# Looking for comments on I-series blowers (i522/i524/i722/i724/etc...)



## russkat (Feb 25, 2015)

I know some of you have used or currently own one of these blowers...

















You know, the ones with the funky shifter down close to the engine.

How do they do in snow over 8 inches ?

Are the chutes similar or the same as the large frame models ? 
Do they throw nicely like the large frame Snappers?

Are the top and low speeds too fast/slow ?

Are the handles too high/low ?

Is the drive mechanism the same as the large frame (on a smaller scale perhaps) ?

I had a friend of mine remind me that most (80-90%) of the storms we get here can probably be handled quite nicely by one of these models. 

Your thoughts/comments are appreciated.


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## UNDERTAKER (Dec 30, 2013)

Kinda looks like one of those MTD'S if you ask me.k:k:k:k:k:


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## jtclays (Sep 24, 2010)

I fixed one that was like a 6hp or something, bad carb/dirty gas situation for a friend. I thought they were a pretty sturdy, medium level residential blower for MI. Personally I think all the 70's to 90's blowers have low handles and I'm only 6'2". It's a bit more heavy than any MTD brand blower for sure. For Colorado, I think it's undersized, IMO.


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## russkat (Feb 25, 2015)

jtclays said:


> I fixed one that was like a 6hp or something, bad carb/dirty gas situation for a friend. I thought they were a pretty sturdy, medium level residential blower for MI. Personally I think all the 70's to 90's blowers have low handles and I'm only 6'2". It's a bit more heavy than any MTD brand blower for sure. For Colorado, I think it's undersized, IMO.


Thanks for the input !


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## jtclays (Sep 24, 2010)

Hey russkat, I looked up Morrison and see it's very near Denver. I know from spending lots of time and having friends near Steamboat, Denver can have very different snowfalls inside the borders from what most of us perceive Colorado having. That machine may be a nice unit for you even though I posted it may be undersized for Colorado in general. My experience in Denver is it can snow like crazy, but the sun comes out pretty quick (keeps the local snowbunnies tanned:icon-hgtg and they seem to miss the big mountain snows we associate with your state. I know from driving there many times Denver is as flat as Nebraska and then everything goes up from there:wavetowel2:


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## FearlessFront (Aug 18, 2016)

According to my Snapper catalog that came with my Large Frame Snapper, those were considered Snappers intermediate size machine's. The chute is the same. The Augers are just as tall otherwise there are a lot of differences from the large frame, but a good intermediate level designed snowblower, again those era of Snapper's were built with quality and share no relationship at all with MTD. The drive system is designed different but also effective and works well like the large frame, the speed ratios were set well, so you will get the right speed you need out there. As far as engine to machine size ratio, they are a good match. It has that bar in front of the bucket to knock down heavy snow so it doesn't get up over the bucket so much, a good thing to have there, it also can be used to move the machine but that's not it's primary purpose. It wont throw as far as an 8hp but if your only looking for 20 to 25 feet, like you said before you should be fine. My only issue from experience is those 5 horsepower Tecumseh engine's tend to bog down a lot in heavy or thick snow even at 8 inches if you don't take it slow it will bog down and you have to stop and allow time for the engine to catch up with the work it is performing. Even if you go slow they tend to bog down, so you have to stop and wait for it to catch up to continue. Were talking around 10 to 15 seconds each time it begins to bog before it gets back up again. It is the one thing I don't like about those modern 5 hp and down Tecumseh engine's. If you get an intermediate size Snapper like that, you should try to find one with the 7 horsepower engine. Then you wont have to worry about the bog down problem and it will work great. So other then the 5hp engine on that particular machine pictured, they were descent built intermediate size Snow throwers. But personally if I was out looking to buy a Snowblower, one must have on my checklist is that it has a medium frame engine, which is 8 horsepower and up. This way you know you always have enough power ready to handle no matter what old man winter throws at you, with no worries of bogging down.


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## russkat (Feb 25, 2015)

I think I've ruled out this "intermediate series" of blowers.
That big storm that hits a few times a year, I don't want to be cursing an underpowered blower and searching for a larger one during peak snowblower season.

Its like a pickup truck. 
I may not need a one ton long bed truck every day, week, or month... but when the need arises for the heavy hauling/towing capabilities of it, I'm glad I don't have a 1/2 ton short bed.

Thanks for the comments !


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