Snowblowers. You can never have too much power or one too big

My wife gave me a bit of hard time when I bought this big Honda snowblower several years ago. She said "We line in Northern Virginia, why do you need a huge machine like that?" My answer was..."We have a 250 foot driveway is why, and a five car pad at the garage."

Most years, its overkill. This weekend it got a real workout, the Blizzard dumped 22" of snow on us. Now my wife says "That Honda gets the job done, doesn't it?"

You bet it does. More Power, More Power! Arrghhh!

Bigger, better, faster, more.

How bout running that bad boy over thisaway and running it up and down my driveway?

I've been shoveling for 4hrs and my Minivan of Doom is only half uncovered.

:eek1

M

I was thinking something like this

There is another snowblower thread going... I'm glad you like yours, but you are one of the few people I've read about who really likes their Honda... I'll take my Ariens over my Honda any day.. The Honda is just a backup now...

Though yours might be better because it has the wheels.. Mine has the tracks and there is a constant requirement to adjust the machine's angle to the tracks that drives me nuts.. that and the propensity to eat shear bolts, that is..

Reliability is excellent.. fucker starts first pull just about every time... Can't say that about the Ariens..

Honda actually makes a small version of that, or at least used to.

Tool Time Tim would be proud of you. :)

Cute Honda

That's cute...







Seriously though, Honda sets the standard that others strive to achieve. Tracks and hydrostatic drive!

Seriously, though, maybe that's true for the feathers you call snow at altitude. We leave near sea level and get wind-compressed concrete called snow.

Last season I had an Ariens Pro 926, Ariens Pro 1124, and a Honda HS928TA. The Ariens moved WAY more snow. Anyone who compares them head-to-had is going to buy Ariens. If you want a hydrostatic or track drive, Ariens has those also and has a LOT more power.

Example:


Between work and home we own three Honda cars, three Honda generators, two Honda lawnmowers and a dirt bike so I'm not a hater. Honda as lots of good attributes like a relatively quiet engine.

But Ariens is the Gold Standard of walk-behind snow throwers. We brought the Honda to Boston, sold the 926 and moved the Ariens Pro 1124 to NH.

Typical problem with the Honda: once the snow is deeper than the wimpy little bucket, you're done. I had to switch to the Ariens to get this done. An don't get me started on shear pins.

21" 13.5 amp electric blower.





Damn near killed the poor thing, and me!

Well, if you're going to compare an 11hp snowblower that cuts a 24" swath to a 9hp blower that cuts a 28, I suppose the 1124 would throw snow farther... maybe a honda 1132 would be more of a comparison. I will concede that Hondas like to eat (expensive) shear pins. At least they're easy to replace though.

Did you read my post? I had two Ariens.

The picture shows the comparison between a 26" Ariens 9.5 horse and a Honda 9.5hp 28". The Honda is the track model. Note that the Ariens is much higher. Honda's bucket is too low but you can buy an extension for only $110. Pro skid shoes are $40.



You can also concede the Honda doesn't have rolled edges on the housing, doesn't have heated grips, the light is too low and forward, has a 5" chute instead of 6", smaller augers and impellers, the skif shoes suck, etc.

The Ariens Pro Track 28 costs as much or more than the Honda HS928T but has 21 ft lbs of torque. Honda is lighter so my wife and kids prefer it.

This was my snow weapon when I lived in NY....

A real snowblower would have been more entertaining.

What engine is in the Ariens..

Good to see a comparison from someone that owns both an Ariens and a Honda. Were I really in the snow belt, I could see buying the big Ariens. I started out with a little 2-stroke single stage blower that was anemic, then moved to a small Ariens, then did a horse trade for the Honda HS928 (used). The bigger and more power, the better! Most years in Virginia you don't need a whopper, but I can see living up north you want as big as you can get.

I have a White/MTD/Simplicity Snowboss... (Yes it has all three names on it) up a my cabin that works like a champ and will chug through 3-4 feet of snow without hesitation.
Here at home I use my father in laws Poulan Pro (made by Husky) what a POS! Way too many safety interlocks, etc to make it easy to operate and on Friday evening while we still only had a foot of snow it decided to strip the gears that drive the wheels. $200 in parts. Going on CL as soon as I put it back together. Next season we will have a tractor mount for the three point / PTO.

I had one of these for a while Gravely walk behind tractor with the famous "Snow Cannon" it was scary!

When I moved here a few yrs ago, I went hunting for a blower, it was in July. Got a brand new one from a family who's elderly father passed, and the son had a truck and plow, so no need for the blower. I paid 250 bucks. It's a Home Depot bought, Murray model 8/26 with a Tecumseh engine. No light, manual chute lever.

Can that little fuucker ever throw the snow. The mouth is not large but it will bury itself into a drift and when I pull it back, the snow will then fall and go at it again.
Stabilizer in the fuel at every fill, electric start has it running every time in 2 seconds.