I own a Toro 3650. Live about 20 miles south of Boston, so I get the same types of snowfall you would expect in Natick. I got it 2 years ago, after much internal debate. I always said that I would only buy a 2-stage machine; none of that wimpy single stage stuff for me. After doing some research (mostly on this site, or it's predecessor), I was convinced that a single-stage would do the trick.
I was NOT disappointed. The first snowfall I had to deal with was in early December (the weekend of the Pats/Miami game that had me sitting in a snow covered stadium, with more than 50% of the seats empty). We probably had 15" - 18" and I couldn't get over how the machine handled it. It handled more than I would have expected, and the EOD was a bit slow, but certainly do-able. My driveway is about 80 feet long, double wide, with a slight incline from the street. The machine cleans clear down to the pavement, and actually does move along pretty much as fast as I can keep up with it. There is a bit of what I would call torque steer, for lack of a better term; it doesn't necessarily track very straight, pulling itself sideways a bit as you go, but you get used to it.
The machine stores easily. It can be lifted by this weakling and thrown in the back of a station wagon, or even an open trunk, if need be. I have not had the "snow in the carburetor problem" people speak of, and the thing starts easily. The gas-oil mix if not really a hassle, as some say. The 2 stroke engine is probably noisier than the Honda would be, and it does smell a bit, but those are the only drawbacks I see to the machine. The main reason I chose the Toro over the Honda, and the 3650 over the 2450, is the crank style chute control That's also why I shied away from the Snow Commander. I played with them all in the store and knew that I would always be wishing I had a crank had I bought any of the other machines.
So, there you have it. Buy the 3650 and be done with it. You will not regret it.
