# First Time Buyer!!!!



## griffin6687 (Dec 20, 2013)

i'm a first time purchaser looking for a snow blower. I'm on the fence about buying used one for a couple hundred bucks or going new. I live in Canada and tend to get a lot of snow each year. Our storms are anywhere from 4-11 inches of snow. I have a average sized paved driveway. Price is an issue for me, hence leaning towards the used snowblower option. For a new blower I'm looking between these two

Ariens 24" Compact ($1099)
Toro Power Max 726 OE 26" ($999)

Right now leaning towards the Toro simply because of the two extra inches and $100 cheaper. I figured I might as well buy a higher end product as I'm going to need this for many years to come. Any advise on these or other cheaper end models Sno-Tec/Craftsmen etc... 

Here is the link to two I am considering side by side

Product Comparison | Home Improvement, Home Renovation, Tools, & Hardware | Home Depot Canada

Thanks for any help!


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## td5771 (Feb 21, 2011)

I have not used either but I worked on a toro powermax 828 (8hp) and an ariens 7524 (7.5 hp) leaving out the 4 inch width difference the toro seemed a lot more rugged and well built.

more opinions with real world experience will come along and chime in.


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## Smolenski7 (Nov 24, 2010)

I'm no expert, however, it seems to me that the Toro is a no brainer. I feel a bit guilty saying that since I own an Ariens 24" Deluxe, but if the Toro gives you 2 more inches, bigger tires, and a joystick control for the chute, all for $100 less; I say go for it.


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## Smolenski7 (Nov 24, 2010)

Just out of curiosity, if that is your price point for a new machine, why not consider the Ariens 24" Deluxe? In my opinion, it's a better toy than the Toro you're looking at. It's got a larger impeller and auger, and has a more powerful engine. I believe it's a bit cheaper than the Toro too.


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## griffin6687 (Dec 20, 2013)

I would ideally like to spend 699/799 for a new one but I can't seem to find a reliable brand name for that price new. I have only seen the Ariens 24" compact model.


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## Blue Hill (Mar 31, 2013)

Welcome to the forum griffin! Have you considered Snotek? They are the Ariens economy line and seem to be well thought of.
Larry


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## moretorque05 (Oct 18, 2013)

I have a 2 year old Compact 24" at work (car dealer). It gets a ton of use (hours at a time). No issues with it, but power wise, it struggles. It's also really slow, but for a small driveway it would be fine. I wish it threw farther as well. 

I LOVE my Toro's thus far (The chute control alone sells them for me) and their customer service has been beyond excellent, but the 726 has that same 205cc that my Compact 24 has. You might be wishing for more power in the 8+" snows.

The Toro 826 adds the 250cc Briggs which would be absolutely worth it.

Look at your budget and any interest free financing options. Do it once, do it right.


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## Piedmont (Nov 13, 2013)

For Canada, I just don't think either of those have enough horsepower. I live in MA, and after 30 years have come to the conclusion anything under 8hp is useless. As much as I love Toro's, 7hp for 26" width is just not enough horsepower I don't know if they've changed things but Toro's tend to have a rather fast first gear. Take a fast first gear, combined with only 7hp motor, and 26" being too wide and I think you'll be doing the pigeon walk with your snow blower often (move a foot and stop to wait for it to catch up, move another foot and stop to let it catch up, etc.). 

The Ariens is also probably a bit underpowered, it has a bigger impeller and needs a bigger engine but has the same size as the Toro. It does have the benefit that Ariens do tend to have a nice, slow, first gear. 

I'm a Toro fan, but I feel the Toro 726 is too underpowered for the width for Canada. I'm not an Ariens fan, have so many fond memories of blowing their shear pins on nothing, trying to keep them running, and when they were running they couldn't throw (but I think the new ones have come a long way to alleviating that). 

I would opt for a used one. The most common size(s) are 824 (8hp, 24") and I personally prefer to stay away from the older ones they don't tend to throw very far. You can typically tell older model snow blowers simply by the fact they almost always have chains on the tires as their treads were useless. The newer blowers have fantastic redesigned treads that don't need chains (so the owners don't typically buy them). Being a Toro fan, look for a used Toro 824. You may even find a powershift one. I'd avoid MTD, the big winner would be a used Honda HS928 or HS828. Jump on it if it's in your budget (here in the USA Toro 726 OE goes for $999 but the Honda HS928 goes for around $2999 new, $1400-$1700 used, but some people have picked them up for $500-1000 used from people who didn't know what they were doing... you may find one of those people!). I would take a used Honda HS928 (Honda 2-stage snow blowers are all commercial grade) for $1500 any day over a brand new 28" wide Toro or Ariens.


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## griffin6687 (Dec 20, 2013)

Anyone have any experience buy snowblowers off ebay? Seem's to be some good prices on there. Also maybe somewhere else online. The only place I think close to me that sells Toro is Home Depot. 

Also I should have mentioned I need to blower to fit threw a 28 inch gate to get it out of my garage. Hence aside from budget I was looking at those smaller ones.


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## micah68kj (Oct 8, 2011)

I'm working from an Android tablet and can't seem to post Youtube vids but you need to watch doneyboy73 video on how to buy a used snowblower. Personally I'd *never, never, ever* buy a used snowblower from ebay  unless it was close enough I could personally try it out.

Are you familiar with craigslist? It's a local sale listing site. 
Www.craigslist.org and search for your state/locality. You can set'your search parameters too. Usually I just click on FOR SALE and in the search bar type snowblower and click TITLE. Craigslist is word specific too.
Happy hunting! Let us know what you find.


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## db9938 (Nov 17, 2013)

Sometimes the barter section is worth checking out as well. Heck, you maybe able to get rid of something you don't need/use, for something that you do.


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## griffin6687 (Dec 20, 2013)

I just check the local classifieds and there is a used Yamaha 24" they are asking $650. It looks fairly dated here is the link. 

YAMAHA YS624 - St. John's Snowblowers For Sale - Kijiji St. John's Canada.


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## Simplicity Solid 22 (Nov 27, 2012)

Griffin there are several guys on here with Yamaha's....you might want to ask them about parts availability...but I hear the Yama's are a great blower. Tracs are tough to fix if they break but they also might know something about that. I heard snowmobile repair shops might be able to help if the tracs break as well. Dated does not mean bad...most older blowers will out perform any blower made after 1995 anyway less the bells and whistles which break anyway. Remember any product made after 1995/99 are made to have a shorter shelf life. They might not throw as far as the newer ones but will go through anything it hits easily. If you repower an older one like many have on here you might get throwing distance as well. That yama looks like it will handle most storms fine.


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## griffin6687 (Dec 20, 2013)

That would be great, hopefully someone with a yammy will see this and give me an idea on the prices of that machine.


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## db9938 (Nov 17, 2013)

The big thing with Yami's are parts availability. 

Insofar as the price, I wish that I could help. But I picked mine up, with a known issue, so I picked it up at a price that was reduced as such. 

Personally, it seems a bit high.(without conversion into USD which is 612.11) But you live in an area where the demand for machines of that caliber are greater. It also appears well worn and somewhat neglected. The rust, staining, and general crud, makes me question how this was taken care of on the inside. 

Again, just my two cents, and good luck.


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## JSteinhoff (Oct 6, 2013)

griffen687,

Nice used Honda on Craigs...

Happy hunting,
HS928TAS


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