# Need new 2-stage Blower Advice



## shad951 (Aug 20, 2015)

Hi All,

New to the forum and need some advice on a couple 2-stage blowers I am looking at. I have a flat 8 car concrete drive and couple sidewalks to clean. My current 8 yr old single stage Toro barely made it through my last winter and I have been getting the itch to move into a 2-stage. Here are the three I am looking at:
1) Toro Powermax HD OHXE 265 cc engine, 26" wide cut, Quick Stick chute control. Heated hand warmers. 3 yr warranty with 1 free thrown in by Toro for 4 yr total. Local dealer has it priced at $1499

2) Ariens Platinum 24 SHO 369 cc engine, 24" wide cut. Quick chute turn. Heated hand warmers. 3 yr warranty with 2 free thrown in by Ariens for a total of 5 years. $1499 at local dealer,

I realize they both have different cutting widths and the Ariens has a bigger motor. The chute control on the Toro looks it may be a little better design but the one on the Ariens seems way more robust. Would appreciate all thoughts on my 2 choices or if there are other choices let me know. Thank!!


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## sscotsman (Dec 8, 2010)

Im sure they are both fine machines..
Honda, Ariens and Toro are generally considered the "top three" for snowblower quality and reputation. One thing that would be a tie breaker for me, others might not care:

1. The Ariens is still made in the USA.
2. Toro moved all their 2-stage production to Mexico a few years ago.

(both now have Chinese engines, so that evens out.)

So the Ariens is made in the USA, with a Chinese engine.
and the Toro is made in Mexico, with a Chinese engine.

Scot


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## GustoGuy (Nov 19, 2012)

How much snowfall do you average every year? and how often do you get a foot or greater of accumulation of snow? I have never owned a single stage machine and we average about 70 Inches of snow per winter season except for last year when Boston got all of our snow. Both machines are fine machines with the horsepower advantage going to the Ariens Platinum. Remember there is no replacement for displacement. Since you have a good size driveway I would choose the machine with the most horsepower. Ariens also makes Snow Tek series of snowblowers for the budget minded up to the commercial grade blowers so you can't go wrong with either machine but as Scott said at least Ariens still builds all it machines here in the USA in Wisconsin so Ariens would be my first choice if I was looking getting a new machine.


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## bwdbrn1 (Nov 24, 2010)

Welcome to the forum, glad to have you join us.

Looks like you've done some homework on those machines, both of which are good ones. I'm guessing that you have visited the dealers to check them out. Have they given you the opportunity to run them around their lot to see how they actually feel to you?


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## Cardo111 (Feb 16, 2015)

These are very comparable models and you seem to be looking in the right direction. Toro and my local dealer told me that the 926 HD you mention is no longer being made, replaced by the 928 HD. I would have wanted the smaller cutting width with this smaller Loncin made 265cc engine. However In the reviews that I have read nobody seems to complain about the Toro being underpowered.

If you look at some of my posts on here you will see that I mentioned the wheel track on the Ariens being wider than the auger housing, that's what bothers me about the Platinum 24 but based on the reviews not many others. The Ariens does have a substantially larger engine over this Toro and IMHO their customer support is a notch above the rest. Additionally I do not like that the oil drain tube terminates on the side of the unit above the tire on the Toro/Loncin 265cc engine, it complicates routine maintenance.

That being said I have heard that the Toro is very well engineered with the anti-clog system handling all types of snow very well and that their Quick Stick is easier to use and more intuitive than the seemingly more substantial Ariens Quick Turn chute control. I hope this helps, good luck with whichever one you choose.


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## Kiss4aFrog (Nov 3, 2013)

Welcome to the forum Shad :welcome:

Please consider adding a location to your profile as where you are can make a difference in what the answer might be as in this case. Once added in your profile it will pop up when you post.

I'd likely go with the Toro because I'd like the bigger bucket and the extra year warranty isn't that meaningful to me since I do my own repairs. IF ... you're not very handy then the Ariens rises to the top of the list as it will give you an extra year of coverage, it's made in the USA and making one more pass to make up for the 2" isn't going to get you back inside that much sooner.

Either way you'll have a nice machine.


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## UNDERTAKER (Dec 30, 2013)

I would get the one with the larger cut. for that amount of space.* ALOHA from the paradise city.*


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## Bryan78 (Jan 10, 2015)

The only current of the HD ones being offered in 26" I am aware of is the 826 OXE (38805) with the 252 cc engine, no heated grips.


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## shad951 (Aug 20, 2015)

Thank guys. Keep the advice coming. I have updated my location on my profile.I am in North Central Illinois. Our snows here can be bizarre. Some winters are bad and others barely enough to even get out the blower. I am pretty sure the Toro and Ariens will definitely work in my environment and I could buy a cheaper model with less bells and whistles. But I am the buy big, cry once guy and am looking at this as a blower that will last me a long time. One other model the Ariens dealer showed me was the Deluxe 28 SHO with 306 cc motor $1199. Added hand-warmers would be another $75. So roughly about $225 less then the Toro or Platinum 24 SHO. Of course it has the crank chute control as well. Thoughts?


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## Cardo111 (Feb 16, 2015)

I think if you are going to go for the Ariens Deluxe 28 SHO with the hand warmers you might as well just spend the extra money ($225 + tax) and get the Platinum 24. If the extra 4 inches of width means a lot to you than the 28 would be a consideration. Please remember reaching over the dash to crank the manual chute control on the Deluxe 28 SHO will slow you down.

In this comparo I think you are getting a lot more machine in the Platinum 24 for the extra $225. You are getting a larger block and more powerful engine (which can never hurt when working on the end of driveway plow pile) and the Quick Turn chute which is a big convenience over the manual crank.
The Quick Turn chute was improved this year for winter 2015/2016. Another more minor difference is Ariens adds safety reflector strips on their Platinum series.

What I am about to say may anger some Toro fans out there and I expect some comments: I recently looked at the Toro HD 928 at a local dealer and I must say. IMHO the build quality just does not seem in the same league as Ariens 2 stage machines, the machine is loaded with plastics/polymers from the chute and baffle to the hand levers, additionally there is no rolled top edge on the auger housing like Ariens features and the Toro labeled 265cc Loncin engine looks like it is covered in mostly plastic as well.

However the gear case seemed substantial and the plastic joystick chute control was smoother and more intuitive than any I have ever used before. Though I must say I was not impressed by the materials Toro chose on a $1500. machine. I know they are known to be well engineered but after taking a hard look at this blower I have to think that the profit margins/spiffs are higher on Toro snow blowers than Ariens and that is why the dealer is pushing it so hard over the Ariens units. The days of the obvious quality of Toro's dual drum auger machines are long gone.


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## shad951 (Aug 20, 2015)

Well my choice between the Ariens 24 Platinum SHO and the Toro Max HD 928 got a little easier this week. Not one Ariens dealer in my area carries or stocks the Platinum 24 SHO which I found strange. I would have liked to have seen one before I made my choice. I have seen the Toro and it looks like a well built machine.


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## Kiss4aFrog (Nov 3, 2013)

Are any of the dealers even thinking of ordering one in ??

It's hard to lay out that kind of money sight unseen.


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## Skeet Shooter (Oct 2, 2014)

So I have the Toro 928 HD, and I love it. It will pretty much never bog down and clog out... The handlebar warmers are a surprisingly nice thing to have.

It was between the SHO 28 and the 928HD and honestly my Ariens dealer wouldnt budge on price on anything and he was not willing to give me free delivery in my area, so I waited and used my crappy Husqvarna that I continued to fix.

Well eventually we had a blizzard coming in, and I really needed a blower to handle it and the 928HD was available. I bought it and love it. Its great. Only mod I would recommend is maybe some front end weights for it. The Ariens is definitely heavier and has more mass pushing it downward then the Toro. 

But outside of my tracked HONDA, this thing performs almost as good as that.


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## shad951 (Aug 20, 2015)

Kiss4aFrog said:


> Are any of the dealers even thinking of ordering one in ??
> 
> It's hard to lay out that kind of money sight unseen.


No not one dealer here was going to order the Platinum 24. For whatever reason no dealers in my area stock that model. They said of course they could order me one specifically. I agree, lot of coin for a machine I cannot even see before I buy.


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## shad951 (Aug 20, 2015)

Skeet thanks for the info on your 928. Good to hear you are happy with yours. I will be picking mine up next week hopefully.


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## UNDERTAKER (Dec 30, 2013)

shad951 said:


> Skeet thanks for the info on your 928. Good to hear you are happy with yours. I will be picking mine up next week hopefully.


 *MAZEL TOV on that 1.:wavetowel2:*


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