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

In relation to the other things....tranny, horsepower, chute controls, etc.

A bigger bucket + larger auger/impeller = more snow removal.
What if it's the latter - smaller bucket.
What struck me as off is one unit I saw awhile that comes to mind.
Honda 724 Trax - has a smaller bucket height, 10" impeller, smaller augers...

With snow blowers, bigger isn't always better.  There has to be a balance between capacity and power.  Impeller velocity also plays an important role.  If you have large components and marginal power, a smaller machine with a good power to capacity ratio and a fast spinning impeller will probably out-perform the larger machine.   Those small Hondas are built very precisely and are well engineered  for optimum performance.  I know for a fact that a 6 or 7 h.p. Honda will humiliate most any MTD brand machines with up to as much as 10 h.p.   The larger Ariens, Toro and the Simplicity machines are a match for the smaller Honda and if they're well maintained will outperform it but not by a whole lot.

A larger diameter impeller spinning at the same RPM as a smaller impeller will have a greater linear velocity at the tips.

While the auger size doesn't make a lot of difference in most cases the impeller size can make a huge difference if you have enough motor to take advantage of it.  What is also important is the clearance between the impeller and the housing.

A properly setup machine with a tight clearance between the impeller and the housing and a good stout engine will move massive  amounts of snow.


  I prefer a large frame machine in the 26 to 28" width range with a 14" or 16" impeller and either an 11 or 13hp engine.

My current setup is an 11hp large frame mid 80's Cub cadet with a 16" auger and a 14" impeller with about 1/16" clearance. The impeller speed has been  increased by 20% with a larger pulley on the engine.

Borat. You seem to have worked on these machines alot. It's my understading if I recall, the chassis is the same on ALL their machines - except for bucket, and engine. Well, other than the 724trax....which has a different chute, impeller.. Do you know if one was to acquire a 724 or even a older 624, woud it relatively plug-play on dropping a GX270, etc...without alot of modding...

When the Railroads clear the tracks in winter they use a really BIG Impeller.  Bigger jobs require larger sized machinery.  Snow blowing certainly fits that truth.  That's why the single stage is Okay for some people, and worthless for others.  a 16" Auger and Fan is just more capable than a 12" one.  The rest of the machine is usually sized to deal with that greater capacity.   As a rule then the 16" fan will throw the snow a greater distance. Probably why Consumer Reports rated the Cub Cadet with a 16"  Number ONE this year after comparing it to so many other very good snowblowers.

mobiledynamics wrote:
Never owned a Honda.  So I can't help you there.

The guy to ask would be Trouts2.  He's pretty familiar with Hondas.