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

          How many of you folks out there with MTD snowblowers, have had problems, or no problems?

Let's count and see how :"Junky MTD" does !!, compared to Ariens great QC ! ! ! 

                                                                 Fred            

On the subject of MTD, let me be brief. It doesn't matter whether this forum thinks it's a good product or not. It fills a price point that some people are willing to pay, but not exceed. Everyone has a different need, and for some MTD fills the bill. For some, I actually think that MTD is an enjoyable challenge. My next door neighbor has an MTD lawn tractor that must be 15 years old. It breaks down every year, but they moan and complain and still keep fixing it. If they ever get fed up with it, they will buy another MTD and the cycle will start all over again. It simply wouldn't occur to them to buy something different in the hope of getting something better, even though they could certainly afford it. They like doing whatever it takes to keep their cheap machine running, even if it costs them more in time and effort in the long run.

As far as snowblowers are concerned, those of us who purchased HATS machines (Honda_Ariens_Toro_Simplicity) have decided that we probably wouldn't be satisfied with the cheapest alternative available. But there will always be someone willing to sell a cheaper product, and always someone willing to buy it. That's why the idea of a buying guide and a help forum (although well-intentioned) will only have limited success. The Gospel has been preached for thousands of years but to this day, it only helps those who want to be saved.

AZ

Amen!

Love the H.A.T.S abbreviation.

Marc

AZ, that statement was just awsome.  I agree with everything.  You are the first I ave seen to use the HATS term.  I hope you can contribute that term to the forum and we can all use it. 

You could turn it around too and, if you stuttered, it would be TAH TAH'S  

HATS....the forum is welcome to use it, with my compliments.

AZ

Or even.....................SHAT..........because if it has moving parts , it will break.   Really,  HATS is great.                                                              18degrees

Marshall wrote:

thank you for your valued opinion

wd

Thanks for the contribution.   I'll say thanks to AZinOH, we have this term everytime I use it. 

i would certainly like to have a HATS machine and will when funds allow for it.

in the mean time my old crafts will do the job well enough.

as far as the mtds of the world i hope folks keep using them.they do indeed fill a need.

there are a lot of them around and they do require a certain amount of repairs .

that being said i will point out a few things that i have learned over the years being fully involved with snowblowers for a very long time (seems like it anyway).

the folks that buy the HATS machines are either ex owners of lesser quality machines ,or they used a HATS machine for a while and wanted one themselves or they did some research and bought the best they could find.

the Hats owners having spent a bit more cash sometimes are a bit more carefull with proper care and service of there machine.this also increases the life of the product.

the mtders of the world seem to not be quite as fussy with maintenence and not so carefull in its use.

im trying not to cast a mold here but these are just some observations i have made.over the years.and i do live in an unusual place most of you arent even shure  where i am .

so the mtders seem to suffer a bit more illuse than the HATS machine

all thats fine with me because without them i wouldnt have a job for very long.

now we all understand that illuse and abuse will destroy even the best machine in short order.

i have learned that a snowblower will not pile your firewood

it will not bring in your saturday paper.

it will not rearrange your paving stones.

it will not take out the trash .

it will however always find the chain that just fell off its own tire on the last pass.

it will peel the bumper cover off your neighbors car.

it will eat the hose on your barbecue.

it will find your door mat .

it will get your extension cord .

on and on.

also sometimes the mtders last a very long time.

so i wonder is it really the machine always ...nope

more often than not it is operator error.

later chris 

  

I agree they (MTD, Murray (RIP) and AYP) are machines that fill a space in the market.

Any and every brand will have a quality problem crop in the field from time to time. It happens to auto makers all the time.  No sampling plan can compare with mass use. With Gilson the year or the UniTrol chute ring welds comes to mind as well as the time a supplier changed the plating on idler rollers and the oil impreganted bushings all cooked in a few hours.

Sure there are construction details we can talk about but the real test is to take a population of machines MTD & SATH (my preferred order) and check on them 2 or 3 decades latter.

Pete