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

So, a single stage is what I'm looking for. There's a used Toro 221QE for about $225-250 that's in pretty good condition. Or I can get a newer Toro or Simplicity. any thoughts?

Hard to answer this question without asking some questions.

Do you have any likes or dislikes, preferences.  What is your budget, price limits?  What do you expect the machine to do? 

really, no budget. Just looking for a good machine. I have a HS928TAS that's in the garage and waiting for the big snow storm in the mid-atlantic that only happens once every 3-4 years. I guess you can say, I like to be prepared. so, I figured something that will last me a while. I'd rather buy the new Toro 4-stroke or Simplicity if you guys said the 4-strokes are better than the 2-stroke R-Tek. I can't seem to find a new 2-stroke Toro anywhere. Plus, $225 seems like an ok deal, if it were $100, then it'd even be better.

I love my 221 and have had no issues with it.  Couldn't be happier.  Here's a link to my review of it from a few years ago - my opinions remain the same 3+ years later.  http://www.opeonthenet.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=9176

For $225 I'd do it!

raysmd wrote:
You found two of them.  The rest is deciding how much to spend.

well, I bought the used 2-stroke 221QE. It seemed like new. it hardly snows by us, but I have a long driveway and got tired of shoveling. my hs928tas hasn't even had gas in it since i bought it 2 years ago. hopefully, i use of one these machines one day.

raysmd wrote:
Good choice. Hope you have fun using the Toro.  The Honda HS928 is going to be lonely waiting around for the "big storm".

Not to diminish the joy of owning the finest OPE pieces around, but it seems like you have a lot heavy artillery invested for the storm of the decade / century.  Not sure how much snow you typical get at a time, or how long or wide your driveway, but the thought did occur to me.  Would it be sufficient to have a 48" wide snow pusher and clearing snow the old fashion way, human powered?  It is a pretty quick job with 2 inches or snow or less.  No walkbehind machine is going to do the job any quicker unless it's an 8 foot plow blade mounted on a truck. 

aa335 wrote:

Agreed.  I'm sitting here with a Crapsman 928 in my garage waiting for the next big snowfall...been waiting three years since the last one.  I put synthetic oil in it just so I wouldn't have to change the oil every year (since dino oil breaks down over time).  We've been getting a lot of 1"-3" snows, but every two or three years we get about a 15"+ snow with 3'-4' drifts.

If I had it to do over (or, rather, when I do it again), I'll forego the two-stage and pick up a Toro 621/721 for the 2"-10" snows, use my 36" pusher for snows less than 2", and use a snow scoop for the big snows and EOD.  No need for a two-stage anymore - takes up too much garage space.

I got my snow scoop at Ace Hardware for about $45 a few years back, and it will easily handle the big stuff, with no strain on the back.  Here is the one I got http://www.amazon.com/Ames-True-Temper-1600900-Avalanche/dp/B000KL2WG4/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1391439788&sr=8-2&keywords=snow+scoop although I paid a lot less.  I think Home Depot has these from time to time, also.

In the meantime, I've been scooping the 2"-4" snows over to the side of the driveway with the 36" pusher, then running my 928 through the windrows just to give it some exercise...