Snow blower

**Mark77** · 10-29-2011, 02:52 PM

Hi

Quick question

My dad and I was looking at different snow blowers, is a Honda Snow Blower worth 2-3 times the price of other cheaper brands? My dad almost bought one that costs 3800â‚¬ and similar blowers with the same Hp cost about 1500â‚¬? (About 10hp) Is the Honda name worth the extra money? One other difference is that it had a power adjustment for the blower..I have never used one so I have no clue..

**tom p.** · 10-29-2011, 03:24 PM

Honda charges a serious premium. Some will question if it`s worth that kind of price differential. Mark, can you say what other brands you have in Helsinki? I`m only familiar with what`s sold at Home Depot in the USA.

**Pats300zx** · 10-29-2011, 04:50 PM

I just picked up a Sear Craftsman snow blower this year. After years of shoveling I couldn`t go through another year of doing it. I paid about $600 on sale. Just detailed up last weekend with Collonite 845. All ready for snow !!!!

**JohnZ3MC** · 10-29-2011, 07:40 PM

A couple of years ago I bought a Honda with the track drive. Quite a unit. The tracks work well on the steep hill on most of the driveway so the machine just doesn`t slip at all. It has the electric start as well as the traditional pull cord start and it starts just like a Honda should.

Quite pricey though, I had to sell two kidneys to buy it.

**Mark77** · 10-29-2011, 11:27 PM

Thanks for your replies..

I think they all have electric start and a pull cord..the other brands they have are Ariens and Husqvarna...

**jfelbab** · 10-30-2011, 07:54 AM

I have an Ariens ST924 that I bought about 17 years ago. This is a great snow thrower, Easy to handle and maintain. Runs smoothly and can really hurl the snow. I love how easy it is to maneuver. Pretty well constructed and I`ve had zero problems with it over the years.

Maintenance is a breeze as well. I can change the oil and grease the fittings in about 20-30 minutes. I do spray wax the blower with Megs D156 and snow doesn`t stick, FWIW.

I add Stabil Marine to the fuel rather than draining it and that has worked well over the years.

**Accumulator** · 10-30-2011, 12:01 PM

Originally Posted by Mark77

One other difference is that it had a power adjustment for the blower..I have never used one so I have no clue..

My better/bigger snowblower has he power adjustment and my smaller/older one does not. IMO it`s not a big deal and I can sometimes crank the manual one faster anyhow.

Only advice I can really offer is to buy the most powerful one you can afford in the right size for your situation.

**David Fermani** · 10-30-2011, 12:02 PM

This thread just depressed me even more to move back to MI...

**Street5927** · 10-30-2011, 12:30 PM

You better get a move on....I was watching the snow fall all day yesterday here in Northeast PA; and in the mountains where I live, we ended up with 14" of snow...and of course, I bought a DR tow behind leaf and lawn vac, which is scheduled to be delivered tomorrow. With highs reaching into the upper 50`s this coming week, I hope all the snow melts, so I can try out the new DR on all the leaves that are on the ground and see how it works.

**C. Charles Hahn** · 10-30-2011, 03:00 PM

Originally Posted by David Fermani

This thread just depressed me even more to move back to MI...

Hey, you`re the one who chose to move back just in time for winter. Now, if only you could pack up some of that warm and sunny weather to bring with you....

**David Fermani** · 10-30-2011, 05:07 PM

Originally Posted by Shiny Lil Detlr

Now, if only you could pack up some of that warm and sunny weather to bring with you....

Being Italian, I`m naturally warm blooded, so I`m hoping(betting) this year`s climate transition won`t hit me too hard. :pray1::pray2:

**C. Charles Hahn** · 10-30-2011, 05:23 PM

Originally Posted by David Fermani

Being Italian, I`m naturally warm blooded, so I`m hoping(betting) this year`s climate transition won`t hit me too hard. :pray1::pray2:

We`ll see about that; everyone up here is saying we are in for a colder than usual winter this year, and probably above-average snowfall as well. As someone not so lucky (I`m a cold-blooded German) I can only hope they`re wrong!

**David Fermani** · 10-30-2011, 05:25 PM

Well, atleast I`ll have a good time snowboarding on fresh snow!! Good thing I didn`t give away all my winter clothes.

**JCturboT** · 10-31-2011, 10:03 PM

I have owned several snowthrowers over the years ranging from a small 5HP model all the way up to a 10HP unit and have had (or used) Toro`s, Craftsman, John Deere`s ,Husqvana`s, Arien`s and each has their own positives and negatives.

It wasn`t until my Mother Inlaw called to ask if I could come by after 10" of snow dropped to snowblower her driveway as her Husband was away on business.

I fired up their Honda HS928 and proceeded to be amazed at the distance I could throw snow with it-much farther and higher than I could with any snowblower I had used before.

I also loved the hydrostaic transmission and I could easily shift on the fly and from forward to reverse without stopping.

After using it I immediately sold my snowblower and purchased a secondhand HS928 for around $1200.

Oh sure it has it`s issues...the handlebars are too low for anyone over 5`9", the chute control is also too low and on the right-not left side, the auger protudes out of the front of the housing and will damage objects (ask me how I know) ,and the cost new is double to triple the cost of most snowblowers out there.

But the power & the smothness of the Honda engine, make it all secondary when you are out there for 2-3 hours like I was this past Saturday (in October no less!) after 12" of heavy/wet snow fell here in New England.

Jeff