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

Having a tough time deciding between the:

• Ariens 30 Deluxe
• Ariens 30 Platinum
• Toro 1028OXE

I don't have a huge driveway but I am on the outside of a curve and get HAMMERED by the plow.  It's not uncommon to get a 30+" berm at the end of my driveway.   And being from southern WI it's rarely the light fluffy stuff.   The catch here is that I am a pilot so sometimes I am on the road when we get pounded (Murphy's Law).  This means that my wife (5' 105") wife needs to be able to maneuver the beast.  She doesn't need to do a ton of turning.  She will mostly be going down the drive and reversing back.   Throwing distance is also important to me.  

Here are my likes and dislikes:

• Ariens 30 Deluxe - I like: crank chute and price. 
  
• Ariens 30 Platinum - I like: 342cc engine - Torn on the ATC and chute control
  
• Toro 1028OXE - I like: Chute/deflector stick,  how light and maneuverable it is, the power triggers, 305 cc in a 28" unit.  I dislike: Some of the components feel flimsy.  Especially the triggers and Powerstick.

I am leaning towards the Platinum but no one, even at the dealers, can really explain the ATC to me.  When the drive isn't engaged and you pop open the diff do both wheels rotate freely?  If not is it the inner or outer wheel?  If the drive IS engaged will the ATC help or fight you if you are trying to do a 180 turn?  I have read conflicting reports on this. 

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What do you guys think??
 

Oops....I meant Quick Stick not Powerstick

Read this thread by Steve_Cebu,  it should answer many of your questions and he provides youtube links to some of his videos. Steve's wife is small as well and she can manage to use the Toro with no diffculties.

http://www.abbysguide.com/ope/discussions/54727-0-1.html

I have the Platinum 24" and I'm a good sized guy.  I don't think that the ATC would be great for a small wife.  It's not super difficult but it's certainly not effortless.  It does not turn on a dime without some grunt!   I would have to think that the Toro's steering would be easier, even though you have to work 2 levers on the handgrips.  I cannot comment on the longevity of the plastic controls and such on the Toro, but I would not for a moment discount the reliability of the Ariens crank chute over their quick chute rotational control.  I wish I had the crank on my Platinum.  I just don't like the design of the quick chute, at least on last year's models.  The crank gets you exactly where you want in almost the same amount of time with a much simpler mechanism.

Good recommendation by Frank. That popped into my head as soon as I read the first post.

I too had some concerns with the longevity of the quick turn, one lever chute controls....  just seemed to me to be a part that could break easily.

One thing I learned over the years is if you get huge EOD mounds you do not want a super wide unit! I would say 28" is max, smaller if say your wife, mother or sister has to take care of it occasinaly.

I purchased the Toro 826OXE but if I had to do it again I may consider the 1028OXE or Husqvarana as they make some monster motor models in a narrow 26-28" frame and they too have the same type of steering as the Toro does. I hear the Ariens does not turn as good as these two.

mvedepo wrote:
I wouldn't recommend anything larger than a 28" if you want your wife to use it.  In fact a 24-26" would be more reasonable.  Something that weighs less than 220 lbs.

If you want your wife "needs to be able to maneuver the beast", she would have to work out and be in top physical condition to tame the beast.  So far, I haven't able to find a "beastly snowblower" that's a gentle giant to recommend.  Actually, Yamaha and Honda have them, but you would have to import these models, and they are $8000 or more.

You should really bring your wife to the dealers and try out the models you are interested in, if she's going to be using it.  No point analyzing Pro/Cons unless you are the sole operator.

Has your wife ever operated a snowblower, a lawn mower?

As far as Ariens ATC, I never got any good answer on what that means.  There's no electronics so how could it control traction, automatically?  It's a snowblower, too primitive to utilize automotive technology analogy.

She has been to the dealer.  The Toro 1028OXE was by far the easiest for her to maneuver.  However, she wasn't keen on the build over the Ariens.  Now if we go with a 28 Deluxe, it has the 250cc engine, same as the 24 Deluxe/Platinum.   Is that engine undersized for a 28?? 

Also if I could order a Husqvarna 14527E that seems like it may be the best of all words for me.

• 305 cc
• Hydrostatic
• Power steering (similar to the Toro)
• High Speed Impeller

My question is the disc style auger.  Any benefit?  I see its only on their higher end Crown Series.

mvedepo wrote:
250cc for 28" is slightly underpowered in general.  It is very underpowered compared to the new machines sporting 300cc+, anemic compared to the Ariens Pro 28 sporting 414cc.

The Husqvarna model you are interested in does not have hydrostatic transmission.  That style of auger doesn't seem too aggressive on chipping ice and breaking down hard packed snow.  Check out Honda and Yamaha high end snowblowers, they still have the open type ribbon augers with very aggressive saw tooth serrated auger.  It can chip concrete while sharpening itself.  Don't ask me how I know.

"She has been to the dealer. The Toro 1028OXE was by far the easiest for her to maneuver. However, she wasn't keen on the build over the Ariens."

Sounds like you found the perfect snowblower for your needs in the Toro 1028OXE. A 10 HP engine with a 28" bucket should provide plenty of power and maneuverability especially with the power assist steering that your wife will appreciate. What is it about the build quality that concerns her on the Toro? Trying to find an easy to use machine your wife can operate and the snow eating animal that you want is going to be tough to find. Once again, to me it sounds like the well balanced Toro 1028OXE fits most if not all of your requirements.

Or if you want a tracked model with a huge engine check out the Husqvarna 1827EXLT! I wish I could borrow a tracked blower for a weekend to see what there all about. I would be all over this baby! 414cc with a 27" bucket! This will give the Honda some serious competition! Actually I dont know how the Honda would keep up??

stresst wrote:
The Honda wouldn't have any trouble keeping up.  In fact, any snowblower doesn't have any trouble keeping up at all.

The overzealous Husky owner with 400+cc monster engine will forge forward with the invincibility of a Titanic cruiseliner.  With such vigor and confidence, it will meet face to face with a frozen newspaper, kids toys, rocks, or edge of a curb, or unknown objects.  If the shear pins don't break in time, those nice shiny stamped augers either break or entwined themselves with the impeller with such determination that special extraction equipment such as a torch and profanity will be called in to undo the stupidity and arrogance.

Meanwhile, other snowblowers marches on steady but surely.

stresst wrote:
I'd love to hear some feedback on these models to see if they perform well and live up to the expectations of the purchaser. Having gone from a 6 HP to a 9 HP last year, I see no practical reason why the average homeowner would need anything larger than a 10 HP engine and a 30" bucket maximum. We got hammered in New England last season and I never had any issues with my 9 HP, 28" bucket 2 stage. For that matter, my old 6 HP with a 24" bucket never had any issues either that slowing down the forward speed did not cure. It may have taken a little bit more time but it got the job done.

mvedepo wrote:

Well I have the Toro 1028OXE and my wife is 84 lbs. and she has no problem using the Toro. This will be our 3rd yaer with the Toro and it looks like it will need a belt adjustment as a christmas wreath made up mostly of wire got pulled in and apparantly I ran it for a long time before realizing the auger was clogged up It never snaped a shear pin. I pryed it out and it was a bit down on throw power so the dealer is tuning it up. The controls need to be adjusted every year. Everything is as solid as when we bought it. It's thrown 2-3" chunks of loose granite 20-30 feet and still works like new. It ate a lot of plastic fence that is hidden under the snow, although I was careful you just can't see it with 20" of snow on a 10" high plastic fence.

So it's very durable and we have videos on YouTube of my wife starting it with 1 pull first time in the season.

I always hear that Toro's aren't reliable but I don't hear that from anyone who owns one.

New videos this year as I have a full HD camcorder.