# Looking at snow blowers



## slantback37 (Aug 30, 2019)

Hi. New here. I have had more than a few snow blowers before, but never a Ariens. I am looking for one close to $1000. I want to avoid Big Box Stores, because of No Service Here. 

I have a two car garage with just a gravel driveway. There are also no real sidewalks, so I just go over the grass every year. I have had many MTD's, but a couple of guys on this site said to go with a Ariens. I just got back from a Dealer that sells, and services them. So I have a couple of Questions for you..
I am looking at the Deluxe 24. It is a 2019 Model # 921045 for 1099. Can anyone tell me about them?? Also..
I would like the heated grips. Would it be better to pay the $100. at the Dealer, or find it on ebay, or amazon and install them myself??
Thanks..


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## Jackmels (Feb 18, 2013)

Messing with a new machine voids warranty.


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## Dauntae (Nov 10, 2016)

I have a 2017 model but same model number, If the dealer will sell and install the heated grips for $100 I would have them do it, You can't even buy the Ariens grips for much less so better to have them put them on. And for gravel I would get a set of ARMORskids no matter the blower you get, They have more surface to help them from digging into the gravel.


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## slantback37 (Aug 30, 2019)

Are those skids a option for the snow blower?? I might look for a 28", or 30". Wife says we will make it, because I just didn't have enough power with the 24" I had before.. The 30" has the heated grips. Does anyone have them?? I would like to know just how warm they get.. The ones for the MTD get to about 80+. Thanks..


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## WVguy (Nov 24, 2018)

Dauntae said:


> I have a 2017 model but same model number, If the dealer will sell and install the heated grips for $100 I would have them do it, You can't even buy the Ariens grips for much less so better to have them put them on. And for gravel I would get a set of ARMORskids no matter the blower you get, They have more surface to help them from digging into the gravel.


Agree on the heated grips, I have the same machine but without the grips.

Regarding the ARMORskids, Ariens makes a set of plastic skids as well, and if you're concerned about warranty issues then using the Ariens skids would not affect that. Just look at the respective sizes of the two sets of plastic skids and if they're even close then just get the Ariens and be done with it. I do have the Ariens plastic skids (used on pavement) and they work fine for me.


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## slantback37 (Aug 30, 2019)

I don't have any real pavement to worry about. Just compacted dirt and gravel in the driveway and whatever is kicked up from the plow truck. I try to set my skids up about 1/2 to 1" off the deck to protect my lawn. It has worked for years to put down a base first.
Now if I got a couple of those Blue skids that are used on the Cub Cadets. Is that what you are talking about??
Oh, and for the grips. The dealer is just going to sell me the grips. I would be the one putting them on.


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## Lunta (Dec 14, 2017)

Regarding gravel..... a lot depends on local snow conditions. 

If you get lots of wet snow that comes and goes, gravel has a greater chance of wearing out skids and getting chewed around inside the auger housing, causing scratches and possibly rust.

If you get snow like us......which after one or two sweeps, turns into a compacted snow/ice base layer, which stays until spring, then gravel is much less of an issue.


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## Badger9402 (Mar 3, 2019)

I'm sure if you did a search for poly skids you would find several out there. Ariens offers then as well, just not an "option", but you can buy them from the dealer, or I see HD even sells them. I have never used, or felt the need for heated grips, so for me I would never add them, and if the machine came with them, I would not use them, but that is just me. To me the bigger the engine is better for blowing the snow, especially wet stuff or at the end of the driveway. Good luck with you decision.


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## Zavie (Sep 23, 2014)

Jackmels said:


> Messing with a new machine voids warranty.



Good point.
The nice thing about having your dealer install the heated grips is that most likely they would be covered under warranty. Of course read the super fine warranty print and ask you dealer if they would be covered in your OEM warranty etc....


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## RedOctobyr (Mar 2, 2014)

If the dealer will do the heated grips for $100, that doesn't seem bad. Especially if your warranty remains intact. I don't need mine often, here in MA, but in some cold & windy storms, they've been very nice.


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## slantback37 (Aug 30, 2019)

After talking with my Wife. She said one like you had before. I am going to order the Ariens Deluxe 30. I had a 30" MTD years ago that lasted for many years. Says it comes with the heated grips, and reverceable slides. I try to keep that bottom blade about 3/4" off the ground to cover the the gravel in the driveway. 

question though.. How many Volts does that alternator put out??, or what is the Voltage at that Halogen light?? I ask, because I have some Super Bright 12 Volt LED lights that I was going to use on my car for backup lights. I would like to mount them to the shroud for more light early in the Morning, or late at Night..


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## slantback37 (Aug 30, 2019)

How warm do the grips get?? Some of the time when I am blowing snow it could be -20 with 20mph winds. Even leather paks with wool liners are real cold. Have to use 4 of nthose hand warmer packs to try to keep my hands kind of warm..


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## RedOctobyr (Mar 2, 2014)

I dunno,"pretty warm"?  I'm sure it would depend on the ambient temperature. They're a lot warmer than unheated grips, that's for darn sure. If you're getting that kind of weather, I'd add the grips and not think twice about it. 

Now, with this said, as you alluded to, it does become a question of what electrical load the engine can support. My blower came with an incandescent headlight and heated grips, I believe it's a 60W alternator. If your engine is only intended to power an LED headlight, it may not have enough output wattage to also run heated grips. Your dealer may be able to help answer that.


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## slantback37 (Aug 30, 2019)

Going there this morning to order a Deluxe 30".


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## slantback37 (Aug 30, 2019)

Though LED's don't take that much power. I do have a 4 Super Bright LED block that takes 2 "D" cell batteries. I will glue a good magnet on it, and stick it on top of the bucket for added light..


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## leonz (Dec 12, 2014)

Can you order a cab for your new snow mule? That would surely help keep you warmer.


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## slantback37 (Aug 30, 2019)

I have one. Can't use it.. Won't go under the clothes lines. Keeps hitting the lines. Besides. The exhaust comes right back in with you. So for me it is ski goggles. Works so much better..


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## RedOctobyr (Mar 2, 2014)

slantback37 said:


> Though LED's don't take that much power. I do have a 4 Super Bright LED block that takes 2 "D" cell batteries. I will glue a good magnet on it, and stick it on top of the bucket for added light..


They take a bunch less power (for a given light output) than incandescents, but they can still draw a fair bit of power, depending on how bright the light is. For instance, there are some 18W LED sets on Amazon. 

And even with a low draw, the cost-cutting folks may still have done something like put a 5W alternator on a machine with a 4W LED  But hopefully you have spare alternator capacity. 

(BTW, about your LED block- I find C & D batteries somewhat expensive, but I have a ton of AA's, in alkaline and low-self-discharge NiMH. You can get cheap adapters that let you use AA's in devices that take C's or D's)


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## slantback37 (Aug 30, 2019)

I found a light at Walmart with 1000 Lumens. Takes 4 Double A batteries. Should be enough to add some extra light out front.


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## RedOctobyr (Mar 2, 2014)

Nice! Someone gave me a really nice Fenix PD35 flashlight, which I wouldn't splurge for myself  

It's lithium powered, they claim 1000 lumens, and people have apparently confirmed it gets really close. It's kind of blindingly bright when cranked up all the way, and still puts out a lot of light when turned down (for 50+ hours of run time). 

It's amazing what you can get out of little lights these days, and it makes wiring in a headlight on a blower seem less appealing. Especially if the engine doesn't already have an alternator.


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## Lunta (Dec 14, 2017)

RedOctobyr said:


> Nice! Someone gave me a really nice Fenix PD35 flashlight, which I wouldn't splurge for myself
> .


The PD35 is a great torch. We have 5 Fenix torches/headlamps and PD35 is the best. I like the easy adjustment with the side switch. It’s also quite good on batteries, lasts well on each charge. Sometimes I think cheap torches seem to eat batteries but I don’t have any evidence to back that up.

It’s so dark where we live that we always have at least two torches/headlamps when out and about. Having one fail might mean sleeping on the forest floor until the next morning :smile2:


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## RedOctobyr (Mar 2, 2014)

I really like it. Compared to my $10-15 AA (or maybe it's AAA) powered LED flashlight, it puts out so much more light. And it's smaller, too. The quality is also very nice, the machining seems excellent. It threads together very smoothly, and just feels good.

The only thing I wish I could change is I wish it could zoom. It's set up for, IMO, a fairly tight beam. That's great if you need to see really far, but I'm usually more interested in an area, closer to me. 

After some Googling, I trimmed down a clear water bottle cap, and secured that over the lens, to act as a diffuser. It fit great, I used electrical tape to hold it, then added big heatshrink over that, so it blends in with the black body. 

It really did a nice job of widening the beam, and reducing the hot spot in the middle. I find this more useful. I wish I'd thought to take a Before picture, to compare against. 

But it does block some of the light, I'm sure. So it's not a perfect solution. But it has helped make it work more the way I'd like. They make zoom-able lights too, I think, which would be nice, but this is what I have.









The funny thing is that while this is a very nice light, to me, I know that the realm of high-end lights extends much higher than this. The folks over at candlepower.net take their stuff seriously.


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