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

Having a tough time deciding between the:

• Ariens 30 Deluxe
• Ariens 30 Platinum
• Toro 1028OXE

I don't have a huge driveway but I am on the outside of a curve and get HAMMERED by the plow.  It's not uncommon to get a 30+" berm at the end of my driveway.   And being from southern WI it's rarely the light fluffy stuff.   The catch here is that I am a pilot so sometimes I am on the road when we get pounded (Murphy's Law).  This means that my wife (5' 105") wife needs to be able to maneuver the beast.  She doesn't need to do a ton of turning.  She will mostly be going down the drive and reversing back.   Throwing distance is also important to me.  

Here are my likes and dislikes:

• Ariens 30 Deluxe - I like: crank chute and price. 
  
• Ariens 30 Platinum - I like: 342cc engine - Torn on the ATC and chute control
  
• Toro 1028OXE - I like: Chute/deflector stick,  how light and maneuverable it is, the power triggers, 305 cc in a 28" unit.  I dislike: Some of the components feel flimsy.  Especially the triggers and Powerstick.

I am leaning towards the Platinum but no one, even at the dealers, can really explain the ATC to me.  When the drive isn't engaged and you pop open the diff do both wheels rotate freely?  If not is it the inner or outer wheel?  If the drive IS engaged will the ATC help or fight you if you are trying to do a 180 turn?  I have read conflicting reports on this. 

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What do you guys think??
 

stresst wrote:
I'd love to hear some feedback on these models to see if they perform well and live up to the expectations of the purchaser. Having gone from a 6 HP to a 9 HP last year, I see no practical reason why the average homeowner would need anything larger than a 10 HP engine and a 30" bucket maximum. We got hammered in New England last season and I never had any issues with my 9 HP, 28" bucket 2 stage. For that matter, my old 6 HP with a 24" bucket never had any issues either that slowing down the forward speed did not cure. It may have taken a little bit more time but it got the job done.

mvedepo wrote:

Well I have the Toro 1028OXE and my wife is 84 lbs. and she has no problem using the Toro. This will be our 3rd yaer with the Toro and it looks like it will need a belt adjustment as a christmas wreath made up mostly of wire got pulled in and apparantly I ran it for a long time before realizing the auger was clogged up It never snaped a shear pin. I pryed it out and it was a bit down on throw power so the dealer is tuning it up. The controls need to be adjusted every year. Everything is as solid as when we bought it. It's thrown 2-3" chunks of loose granite 20-30 feet and still works like new. It ate a lot of plastic fence that is hidden under the snow, although I was careful you just can't see it with 20" of snow on a 10" high plastic fence.

So it's very durable and we have videos on YouTube of my wife starting it with 1 pull first time in the season.

I always hear that Toro's aren't reliable but I don't hear that from anyone who owns one.

New videos this year as I have a full HD camcorder.