seems there is a Stens spring that is very available.  I’m not sure if Stens has an agreement like it did with LCT or just a second source for some Subaru parts.  Possibly Stens is the only outlet for SX21 parts.  ??   It’s hard to tell if a suppliers part is a Subaru part or an aftermarket.  Some suppliers say and some don’t. 

   In order to make a story more flowing it could have been he had a hard time getting a cowling section and just filled in the part as spring.  Maybe he could have gotten the part in two weeks but the customer was giving him a hard time so installed the electric start at a discount.  But two dealers makes it different.