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

Looking for some advice on a two stage snowblower.  I originally fell in love with the Troybilt 3090XP or the Craftsman equal.  But just found out that it is
a china made engine. 

My drive is about 180 ft long and gravel, currently.  Should have some pavement on it next year.

I'd like something that's wide, 28+.  A decent amount of power, something that can throw the snow.  Not outrageously expensive, perhaps 1200 tops. 

What are your thoughts? 

Thank you.

For snowblowers, always remember HATS:

Honda

Ariens

Toro

Simplicity

For single-stage units, Toro is number one, with Honda and Simplicity following up.

For two-stage units, Honda is best, Ariens is almost as good for half the price, then Simplicity and Toro.  Then probably Husqvarna.  Toro seems to be taking a few shortcuts lately, though. ;(

Craftsman / JD units are OK if you know what you are getting.  They change vendors often, so buyer beware.  Their higher-priced units may be Ariens, but the lower-priced units are generally mfr'd. by MTD or possibly AYP/Roper/Electrolux (or whatever they're called now).  Nothing inherently wrong with MTD products, but I find that they tend to break down more often and require more maintenance - parts are readily available for them.  If you're good at fixing things, MTD units can be a bargain.  MTD is also mainly what you see at the Big Box stores, as they are generally the least expensive units available.

Same deal with Cub Cadet - their lower-priced units are generally re-branded MTDs, while their higher-priced units may be made in-house? (I'm generalizing here, as that is what Cub does with their other lines of OPE).

Very nice info.  Thank you.

Who makes Troybilt snow blowers?  Do you know.    For some reason I am still enamored with the 3090xp.  Although I know I won't buy it because it's a China made engine.
Just want to get an understanding of who produces their machines. 

I will look around for the ones you listed and find one in my price range.  And I'll shop at local dealers and not the big box stores.

Thanks again everyone.

jackley wrote:
You'll be surprised to learn that the Chinese engine may be the one component that outlast the rest of today's produced snowblower.  Take proper care of the engine and it should last quite a while.  Check out all the other components on the snowblower, these are likely to break first.

Take a look at the competition, Ariens, Simplicity/Snapper, Honda, and Toro, not necessarily in that order though.  There's a good reason why these four names are the quality names.  You may find that the Troy isn't so "enamored" after all.  The quality of the machine will speak to you when you look at it closely, not the label where it came from.

One last thing, for most homeowners, I find the 28" size is ideal, even better with a more powerful engine that is found on a 30" or 32" machines.  To this, Ariens Pro 28 quite a well built machine.

jackley wrote:


Troy Bilt is owned by MTD now.

aa335 wrote:
This is good info too.  I haven't really looked at any snow blowers outside of Home Depot and Lowes.  For whatever reason,  the look of the Troy-bilt 3090XP is nice.  But I can understand what you are saying.

I think I'll start checking out the Ariens and Simplicity ones. 

Shryp, thank you also.

Hi every one! I can't sleep for the last - - - nights... cus My head is turning: Toro, ariens, cub husk. etc.. here is what bothers me: Toro lacking hand warmers, Ariens platinum auto turning will only turn to the left, + the chute malfunctions and swivels on its own (ariens is OCD Not every were is matal a good idea over Good Plastic) CubCated 530 swe lacks fuel shut off, have a metal gas tank ( prone to rusting) sloppiness in choke control, same size engines on smaller YTD equipment. exact duplicate as a MTD machine Husqvarna 1830HV (30") lacks hand warmers. when u go on youtube under 2 stage snow blowers, most of the results are Toro and ariens "what machine should I buy????" Im willing to pay in the $1,600 1$,700 range to for a snow blower that I could count on! Thanks in advance for any help/advise Joel P.S. I live in monsey NY (Rockland county) 6 car black-top drive , 92 feet cement walkway

JoelKlein wrote:
Joel, based on the replies it seems Simplicity and Ariens are the ones to check out.  The Ariens Pro 28 is 2k and appears to be a very powerful machine, 405CC.
I'll probably look at those two since they are in the price range.

Check snowblowersdirect.com to compare them.

Quick-Turn of the ariens chute tends to malfunction, for 2k i want to be able to turn on a dime Left AND Right (the ariens only helps u make a left turn). the Simplicity Snowblower comes with amber light, I need A good strong Light. I think I will have to give up on the hand warmers and choose a toro. about the toro: any ideas if the pivoting scrapper bar is worth the extra money? Thanks

JoelKlein wrote:
If you have smooth and well maintained driveway or sidewalks, pivoting scraper does nothing more than a non-pivoting adjustable scraper.  Most of the time, proper adjustment of the scraper bar and skid shoes to your pavement irregularities  is the key to cleaning as much snow off the pavement but not catching on cracks.

I don't think you need a very strong light.  Snow is highly reflective and throwing more light at it more will come back to blind you.  Visibility is poor when the snow reflect back more light, your pupils constrict and you can't see see details in the shadows.

Thanks! Okay, I'm going to give a deposit right now at my local dealer. What should I go for, a toro? Or simplicity? If toro, is it with the extra money to get the bigger engine ?