~Toughbooktalk~

Guys,

My little 10 year old electric Toro Power Curve 1800 is tired. I have tuned it up and have a new belt on order and hope to get through the season.

However, I am thinking about getting a 2 stage unit as they seem to be more powerful and are self propelled. Don't get me wrong, the electric one has treated me well and for SURE I'm considering just getting another single stage one too.

However, I have narrowed it down to the following:

1) Cheap Option: This Troy Bilt Storm 2410 179CC model NEW for $510 which is on crazy back-order and this sales ends tomorrow (11/12): http://www.lowes.com/pd_189194-270-31AS ... facetInfo= The problem I can see is the cavitation/engine surging problem that seems to come with the Chinese engine they put on it. Troy Bilt is the same as Cub Cadet, MTD, Yard Machines and Remington which I'm not very fond of (My Remington weed whacker SUCKS at starting but then again I only paid $100 for it.

1a) Slightly used same as above option: The SAME unit but used (barely), which I'm trying to talk down to $325 cash and pick up after a 3 hour drive to Indiana: http://www.ebay.com/itm/TROY-BILT-2-STA ... OS:US:1123 He originally had it listed for $450 but I see he's raised it to $750 now for some crazy reason... Maybe because I've given him incentive to sell it for CA$H instead of eBay taking 13%?

2) PREFERRED OPTION: This one is the BEST one I can see for the money and the one which I ultimately want to get: http://www.husqvarna.com/us/products/sn ... rs/st-224/ - I can get this for $660 locally at Russo + tax and it's IN STOCK NOW (Before the bad weather comes is literally like 2 days away). and I like this because it has headlights, and you can control the UP/DOWN on the chute without having to stop what you're doing to go over to it. It also has heated handle bars but I'm not so sold on that and could care less at this point. The engine on this guy is an LCT 208cc which is larger and I guess is basically a tecumseh, which I know is also good!

3) Ultimate option that I should buy because it's too much $$: Last but not least, I've toyed with this unit because it has a Briggs engine which I KNOW from VAST experience will treat me well for a LONG friggin time but is a LOT MORE $$$ than I really wanna spend coming it at $790 and doesn't have a headlight or the chute controls . I talked to the guy on the phone and he says that this unit is more responsive with the self propulsion than the Husqvarna is: http://www.russopower.com/products/toro ... -24-37775/

Long story short! HELP! What do you think!? I really don't want to spend more than $400 as I KNOW the wife will KILL ME! LITERALLY KILL ME! We have a kid coming and need $$$ for that. It's not to say I cannot afford the $707 Husqvarna that I really want but do I really NEED it? I'm eagerly waiting to see if that guy accepts my $325 cash offer and It'll be a done deal and this thread will have been a waste of time.

Thanks!

The headligjt and adjustable chute are important. I ended up putting a light on mine. Tecumdeh has been the prefered snoblower engine for years.

Thanks for the thoughts Shawn!!

I agree from what I can tell. My current unit can go 180 degrees from left to right but I have to MANUALLY adjust up and down and it's a pain.

Also, 999 times out of 1000 it'll be dark out whilst doing it, hence the light.

Thanks!

Even though I have lived in the Great White North all my life, I cannot give you a recommendation based on usage as I have never had a snowblower. After reading through the choices you listed, I would say get #2).
If you need a recommendation on a snowthrower, then I would say get what I use...a steel coal scoop. A little heavy but moves lots of snow with each scoop. I usually get about 5yrs before I need to replace the handle and grind the leading edge of the scoop. I have been running with those since I was 12, now 56.
My $0.02.

I think what you need to look at first is how big of a driveway you have. Too big of a snow blower could be over kill. My first house the driveway was about 40 feet long and I had a single stage 24 inch cut Craftsman which worked great but when I built the new house the driveway is 110 feed and 36 wide in the back so I went to a 2 stage 28 inch Craftsman. Yes a head light is nice on them but a good light on the house works great too and it also does not get covered with snow like the one on the snow blower. I bought a light kit for mine and it was a waste of almost $100.00 because in a blowing snow storm it will get covered.

My driveway is three cars wide at the top and three cars deep on the right and middle.

Mini diagram:

CAR1 CAR2 CAR3
CAR4 CAR5
CAR6 CAR7


I think a single stage would be plenty big but it's all the snow at the base of the driveway that the plow gives me that I hate dealing with... That's why I'm looking for a 2 stage.

Thanks!

Snow? What's that?

I grew up 40 miles north of Syracuse New York,right on Lake Ontario.Snow blower my rear end,our record is 59" in one night. Snow plow on a John Deere.
This was 3 days ago on the Pacific where we live now,5 minutes away.



You can have it.

So after talking to 5 or 6 local small dealers of snow blowers EVERY SINGLE ONE of them recommends the Briggs and Straton engine over the LCT engine that's on the Husqvarna. They mostly thought of the Chinese engine to not last as long (One guy was telling me that he's seen on average after 5 years the LCT engines breaking down) as the American made Briggs engine that you can find on the Toro's (Model 37775), Snappers and this Simplicity one: http://www.ebay.com/itm/171395733007?_t ... EBIDX%3AIT

Too much $$$

I have a Toro 3521...2 stage.....Bought it on Ebay from a seller about 2 hours from home. It was older but in good condition. $125 I think, maybe $150. No more.

The 35 means 3.5 hp and the 21 means 21 inch path.

It had a Tecumseh 3.5 hp which was not enough hp for me. I rebuilt a Briggs 5hp I/C (Industrial-Commercial) engine and put it on. I put an alternator and 120 volt electric starter on it. The alternator is to run the headlight and the starter is to crank it over with an extension cord from my shed. No battery and it starts fast. Forget that pull cord crap unless I have to.

Toro used the same gearbox on a 724 so it can handle my engine easily. 2 stage is the best. Make sure you get a stick to unclog it. Hands don't grow back.

Here are some photos of mine ....

Rob,

I thought you moved to Texas?

Why not just go by a pawn shop and see what they have. My buddy bought a nice two-stage unit that was only used 1-2 seasons if that. He picked it up for almost half the price of the new one. It had headlights and heated grips even.

The driveway in the new house will be 14 feet wide by 900+ feet long. That sh!t can MELT!