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

Seen a lot of questions and comments on this so I'll just post my 2 cents worth.  We get a lot of HARD blown in snow around here.  Just bought a Honda HS928TCD (tracks) and I think it's night and day compared to two other wheel types I have used.  Yes, the Honda is (only slightly) harder to make a turn at the end of the line, but this is very much more than compensated for by not having to fight the blower through the first 200 yards of hard snow to get to the turn.  The Honda just pushes ahead and and is very easy to steer.

The hydrostatic drive on the Honda is good to have.  It shifts on the fly (no declutching) to adjust to any speed required do get the job done right.  The electric chute controls are wonderful - don't seem to have a problem freezing up.  When looking to buy, I found the manual chute controls on Hondas sturdily built but a bit hard to turn compared to others.  Electric....good.  WIsh the Honda had heated grips (it's -36 C here today!).

When going through lots of harder snow, the Honda engine is obviously working harder.  I compensate by slowing down forward speed or taking a partial cut - no sense in putting undue stress on the new guy, but I suppose it's only logical that more snow to move equals harder work for the engine.

The two wheelies took a lot of muscle for the hard snow - almost woulda been easier to shovel it.  My old wheelie (JD 826 with chains and "summer" tires) went thru but slowly and with difficulty and lots of muscle required.  The other new wheelie (since returned to dealer), equipped with "snow hog" type tires simply refused to touch the stuff.  I looked into getting chains for the snow hogs, but most dealers, even those that sold chains made expressly for the snow hogs, said they didn't help much (one said they made things worse!).

The Honda tracker is definitely more difficult to handle than a wheelie when in the garage on dry concrete, but I can live with that.  Maybe the suggestion of putting it on a creeper would help, but I just don't have to move it around there much anyway.  Come summer: prep it, store it and see ya next winter.

Bottom line (for me): probably almost anything will go through soft snow, but if you need to blow hard snow, get a tracked model.  I love my HS928TCD , and I imagine the new Yamahas and perhaps other tracked models (ie Ariens, but no hydrostatic drive) would work as well.

As I have stated several times on various posts, I was apprehensive about the track drive system vs. wheel drive because of all the negative comments that have been posted. The friend I bought my slightly used HS928TA from convinced me otherwise and I'm glad I listened to him. Learning the proper technique of manuvering and handling the track drive system is really the key to smooth and painless operation.

If you try to fight the tracks or use them as you would a wheel drive system you will definitely be disappointed. Operating a track drive in the showroom or on bare pavement is simply not a good method of judging the way they handle in real world (i.e. snow covered ground) conditions. Yes, it is not easy to move around your garage in the middle of summer but if it is placed on a dolly your problem is solved. Once I have my machine ready to tackle the winter, it stays off the dolly and is ready for use at a moments notice. I appreciate all makes and types of OPE and enjoy using all the toys I have in my arsenal.

It's a good thing that we have many brands to choose from when we decide to go out and buy a piece of OPE. Just because one prefers brand X over brand Y does not mean that one is neccessarily better than another. Some like brunettes, some like red heads, me, I've always been a sucker for a pretty blonde! That said, it does not mean that one is better than the other.

I wish I had a HS928 track version so I can do a direct comparison.  My HS928 wheel version is neither perfect nor easy to manuver on a dry pavement but it blows reasonably well compared to my old MTD 8hp 24" blower.  I have no issues with my wheel version blower - I was not interested in paying for more than what I needed to clean my small driveway.  I wish I have gotten WA instead of WAS as I have no need for an electriic starter.  If a track model works out for you then good for you and if wheel model  works for you then it is equally good for you as well.  There is really no right or wrong answer here other than what meets their needs and preference.

Around here you never know what you're gonna get when the snows come.  I consider myself lucky that a hard snow blew in less than 24 hours after I bought a $2000 wheelie because it gave me the opportunity to immediately see that that one would not work under those conditions.  And fortunately the dealer agreed after coming out and seeing for himself what it would do.  Without the hard snow then, I'd still be sitting on a $2000 blower that doesn't always work (just when you need it most) and no opportunity to return it.  If all you ever get is the soft stuff then I suppose a wheelie is all you need - save some bux.  But if you're worried about the hard stuff you can't go wrong with tracks.