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

LOL, the top of the page looks like something I've seen somewhere else....

I know that they are "just another" opinion and not gospel by any means, but in case you are interested click here for readable size of the whole page. (Edit: I'll replace the linked to photo with a proper scan using the scanner at work tomorrow. Done.)

For any Canucks, the Canada Extra middle insert puts the 921022 up a notch as the big 30" 357 cm3 is not available in the Great White North. (They both had the same top 88 "overall score" in any case.)

It is snowing here again! What a melt we had with all the rain a few days ago.

Consumer Reports rated the HONDA machine exactly correct in my experience.   The biggest flaw in their evaluation is they test only NEW machines, which tend to always work pretty reliably.  Snow Blowing is tough on a machine, especially if it is Heavy, Sticky, Wet, Salt Laden Snow and Slush.  Over time that hard work takes its toll on any machine, and CR does not keep them around for Long Term evaluations, so one must look instead at the Reliability ratings for the brands to get a more complete picture.   They now use wet sawdust to Mimic Snow, as it has many similar properties to wet snow, but I do wonder if it can Clog a Chute the way wet heavy snow can.  On the plus side they tend to buy machines exactly the way each of us must, and they don't get models from manufacturers just for evaluation (see the new Chevy VOLT for the worst case example of that kind of manufacturer  controlled test results and evaluations)  CR may not be perfect, but they are far better than every other opinion, and always unbiased.   The one time I made a major purcahse without consulting them was a gas stove, what a disaster that was.   The stoves I purchased after that earned CR's best ratings, and I learned to rely on them.  Consumers owe them a lot in my humble opinion.  Manufacturers have a tough time making shoddy junk with CR around to test them. 

An MTD "SWEEP"

Looked at just a little differently. 

5 MTDs,  4Ariens,  2 Briggs, 2 Toro, 1 Honda. 

1        MTD

2        Ariens

3        Briggs

4        Briggs

5        MTD

6        Toro

7        Toro

8        MTD

9        Honda

10    Ariens

11    Ariens

12    MTD

13    Ariens

14    MTD

3 MTD, 1 Ariens 

TOP Recommendations

MTD

Ariens

MTD

MTD

My Toro is still #1 for me no matter what CR says.

Hmmm, they only had one track drive in this line up, and it got the worst rating for handling.

They should have picked a wheel drive Honda, to be fair, so it is possible the ppl doing the evaluation were not savy to a track drive.

While everyone knows and admits a track drive is harder to turn. There is a trick to it, and once you get the hang of it, there are other advantages to track over wheel.

This brings out what I was refering to about bias in testing. The units should have been all wheel drives, or a mixture from each brand.

Well, it is still good information, if used with other references, and your own personal test drives ;-)

I'll take a little extra salt with that Pork Chop!!!

How about their blunder in the chart under "Brand & model" where they state:

"All two-stage models run on two-stroke gas engines unless noted otherwise."  (The only one of the two-stage ones with a "note otherwise" is an electric 48 V Ariens.)

All things considered, CR is a magazine that I really look forward to getting each month since Feb 1992 and I will probably renew in May of this year when it expires.

NotMoneyGuy wrote:

I saw that in CR too. So funny.

NotMoneyGuy wrote:

I saw that in CR too. So funny.

Consumer Reports measures the NEW ONLY machines and evaluates how effectively they blow the snow.  The drive systems Do Not get evaluated at all, and a snowblower with a power chute rotation gets extra points, as do heated hand grips.  Unfortunately the drive mechanism and the reliability matter most, and CR lists brand reliability separately.  As I said in my previous post CR admits to not testing as extensively as they do other products, like cars, because only people who live where snow is a problem need to know about snowblowers.  Thus many CR subscribers have no need for, or interest in, snowblowers.   But the things they do test the machines for, are in fact valid objective tests of brand new machines.

For all machines the use of steel fasteners and surfaces that have no serious rust protection beyond a powder coating of paint is another issue that is never mentioned.  Machines that must sit in storage all summer, and move water in its solid and semi-solid state the rest of the time do not get the kind of rust protection our cars and trucks get.  There are plasticized coatings that better resist rust, and even stainless steel that could be utilized more, at least in the so-called PRO machines, yet they are not.   Unfortunately I feel these machines are seen as designed for regular replacement, and lots of maintenance by most who manufacture them.

I would like a comparison of the diameter and width of the rubber "Tire" that allows the Friction Wheel to Grip the Drive Plate because they are NOT the same on similar width and powered machines.  Ariens does make a wider larger friction wheel on their better machines, and if you call them they'll tell you the size differences.   CR should be asking such questions, and they have not.   So what CR does they do well, but they are far from perfect, and leave out some information which would be useful to us who need to buy these costly machines.

I will go out on a limb and say the CU auto reliability charts have been spot on for my families vehicles for the last 20 years or so. I'm not referring to the product tests but the actual problem areas of a vehicle that span 6 years at a time and reported by subscribers.

I'm surprised that the toro units did not score too high.  I have the two stage 826 and love it.  I also bought the little powerclear 180 and it's not too bad on small stuff either.  I used to have an Ariens two stage and it constantly broke down in the 3 years I owned it.