Lawn Mowers

[ImcLoud]

with ariens they are all nice but try to stay deluxe or above... Ariens Deluxe 28 in. Electric Start Gas Snow Blower with Auto-Turn Steering-921030 at The Home Depot

If you don't mind spending the extra money, get the 30" platinum 2014 model is 921029, it comes with the LCT 414cc engine, I love this engine, cast iron sleeve, roller bearings, tri ring pistons, ect... But besides all that stuff, it is super powerful, quiet, easy to start, and I don't know why but when compared to other snow thrower engines it works better, when you blow snow, its not a uniform load, so your blower {whether you know it or not} gives more and less power throughout the driveway the entire time you are blowing snow, thats why when you go faster and hit a higher area of snow with maybe some ice in it, the blower revs up and down or seems to bog, that constant rpm change... Lawn mowers do it to, you know that feeling when you hit high or wet grass you slow down pushing because it feels like it will stall and you give the mower time to recover... Well I am told its because of the lct engines governor design but with the 414cc LCT mill, it has this rock solid unchanging rpm, no matter what you hit, just push rite through it, no slowing down to catch its breath...

Some people were leery of the lct engines because they are made in china, but so are all the briggs mills, and lct took over tecumesh which I always liked, but now these have been around for 6 + years and no issues, people are coming to love them and look for the brand...

 

[Soccerkid830]

That is the one that I looked at when I went to Home Depot. A lot bigger and more controls than the one I am used to , and electric start - that way the battery can go bad too

 

[avnetguy]

I feel like I'm too young to be saying this, but back when I was a "kid" we had to actually push the snowblower.

I remember that as well but it was called a shovel way back then.

 

[ImcLoud]

That is the one that I looked at when I went to Home Depot. A lot bigger and more controls than the one I am used to , and electric start - that way the battery can go bad too

Very few snowblowers take batteries, I think ariens only has one model and it is almost $3000 and HD doesnt sell it {a friend of mine bought one because he starts and stops his machine a lot}... How the electric start works is you plug it into a 120v wall socket with an extension cord and the starter motor is 120v ac vs 12v dc, since these machines start so easy I have never used my electric start, its more work to pull out the cord than pull the starter, that is more for the older people or women who can not pull the machine {My wife can not start it, but she weighs 120lbs- lol...} even if the machine sat all summer I can push it outside and it will start first pull, I can honestly say I never had to pull it twice in a row... I do use good gas 94 plus, Lucas fuel stabilizer, and keep it in a heated garage, but I have heard from others that don't treat their gas for the off season and keep the machine outside all year long that theirs start first pull everytime too.... I would imagine having the 12v battery would be a pain, add more weight and most batteries arent going to like being dormant 7 months a year and then only used sporadically, I would think the batts would need to be changed every year or couple years making it not worth the time, money, or effort...


I like the 414cc 30" platinum for the money, the next step up is the 420cc 28" pro model which pretty much has the polar briggs motor and a little wider of a tire, I personally like the 414 engine better although the bigger tire may help I never noticed a difference or problem with either, they both have heated grips where the others in the lower series don't... I think the bang for buck is the platinum series 30"... You can add heated grips to the deluxe machines but they are almost $100 and you have to wire and do the work yourself. I like having the heated handles well worth the upgrade, especially if you are out there more than 20 minutes, a lot of controls means a lot of hand work, and you have two options thick gloves or thin gloves and heated grips... think gloves make the work much easier....

 

[Soccerkid830]

Very few snowblowers take batteries, I think ariens only has one model and it is almost $3000 and HD doesnt sell it {a friend of mine bought one because he starts and stops his machine a lot}... How the electric start works is you plug it into a 120v wall socket with an extension cord and the starter motor is 120v ac vs 12v dc, since these machines start so easy I have never used my electric start, its more work to pull out the cord than pull the starter, that is more for the older people or women who can not pull the machine {My wife can not start it, but she weighs 120lbs- lol...} even if the machine sat all summer I can push it outside and it will start first pull, I can honestly say I never had to pull it twice in a row... I do use good gas 94 plus, Lucas fuel stabilizer, and keep it in a heated garage, but I have heard from others that don't treat their gas for the off season and keep the machine outside all year long that theirs start first pull everytime too.... I would imagine having the 12v battery would be a pain, add more weight and most batteries arent going to like being dormant 7 months a year and then only used sporadically, I would think the batts would need to be changed every year or couple years making it not worth the time, money, or effort...


I like the 414cc 30" platinum for the money, the next step up is the 420cc 28" pro model which pretty much has the polar briggs motor and a little wider of a tire, I personally like the 414 engine better although the bigger tire may help I never noticed a difference or problem with either, they both have heated grips where the others in the lower series don't... I think the bang for buck is the platinum series 30"... You can add heated grips to the deluxe machines but they are almost $100 and you have to wire and do the work yourself. I like having the heated handles well worth the upgrade, especially if you are out there more than 20 minutes, a lot of controls means a lot of hand work, and you have two options thick gloves or thin gloves and heated grips... think gloves make the work much easier....

I didn't realize you plugged it in to use the electric start. That's good to know. I highly doubt I'll use the electric start either. Thanks for all your input and advice, I'm sure I'll lean heavily into it once the time comes to buy a blower..

 

[ImcLoud]

Yah, I never use the e-start, couldn't even tell you if it works, lol... I wouldn't wait to long, if you buy an ariens by friday and register it you get a free 2 year warranty extension so 5 years, that is nice for free... Warranty

 

[Midwesthonky]

I didn't realize you plugged it in to use the electric start. That's good to know. I highly doubt I'll use the electric start either. Thanks for all your input and advice, I'm sure I'll lean heavily into it once the time comes to buy a blower..

Uh...the time to buy a snowblower is now, not after the snow flies. Couple reasons. First, most people hold off spending the money until it's needed. So in other words, everyone is out looking for snowblowers after the first snowfall. The one you want could be gone. When my 30 year old snowblower put the connecting rod through the case, it was mid-December. The only units left were either the $3,000 units or the super cheap crap units. I found one about 60 minutes drive away. Since there was no repairing the old, had to do the drive and assemble it myself.

If that first snowfall is a good one, well, you first gotta get the vehicle out of the driveway to go buy the snowblower. Kind of defeats the purpose of buying a snowblower as the point is to have one before the snow hits the ground.

Third, if you have a significant other that doesn't have to do the chore and they see you shovel the driveway for the first snowfall, they may not understand the need to spend the money on a snowblower. After all, you did just fine with the first snowfall. I don't know your situation, but there are others out there that know this well.

Fourth, most snowblowers are stored in their original shipping box. Most warranties require the retailer to do the assembly, not the buyer. So if you can find the model in stock that you want after the first snow, you could easily wait 2-7 days before you can pick it up and take it home. The first snowfall is also the busiest time for small engine repair shops as most people do not fire up their snowblower until after the first snowfall. Then, when it doesn't start because they never stored it properly, off to the shop it goes. Those same repair guys are the ones that assemble the new units. So you could be waiting awhile to get it home.

Just something to think about. Personally, if I knew what I wanted, I'd go buy it soon.

If it's a two-stage, don't forget extra shear bolts for the front auger. Nothing like trying to clear the driveway with a wounded duck of a snowblower. It's a simple 3 minute repair vs. taking two or three times as long to clear the drive.

Otherwise, good luck! Shiny new implement of destruction in the garage is a mighty cool thing!

 

[ImcLoud]

Did you pick up a blower and mower yet, I found a pic in my phone from when my ariens was delivered...

 

[Soccerkid830]

No. I'm in an apartment right now and won't be in the house until mid-December. I don't have a way of storing the snowblower for now unless I leave it in the living room or something. I'm trying to figure out if there's a way I could order one and have them hang onto it for a month. Or if someone I know from work could hang onto it for the time being maybe...

 

[Midwesthonky]

Ah, that would explain it. Yeah, that is a tough spot. But in the big picture, you will survive even if you have to shovel this winter.

 

[Soccerkid830]

Yeah, the amount of snow we get here is so little anyway, I'm not that worried about having one or not for this winter. I've shoveled many driveways to make money in middle/high school.

 

[j_garcia]

I've had an Ariens riding mower for about 3 years now and I've been pretty happy with it. Snow isn't an issue for me though

 

[Soccerkid830]

That thing looks brand new. Do you even use it?

 

[j_garcia]

LOL. It doesn't look like that now. That was the day they dropped it off

 

[ImcLoud]

They are all pretty the day they get dropped off, I spent $8500 on one of my Exmarks {lazer z with a vac and bagger} a while back and it was new the first day, then it was covered in grass and leaves, green marks on the deck, wheels full of shavings, ect... I always blow them off and try not to cut wet grass but when you buy a service tool, chances are its only going to be new once...