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

Hi all. I'm looking at replacing my snow blower, and I'm looking for some advice/feedback.

I have an MTD 8 hp 26" machine (Tecumseh engine) which I've been using for 8 years or so. It's a 1993 model. It works well/reliably, but doesn't throw as far as I'd like. For the wider part of my driveway, it often can't reach the edge of the driveway, so it lands in the middle, and I move the same snow twice. It's also not terribly solid, etc, and sure was working hard during the snow-filled New England winter we had last year.

So I'm considering replacing it with maybe an older Toro or Ariens. I don't meant to start a brand discussion, those are just two of the better brands that are readily available around here, while being reasonably priced (can be found on Craigslist in my $200-400 price range ).

My MTD has a friction disk drive, with chains on the tires. It annoys me that the disk will slip when trying to drive into a heavy section, like EOD. The rubber disk is ~8 years old, still "sticky", not dry & cracked, I've cleaned the aluminum wheel, and have added a second spring to the cable, to increase the pressure on the disk. I live on the outside of a 90 deg turn in the street, so the plows leave a big mess in front of us. I previously had a very old Simplicity with a gear driven transmission. I loved the fact that it could churn itself inexorably forward until it stalled out.

That experience with gears vs disk has me leaning towards something with a more robust transmission. Can't afford hydrostatic, so gears look tempting. I know of Toro's Power Shift system, which is gear driven. Is that a good, reliable, setup? The ability to shift weight to the front would be good when going up the angled part of the driveway. But the gears are the bigger appeal to me. Sounds good, but only if it's reliable.

I've heard people say you need to make sure the Power Shift tranny is not slipping at all, because that's a sign it's wearing out, and the slipping will continue getting worse, spreading to more gears. Can anyone explain what slips? Do the gears simply wear out, and stop engaging securely with each other (teeth slipping past each other)? What's a good way to test for this when inspecting a machine? Can you check for it with the engine off, if it won't start?

An 8 hp/24" size sounded small at first, coming from 8 hp/26". But my MTD often can't throw as far as I'd like, nor churn & fling the snow fast enough to keep it from overflowing out the side of auger housing, into the area I just cleared. So maybe the 24" models can concentrate their power into a narrower pass, and do a better job of feeding & throwing? There is also a 8 hp/28" Power Shift, I don't know if that would be a better choice. I'm also open to other suggestions. Thank you for any help!

There was a person from New York with an MTD that had the same problems as yours.  It seems he was charging too fast into the snow and all sort of junk was on the friction disc.

I'm not sure if Powershift is all that viable today.  Its complex, heavy, and seemingly clunky.  Today's modern snow threads are quite good with much better traction.  As far as weight shift, I think tracked snowblower is more effective at this and a lot simpler. 

If the snow is spilling out to the side, you're either going too fast or the the auger/impeller drive belt are slipping.  If you take full width of the bucket in deep snow, spilling snow to the side is common, unless you go really slow.

I think a newer machine with 8 hp / 24-28" width are quite good with EOD piles.  Friction disc are simple and effective, but if anything gets on them (like oil, melted snow) will cause it to slip.

I have a 1995 toro powershift 824. ( I bought new in Oct, 94) It is reliable. I consider the powershift sort of a gimmick. I did have to repair the frame of the powershift control box. There is a post which is press fit and it becameloose in thehole.  Ihad to take the entire mechnism apart so I could braze the post in place. A new frame would be 50.00.

Sure, it it keeps the bucket from riding up the eod pile, but you lose traction and have to push down on the handles which is tiring.

I have both an old Ariens that I re powered with a 6.5 hp Chonda from Harbor freight last year and I am rebuilding a Toro 1028 power shift now. The Ariens have a drive disc like your MTD. My unit was about unstoppable until I had an Axle bearing start to go bad and that allowed the plate to shift around allowing it to slip. I found a Toro frame that I am building up now. I am impressed with the traction, I have bulldozed some topsoil already. I am not sure how many still make a gear type transmission and I think Honda may be the only one with a Hydrostatic transmission. Your best bet is to shop around and see what is out there. If you don't spend a ton of cash you can always find another one and sell the old one (just before a major storm is best) and get your money back.

Guys, thank you for all the feedback.

aa335, I realize I can overwhelm the auger capabilities with too much speed. But this often happens even when taking partial cuts, and also at slower speeds. I don’t have anything else to compare to, unfortunately. But I don’t *think* I’m going unreasonably fast. You did prompt me to take the cover off and check the auger belts. Both seem OK, though one is a bit tighter than the other when the handle is squeezed. Tracked systems are interesting, but there aren’t many of those on the used market; I also wonder how they do on icy surfaces. The chains on my wheels make it pretty capable even on ice.

jimbedro, good point about the weight shift forward reducing traction. Currently I often have to pull up on the handles to keep the bucket down for EOD, but that reduces traction too. I’ve thought about bolting some small weights to the side of the auger housing, but that seemed maybe a bit excessive.

Greg13, thanks for the info on the Ariens. The designs of two different friction disk systems could make one able to transfer more torque to the wheels than the other. So maybe the Ariens, Toro, etc, systems are simply designed better than the one in my MTD. It’s encouraging that some of the systems are able to drive forward even into heavy stuff.

I may keep an eye out for a nice Ariens ST824 or something like that. It would be likely an Ariens or perhaps a Toro 824. I've heard good things about the older models of both brands. I like the idea of a geared system. But I will admit that my friction disk system is very simple, and has been reliable. I’d hate to see a solid machine become junk because a complicated gearbox wore out.