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

Got 5 inches of snowfall on Friday night.  It was a good mix of wet heavy snow, then transitioning to lighter fluffy stuff.  Not a big snowfall, but enough to have fun.  Of course, this kind of snow, I took out the Toro 421QE single stage machine, and my 30" human powered snow pusher.  :)  Couldn't wait until Saturday morning to clear the snow, instead got out there Friday night while some snow was still falling.

I got my OPE fix and some good exercise with manual shoveling.

Unless there's a 20" blizzard, I'm very happy with the Toro SS.  It has plenty of power and the agility cannot be understated. 

100% on the agility factor.It was nice to not feel kind of beat up after a snow clearing session. I realize that 20" of snow is a lot harder to clear than 6" or 8" and absolutely requires a 2 stage machine but it's sooo nice and easy  to manipulate that SS machine as compared to the 2 stage. File this one under using the right tool for the job at hand!

Amen, Frank. I got to use my SS, SS322, and 2-stage, ST824, today. We got 2-3" of very fluffy snow (so still an easy test). Did most of it with the SS, but kept blowing it onto the driveway, in the same direction, to keep building up a deeper area. I wanted something to simulate a slightly bigger storm. The SS did well, I was very happy with it. Fast and easy to swing around. I did notice this time that when I'd raise the handle to start a run (bringing the paddles to the ground), sometimes the RPMs would drop quite a bit, then recover. I thought it was about to stall the first time. I then tried a few clicks of choke, and it *seemed* to make the RPM drop less drastic. So perhaps it's running slightly lean? The carb is not adjustable, and is freshly cleaned.

I did actually get it to clog up a few times at the EOD and in the street. In the street, the salt had melted some of the snow, so it was wetter. I'm pretty sure the paddles were spinning the whole time, but it did stop throwing (belt is new, and adjusted properly). Backed off, checked the chute, and tried again. Maybe I just need to take partial cuts, or slow down a bit. Mine's only 3hp, not a bigger machine like yours, Frank, but I am still really liking it so far. We'll see how it does this winter, I could consider looking for a larger SS for next year. Like you said, it's very friendly to use, and can be quick as well. Probably also less intimidating for my wife to use. At least for smaller storms, I'd say it's more pleasant to use than the 2-stage.

I did also get to try my ST824 for the first time, in the piled-up snow. It did well, no unpleasant surprises. The handle functions are reversed from my MTD, so I kept squeezing the wrong one. The differential is cool. It did spin a tire a few times, so I'll be putting the chains on (wanted to try it without them first). I will confess it wasn't really flinging the snow 1/2 mile or anything. So I may pursue trying to put a (homemade) Clarence kit on it. It did seem to throw further when I got into some deeper stuff. I did think it was funny going to the 4-stroke 2-stage from the 2-stroke SS. The big engine sounded like it was turning so slowly :) 1800 power strokes per minute, vs 4600.

Edit- Please forgive me going on at length on this stuff, I'm just excited to try out my new "toys". And this is my first time using a SS; I'd always considered them something you'd use if you didn't have space for a 2-stage, say (at least here in New England, with decent-sized storms). But now I understand where they shine. Like Frank said, the right tool for the job.

FrankMA wrote:

It's an awesome machine, once you got everything working as it should.  Don't be shy to take on EOD pile.  There's nothing wimpy about the GX160 engine and that 9 inch wide flat center paddle.

   Just got our biggest snowstorm yet for 2012.  But only about 5 inches of snow followed by 6 hours of  ice pellets , then 6 hours of freezing rain.

I could have cleared the mixture   away with a scoop but driveway is 120 ft x 17 feet and the  parking lot in front of the garage 24 ft x 25 ft , so  with the EOD mess,

decided to use my  2011 Husqvarna 27 inch, 14.5 Briggs, hydrostatic, power steering, and heated grips to do the job in about 15 minutes.  

It was an easy job, The  separate  direct  controls for the chute and the chute deflector operated easily with no binding like the  joystick on my neighbour's John Deere.

I've tried those joysticks on the showroom floor , and it seems  that they bind a lot as they do not offer any mechanical advatage to move the chute and the deflector..

Going to be in the 40's F here today and just about the same for the next 5 or so days ahead. I think we've only had about 8" of snow all winter - not counting that crazy October nor'easter. The ground is not even frozen and the trees and plants do not know what to do with themselves. What a winter (or lack thereof....)!

royster wrote:

@royster:

Can you tell us how the hydrostatic works and how the grips are heated?  Have you ever been electrocuted with the heated grips or experienced an episode of VF (ventricular fibrallation)?

    @MN_Runner

I know you are only making fun of me and my excellemt Husqvarna Snowblower, and you already know the answers to your questions,

So here is my reply. -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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Royster

It's going to be 50 degrees tomorrow.  I'm going to get to see my beautiful brown grass again.  :)

I think I'm going to fire up my string trimmer and leaf blower.  I don't care if it's snow or grass, I need my OPE fix.

This year is not a fun year for snowblowers.  I would normally clear my portion of the pond for kids to skate except that I am afraid that the ice is too soft and thin.  I would hate to sink my blower and get a grief from my family.  It was 45 F today and expecting 43F tomorrow.  I may have to start mowing the grass in Feb or Mar.