3-Point Hitch 3pt snowblower

[Patches]

I have an opportunity to purchase a 1 year old Blizzard (B74) snowblower for $2,000; owner says he paid $2800 for it last year? I've two questions: 1) I've not heard of them; any good-bad info on them 2) They recommend 30 to 45 horsepower( I assume PTO hp) but my 3054 has 24.5 PTO hp; problem??? I suspect he is open to negotiation, just not sure how open. Any comments appreciated

 

[JoelD]

My first thought,

I would only consider if assured that parts are fully and readily available.

I will not buy anything that I need to rely upon unless parts are readily available and will be for some time.

Joel

 

[deputyrpa]

It appears the snowblower is made by Rad Tecnologies in Quebec:
Produits Rad Technologies

Distributed in the US by Edney Distributing Co., Inc.: Edney Distributing Company, Inc. :: Farm Equipment Products Catalog

The spec sheet says it requires 30-45 PTO HP, and retails for $US2480.00

 

[JoelD]

Hey patches, how's that for research (Deputy).

So, there you have it, $2000 used seems high.

 

[Patches]

I appreciate the comments. The price was not my main concern, but more the funtional operation of the unit, and it's longevity, or lack there-of. Apparently no one on the Kioti forum has any experience with this manufacturer. A local Mahindra dealer quoted me $1850+/- for a 60" Meteor, so $150. more for a year old 74" didn't really bother me all that much

 

[rimshot]

I appreciate the comments. The price was not my main concern, but more the funtional operation of the unit, and it's longevity, or lack there-of. Apparently no one on the Kioti forum has any experience with this manufacturer. A local Mahindra dealer quoted me $1850+/- for a 60" Meteor, so $150. more for a year old 74" didn't really bother me all that much

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I don't know about the Blizzard blower but I have a 60" Meteor Blower. I operate it with a CK-20 and it does an excellent job. My CK20 is 22 h.p hydro so it's probably 18 h.p.at the PTO.

 

[Kendrick]

I have one they are nice little units. We had more snow here then colorado this winter. most of it was a foot at a time and not to bad for clearing. I have a 1500' gravel/mud driveway and it was rather well mannered about trying to pick gravel up. I scalped the lawn in a couple places but thats another story. I cant say about the hp requirements it never seemed to have any troubles even in wet snow power wise but im also sitting at 40+ hp on the pto. I got it cloged a couple times due to stopping and starting with snow in the chute. I fully plan to add wings to it for next winter due to its ability to easily clear the snow and my path being about 1.5 feet larger then the blower. the chute turners are real handy but unless you are dodging allot of stuff not necessary. I can throw snow quite far with it 30+'. only gripes are the chain setup and the feet could probably be bigger. both are minor annoyances. it would have been nice if they used a piece of sheet metal to cover the chain area so it doesn't bring in copious amounts of snow. I will probably add some in the near future. the feet are good at leaving ruts if you have to turn in the grass while blowing.

The blower power requirements did not seem to be much I could easily go H1 down my drive and would not notice the difference. i rarely got to the point of scooping more snow then the blower could throw. it usually took h1 and 2'+ of un-plowed snow to do it. If i were to guestomate my 9' hay mower takes about 2x the hp my blower does. The mower you know is being turned on and has some hp requirement you can feal it. the blower you almost hear it kick on and thats about it.

 

[Patches]

I questioned the owner as to where he bought the unit and was surprised it was the local JD dealer. I paid a visit and was told they(dealer) had sold them for several years with no appreciable problems, and they recommend them highly(of course they do).The salesman even went so far as to look up the sales record, even though I told him it wasn't necessary,and they sold the unit December '07 to the present owner. Knowing parts are readily available locally makes my mind up for me I guess I'll own a Blizzard

 

[joe48]

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I don't know about the Blizzard blower but I have a 60" Meteor Blower. I operate it with a CK-20 and it does an excellent job. My CK20 is 22 h.p hydro so it's probably 18 h.p.at the PTO.

DITTO; I have a 60" Smyth, that I bought at TSC, 3yrs ago in the summer on clearance. List was $1895, clearance price was $1250. Great deal ,couldn't pass it up. Have used it maybe 40hrs total with ZERO trouble, had to modify 3pt hitch to fit my Pats EZ hitch. Nice thing is it's very heavily built and most wear parts are standard bearings chains,PTO shaft etc, all protected by shear pins. I think the only way to hurt it would be to run full speed into a tree.
Oh, and I run it just fine with my CK20 HST, the only time it bogs down the engine is when I'm moving snow banks and get into really heavy wet stuff.