Old snow blower has seen better days + no parts available so I am looking for recommendations on a new one please. 24”w X21”H, 208cc or better, two stage, electric start option. Hoping to catch a sale. TIA for your assistance!
Need a new snowblower Recommendations please! (50 years isn’t bad on Craftsman 3/20ES)
- Thread starter 1kzwoman
- Start date
-
Active since 1995, Hearth.com is THE place on the internet for free information and advice about wood stoves, pellet stoves and other energy saving equipment.
We strive to provide opinions, articles, discussions and history related to Hearth Products and in a more general sense, energy issues.
We promote the EFFICIENT, RESPONSIBLE, CLEAN and SAFE use of all fuels, whether renewable or fossil.
It's alarming what is happening with prices.
If people believe we have a 7.9% inflation that is dropping, people are easier fooled than I thought ever possible.
That said, if you must buy right now, look online at all the options available at the big box stores - then go find a local dealer that sales the stuff and buy from them. You'll pay probably the same price, you probably wont find a sale what so ever right now and will even be lucky to find one as the weeks go on, and please keep in mind that buying from a local dealer means usually that you will get serviced before people that bought elsewhere and are bringing their big box store repairs to the local dealer where they didnt buy if you catch my drift.
I dont really like Kohler engines. I think they are finicky, but alas they are the only option in many consumer lines. Most of the problems I have are with surging, hard starting etc. But they also get much more complicated with their craziness as well. However Kohler engines seem to be in everything. Seafoam, carb cleaners etc - are a must.
I ended up buying a Husqvarna last year. It was $725 out the door, last one. I bought it to clear a pond for hockey. It also does our gravel driveway/pathway, but not without getting some gravel and other stuff and throwing it, really causing havoc on the paint so we've resorted to having this either just smashed down the snow or waving down a guy plowing and have him plow a little area for a few bucks. This is for our cabin, at my house I just shovel the snow because we have a southern facing downward sloped short driveway.
208cc is definitely on the lower end. I bought the lowest end Husqvarna that they had. But it has electric start if you dont want to pull the cord a few times. Beyond a few times and you know something is off.
Does it clear the snow? YES!
Is 208CC enough? Well yes, but you have to work for it.
The first pass, even with 8" of heavy snow it will throw it a decent distance. Say 20'. The problem is, that eventually you have to go over that area you just tossed snow, and then the next area you just tossed snow, and the snow gets heavier and heavier and you move slower and slower with your machine until you are only doing half passes then 1/4 passes.
Now for a single length driveway, followed by a larger parking pad, you could probably just go back and forth on the parking pad slightly twisting the chute back and forth each pass to going mostly forward toward a yard or something to avoid shooting snow onto your driveway, and then for the single lane driveway part it should throw the snow easily to the sides without needing to pass back over what you already did.
If this wasnt such a luxury item for me, I would have gone with much more powerful. If I had a large driveway, I would absolutely buy one that has lights, heated hand grips, and a 3 stage system!
Dont let the large chute in the front fool you. It's all about the power of the engine and a 3 stage system that will clear the most snow. My little 2 stage works fine but we do need to work at it.
I got a Honda HSS928 ATD a few years ago I researched everything and this is the best. I got it with tracks, it has hydraulic infinitely variable ground speed drive, it has infinitely variable height adjustment. It is electric start. All the controls are right up front. It cuts 28 in. and is two stage. The motor is 270 cc’s.
powerequipment.honda.com
Honda HSS928AT and ATD 28" Two-stage Snow Blower | Honda Snow Blowers
The Honda HSS928AT and ATD two-stage snow blowers are powerful snow blowers that clear a 28" path & throw snow up to 52 feet. Features auger height control.
I ran an Aries for years.
You haven’t mentioned how large an area you’re clearing. I suspect it’s not a large area by the 24” wide shoot you’re considering.
If it’s not that large, maybe one of the electric ones would work? I had to buy a new lawnmower a couple years ago and decided to try electric and get rid of a carburetor that I kept forgetting to drain. It has more power than the old 6.5 hp Torro I had. I don’t think I’d shy away from an electric snowblower when my current one dies.
You haven’t mentioned how large an area you’re clearing. I suspect it’s not a large area by the 24” wide shoot you’re considering.
If it’s not that large, maybe one of the electric ones would work? I had to buy a new lawnmower a couple years ago and decided to try electric and get rid of a carburetor that I kept forgetting to drain. It has more power than the old 6.5 hp Torro I had. I don’t think I’d shy away from an electric snowblower when my current one dies.
![[Hearth.com] Need a new snowblower Recommendations please! (50 years isn’t bad on Craftsman 3/20ES)](https://www.hearth.com/talk/data/attachments/305/305489-715259058f4278adf1055a0993c0a239.jpg?hash=mr2_g-LG1q "[Hearth.com] Need a new snowblower Recommendations please! (50 years isn’t bad on Craftsman 3/20ES)")
IMHO most of the snowblower manufacturers have been in race to the bottom for decades. Look at how the older models are built, they are heavier with thicker steel and heavier components. They could be fixed. Many of the modern units are much lighter built. They gussy them up with lots of selling features but the basic equipment is just less beefy. Then again with people's refusal to deal with ethanol deposits and damage to carbs, most snow blowers are getting replaced every 4 or 5 years so why make them repairable?. About the only company that consistently seems to stick with durable snowblowers is Honda's commercial line of track drive snowblowers. I am less impressed with their lower end units and swear they are relabeled Noma's with Honda engines but the track drive commercial units are the real stuff but of course you pay for it. It takes five minutes to drain the tank and the carb and it will start right up the next fall. If parts are needed, they may not be cheap but they are available.
It was bit painful to shell out $3000 for a snowblower especially with a mild snow year the last two years but yesterday my first storm of the season was 18 to 20" of moderately dense snow. It handled it, no doubt that a lot of folks are out shopping for a new one today as theirs did not. My guess is I will be using the same one for the next 20 years.
It was bit painful to shell out $3000 for a snowblower especially with a mild snow year the last two years but yesterday my first storm of the season was 18 to 20" of moderately dense snow. It handled it, no doubt that a lot of folks are out shopping for a new one today as theirs did not. My guess is I will be using the same one for the next 20 years.
NickW
Minister of Fire
Availability and price and service are all factors in used I agree. Or lack of same in some cases . Thanks
I have a 2018 MTD 208cc x 24" cut, badged as a TroyBilt Storm 2410. Thing has been running fine for me. I needed a maintenance part this year and the internet reviews on this thing are in the toilet.
The common thread seems to be (some mfr defects) mostly ethanol in the gasoline. Alaska doesn't require added oxygen in gasoline, I could not buy gasahol if I wanted to. If you can buy gas with no ethanol in it, mine is running strong on it's seventh season.
I am keeping up with 200 feet of two lane suburban street, plus enough space for me to park four cars and the little old lady x the street from me to park four cars. It is all about keeping meltwater out from under the laundry machines in my garage, I don't run the snowthrower anywhere I don't need to.
Mine handles 4" of new snow no problem, and works to get through 6 inches of new. Above 6" I am taking partial width cuts to get the job done.
The common thread seems to be (some mfr defects) mostly ethanol in the gasoline. Alaska doesn't require added oxygen in gasoline, I could not buy gasahol if I wanted to. If you can buy gas with no ethanol in it, mine is running strong on it's seventh season.
I am keeping up with 200 feet of two lane suburban street, plus enough space for me to park four cars and the little old lady x the street from me to park four cars. It is all about keeping meltwater out from under the laundry machines in my garage, I don't run the snowthrower anywhere I don't need to.
Mine handles 4" of new snow no problem, and works to get through 6 inches of new. Above 6" I am taking partial width cuts to get the job done.
The reviews on the tracked Honda models are uniformly positive. I did not price them since I only needed a maintenance part. If they start putting ethanol in my gas up here I will start with the Hondas when it is time for me to replace.
I had a good sized storm a few days ago. It was not powder and I got between 18 and 20". The snow was just about level with the top of my front ager chute. My Honda 1332 track drive could handle it but I had to go slow or it started to plow where the auger could not handle the snow. Once I cleared the first path, I could handle about 3/4 of the clearing width at a faster clip. I have about 200 feet of paved driveway to clear plus a bunch of paths around the house and to get at my solar arrays to clear them. It wasn't windy when I did the clean up so I could throw the snow anywhere I wanted 70 or 80 feet away. I am boxed in with house on one side and garage on another with and double width driveway so being able to throw the snow far without it dropping back in the driveway is real nice. I also have neighbors driveway that parallels mine so I need to throw the snow about 75 feet. It 32: wide so if its normal storm I can clear the main driveway in 4 sweeps. I also mark the edges of the driveway with fiberglass rods to keep out of the grass.
It's an expensive commercial snowblower but compared to $50 a plow minimum if I could find someone, its pays for itself.
BTW, Other than ethanol fuel, I think the second biggest issue with snowblowers is paved versus unpaved driveways. They are snowblowers, not gravel blowers. Most folks with gravel driveways have the sense to not remove the first couple of storms and instead drive over the snow to pack it down and form a layer of ice/packed snow but new folks do not and that can really wear out the blower auger. There are usually skid feet that can be adjusted to raise the clearing height up which can also help. My prior second hand Honda had been used commercially by a property caretaker who had a large gravel driveway and most of the customers had the same and he had worn out the blower chute from the inside out and had patched it. It still ran great but eventually the hydrostatic drive unit broke and it was not worth the rebuild. I have a nice 13HP Honda commercial engine left over and saved a lot of parts that will fit my new one if I ever need them (without keeping the carcass in the yard).
It's an expensive commercial snowblower but compared to $50 a plow minimum if I could find someone, its pays for itself.
BTW, Other than ethanol fuel, I think the second biggest issue with snowblowers is paved versus unpaved driveways. They are snowblowers, not gravel blowers. Most folks with gravel driveways have the sense to not remove the first couple of storms and instead drive over the snow to pack it down and form a layer of ice/packed snow but new folks do not and that can really wear out the blower auger. There are usually skid feet that can be adjusted to raise the clearing height up which can also help. My prior second hand Honda had been used commercially by a property caretaker who had a large gravel driveway and most of the customers had the same and he had worn out the blower chute from the inside out and had patched it. It still ran great but eventually the hydrostatic drive unit broke and it was not worth the rebuild. I have a nice 13HP Honda commercial engine left over and saved a lot of parts that will fit my new one if I ever need them (without keeping the carcass in the yard).
Ariens makes one of the best. Make sure you have a place in your area that has service and parts for what ever you purchase.
I have old Ariens 28" and just picked up cheap ass Powersmart. My 2nd One, I had 22" model until I gave it away (Thought I was moving). They start 1st time and drain screw on carb to drain fuel. It was $603 other day. I like having 2 of them, plus Tractor with Bucket and Blade on Back. 1000ft of Driveway. I like the Powersmart because it's easy on my shoulder. https://powersmartusa.com/collectio...inch-two-stage-electric-start-gas-snow-blower I could not bring myself to spend 3k on Pro Snowblower.
![[Hearth.com] Need a new snowblower Recommendations please! (50 years isn’t bad on Craftsman 3/20ES)](https://www.hearth.com/talk/data/attachments/305/305722-8f8425d8d76739c92693141651987011.jpg?hash=kCcohzL-Is "[Hearth.com] Need a new snowblower Recommendations please! (50 years isn’t bad on Craftsman 3/20ES)")
![[Hearth.com] Need a new snowblower Recommendations please! (50 years isn’t bad on Craftsman 3/20ES)](https://www.hearth.com/talk/data/attachments/305/305723-593f96016ced9eaf0db6a8aeef0796b6.jpg?hash=EPi1aoTmRt "[Hearth.com] Need a new snowblower Recommendations please! (50 years isn’t bad on Craftsman 3/20ES)")
Similar threads
