looking at the walk behind snow casters at TSC yesterday

[leonz]

I went to TSC on monday to find out if they were going to handle buckwheat coal this year and I waddled over the three snowblowers that they had from last year(cub cadet, husky)and It reminded me why I do not want them the chutes are plastic and they would not last a month with ice chunks from the ice dams on the road shoulders at my place.

More incentive to purchase a Yamaha before The John Deere finally croaks.

 

[dnw64]

I've got an Ariens 32 Professional with one light season's worth of use. Always stored indoors, can't be told from new. All steel, starts in 1-2 pulls, or it also has the 120v electric start. Let me know if you're interested, will be selling it this season. Works great, I just decided I was more of a "tractor" guy.

 

[leonz]

If I can buy it I will let you know, thanks.

 

[crazyal]

I would avoid a box store anything if you can. They are all built to meet a price point, not longevity. I have a Ariens (not sure which model) but has a 10hp Tecumseh engine. It was my fathers and still has the Home Depot price sticker on it. I would say it's 10 year old and it's pretty much shot. The transmission (if you want to call it that) is just a flat piece of steel that spins and a wheel with rubber that pushes against the flat steel. Shifting gears simply moves the wheel to the edge (for faster or center for slower). It often slips when at slow speeds but grips fine when set to go faster. I've adjusted it but i really think it needs to be disassembled and cleaned up/ parts replaced to get it working correctly. The steel around the auger has rusted away and now the holes are too big. I have an older, late 60s would be my guess, Ariens that has a steel gear box where the impeller shaft and auger shaft meet and real gears. It's much stronger than the new one which is thin aluminum. While old it's my go to when I need a walk behind snowblower.

The Yamaha (and Honda) will cost you but I think you are paying for engineering. If I was to buy new I'm kind of torn about if I would get a hydrostaic drive. I would assume they are reliable but sooner or later, 20 years from now possibly, the rubber seals may need replacing.

 

[dnw64]

The transmission (if you want to call it that) is just a flat piece of steel that spins and a wheel with rubber that pushes against the flat steel. Shifting gears simply moves the wheel to the edge (for faster or center for slower).

I could well be wrong, but as far as I know this is how all walk-behind snow blowers are/have been made for a few decades.

I will agree that box store items are made to a price point, and even though they have the Ariens, Cub, JD etc name on them does not make them a quality product.

 

[aczlan]

The rubber on steel transmission is standard for snowblowers, has been since at least the 70s.

Aaron Z

 

[Piston]

I went to TSC on monday to find out if they were going to handle buckwheat coal this year and I waddled over the three snowblowers that they had from last year(cub cadet, husky)and It reminded me why I do not want them the chutes are plastic and they would not last a month with ice chunks from the ice dams on the road shoulders at my place.

More incentive to purchase a Yamaha before The John Deere finally croaks.

Those yamahas sure a thing of beauty! Only problem is you can buy a PTO snowblower for the cost of those things. Didn't you have a Pronovost TRC model at one point?

Why go with the Yamaha walk behind over a used quality PTO blower?

 

[Sawyer Rob]

That's another thing I like about my Grasshopper zero turn mower, you can get a snow blower for it and I did. It goes on fairly easy and it blows snow like crazy!

The blower was less than 2K when I bought it with the mower...

SR

 

[Fastball]

Back in 1995, I was working two jobs and away from home for most of the day. Keeping the driveway clean in our Northern Ontario winters so my wife could get in and out was getting to be a chore. We had reports of a major snowfall coming through, so I scrounged my nickels and went looking for a snowblower that I could take home that day. Of course, most of the stores only had floor models and I would have to order one in...which I didn't want. After a few stores, the best I could do was a smallish 24-inch cut, 5hp Tecumseh unit from Walmart. For the most part, it worked fine except for the heavy springtime slush.
And believe itbor not, that little 5hp unit has worked FLAWLESSLY for 22 winters...starting on the second or third pull every single time. I've replaced the belt once and put tubes in the tires...but that's it. Sure there was a little bit of rust here and there...just a quickie sand over and a shot of Tremclad, and it was good to go. When we moved to BC, I gave the blower to my new young neighbour...who was also working 2 jobs and trying to keep the driveway clean for his pregnant wife. I thought the kid was going to cry...

 

[leonz]

Those yamahas sure a thing of beauty! Only problem is you can buy a PTO snowblower for the cost of those things. Didn't you have a Pronovost TRC model at one point?

Why go with the Yamaha walk behind over a used quality PTO blower?

============================================================================

I don't have a large mule to mount a rear snow blower on ;^( I wish I did

The Yamaha YT624EJ, YS1028J and YT1332ED are proven machines and were designed and tested for the heavy wet snow in northern Japan on Hokkaido Island

I wish I had a Pronovost TRC80 and a mule to go with it but alas and alack no I do not own a larger mule.
I have the same John Deere LA115 with 200 plus hours on the clock , the RAD 42 inch mower and the RAD 44 inch snow blower(AKA junk), the twin suitcase weights and snow chains I bought from Tire Chains-Best Snow Chains-TireChains.com

MY road issues are with NYSDOT and thier use of too much salt to maintain a bare wet roadway in winter. The other issue is the culvert below me is plugged and they will not rip it out as the property owner has the entrance physically blocked with a row of fence posts.
They plow and plow and salt and salt and the water backs up to the house 400 feet above mine and the melt water will pool 20 plus feet up my drive way and flood my property and the water travels under the roadbed and floods my neighbors basement.

I have been lucky as the Toro Snow Pups have helped when the JUNK broke down and blew a belt and pulley after 20 feet of blowing snow during winter storm Stella and the newer pup with the power paddle cleaned up the driveway with little effort and barely a tank of mixed gas using Fluid Film to make it very slick.

The small RAD snow blowers are designed to get rid of powder not heavy wet snow and ice.

I am very disappointed in John Deere and I know I am not alone with this opinion.

When you try talking to dealers about this you get the "you get what you pay for, or "you need to buy the $125.00 JD metric belt for the driven belt" and the "well its old excuse".

They made their product worse when they went to the vertical crankshaft engines as single stage snow throwers are so much better in my opinion.

The old 1967 12 horse hydro cub with the single stage snow thrower we had never let us down and I wish I had it.

I guess there are a bunch of folks restoring these small garden tractors and that is an option for me eventually.






I guess its going to be a case I hope it lasts another winter and the transmission does not blow up.