Ordered a Berta two stage blower and a set of tracks

[farmerboybill]

According to a page Chris at Earth Tools sent me, the axle height on the steel tracks is 11", rubber gear reduction tracks is 11.5", hi speed tracks is 9.5". The rubber gear reduction gives you 2" more clearance versus the hi-speed track I have. BUT, your speeds are reduced by half. 1st gear would end up about worthless at .3 mph, 2nd gear would become first gear at .9 mph, and third gear is 1.6 mph. 4th gear might end up more useful for higher speed mowing at 4.3 mph. Human walking pace is roughly 3 mph, so 4th will be a very brisk walk/jog.

I wouldn't recommend the steel tracks for mowing or driving across pavement. They're gonna be very aggressive and tear sod and pavement up. The rubber tracks will have almost the same traction and will be much gentler.

 

[CodeMonkey]

I would guess maybe the one oscillating track would be okay for climbing out of a hole - it has a little bit of an up ramp there, especially if I push down on the handlebars.

Not worried about speed - in the woods slower is better - easier to maneuver.

 

[NibbanaFarm]

You have a 33" clearing width which is going to make a big difference considering the area that you're clearing. Other than that, what is your opinion on the difference between the Berta two stage and the 28" BCS single stage?

 

[farmerboybill]

I sold my BCS blower several years ago. It was a cannon. The biggest thing I didn't like about it was the gear noise when it wasn't in snow. Also, The cable that ran the deflector was about useless. It worked great in the garage, but water would get into the cable sleeve and freeze after a couple minutes. The lever would quit working after that. Other than that, it was a perfectly acceptable blower

 

[Ford850]

I sold my BCS blower several years ago. It was a cannon. The biggest thing I didn't like about it was the gear noise when it wasn't in snow. Also, The cable that ran the deflector was about useless. It worked great in the garage, but water would get into the cable sleeve and freeze after a couple minutes. The lever would quit working after that. Other than that, it was a perfectly acceptable blower

I agree about the negatives of the BCS. I don't think it's gear noise but it's the stiff rubber center sweep that is slapping against the body of the blower that makes noise. But it is loud and annoying. I had the problem with my cable too, but I keep it 'filled' with Fluid Film now and haven't had the problem for several years. But it's still difficult to keep the lever and shoot pivot bolts tight enough to hold the shoot in any position other than full-down or straight up. Part of that is due to the speed and force of the snow as it flies up the shoot. One more thing, the shoot leaks snow heavily out of the seam if the shoot is not in the straight up, or down position. So I find myself leaving the shoot wide open and playing the wind for direction most of the time.
Even saying all that, it's a darn strong blower. I can blow a stream of snow up over the house. When I first got it years ago, I cleared a pond for us to play hockey. The pond had 3 inches of heavy wet slushy snow on it. I blew it clean, much to the amazement of my buddies. It was pumping out a full tube of translucent slush all the way to the side of the pond. I wish I had a video of that.
I watched several videos of both blowers on you tube recently, and the Berta can definitely handle deeper snow with ease. When I need a replacement, Berta will be on the top of my list.

 

[CodeMonkey]

My current wheels/tires on the Grillo 110 are ~20" diameter which makes the axle sit about 9 to 9.5"

So that would mean I wouldn't lose anything with the hi-speed tracks and I would gain 2 to 2.5" with the low speed tracks.

 

[farmerboybill]

Forgot the biggest advantage of the BCS Blower - it's half the money of the Berta. Most times, the price is going to be the determining factor. The Berta is great, I'm just not sure it's twice as great...

On the other hand, a stand-alone 33" snow blower is likely to run well over 2K. Considering that, if you have the BCS or Grillo to run it already, the Berta is a bargain - and a better machine. Stand-alone blowers are money pits if they aren't maintained. They get used less than 20 hours a year. Some years they don't get used at all. Most owners don't drain or stabilize the gasoline, and they won't start when they're needed. Then they take a trip to the shop, wait a couple weeks to get cleaned out, and get shoved back in the corner when they get home. Next year, start the process again. Any blower attachment is a bargain compared to that routine.

 

[NibbanaFarm]

I agree with everything you've said. Top of the line track drive Honda or Ariens is going to run $3K - $4k. And that's a whole other machine to take care of and store. Where an attachment is almost no maintenance. And takes up a lot less than half the space. We get a lot of snow in New England and I don't think there's ever been a year where my snow blower didn't see 20 hours of work.

That common fuel problem problem has the simplest fix though. I treat all the premium fuel I buy for all my equipment and small engines. I'm sure I don't go through more than an eight dollar bottle of Star Tron a year either. It's very cheap and easy to use and you can't over dose on it. That way I don't have to remember to treat any fuel for a particular engine at a particular time of year.

I have 14 year old Troy Bilt 28" track drive. The only fuel related problem I had was a surging engine caused by a partially blocked main air jet. It looked like some dirt had just built up in there. It doesn't have an air cleaner so I'm not sure if it was gas or air that caused the problem. I googled "surging snow blower engine" and some great person had a youtube video showing the exact fix on a early identical Tecumseh engine. Gotta love the internet. The guy called it an air jet.

I only have three real complaints with the machine. First, they engineered some obsolescence by neglecting to provide any means to lube the drive axles. I put grease fittings in after I replaced those bearings. Second, it just doesn't throw heavy wet snow far at all. Only a couple feet depending. And once it gets thrown, it can be almost impossible to move again depending on the conditions. Third, they didn't do a very good job waterproofing the thing. Nothing some rubber, screws, and RTV didn't eventually fix, but caused some aggravation.

Other than that, I made a number of new skids for it, replaced a head light, replaced the drive tire, replaced a broken control cable, and replace the shear bolts after the dog left a 2x4 out in the driveway. Replaced a coil due to a mouse chewed plug wire. I maintain it carefully every year before it goes into storage.

What's nice about the thing is that the tracks and steering clutches make it very maneuverable. And it doesn't get stuck easy on dirt and gravel which is all I have. And it has heated grips. But stuff happens, and machines break down. So I'm looking for a BCS as a backup (at least). I have a plow rig that I made for my 739 that works excellently but is limited in how much snow it will push. But from what I've seen, snow blowers are the bottom line when you have to move snow. Particularly when you have a lot of buildings and obstacles and don't have a clear run for a plow.

 

[farmerboybill]

It sounds like you go above and beyond for your snowblower, Nibbana. Unfortunately, you are the exception. Most blowers are not maintained at all.

I have a friend who makes money on the side by fixing up and selling cast-away mowers. He watches for ones sitting on the curb for the garbage man, picks them up at garage sales, and buys them at auctions for $20 or less. Typically, he gets a buyer's old push mower for free when he delivers one of his refurbished mowers. They usually tell him that it doesn't run, and they didn't investigate further. Usually cleaning the carb, changing the oil, and sharpening the blade yields him another saleable unit. No one maintains anything anymore...

 

[leonz]

I just spent 142 dollars for a plastic replacement spout and chute assembly
for my JD44 inch snow caster that is mounted on my JD LA115.

I guess they figure building one with a metal chute and spout is
not worth their time anymore.

Hopefully I can trade or buy a 1023E with a loader and
Pronovost Group 1 snow blower next year.