# HS928WA - First Blower



## KpaxFAQ (Aug 30, 2014)

Hey guys, dropped off the check for a new HS928WA yesterday. After hours of careful research and consideration with many opinions of this site factored in, I decided on Honda. 

It was a tough race between Ariens, and Simplicity as well but after examining all 3 in person it was clear the Honda was hands down the best in quality, fit, and finish. 

I very well could of went for a toro if they didn't completely abandon the USA. The plastic doesn't scare me at all, if anything the right engineered materials in that application may perform better then metal...

I probably would of went for a 24" Ariens Platinum and saved $1000 but I didn't like the chute control design and Chinese engine was a deal-breaker for me. 

Honda, while this snow blower is not manufactured in the USA, it's never been because it's a foreign company. BUT they have not sold out and have continued to make a high quality product in house which I can respect. I'm in infrastructure construction and EVERYTHING known to man runs a Honda GX engine. They are run in the harshest conditions (extreme dust, heat, cold, etc) and they just keep on ticking with 1 or 2 pull starts. A snow blower application ought to last forever. They make more small engines on US soil then anyone else to my knowledge? and seem to be expanding US production vs other companies shrinking production here. 

It was a tough check to write for a SNOW BLOWER but I'm sure what it cost will be long forgotten in 10 or 15 years when I'm still blowing snow over the top of my house into the backyard.

Anyways, thanks again for the knowledge I read extensively through here. 

She's not getting delivered until next Saturday so I'll have to post a pic or two after I get a coat of Nu Finish on it!


----------



## liftoff1967 (Jan 15, 2014)

Congrats on your investment. I know what your saying about Honda engine's. In my younger years, I worked part time at a outdoor rental center, in Minneapolis where NO ONE has respect for rental equipment. If it did not have a Honda engine, it did not last in the rental industry.


----------



## KpaxFAQ (Aug 30, 2014)

liftoff1967 said:


> Congrats on your investment. I know what your saying about Honda engine's. In my younger years, I worked part time at a outdoor rental center, in Minneapolis where NO ONE has respect for rental equipment. If it did not have a Honda engine, it did not last in the rental industry.


Hey I see you have the LED's on your blower, I read that whole thread and plan to play with that before the snow even flys


----------



## db9938 (Nov 17, 2013)

Welcome, congrats and don't forget to update the will.


----------



## KpaxFAQ (Aug 30, 2014)

So I'm mowing the backyard with my Honda HRX217 and I see this thing of beauty driving up the driveway....

The delivery man shook my hand and was on his way. I immediately did a detailed once over before I was going to apply a coat of Nu Finish to all the metal and to my dismay they sent a brand new $2500 dollar snow blower out like this.....










Is there supposed to be a bolt in that place where a bolt goes in this picture????


















Also as you see in the above picture I took the oil dripstick out to double check oil level and that's how much poured all over my driveway before leveling off at the top of the hole. I know you fill these Honda GX's all the way up to the top of the fill hole but WTF alot of oil came out almost like it was filled tilted on a grade to the left!? Needless to say I was on the phone with the OPE dealer and they are picking it back up! I reminded the guy I could buy a decent running used car for what this blower costs.... Unbelievable.


----------



## Apple Guy (Sep 7, 2014)

That just is a bummer. How could that get to you in that shape is beyond me... It almost looks like a disgruntled employee issue, because you of the handle bar/command plate issue and the oil overfill.

OR

They had a 13 year old kid do the assembly and he was clueless on the fill level and tipped it 45 degs on one wheel to fill it and put the oil stick on at that 45 deg angle. Looking at longer it looks as if someone could of tied the snowblower down for delivery with the ratchet tie downs right up next to the plastic and crushed the drive engagement. 

I agree, call the seller...come get the snowblower, I have damaged goods. 

Let use know how the dealer handles this mess of a machine.

.


----------



## KpaxFAQ (Aug 30, 2014)

Apple Guy said:


> That just is a bummer. How could that get to you in that shape is beyond me... It almost looks like a disgruntled employee issue, because you of the handle bar/command plate issue and the oil overfill.
> 
> OR
> 
> ...


Thankfully, no. I bought it from the oldest outdoor power equipment dealer in Erie, PA. They didn't give me any problems or question me and said they will take it back. I am going to request some money refunded off the sale price for my inconvenience or a full refund if they are unwilling to do so and I'll go down the street to the other Honda dealership. There's really no excuse not to give the machine a once over before it's loaded out. As you saw it's not like I had to "dig" to find some imperfection, it's staring you right in the face first thing! I don't expect anything more out of anyone then I expect out of myself!

PS, one other thing is that they didn't deliver the manual with it...told them that on the phone as well. I know I can get it online but I like to have a physical manual in the garage where I do my service...


----------



## KpaxFAQ (Aug 30, 2014)

I pulled out the trusty level to check the surface where I opened the fill cap to see if it tips towards the hole and it actually slightly tilts away from the hole telling me it's still slightly overfilled yet and was in no way a screw up on my end. 

I am now even more pissed because I called 10 minutes after delivery around 10AM and was told he'd call the delivery guy and see what they can do about getting it picked back up. Well no one called me back to give me an update and it's now 1:36PM and they close at noon telling me I was completely blown off. Keep in mind my house is 10 minutes from the dealership, it's not like I'm an hour away...I read into it as they hope I'll change my mind over the rest of the weekend and just keep it. Now I'm going to struggle to even be nice about it come Monday. 

There's plenty of times in my line of work where something doesn't go right or gets screwed up and we stay a little late to get it right.


----------



## Apple Guy (Sep 7, 2014)

KpaxFAQ said:


> I pulled out the trusty level to check the surface where I opened the fill cap to see if it tips towards the hole and it actually slightly tilts away from the hole telling me it's still slightly overfilled yet and was in no way a screw up on my end.
> 
> I am now even more pissed because I called 10 minutes after delivery around 10AM and was told he'd call the delivery guy and see what they can do about getting it picked back up. Well no one called me back to give me an update and it's now 1:36PM and they close at noon telling me I was completely blown off. Keep in mind my house is 10 minutes from the dealership, it's not like I'm an hour away...I read into it as they hope I'll change my mind over the rest of the weekend and just keep it. Now I'm going to struggle to even be nice about it come Monday.
> 
> There's plenty of times in my line of work where something doesn't go right or gets screwed up and we stay a little late to get it right.



While this is no excuse, if there are younger kids involved in any aspect of this such as the driver or someone who took the call. That could explain the lack of concern on their part. Younger people are not up to speed on "service" as I know you know. No excuse, I would still lay into them too. But don't get too wound up this weekend. I would call on Monday and ONLY talk to a manager or owner
.


----------



## Big Ed (Feb 10, 2013)

That sucks, was there a delivery charge as well?
How come you didn't pick it up yourself if the place was only 10 mins away?

Whenever I have a choice for something like this item I prefer to pick it up myself.
My Bro delivers for UPS and tells me all the horror stories about some deliveries.

All of them just seem to drop and run today, no attempt to even ring the bell one time or knock on the door. And so much for paying extra for a signed receipt the USPS, UPS or FedEx just toss and run in my area. They get no signature. And it doesn't matter how much the item costs, just dump and run.
There have been numerous reports around the tri-state area of thugs following delivery trucks and just picking up the boxes as they deliver. More so around the holidays.

I hope it works out for you.

Edit,
I have been looking for where the bolt is supposed to be, I can't find what your talking about. I see no empty holes anywhere.
Can you point it out to me?


----------



## Shryp (Jan 1, 2011)

Big Ed said:


> I have been looking for where the bolt is supposed to be, I can't find what your talking about. I see no empty holes anywhere.
> Can you point it out to me?


His picture didn't show inline in his post, but it was one of the attachments under his post.


----------



## Big Ed (Feb 10, 2013)

OK. Thanks, I see it now.
I was looking at where his comment was.

What would a bolt do there?
Maybe something that would help hold the 2 cables in line would be there?

I guess something should be there?


----------



## KpaxFAQ (Aug 30, 2014)

Hey Ed, yeah on Monday I'm going to call and only talk to the owner and try the sugar before spice routine and we'll see how things go. I do not own a truck otherwise I would of picked it up myself, delivery was free. I could of grabbed a truck from work but I figured I would just take the free delivery and be done with it. 

Not trying to sound overly dramatic but because this is a snow blower forum I was blowing off some steam about the inconvenience. This is the second top of the line item I've bought recently that I had some kind of issue with. It's funny with my job I've invested in some top of the line things because I don't have time to screw around and well it's not the machine's fault but problems never the less. 

Got my health and family, it's all good! Oh and a glass of scotch in my hand now... 

Thanks Shryp for the picture insert!


----------



## db9938 (Nov 17, 2013)

Could it be the mounting point for a light?

And all the other things....wow, I hope you got a discount for it.


----------



## KpaxFAQ (Aug 30, 2014)

db9938 said:


> Could it be the mounting point for a light?
> 
> And all the other things....wow, I hope you got a discount for it.


It's not for a light for sure as the light is mounted but not pictured. 

I want it replaced and a discount applied on top of it. I'd even be willing to accept the discount in form of store credit as this isn't going to be the last piece of power equipment I buy. I'm a reasonable guy not looking for something for nothing but my time is my most valuable, scarce commodity and they wasted half my Saturday to fail.


----------



## KpaxFAQ (Aug 30, 2014)

Haaa HA! I went to the Honda website to look at the stock photo of the blower and it's a guard for the cables missing there. Look in the top left by the handlebars and you'll clearly see what bolt goes there....

Honda HS928WA Model Info |28" Two-stage Snow Blower | Honda Snow Blowers


----------



## db9938 (Nov 17, 2013)

Yeah, I should have looked over at the website, before I posted. It is interesting that there appears to be wear marks on that tab. 

And the website does not allow for a close enough look at that side to determine what it could have been used for.


----------



## KpaxFAQ (Aug 30, 2014)

Part of me is now really starting to suspect it was snapped off by the rachet strap that also caused the damage on the command plate and he removed it hoping I wouldn't notice and wouldn't say anything about the scratches and gouges


----------



## Big Ed (Feb 10, 2013)

Big Ed said:


> OK. Thanks, I see it now.
> I was looking at where his comment was.
> 
> What would a bolt do there?
> ...





KpaxFAQ said:


> Haaa HA! I went to the Honda website to look at the stock photo of the blower and it's a guard for the cables missing there. Look in the top left by the handlebars and you'll clearly see what bolt goes there....
> 
> Honda HS928WA Model Info |28" Two-stage Snow Blower | Honda Snow Blowers


Well I guess I was close with my theory. 

Though the hole seems awful large for just mounting a guard for the cables?

Also take notice of your picture of the position of the one boot that Shryp posted for me, it looks like it has been pushed down some. Unless that is normal?


----------



## KpaxFAQ (Aug 30, 2014)

Big Ed said:


> Well I guess I was close with my theory.
> 
> Though the hole seems awful large for just mounting a guard for the cables?
> 
> Also take notice of your picture of the position of the one boot that Shryp posted for me, it looks like it has been pushed down some. Unless that is normal?


Yup you nailed it Ed! I want to say it looked like it took a 1/2 to 7/16 inch sized bolt so not too extreme in size, of course the real bolt will be mm whatever that translates over to...

I think the position of those boots is normal off the top of my head. That exposed portion of the cables above the squashed boot travel through the lever's operating range. Thus if my theory is correct the boot will be perfect length when the control is at the other extreme. Who know's maybe you'll be 2/2?!  I'll have to take a look tomorrow and actuate the levers to see what happens.


----------



## Big Ed (Feb 10, 2013)

I would suggest when you finally do talk to them try to do it in a calm manner.
Sometimes that helps in the beginning.......sometimes.  

If that doesn't work then let loose with both barrels blazing.


----------



## KpaxFAQ (Aug 30, 2014)

Big Ed said:


> I would suggest when you finally do talk to them try to do it in a calm manner.
> Sometimes that helps in the beginning.......sometimes.
> 
> If that doesn't work then let loose with both barrels blazing.


You're absolutely right


----------



## Fred9 (Dec 21, 2013)

Curious as to the outcome or status....


----------



## KpaxFAQ (Aug 30, 2014)

Fred9 said:


> Curious as to the outcome or status....


So Monday morning around 9am someone from the dealer calls me to schedule a pickup before I even got a chance to call them....Excellent. So they're coming this Saturday again to pick up the damaged goods. I tell the guy I'd like to discuss the whole ordeal with the owner and he said he's actually not at the shop and on his cell phone because he's out making deliveries. 

I call the shop and ask to speak to the owner and give them my info and detailed info what it's regarding. They feed me the "he's assisting another customer line we'll leave him a message to call you back" Ok, that's fine. This was Monday at 10AM. It's now Thursday and not a single call back. I run heavy equipment and don't really have time to talk on the cellphone all day and continually beat down there door or I would of called again even though I shouldn't have to. 

I've made up my mind, I think the best course of action is to just cancel the order and go elsewhere! I'm not going to beg them to make it right. I still haven't even heard a concrete answer of exactly what their plan is to make this right?! I've just heard they're picking up the damaged one. They ought to have another one on the truck to swap with the damaged one and if they don't have the exact model in stock I'll take the same model with electric start for the same price that was sitting there! Oh well, guess I'll just take my $2,500 back....

There's another dealer who's 15 minutes who's actually a Honda dealer who just sells Honda, that's it. I'll buy it there. They're a whisker more expensive but I don't really care at this point!


----------



## Apple Guy (Sep 7, 2014)

Good course of action. They seem to be hiding you from the owner. Time to move to another dealer.


----------



## [email protected] (Nov 21, 2011)

The missing part appears to be the RATCHET COVER B:


----------



## Blaine B. (Aug 29, 2014)

I can't imagine dishing that sort of cash out for a walk behind snow thrower.

You have a good start on a used plow truck with that cash-ola!

I definitely wouldn't want to spend more than $600ish on one. Which is why I got a used Ariens for $375. Now I think that's definitely worth the cost.


----------



## Mitral (Aug 28, 2014)

Blaine B. said:


> Which is why I got a used Ariens for $375.


Good for you!


----------



## Blaine B. (Aug 29, 2014)

My point was....over $2,000 for a snow thrower? Seems excessive!


----------



## knightsofni (Sep 10, 2014)

It depends on your location and property layout.
If you used a plow on my driveway the only place you could push the snow would be in my garage! So a blower is required.
The amount of snow we get completely defeated my Honda 724 (Just too small) so a low cost blower isn't going to work for me.
2 of my neighbors have commercial machines and the other one a $50,000 tractor.
Where you live a $2000 machine may well be overkill, but in other places like here would be the norm.
Regards 
Knights


----------



## KpaxFAQ (Aug 30, 2014)

knightsofni said:


> It depends on your location and property layout.
> If you used a plow on my driveway the only place you could push the snow would be in my garage! So a blower is required.
> The amount of snow we get completely defeated my Honda 724 (Just too small) so a low cost blower isn't going to work for me.
> 2 of my neighbors have commercial machines and the other one a $50,000 tractor.
> ...


Yup, Im 29 and am meticulous with maintenence so this blower will take me to retirement....it won't seem that expensive at 55 to 60.....


----------



## Blaine B. (Aug 29, 2014)

I will say, I also crapped myself when I saw that a new zero turn mower can cost upwards of $15,000. And that's for a smaller residential style commercial unit, not a huge unit.


----------



## gibbs296 (Jun 22, 2014)

I saw some video from one of the members of a John Deere lawn tractor with a snowblower attatchment. That also seemed like a nice alternative. Different strokes for different folks. OP, good luck on your situation. Unfortunately, it has taken an ugly turn.


----------



## Blaine B. (Aug 29, 2014)

It has happened to me before, with a rifle. I "accidentally" received someone's return. Was it really an accident, or were they hoping I wouldn't notice?

Now, the rifle wasn't brand new. So there's a bit of a difference. Regardless, I was sent someone's return. The part that alerted me was the note in the box that stated that it was a return. I would likely have never known if it wasn't for that note!

You know because the unit arrived....damaged! I would be disappointed as well. And if I got dicked around and promises went unanswered, I would probably shop elsewhere.


----------



## KpaxFAQ (Aug 30, 2014)

We have RESOLUTION...

I went in person today and as respectfully and calmly as a man could told them how pissed I was about the whole lack of communication. The owner's excuse for not returning my call was that his delivery guy said he talked to me and everything was setup. **** poor excuse. I explained how I understand that mistakes happen, things break and can be fixed but that I was most pissed off about the lack of simple communication and customer service. No one ever told me exactly what their plan was, they just said they'd pick it up. No one ever called me back with the exception of the delivery guy on Monday to schedule the pickup. 

The owner at first said they would pickup the blower and replace whatever is necessary possibly off another model in stock and get it right back to me. 

I said that ain't gonna cut it, I'd like some money back from the purchase price for wasting so much of my time. Or at the very least an entirely new pristine machine. He offered a free service which made me chuckle a little inside and I politely said I'm not interested I do my own service. 

He then said since they didn't have another recoil start wheeled 928 in stock so he'd give me one of the three electric start versions for the same price and I could hand pick it in the showroom and make sure everything is good. Also he said they'd make a special trip and bring it over in 30 minutes to swap out the damaged machine. I said fair enough.

I have the new one in the driveway awaiting a wash and wax once my son lays down for a nap! Pictures coming after the nu finish is applied! 

The dealer was Miller Bros. Power Equipment on State St. in Erie, PA


----------



## Blaine B. (Aug 29, 2014)

What are the differences between the three electric start versions?


----------



## KpaxFAQ (Aug 30, 2014)

Blaine B. said:


> What are the differences between the three electric start versions?


One is just recoil start, one has both....

It's kinda a gimmick with a Honda engine because if they can't start one you probably shouldn't be running the blower to begin with. 

My wife might like it though...


----------



## Blaine B. (Aug 29, 2014)

Oh, I thought you said that there were three versions with electric start that he was going to let you choose from, for the same price.

I'd take it. And yes, your wife will probably like that better.


----------



## KpaxFAQ (Aug 30, 2014)

Blaine B. said:


> Oh, I thought you said that there were three versions with electric start that he was going to let you choose from, for the same price.
> 
> I'd take it. And yes, your wife will probably like that better.


No there was just a handful of electric start units sitting there on the showroom ready to go.


----------



## Blaine B. (Aug 29, 2014)

Oh ok. How much is the price difference?

May as well take it either way. But is this price upgrade enough to soothe your ruffled feathers?


----------



## superedge88 (Nov 26, 2013)

KpaxFAQ said:


> We have RESOLUTION...
> 
> I went in person today and as respectfully and calmly as a man could told them how pissed I was about the whole lack of communication. The owner's excuse for not returning my call was that his delivery guy said he talked to me and everything was setup. **** poor excuse. I explained how I understand that mistakes happen, things break and can be fixed but that I was most pissed off about the lack of simple communication and customer service. No one ever told me exactly what their plan was, they just said they'd pick it up. No one ever called me back with the exception of the delivery guy on Monday to schedule the pickup.
> 
> ...


I'm so glad it got resolved, happy snowblowing!


----------



## KpaxFAQ (Aug 30, 2014)

Blaine B. said:


> Oh ok. How much is the price difference?
> 
> May as well take it either way. But is this price upgrade enough to soothe your ruffled feathers?


It's a $210 difference, yeah it was fair to me. He still made some money but made things right for wasting my time, and complete failure for him and his guys to communicate with me. I would of been happy with a clear phone call from the start saying they'd be right over to swap it with a new machine or one of the electric starts for my trouble.

IMO great service I've experienced isn't about having to beg for people to make it right. Service like I expect would of made me think "WOW I want to buy my future pressure washer and home generator from here!"


----------



## Blaine B. (Aug 29, 2014)

At least they made things right, but you're so close - it shouldn't have taken as long as this exchange did, especially for a small business.

You should go and look if the other unit is now on sale for "scratch and dent."

How was the oil fill level in the replacement unit?


----------



## KpaxFAQ (Aug 30, 2014)

Blaine B. said:


> At least they made things right, but you're so close - it shouldn't have taken as long as this exchange did, especially for a small business.
> 
> You should go and look if the other unit is now on sale for "scratch and dent."
> 
> How was the oil fill level in the replacement unit?


Agreed! I'm happy it's over...

The oil was dead on in the replacement unit. Also I don't know if I mentioned it but every single model had it's guard in place next to the auger control on their showroom.


----------



## Blaine B. (Aug 29, 2014)

Something was fishy about that other model, then. The damaged stuff, missing cover, overfilled oil....too many things!


----------



## KpaxFAQ (Aug 30, 2014)

You guys are going to laugh....

So I was applying some white lithium grease to all the bushings for the controls, packing the worm gear with some good grease and applying anti-seize to every bolt in the auger housing.... I took off the air filter housing just to take a look out of curiosity....

It was EMPTY! No air filter in there! Glad I looked! So I'll have to call these numbskulls on Monday and tell them I'll be down to pick one up on their dime of course. 

They did call me while I was outside to check how everything was (they're closed today) so someone was attempting to communicate at least.

Hey Blaine, I don't remember if I mentioned it but the other model was missing the manual and included toolkit as well! Fishy is right!


----------



## knightsofni (Sep 10, 2014)

Hopefully they installed the piston!


----------



## tinter (Apr 20, 2014)

They don't come with air filters. They can freeze in the cold weather. I think it was addressed in another area of the forum.


----------



## Shryp (Jan 1, 2011)

Yea, I don't think any modern snow blower has an air filter. They haven't for years.


----------



## superedge88 (Nov 26, 2013)

Confirmed, they don't come with air filters.


----------



## KpaxFAQ (Aug 30, 2014)

Well this is my first blower so I did not know that. I realize there ought to be little in the air as far as dust goes when you're blowin' snow but I'm kind of shocked there's nothing? Judging by the long life of good engines on blowers they know more then me!

Thanks for setting me straight! I guess I'm the numbskull


----------



## tinter (Apr 20, 2014)

Nope. My buddy bought a 724 and thought the exact same thing. Apparently there is less dust in the air in winter.


----------



## 94EG8 (Feb 13, 2014)

No slowblower in at least the last 30 years has come with an air filter. Tecumseh and older Briggs & Stratton engines didn't even really have a proper housing for one, just a heater box.


----------



## Normex (Feb 21, 2014)

Just to be different, I checked this week a 5 yrs old Kimpex blower that attaches to a four wheeler. I was sure the plastic box over the carb was empty and behold a paper filter surrounded with a foam filter on a 13 hp Honda with a 54" wide auger. Never say never.

Take care All


----------



## 94EG8 (Feb 13, 2014)

That's because it's not specifically a snowblower engine. It's simply a general purpose engine mounted a snowblower.


----------

