# HS1332TAS Biting off more than it can chew.



## tonysak

*Honda HS1332TAS Biting off more than it can chew.*

So I have a new unit, used once for 3-4". We just received a foot here in the boston area. 

The traction, travel speed (forward and reverse), and the transmission are excellent. Ease of use in turns of turning it around ect is pretty good. I would go as far as almost easy.

Throwing distance is good. That chute crank is slightly annoying, i keep turning it in the wrong direction. 

My main grip is it seems that with only 1 foot of fresh powder snow, the machine seems to take in more than the impeller can expel. I find my self having to go really slow, and take half bucket widths or else snow would fill up the auger housing and start spilling out the side. I'm not talking a little, I am probably talking about 1/8 to 1/6 of the auger housing volume spilling out. Even if I take a little more than a half bucket width I have this problem. 

Anybody know what gives? I never had this problem with a older 36" 15Hp Ariens or a 32" 420CC simplicity I just traded in. The amount of spillage means i need to make a hole bunch of extra runs and 180 degree turns just to clean the driveway after.


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## ablundon

I have the 1132 which is the same width but 2 less HP.... I have no trouble taking a full bucket width, just as long as I don't try and go too fast. It also depends on the snow type. Fluffy powder is completely different than wet slop.


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## motorhead64

Hi Tonysak
I wouldn't expect a new large blower to have any trouble with powder. I'm wondering if you are reaching full operating rpm when you throttle up. Since it is new, you may want to call your dealer and explain what is happening. Could be a simple adjustment. MH


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## tonysak

motorhead64 said:


> Hi Tonysak
> I wouldn't expect a new large blower to have any trouble with powder. I'm wondering if you are reaching full operating rpm when you throttle up. Since it is new, you may want to call your dealer and explain what is happening. Could be a simple adjustment. MH


Its full throttle. Travel distance is very fast, you can hear it in the engine too. Throwing distance is also good. I'm wondering if anyone else has the problem. It maybe the bucket design, it might just need to be bigger and have more of a rectangle opening. I am used to machines where once snow goes it the bucket, it doesn't come back out.


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## JRHAWK9

This is the one of the main reasons I got rid of my "Husky" (it was Husqvarna in name only). It just was not capable of blowing the VOLUME of snow I was looking for in a good quality snow blower. The bucket could take it in but the machine just could not get it out fast enough and it ended up spilling out over the sides. The blowing distance was fantastic on it though. Last year with my Ariens Pro 32, I took in 9.5" of snow and blew it in the FASTEST gear, which is a swift walking pace for me at 6'-5". For more on this topic and my views/opinion on the matter visit the thread I link to below and read my posts starting at post #42. Glad someone else also prefers a blower which can blow a decent VOLUME of snow a good distance vs just throwing a small volume of snow a good distance. 

http://www.snowblowerforum.com/foru...11265-snow-throwing-distance-obsession-5.html

Just out of curiosity, can you tell me what diameter impeller you have on your 1332? Both of your older blowers, I believe, had 14" diameter impellers.


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## micah68kj

There's a possibility the one auger is installed backwards.


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## Kiss4aFrog

Post a picture of the augers.


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## JRHAWK9

micah68kj said:


> There's a possibility the one auger is installed backwards.


That could be a real possibility, but I would think the OP would have noticed that the very first time he used it. It would have been moving snow away from the impeller regardless of snow depth. 



Kiss4aFrog said:


> Post a picture of the augers.


yep, that would tell us for sure.


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## tonysak

So again everything about this snow blower seems top notch. I was tearing thru and over snow banks. It is a dream to use except for a lack of snow processing capacity. The tracks are f'n awesome. 

It has a 12" impeller, and I am shocked by it. Industry standard for a blower this size is 14". I didn't even bother to check, now we know why other manufacturers boast about a 14" impeller in their marketing materials. One guy compared his HS1332 as being a snow pump. He must have been going painfully slow which does not give me much of a "pump like" impression. 

The 420cc simplicity I had chewed threw snow and fast. It kept having drive issues so it's gone. The 32" hydro pro track weighs over 415 lbs. I also heard complaints about very slow travel speeds especially in reverse, and auto turn (I have a hill) so I didn't want to push my luck with the chance of wrestling a monster of a machine. The 350lb simplicity was hard to push then again a 415lb tracked Ariens. So I went with what I thought was the best. 

Why can't manufacturers make a good, well thought out unit? All they have to do is move snow and move itself.


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## scipper77

Did you lose a shear pin/bolt? Honda's seem to sacrifice shear bolts easier than other brands.


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## andrewspearns

I installed my augers backwards today, it would throw great in deep and heavy snow but light and thin snow would come out of the auger housing. Possible someone accidentally built yours incorrectly?


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## JRHAWK9

tonysak said:


> So again everything about this snow blower seems top notch. I was tearing thru and over snow banks. It is a dream to use except for a lack of snow processing capacity. The tracks are f'n awesome.
> 
> It has a 12" impeller, and I am shocked by it. Industry standard for a blower this size is 14". I didn't even bother to check, now we know why other manufacturers boast about a 14" one guy compaired his 1332 as being a snow pump. He must have been going painfully slow. The 420cc simplicity I had chewed threw snow and fast. It kept having drive issues so it's gone. The 32" hydro pro track weighs over 415 lbs. I also heard complaints about very slow travel speeds epically in reverse, and auto turn (I have a hill) so I didn't want to push my luck. The 350lb simplicity was hard to push then again a 415lb tracked ariens. So I went with what I thought was the best.
> 
> This isn't rocket science, why can't manufacturers make a good, well thought out unit? All they have to do is move snow and move itself.
> 
> Sorry I can't seem to get the thumbnails to post correctly.
> 
> <a href="http://s1237.photobucket.com/user/tonysak69/media/image-2.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1237.photobucket.com/albums/ff473/tonysak69/th_image-2.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo image-2.jpg" style=""></a>
> 
> <a href="http://s1237.photobucket.com/user/tonysak69/media/image-1.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1237.photobucket.com/albums/ff473/tonysak69/th_image-1.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo image-1.jpg" style=""></a>
> 
> <a href="http://s1237.photobucket.com/user/tonysak69/media/image.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1237.photobucket.com/albums/ff473/tonysak69/th_image.jpg" border="0" alt=" photo image.jpg" style=""></a>


I agree, a measly 12" impeller on a quality blower like that is pretty ridiculous.....especially for the price. Maybe the resident Honda guy can chime in on why. 

I read that about Honda's though (could throw it far but do not have the processing capability that some other blowers have) and I was trying to confirm what I read. I think you may have just confirmed it for me. Like was mentioned above, are you sure your augers are install correctly? If they are, I can feel your pain. I too, had a blower which just couldn't process the snow the way I felt it should be able to. It was then I knew I wanted a blower with a larger impeller. I'm guessing your old Simplicity processes the snow similar to how my Pro 32 does, so you know what it's like to not only move VOLUMES of snow but throw it far at the same time. It's a nice feeling seeing that constant 2-3" thick stream of densely packed snow exit the chute (see photos below I found of a Pro 36 in some DEEP snow). 

I'm also guessing there are so many people obsessed with how FAR it throws the snow that some manufacturers ignore what most people don't seem to care about. When snow starts spilling over the sides they just see it as they are going too fast and need to slow down. LOL







Throwing distance does nothing for me if it's hardly throwing anything in that distance. It's like a fire department looking at fire hoses and only caring about how far the water is thrown. Kids water guns can throw water pretty far these days but won't do much to put out fires...lol  

Snow pump......here's a few photos I found of a Pro 36 which sums up that phrase rather well and what it seems you and I both are after in a blower. Just take a look at the sheer volume of snow coming out of the chute. I would have loved to put a 1332 next to this one and see who could move more snow. Although, assuming yours is operating the way it's supposed to, we both know who would probably come out on top of that little competition


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## sr71

from your description it sounds like one of the augers isn't turning (check shear bolts)...for sure my 1132 eats 10-12" with ease ....just have to keep her in the power curve.


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## JRHAWK9

sr71 said:


> from your description it sounds like one of the augers isn't turning (check shear bolts)...for sure my 1132 eats 10-12" with ease ....just have to keep her in the power curve.


I'm sure it does, but at what speed? All the videos I have found show the owners using it at such a slow speed.....-FOR EXAMPLE- -ANOTHER- -ANOTHER-

The more speed you have when blowing snow means the more volume you are processing and the more work you are getting done. Some blowers can handle this volume and some can't. Going slow through snow and watching it throw a small stream a long ways does nothing for me. It's obvious all these owners in the above videos care about is how far it throws it..lol You'll notice in the third video at the 7:22 mark he's only taking about a 2/3rd's bucket width......probably doing so for a reason.


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## Kiss4aFrog

JRHAWK9 said:


> That could be a real possibility, but I would think the OP would have noticed that the very first time he used it. It would have been moving snow away from the impeller regardless of snow depth.


I learned from spending a lot of time explaining something to someone only to have them ask some thing that told me they didn't understand anything I said. Like the guy who was so interested in how to test his alternator and when I said he'd need to use the voltmeter to test something asked me what a voltmeter was. I'm trying to explain a diode trio and he doesn't know what a voltmeter is 

It never hurts to ask the basic stuff first. It may be dirt simple to you but it can really bite you in the butt if you don't cover it. Nothing worse than covering in painful detail how to clean a carb only to find out once the guys pulled it apart, lost parts, ordered a carb and installed it and still won't start to find out the gas valve was off and he didn't even know he had one.


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## Surge

*The following info was from a news release from a Honda website on 10/27/2011:*

*"Impeller. *The new Honda HS928 and HS1332 snowblowers incorporate an improved design which serves to maximize snow-throwing distance and improve durability (over models they replace). In the new models, the shape of the impeller is modified to allow for these enhancements (see below illustration).
*Impeller speed. *In addition to snow-throwing distance being increased, operational noise also is reduced on the new HS928 and HS1332 snowblower models.
These improvements are due, *largely* in part, *to adjustments in ratio of both the engine-side pulley and impeller-side pulley.* Through the adjustment, maximum engine speed is reduced (causing a reduction in operational noise); maximum blower speed also is increased (resulting in an increase in snow-throwing distance)."

*It appears that the impeller speed was increased to allow for greater throwing distance. They did so by adjusting the pulleys and the shape of the impeller itself. It seems that Honda uses faster impeller speed to make up for the smaller impeller, and optimizes the shape in order to increase throwing distance as much as possible. At least, that's my interpretation. Ariens uses a larger impeller and an engine with more HP in order to handle the extra volume of snow passing through the impeller in order to throw the snow far, and to handle large volumes of snow.*
*I am not sure which approach is best. I suppose that because Honda relies on the speed of the impeller that it might have a tendency to push snow to the side if/when too much is entering the bucket for the impeller speed to overcome the smaller opening? Just a guess on my part. I could be completely wrong. Perhaps you have to go slow enough to allow the fast rotating impeller to chew up the snow properly. That may not be as much of an issue when the impeller is larger?*


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## Surge

The news release stated that durability was improved due to the new design. I suppose they are referring to engine durability because the maximum engine speed was reduced. However, I wonder about what the effect on the durability of the impeller might be due to the increase in the speed of the impeller? Would small stones and ice tend to hit the impeller with more force and cause more dings and shear pins to break? Or would it not make much of a difference? Hmmmm, I am not sure.


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## JRHAWK9

Surge said:


> *The following info was from a news release from a Honda website on 10/27/2011:*
> 
> *"Impeller. *The new Honda HS928 and HS1332 snowblowers incorporate an improved design which serves to maximize snow-throwing distance and improve durability (over models they replace). In the new models, the shape of the impeller is modified to allow for these enhancements (see below illustration).
> *Impeller speed. *In addition to snow-throwing distance being increased, operational noise also is reduced on the new HS928 and HS1332 snowblower models.
> These improvements are due, *largely* in part, *to adjustments in ratio of both the engine-side pulley and impeller-side pulley.* Through the adjustment, maximum engine speed is reduced (causing a reduction in operational noise); maximum blower speed also is increased (resulting in an increase in snow-throwing distance)."
> 
> *It appears that the impeller speed was increased to allow for greater throwing distance. They did so by adjusting the pulleys and the shape of the impeller itself. It seems that Honda uses faster impeller speed to make up for the smaller impeller, and optimizes the shape in order to increase throwing distance as much as possible. At least, that's my interpretation. Ariens uses a larger impeller and an engine with more HP in order to handle the extra volume of snow passing through the impeller in order to throw the snow far, and to handle large volumes of snow.*
> *I am not sure which approach is best. I suppose that because Honda relies on the speed of the impeller that it might have a tendency to push snow to the side if/when too much is entering the bucket for the impeller speed to overcome the smaller opening? Just a guess on my part. I could be completely wrong. Perhaps you have to go slow enough to allow the fast rotating impeller to chew up the snow properly. That may not be as much of an issue when the impeller is larger?*



thanks for posting this! 

I agree with you, as that -IS- the reason why you have to go slower. They designed their blowers solely for throwing distance, period. I guess from a marketing POV and for people who don't know any better, seeing them throw the snow as far and as high (even though you achieve more horizontal distance from a discharge angle of 45°) as they do makes for impressive video and sells machines to those who don't know what it takes to move large volumes of snow.

The thing is you can spin a 14" impeller at lower RPM's to achieve the same tip speed as a 12" impeller which is spinning faster. Say you have two impellers, one a 14" and one a 12" both spinning at 1,000 rpm's. The tip speed of the 12" impeller would be 52.3 ft/sec while the 14" impeller's tip speed would be 61 ft/sec....which means the exit speed of the snow is faster which translates to more distance while keeping the impeller rpm the same. Then you have the added benefit of the 14" impeller removing 16.7% more snow for every revolution of the impeller (assuming equal impeller housing depth).

Sounds like Honda took a redesigned 12" impeller and geared it in such a way to get tremendous impeller RPM from lower engine speed. Doing this gives you great throwing distance but you sacrifice torque in the process. 

I'm actually pretty disappointed in Honda after reading this. I never considered Honda while looking at blowers, not because of any quality or performance issues, but because I'm on the taller side and their handles and chute rotation control are -way- too low for me and would cause my back to get sore rather quickly. Although if Honda were one of the blowers I were looking at and I had read what Surge posted, I would have immediately ruled Honda out.


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## JRHAWK9

Surge said:


> The news release stated that durability was improved due to the new design. I suppose they are referring to engine durability because the maximum engine speed was reduced. However, I wonder about what the effect on the durability of the impeller might be due to the increase in the speed of the impeller? Would small stones and ice tend to hit the impeller with more force and cause more dings and shear pins to break? Or would it not make much of a difference? Hmmmm, I am not sure.



That wouldn't make much of a difference. If anything, it would be the opposite, as with their higher gearing the impeller shear pins won't see the torque it would if it were geared lower. Lower torque means less likely to shear pins.


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## Surge

JRHAWK9 said:


> That wouldn't make much of a difference. If anything, it would be the opposite, as with their higher gearing the impeller shear pins won't see the torque it would if it were geared lower. Lower torque means less likely to shear pins.


Yeah, that makes sense.
So the durability of the impeller would probably be the same, maybe better due to the design.
Another question I have is if having a larger impeller/opening might allow some foreign objects to pass through the snow thrower without causing damage or breaking a shear pin, that might otherwise damage a thrower with a smaller impeller, or cause shear pins to break more frequently?
My guess is that I doubt it matters much because the two inch difference would probably not come into play too often. 

Full disclosure: I have two older Honda mowers that I like, a Honda CRV, and a Simplicity P1524E snow thrower that I also like a lot. I bought what works best for my particular usage/needs. 
PS: The Simplicity went through the recent ten inch wet snow easily, and at the end of my drive it was 20 inches deep from the plow. It went through that without any problem or slowing down. I was able to take a full bite without any snow coming out from the side. I am not sure if the HS724 (Honda equivalent) would have performed as well. Maybe it would have. I did consider that model, and an Ariens model. I think both Ariens and Honda offer great machines. It just depends on your personal preferences, needs, and wallet size. Some like distance, some like volume, some want or need both.


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## tonysak

So I just checked the sheer bolts, and augers. Everything is working. The augers seem to be spinning toward the center. I took a video 13 sec video here




It just seems like a complete lack of intake capacity, a bottle neck if you will. Again this isn't rocket science. A 14" auger would make a huge difference in intake. The honda wants to go fast but it can't without spilling out the side. Everything about this snow blower is great, but for me, and the amount of money I spent, it is only a well built upper middle of the line snow blower, like their cars. The performance does not justify the price.

I want a machine that can get me done as fast as possible, and this unfortunately isn't it. What happens if i got 16" of light snow? I would have to do 5 extra runs just to clean up. The 32" Simplicity Pro and Ariens Pro could take FULL buckets (they have much larger buckets too). I do have to say, the Simplicity and Ariens did not throw far, the Honda might throw 20% farther from eyeballing where the snow would land, throwing distance is not a big deal for me. I thought throwing distance equaled processing capacity. That does not seem to be true.

The honda drives like dream, it just can't process snow as fast as it can move, again I mean realistically. It would only process 30% of the bucket size cleanly at reasonable pace. I don't expect it to eat a FULL bucket as I run behind it. This past snowfall should have been very easy for it to clear the driveway neatly. 

The Simplicity Pro chewed snow like no other, but was a real work out to snow blow (pushing and pulling on wheels). There is a video of an Ariens Track vs a honda track. Now they didn't say which honda model it was, but after this past storm, I have a feeling they were both 28" or 32" blowers and the Ariens kicked it ass. I thought they were just trying to show a biased in the video toward the Ariens unit, but I know now the difference in speed was the Honda's lack of processing capacity and not the traction. I keep saying Capacity, I'm not sure if there is a better name for it. Processing volume?

I guess what irks me the most is everybody in the Honda forums is like Honda, honda, honda, the best no complaints (other than short handle bars and the control layout). Now again, this does drive like a dream and has a great build quality (other than the gauge of steel), but SOMEONE out there must have noticed, "hey it just snowed 12" of light fluffy snow, why can't this this eat 12" if snow cleanly at a normal walking pace?" (I am 5-9 and have short legs). 

Do egos really get in the way of admitting there is some sort of limitation with these? Do people have no experience with a large engine (like a 420cc) and a 14" Impeller? I don't get it. I'm not brand bashing, the simplicity, my unit just kept breaking down on me, this honda seems to be like their cars, reliable, well designed, but seems to be lacking in performance.

Do people in Minnesota or Canada have these same machines? The Canadian version have electric chutes and a battery start, do they also have 12" Impellers? Or maybe they just get so much snow they have to make extra passes anyway.

Ideally, it would be nice to find a unit that does what is so pose too so I don't have to come on these forums. I will probably keep it because i love how it moves thru deep snow, I didn't have to push it once. Driving wise, very impressive (A+), snow processing capacity, not very impressive grade C. A larger engine wouldn't help it as it does seem to be a bottle neck at the impeller. Now I know why their buckets are so much smaller.


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## tonysak

andrewspearns said:


> I installed my augers backwards today, it would throw great in deep and heavy snow but light and thin snow would come out of the auger housing. Possible someone accidentally built yours incorrectly?


Also, who just installs their augers backwards to test something? I appreciate the effort!


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## Kestral

It really makes you wonder what that Honda would be like with a 14" inch impeller? If the motor has the power to make full use of a snow loaded impeller that size that is? 

I have noticed that my Simplicaty Pro 1524 can move much more snow at a much faster speed then my "95" Toro Powershift 1132 the Toro with a 32 cut and the Sim Pro a 24" cut. I can just run the Sim pro at a much faster speed and it just eats snow. Even with the larger cut on the Toro I can get my drive finished in significantly less time when I use the Simplicaty.


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## tonysak

JRHAWK9 said:


> I'm sure it does, but at what speed? All the videos I have found show the owners using it at such a slow speed.....-FOR EXAMPLE- -ANOTHER- -ANOTHER-
> 
> The more speed you have when blowing snow means the more volume you are processing and the more work you are getting done. Some blowers can handle this volume and some can't. Going slow through snow and watching it throw a small stream a long ways does nothing for me. It's obvious all these owners in the above videos care about is how far it throws it..lol You'll notice in the third video at the 7:22 mark he's only taking about a 2/3rd's bucket width......probably doing so for a reason.


The second example video shows 1) the guy going slow, and 2) even at that speed a trail of snow coming out of the left side of the bucket.

The engine doesn't get bogged down, its just not a clean run. When i used it on 3-4", at full speed, I had not issue with snow not staying in the bucket. This leads me to believe, the impeller is undersized. Or Honda just put all the focus on throwing distance, not snow removal, and I just picked wrong.


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## sr71

Tony: Coming back to your problem description, (seems that your thread has morphed a tad) there is something not setup correctly. I cannot speak specifically to your model but as noted you should have no problem taking a full bucket pass (at a reasonable speed) – especially in light snow. Ideas: engine is not setup to give you max RPM’s….belts slipping etc. Something is not right – call the dealer.


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## scipper77

Maybe if it's important to you, you could do a pulley swap to increase the speed of the augers and impeller.

Honestly, my old '73 classic 24" ariens removes snow at a ridiculously good rate for such a small bucket. It barely clears the driveway when it is throwing at its best but the volume of snow it removes more than makes up for it. My modern 27" craftsman throws for much more distance but can't do the job in the thick stuff like the smaller buchet machine. It's all about design.


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## Surge

sr71 said:


> Tony: Coming back to your problem description, (seems that your thread has morphed a tad) there is something not setup correctly. I cannot speak specifically to your model but as noted you should have no problem taking a full bucket pass (at a reasonable speed) – especially in light snow. Ideas: engine is not setup to give you max RPM’s….belts slipping etc. Something is not right – call the dealer.


Good point.

Before placing all the blame on the impeller size you may wish to check with the dealer to make sure you rule out any other causes for the spillage. 
It may just need a simple adjustment, and then you would be a real happy camper. But if the dealer cannot find anything wrong, then it may be the impeller size, and one solution would be to go at a slower pace to avoid excessive spillage (obviously). It still sounds like a very reliable machine that moves much more easily for you than your previous thrower. Every make and model seems to have some quirks.

I am curious to know if its just the nature of this beast, or if there is something that was not set up properly. 

Good luck!


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## tonysak

Surge said:


> Good point.
> 
> Before placing all the blame on the impeller size you may wish to check with the dealer to make sure you rule out any other causes for the spillage.
> It may just need a simple adjustment, and then you would be a real happy camper. But if the dealer cannot find anything wrong, then it may be the impeller size, and one solution would be to go at a slower pace to avoid excessive spillage (obviously). It still sounds like a very reliable machine that moves much more easily for you than your previous thrower. Every make and model seems to have some quirks.
> 
> I am curious to know if its just the nature of this beast, or if there is something that was not set up properly.
> 
> Good luck!


I had the dealer go thru it and even run it thru snow predelivery. Everything is working as it should I have no doubt about it. Don't get me wrong it goes thru a plow drift easily and cleanly, however with any machine going thru a drift it's much slower of a pace. It seems to be how the unit was designed. It could also be the curved shape of the bucket. I saw 1 YouTube video of a guy attaching sheet metal to his 1132 for what I think is the same reason....


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## JRHAWK9

tonysak said:


> This leads me to believe, the impeller is undersized. Or Honda just put all the focus on throwing distance, not snow removal, and I just picked wrong.


The impeller is undersized and I believe Honda was solely going after max throwing distance based on what Surge posted from that Honda website. It also seems to be what all the Honda fanboi's brag about as well, which, to me, is kinda humorous when all I see is a pencil-thin stream of snow being thrown that distance...lol 

As far as the Honda guys not admitting how it can't throw the volume of snow both you and I expect out of a blower.....maybe that's all the have worked with and don't know any better....?

Like you mentioned, Honda makes a great blower....just not a blower for someone who wants overall system performance.


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## JRHAWK9

scipper77 said:


> Maybe if it's important to you, you could do a pulley swap to increase the speed of the augers and impeller.


I'm actually curious of the current pulley sizes. If he ever has it apart it would be nice if he could measure both the pulleys and engine rpm and report back. I can then figure out impeller speed and tip speed. I'm guessing the impeller is screaming pretty good....1300+ rpm's.

If he gears it even higher than it already is (which I assume it's already geared pretty high to get that throwing distance out of a 12" impeller), he will lose even more torque which will cause the impeller to slow down quicker under higher loads. It would be like a bike rider changing to a higher gear when climbing a hill.


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## Shryp

You guys are over thinking the problem.

See here for the fix.

http://www.snowblowerforum.com/foru...137-first-post-modification-there-thread.html


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## mtd1024

How long have it you had the Honda? Did you purchase it with a credit card? If your not happy with it because it does not perform as you were sold it would... Call the dealer and tell them you would like to return it for a full refund. If the dealer gives you a difficult time, contact your credit card company. I would assume Honda will take the unit back as I am sure you are not the first or last person to have this issue. 

I am really shocked they would design a machine to perform so poorly.


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## UNDERTAKER

The old school toro's and the power shift were never meant to be speed demons in the snow. They just bulldog their way through it.


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## sr71

Guys….I’ve got no horse in this race other than I have used and owned a number of blowers over the years. I am not a web snow blower vendor and not trying to advance any kind of hidden agenda. Anyone that would suggest a Honda 1132 or 1332 is anything but a beast in the snow is well….dreaming. I have one…starts 1st/2nd pull…. not one issue in 10 years – paint still looks like new. I am not saying there aren’t comparable machines out there – the Ariens track for instance looks like a nice machine They both have transmissions for a reason….and purely on specs the engines generate similar torque numbers 19.5 & 21 ft-lbs respectively. My expectation is that they would perform similarly. 

For the same reasons I like racing, it would be interesting to see all the big machines go head to head in a performance challenge. Perhaps a few of the dealers on this forum can arrange to get some new machines together for a real shootout.


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## JRHAWK9

Shryp said:


> You guys are over thinking the problem.
> 
> See here for the fix.
> 
> http://www.snowblowerforum.com/foru...137-first-post-modification-there-thread.html


actually, the best auger/bucket designs have fully exposed augers. You can't purchase blowers like that anymore in the good ole' US, IIRC.  Take for example the Honda HSM1336iC. 

That may help some, but it won't do a whole lot to discharge the snow any faster. Once the snow builds up and takes up all that volume it will just spill over that and then you will be pushing even more snow along. The bucket/auger design is fine, and with the partially exposed augers it's better than most. The real issue is it's simply not capable of discharging the snow fast enough to keep up with the walking pace he was used to with his old Ariens/Simplicity.....period. I'm telling you, his old Simplicity and my Ariens Pro 32 are simply beasts in the snow in regards to the amount of snow they are capable of processing. Like I mentioned before....full 32" bucket width of 9.5" deep snow blowing at FULL SPEED and I didn't have any spillage over the sides.....it did what a blower is supposed to do and that's got rid of it.


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## tonysak

JRHAWK9 said:


> actually, the best auger designs have exposed augers. You can't purchase blowers like that anymore in the good ole' US, IIRC.  Take for example the Honda HSM1336iC.
> 
> That may help some, but it won't do a whole lot to discharge the snow any faster. Once the snow builds up and takes up all that volume it will just spill over that and then you will be pushing even more snow along. The bucket design is fine, and with the partially exposed augers it's better than most. The real issue is it's simply not capable of discharging the snow fast enough to keep up with the walking pace he was used to with his old Ariens/Simplicity.....period. I'm telling you, his old Simplicity and my Ariens Pro 32 are simply beasts in the snow in regards to the amount of snow they are capable of processing. Like I mentioned before....full 32" bucket width of 9.5" deep snow blowing at FULL SPEED and I didn't have any spillage over the sides.


I agree. I'm not saying it can't chew thru snow, it can but you need to go slow or you will get spillage. Moderate snow fall means if you go fast you will have spillage. Heavy snow falls typically dictates having to go slower anyway, you will go slower with this unit than the new simplicity I just traded. The second example video shows the spillage. I must be the only guy who had the luck to actually try 2 32" units from 2 different manufacturers back to back. I also spent a lot of time analyzing the spillage as I was blowing. I could ether go slower than normal with a full bucket, or take a half bucket of 12" (half bucket height) which equals a little more than 25% of the bucket volume. Anything else I got spillage walking at my normal pace. Compared to the simplicity which would have been walking at a lawn mower pace with no problem. Maybe it's not the size of the impeller per say but how snow feeds into it. I don't know but there is something in the design that is less than ideal. 

The honda did really shoot the heavy plow drift much farther which was nice vs a dribble out the top of the simplicity. Not to mention the honda does drive like a sports car, at one point I had it sideways on a snow bank with no effort on my part. 

I'm keeping the honda because it's much easier to use/maneuver than the simplicity. Although watch honda come out with a 14" impeller next year. There is really nothing I could trade it in for as I mentioned before. The spillage on the honda is a quark that shouldn't exist on the most expensive 32" blower. I'm sure the 12" impeller is fine on the 28" units as you take in a lot less snow. I wonder what Honda puts in the 36" hybrid blower. 

The next 12" light snow fall we get I'll just blow thru it at lawn mower pace to see what happens. 

This isn't a personal attack against other 32" honda owners, it's a fun blower to use, I can't say that enough, I just seem to have found an operational limitation that no one else has noticed or commented on. This info should be helpful to anyone looking to purchase a new 32" blower.


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## JRHAWK9

I'm glad you had the chance to use a decent blower with a 14" impeller and this Honda back to back. I have said all along that it was my impression the Honda's couldn't compete in the area of shear volume of snow removal. Most doubted what I was trying to convey. My "Husky" 16530E is what made me aware of the issue and it was my mission to find a blower capable of moving the volume of snow I thought a good blower should.

I still would like for you to get the measurements of your pulleys when you get a chance. I'm curious as to what they run for impeller rpm's. IIRC, my Pro 32 is a bit over 1,000 rpms and my Husky was around 1,300 rpm's. The tip speed was still in favor of the Husky even though it had a smaller impeller. My Husky did throw it a bit further I believe but it was a pencil width stream and not a firehouse one.


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## FairfieldCT

I have a new this season 928 wheeled honda. It is an incredible machine, and snow pump describes it perfectly. We just had a solid foot of the heaviest snow and ice you could possible have, and it worked flawlessly. 

I don't think any of these machines are meant to clear a foot of any kind of snow at full forward speed. In this heavy (really heavy) last storm, I was traveling forward at a little less than half speed, taking about a 24 inch pass with the 28 inch bucket and there was no snow spilling out the sides. These things are supposed to move like 50 tons of snow per hour. Thats pretty amazing.... after all its a snowblower, not a bulldozer.

Further, the 12 inch impeller is an inch shorter on each side from a 14 inch impeller, which gives it MORE torque. the further you go from the center shaft, the less torque you have.

So, lets wrap this up.... If you are trying to go full steam ahead in a foot of snow, you need to slow down. Full speed is a transport mode, not a snow clearing mode. If you do slow down and it still continues to overflow severely, definitely have it checked at the dealer because something is definitely wrong. You bought a high quality beautifully engineered and built machine that is capable of doing an incredible job. If its not working properly you need to get it checked.

Good luck... let us know!


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## Surge

FairfieldCT said:


> I have a new this season *928 wheeled honda*. It is an incredible machine, and snow pump describes it perfectly. We just had a solid foot of the heaviest snow and ice you could possible have, and it worked flawlessly.
> 
> I don't think any of these machines are meant to clear a foot of any kind of snow at full forward speed. In this heavy (really heavy) last storm, I was traveling forward at a little less than half speed, taking about a 24 inch pass with the *28 inch bucket* and there was no snow spilling out the sides. These things are supposed to move like 50 tons of snow per hour. Thats pretty amazing.... after all its a snowblower, not a bulldozer.
> 
> Further, the 12 inch impeller is an inch shorter on each side from a 14 inch impeller, which gives it MORE torque. the further you go from the center shaft, the less torque you have.
> 
> So, lets wrap this up.... If you are trying to go full steam ahead in a foot of snow, you need to slow down. Full speed is a transport mode, not a snow clearing mode. If you do slow down and it still continues to overflow severely, definitely have it checked at the dealer because something is definitely wrong. You bought a high quality beautifully engineered and built machine that is capable of doing an incredible job. If its not working properly you need to get it checked.
> 
> Good luck... let us know!


 The Honda in question is an HS1132 TA. It takes in more snow than the HS928 and uses the same sized impeller even though it has a four inch larger bucket size. It might be that additional amount of snow is just enough to cause some spillage. He said he already had it checked by the dealer to rule out any other contributing factors. Although its always possible the dealer missed something. 
I gather he still likes his thrower a lot, and has no intention of getting rid of it. But having used a similar sized thrower with a larger impeller, he noticed that he had to slow down, or take less than a full bite of the snow to avoid spillage. Assuming that the dealer is right and everything is set up okay, then the likely answer is that the 1132 might perform better if it had a 14 inch impeller. I know if Honda offered the choice of a larger impeller for the 1132 model at the same price I would snap it up in a heart beat, *if* I needed a thrower that large. My guess is that I would not be alone in that choice.


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## Kiss4aFrog

FairfieldCT said:


> The 12 inch impeller is an inch shorter on each side from a 14 inch impeller, which gives it MORE torque. the further you go from the center shaft, the less torque you have.


(In a very nice way) . . . What is your point ??

I have two Craftsman 10hp32" with 14" impellers. Torque available at the end of the impeller is only important if the engine can't apply enough to maintain it's 3600 RPM (roughly). If the impeller gets so much wet heavy snow from the auger that it loads the engine and drags down the RPM then the smaller size impeller would have more torque due to less mass of snow in the impeller and be better able to maintain the max RPM. That's wet heavy snow.

But eating, moving, throwing is all about maintaining maximum RPM through all conditions. The impeller size is a trade off to engine HP.
The other thing to consider is if the 14" isn't only bigger in diameter but also in depth ???

Most of the snow I clear is not wet and heavy and the 14" impeller doesn't cause the engine to drag and it eats it's way through snow like crazy. Wet heavy stuff I either go slower or take a narrower cut. After all it's just a pump and the bigger the hole and the larger the vanes the more it will process at a given RPM.


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## JRHAWK9

Kiss4aFrog said:


> (In a very nice way) . . . What is your point ??
> 
> I have two Craftsman 10hp32" with 14" impellers. Torque available at the end of the impeller is only important if the engine can't apply enough to maintain it's 3600 RPM (roughly). If the impeller gets so much wet heavy snow from the auger that it loads the engine and drags down the RPM then the smaller size impeller would have more torque due to less mass of snow in the impeller and be better able to maintain the max RPM. That's wet heavy snow.
> 
> But eating, moving, throwing is all about maintaining maximum RPM through all conditions. The impeller size is a trade off to engine HP.
> The other thing to consider is if the 14" isn't only bigger in diameter but also in depth ???
> 
> Most of the snow I clear is not wet and heavy and the 14" impeller doesn't cause the engine to drag and it eats it's way through snow like crazy. Wet heavy stuff I either go slower or take a narrower cut. After all it's just a pump and the bigger the hole and the larger the vanes the more it will process at a given RPM.


I agree.


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## tonysak

Same here. We are talking in volumes.

The 32" hs1332ta/s has over 480 cubic inches more bucket volume over the 28". I wanted the hs1332 for the extra hp and size assuming it could move the extra snow the larger bucket takes in. Not a good assumption. 

Knowing what I know now, i wish I got the 28" model and saved some money. I am willing to bet the 28" tracked model can move and throw snow cleanly at the pace I am used to going which is faster than the 1332. I hope that makes sense. 

I would have to do an extra pass with a 28" bucket, but it beats 5 extra passes recleaning the spillage from the 1332. 

As far as the pulleys go..."I just drive them, I don't fix 'em". I could figure it out but it's cold outside. 

The 36" hybrid unit has the same size engine but can move much more snow (82 tons vs 65/hr) than the 1332. They must have redesigned the impeller system to move more snow. I can't find any specs on it. Or I guess they are just counting the volume of the larger 36" bucket and the cleaning performance is the same as the 1332 meaning it will do it just not cleanly.


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## FairfieldCT

Kiss4aFrog said:


> (In a very nice way) . . . What is your point ??
> 
> I have two Craftsman 10hp32" with 14" impellers. Torque available at the end of the impeller is only important if the engine can't apply enough to maintain it's 3600 RPM (roughly). If the impeller gets so much wet heavy snow from the auger that it loads the engine and drags down the RPM then the smaller size impeller would have more torque due to less mass of snow in the impeller and be better able to maintain the max RPM. That's wet heavy snow.
> 
> But eating, moving, throwing is all about maintaining maximum RPM through all conditions. The impeller size is a trade off to engine HP.
> The other thing to consider is if the 14" isn't only bigger in diameter but also in depth ???
> 
> Most of the snow I clear is not wet and heavy and the 14" impeller doesn't cause the engine to drag and it eats it's way through snow like crazy. Wet heavy stuff I either go slower or take a narrower cut. After all it's just a pump and the bigger the hole and the larger the vanes the more it will process at a given RPM.


Just rationalizing that Honda engineered the impeller to be 12 inches, spinning at a higher rpm than most other manufacturers. All things being equal, a 12 inch impeller is going to have more torque than a 14 inch impeller. 

The 12 inch impeller on his machine is powered by a stronger engine that should more than make up for the extra 4 inches. I'll tell you my 928 moves an astounding amount of snow shooting it a ridiculous distance. As I said, our last storm was deep and heavy. Had no issues at all.

I'll say it again. FULL speed ahead is NOT for snow removal, it is for transport. If you need to clear your drive in 1 or 2 passes at 20 MPH get a pickup truck with a big yellow plow.


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## FairfieldCT

tonysak said:


> Same here. We are talking in volumes.
> 
> The 32" hs1332ta/s has over 480 cubic inches more bucket volume over the 28". I wanted the hs1332 for the extra hp and size assuming it could move the extra snow the larger bucket takes in. Not a good assumption.
> 
> Knowing what I know now, i wish I got the 28" model and saved some money. I am willing to bet the 28" tracked model can move and throw snow cleanly at the pace I am used to going which is faster than the 1332. I hope that makes sense.
> 
> I would have to do an extra pass with a 28" bucket, but it beats 5 extra passes recleaning the spillage from the 1332.
> 
> As far as the pulleys go..."I just drive them, I don't fix 'em". I could figure it out but it's cold outside.
> 
> The 36" hybrid unit has the same size engine but can move much more snow (82 tons vs 65/hr) than the 1332. They must have redesigned the impeller system to move more snow. I can't find any specs on it. Or I guess they are just counting the volume of the larger 36" bucket and the cleaning performance is the same as the 1332 meaning it will do it just not cleanly.


I think the 36 inch hybrid has one motor for the auger/impeller, and another for the drive. Just slow down a little and take 80% of the bucket width and you should be fine. Trust me, I started this season with a 32 hydro pro Ariens. That machine was a disaster, and failed miserably with 2 inches of wet stuff. You are def better off with your honda.


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## FairfieldCT

Best of all worlds would be a 28 inch wheeled honda with a 13 hp engine.


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## Kiss4aFrog

In the end I hope you are happy with the machine the way it as. It's a wonderful machine and best of all you're not waiting to see what part you have to go out into the cold and replace to make sure it's working next snow fall  What I have may be "tired iron" but it's still going.


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## north585

My comment is simply one person's opinion....I have no brilliance on the difference between a 28 and 32" machine. All I know is that my 28 track went thru the snow in the photos at 1/2 speed and I had zero spillage... How does that relate to a 32", no idea, but my 28 is amazing....volume and distance thrown.

Here's to more snow


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## north585

Apologies, I can't seem to load more than one photo at a time.


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## north585

Last one


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## tonysak

FairfieldCT said:


> Just rationalizing that Honda engineered the impeller to be 12 inches, spinning at a higher rpm than most other manufacturers. All things being equal, a 12 inch impeller is going to have more torque than a 14 inch impeller.
> 
> The 12 inch impeller on his machine is powered by a stronger engine that should more than make up for the extra 4 inches. I'll tell you my 928 moves an astounding amount of snow shooting it a ridiculous distance. As I said, our last storm was deep and heavy. Had no issues at all.
> 
> I'll say it again. FULL speed ahead is NOT for snow removal, it is for transport. If you need to clear your drive in 1 or 2 passes at 20 MPH get a pickup truck with a big yellow plow.


Respectively, I think you are missing my point. All I am saying is all the raving about honda being the best isn't completely true. When using the 32" honda and the 32" simplicity pro, at the same speed I could go considerably faster clearing snow cleanly with with the simplicity. I am just talking walking, not running, nothing crazy, my driveway has a hill. The simplicity Went thru a greater volume of snow faster. I wanted to post this info as if I had it a head of time I would have given the hydro pro track more consideration.

I had the 32" simplicity for a year so I got plenty of time with it and how much it could process at what speed. The 1332 has spillage so I need to go slower or do extra runs as I already mentioned. If you kept your ariens longer and had no drive issues to distract you maybe you would have noticed a similar observation. Maybe not as the 28" seems to not has this problem or you would have mentioned it. 

Also I think everyone knows you are hard core on wheels. Personally speaking I would never buy wheels again on a larger machine. I work far less with this honda tracks. I think it is a pleasure to drive, to each their own. The spillage was a little more of a WTF honda as their are supposedly the best blower to get, certainly the most expensive. 

I think we beat the horse pretty good here.


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## north585

Okay, I couldn't resist one more of the Honda's siblings...


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## FairfieldCT

Follow the link to the 32 inch simplicity review:

Simplicity 1696241 P2132E 32" 420cc Signature Pro Two-Stage Snow Blower 

I am not trying to be a smart ass, but I didn't know much about the simplicity so I went to have a look. these reviews were what showed up on google. The machine certainly looks hefty enough and seemingly well built.

My drive is large but totally flat, hence the wheels make more sense. For steeper grades the tracks would most likely be a better choice. Wondering how large your drive is.


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## Jim

I found this:
Honda Track Drive Snowblower HS1132TA Hydrostatic Drive with Infinite Speed E C | eBay

Its 3 years old i asked the seller how big is the impeller he thinks 12 inch. What year did honda go to the smaller impeller? and is $2000 a good price for a 3 yr old used machine?
Thank for the info. great thread.
Cheers
Jim


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## Jay

tonysak said:


> I had the dealer go thru it and even run it thru snow predelivery. Everything is working as it should I have no doubt about it. Don't get me wrong it goes thru a plow drift easily and cleanly, however with any machine going thru a drift it's much slower of a pace. It seems to be how the unit was designed. It could also be the curved shape of the bucket. I saw 1 YouTube video of a guy attaching sheet metal to his 1132 for what I think is the same reason....


It appears from the video that the way the auger is designed on that particular unit, the flighting of the augers are pretty narrow. When in powder the snow rolls and tumbles over and through the flighting instead of getting grabbed and rolled to the center where it needs to be for the intake. The flighting on my augers are much wider but rotate at the same speed as yours if not slower and it never pushes or spills over the ends of the bucket unless I am cleary running too much ground speed. HP or capacity doesn't seem likely here. Its definitely a feeding issue. I can see where you would be upset with this issue as well.


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## JRHAWK9

Jim said:


> I found this:
> Honda Track Drive Snowblower HS1132TA Hydrostatic Drive with Infinite Speed E C | eBay
> 
> Its 3 years old i asked the seller how big is the impeller he thinks 12 inch. What year did honda go to the smaller impeller? and is $2000 a good price for a 3 yr old used machine?
> Thank for the info. great thread.
> Cheers
> Jim


Yeah, from looking at those pics, it's definitely a 12" impeller. The thing looks so tiny sitting there in amongst the bucket.


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## JRHAWK9

Jay said:


> Its definitely a feeding issue.


So, if it had a 6" impeller would you be saying the same thing? 

I would like to respectively disagree. Snow is getting to the impeller just fine, the impeller just isn't capable of discharging the volume of snow needed in order to keep up with the amount being collected at the rate at which he wants to walk.


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## [email protected]

FairfieldCT said:


> I think the 36 inch hybrid has one motor for the auger/impeller, and another for the drive.


On HS1336i Hybrid, the gasoline engine drives the auger and fan, as well as a small on-board genset. The track-drive has two large electric motors, that are powered by the electricity generated off the engine. There are twin 12V automotive-style batteries to run the electric start, and they can also drive the tracks (engine OFF) to easily move the unit indoors or out of the garage.


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## JRHAWK9

tonysak said:


> The 36" hybrid unit has the same size engine but can move much more snow (82 tons vs 65/hr) than the 1332. They must have redesigned the impeller system to move more snow. I can't find any specs on it.


I screen captured a video of one from directly in front and printed it out which allowed me to do some interpolating of measurements. It looks to me by doing this the hybrid unit does indeed have a 14" impeller.


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## JRHAWK9

FairfieldCT said:


> I'll say it again. FULL speed ahead is NOT for snow removal, it is for transport. If you need to clear your drive in 1 or 2 passes at 20 MPH get a pickup truck with a big yellow plow.



Disagree...I use my fastest speed on my Pro 32 all the time to blow. It's just a normal walking pace for me. See -HERE- for an example of the pace I prefer to use when I blow my driveway. The fastest speed on my Pro 32 may be a bit faster than what I'm walking in the video above, but it's not like I have to be running in order to keep up.


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## Jay

JRHAWK9 said:


> So, if it had a 6" impeller would you be saying the same thing?
> 
> I would like to respectively disagree. Snow is getting to the impeller just fine, the impeller just isn't capable of discharging the volume of snow needed in order to keep up with the amount being collected at the rate at which he wants to walk.


Then what you are saying is it's a possible design flaw? If its an undersized impeller and rotation speed to bucket size and intake volume proportion I would agree with this. But if its not, then it's clearly a ground speed issue. Otherwise, if it's not pulling down when the bucket is full and snow is spilling out the sides, its a feeding issue. The material needs to have some forward pressure to force the material to the center of the bucket and into the impeller. Kind of like forcing it into a fan. If its just tumbling around the flighting and mixing it instead of actually augering it to the center, there's going to be issues. This is why I kind of like the concept of the cub cadet 3X where the center auger's sole purpose is to force feed the impeller. It's just everything the bucket is mounted to I don't like so much.


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## tonysak

Jay said:


> Then what you are saying is it's a possible design flaw? If its an undersized impeller and rotation speed to bucket size and intake volume proportion I would agree with this. But if its not, then it's clearly a ground speed issue. Otherwise, if it's not pulling down when the bucket is full and snow is spilling out the sides, its a feeding issue. The material needs to have some forward pressure to force the material to the center of the bucket and into the impeller. Kind of like forcing it into a fan. If its just tumbling around the flighting and mixing it instead of actually augering it to the center, there's going to be issues. This is why I kind of like the concept of the cub cadet 3X where the center auger's sole purpose is to force feed the impeller. It's just everything the bucket is mounted to I don't like so much.


I have no way to test or to see what happens inside the bucket. There is about a 5" tall trail of spillage. You would think that is right where the sweet spot is on the auger blades as far as movement to the center goes. Not to mention the other smaller units seem to have no problem. They use the same augers and impeller. 

My neighbor has a 3x by cub cadet. My Honda easily ate it, and left a trail of undigested scrap metal out the side. My neighbor didn't even get a chance to use it. The simplicity would have ate it at break neck speeds with no spillage, then lost the speed linkage causing me to push the 350lb beast back across the street and down my driveway. 

Again other 32" models in the hs1332 class but with 14" impellers didn't have this spillage issue. That's what this post is about. Snow removal volume wise, the 32" with 420cc engine and 14" impeller clearly won (so far) in my book. Ease of use wise, probably reliability wise the honda hs1332 wins there. Again, just working off ratios, I don't think the 28" honda has this spillage problem, but another hp or two would make the 28" honda pretty sweet. I have no personal use with a 28" honda, I am just going off ratios and past experiences. 

A 14" impeller, even at slower discharge speed, would make the hs1332 the best blower on the market.


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## tonysak

tonysak said:


> I have no way to test or to see what happens inside the bucket. There is about a 5" tall trail of spillage. You would think that is right where the sweet spot is on the auger blades as far as movement to the center goes. Not to mention the other smaller units seem to have no problem. They use the same augers and impeller.
> 
> My neighbor has a 3x by cub cadet. My Honda easily ate it, and left a trail of undigested scrap metal out the side. My neighbor didn't even get a chance to use it. The simplicity would have ate it at break neck speeds with no spillage, then lost the speed linkage causing me to push the 350lb beast back across the street and down my driveway.
> 
> Again other 32" models in the hs1332 class but with 14" impellers didn't have this spillage issue. That's what this post is about. Snow removal volume wise, the 32" with 420cc engine and 14" impeller clearly won (so far) in my book. Ease of use wise, probably reliability wise the honda hs1332 wins there. Again, just working off ratios, I don't think the 28" honda has this spillage problem, but another hp or two would make the 28" honda pretty sweet. I have no personal use with a 28" honda, I am just going off ratios and past experiences.
> 
> A 14" impeller, even at slower discharge speed, would make the hs1332 the best blower on the market.


I should say that "upgrading" to the hs1332tas over the simplicity pro p2132e cost me just about $1,000. The dealer let me trade it in for only a $200 loss and I had it for a year.


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## tonysak

*I called Honda*

I just called Honda. The 36" HSM1336iC Hybrid which uses the same gas engine, as the 1332. Has a 340mm (13.38") dia Fan (impeller) which moves at 1260rpm.

This means keeping the engine the same, Honda increased the impeller size to about 14" to increase the snow removal capacity by a whopping 17 tons per hr over the HS1332's 12" impeller. This proves that impeller size makes a clear difference, and that the spillage I get is due to the 12" impeller. There is no doubt the hs1332 needs a 14" impeller to be the best.


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## JRHAWK9

tonysak said:


> I just called Honda. The 36" HSM1336iC Hybrid which uses the same gas engine, as the 1332. Has a 340mm (13.38") dia Fan (impeller) which moves at 1260rpm.
> 
> This means keeping the engine the same, Honda increased the impeller size to about 14" to increase the snow removal capacity by a whopping 17 tons per hr over the HS1332's 12" impeller. This proves that impeller size makes a clear difference, and that the spillage I get is due to the 12" impeller. There is no doubt the hs1332 needs a 14" impeller to be the best.


yeah, it only makes sense that impeller size has a HUGE say in the overall system performance. Looks like Honda wants a person to spend $8,000 before giving them an almost 14" impeller and performance close to what you can get for ~$2,400 from another manufacturer.


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## mtd1024

So, are you going to get a favorable trade for a machine that will provide you with the service you expected? 
Who advised you to purchase this machine? The dealer? Or had you made up your mind and walked in to the dealer and said I want this machine right here?


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## Runner50

JRHAWK9 said:


> Yeah, from looking at those pics, it's definitely a 12" impeller. The thing looks so tiny sitting there in amongst the bucket.


Ridiculously small. So to all you Honda fanboys. Given what the OP has said, tell me again how Hondas are the best engineered blowers after looking at that 12" opening. That's your idea of engineering at it's best?? 
Then again, they do shoot snow into the next county. Some of it anyway. Yeah, I guess that does justify the price.


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## tonysak

mtd1024 said:


> So, are you going to get a favorable trade for a machine that will provide you with the service you expected?
> Who advised you to purchase this machine? The dealer? Or had you made up your mind and walked in to the dealer and said I want this machine right here?


After the drive issues with simplicity, the only other brand was Honda. The dealer said i could take whatever i wanted, he carries Toro (too small), Ariens, honda and simplicity. The honda also got "Rave reviews" except for the control layout and handbar height. Other than those 2 issues, not one person with the hs1132 or the HS1332 seemed to have noticed the 12" impeller or has voiced the lack of capicity to other brands below its class as I have mentioned here. 

Ariens makes a Hydro Pro Track in 32" however its over 428lbs. I have heard the hydrostatic transmission is much slower than Honda's and not as nice. I guess going in reverse and up a hill was non exsistant. I was also aware of autoturn hickups, like Autoturn seems to only work with perfect and flat conditions. My driveway is about 150' brand new and with a hill. I also clear 2 neighbors driveways in various conditions and elevations from the street, and about an 1/8th of a mile of sidewalks. I felt it too risky to get the hydro pro track as the dealer would have to special order it. There is a guy on here with the Hydro Pro Track 32" and he is having problems with the auto turn and the think the height adjustment cable. 

Coming from the 32" simplicity signature pro at 350lbs with weight kit and chains, the 278lb Honda HS1332 is a pleasure to use. I cringed at Ariens 428lb unit.

I think anybody considering the HS928 or the HS1332, will appreciate this information which doesn't seem to exist in any other forums. I won't trade it in for the hs928Tas as I like my dealer and don't want to put him out any further (and loose more money myself). The hs1332TAS drives like a sports car compared to the large simplicity, the 12" impeller bottle neck and the trail of snow it leaves is disappointing. If honda comes with with a 32" unit with 14" impeller, then I will probably trade up and get myself a Honda Power Equipment tattoo.


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## tkrotchko

Runner50 said:


> Ridiculously small. So to all you Honda fanboys. Given what the OP has said, tell me again how Hondas are the best engineered blowers after looking at that 12" opening. That's your idea of engineering at it's best??
> Then again, they do shoot snow into the next county. Some of it anyway. Yeah, I guess that does justify the price.


I just moved 15" of wet heavy snow with a 1132. 400 foot driveway, took me 3 hours, including removing a 15 foot berm left by snowplows.

The issue you'll have with spillage with the machine is if you try to go too fast for conditions. Particularly with wet snow, the augers get completely clogged with snow which reduces the efficiency of the machine. You have to slow down. Other snow blowers I've owned just won't work at all in these kinds of conditions. The Honda just took me longer.

My neighbors were all trying to help on the driveway (they're great folks), but their machines just couldn't even move this kind of snow. One of their machines simply broke it's belt (a single stage machine, a valiant attempt).

After I finished, all the families came over and thanked me profusely. The guy across the road has a big Ariens, and the snow was so heavy, it could only move the snow about 6 feet, which was making huge piles for him. Mind you, I think his Ariens is a great machine too. It at least kept going.

I'm not going to tell you the Honda is the best machine for you. I'm just telling you that it's the best machine for me and my conditions.


----------



## tonysak

tkrotchko said:


> I just moved 15" of wet heavy snow with a 1132. 400 foot driveway, took me 3 hours, including removing a 15 foot berm left by snowplows.
> 
> The issue you'll have with spillage with the machine is if you try to go too fast for conditions. Particularly with wet snow, the augers get completely clogged with snow which reduces the efficiency of the machine. You have to slow down. Other snow blowers I've owned just won't work at all in these kinds of conditions. The Honda just took me longer.
> 
> My neighbors were all trying to help on the driveway (they're great folks), but their machines just couldn't even move this kind of snow. One of their machines simply broke it's belt (a single stage machine, a valiant attempt).
> 
> After I finished, all the families came over and thanked me profusely. The guy across the road has a big Ariens, and the snow was so heavy, it could only move the snow about 6 feet, which was making huge piles for him. Mind you, I think his Ariens is a great machine too. It at least kept going.
> 
> I'm not going to tell you the Honda is the best machine for you. I'm just telling you that it's the best machine for me and my conditions.


You are failing to see the comparison. I'll rewrite a comparison after tomorrow's storm. I am going too fast for the machines design. The other machines can move more is the point of this. 

Yes the honda is a snow blower which can throw snow farther than most. It can not move nearly as much snow as the simplicity 32" signature pro with a 420cc Briggs engine (ariens polar force). That engine has 21 lbs torque, the honda 1332 has 19lbs torque. 12" vs 14" impeller. It's like night and day. My past reviews with it was for light snow. Yesterday we had 6" -7" of heavy snow. That's about a quarter of the bucket. I have a 2 year old daughter, I had to walk about the pace of when she was learning to walk. It was about a half step every second or so. The engine was probably at 70% load. If I went any faster I got spillage, if I continued at that speed the 1332 was acting like a snow plow. Snow kept collecting inside the bucket until it was just pushing and spilling snow in front of it. Snow eventually came up and over the hood due to the build up. The bottle neck is the 12" impeller and the lack power to move a 14". Honda put a mediocre snow blower on a awesome chassis. 

It did chew threw a news paper and didn't break any sheer bolts. I had to clear the blockage as it kept killing the engine. 

It's basically a cool snow mobile with a snow removal feature vs a bad ass snow blower as everybody referees to it by. It really need a pair of bigger balls. Traction going threw a 4" very wet plow drift was great and effortless. I would have had to push the simplicity thru it. Yes the honda went thru it, but it took forever compared to the volume a the simplicity could handle. Anything that entered the simplicity bucket was gone instantly, so I would push the simplicity into a empty space in front of it. The Honda pushed itself, but you need to wait for it to expel the snow ( vs the simplicity 14" impeller). It's a very big difference in snow removal speed and as far as I am concern a serious competitive disadvantage. The reasons to get a snow blower are 1) to ease snow removal effort 2) make snow removal faster. 

They nailed #1 as it moves itself thru deep snow where wheels otherwise would spin. They missed the nail on number # 2. I give it a C again for snow removal capacity on a back to back comparison. If you need a tracked snowblower with a larger engine, there are not a lot of options. If you don't need tracks I wouldn't get this unit. You are paying for the hydrostatic transmission which is awesome, and the honda brand name and a smaller engine and smaller impeller. I have never had a problem with a Briggs engine. Even though it's a 32" bucket, the bucket has a less internal volume than the simplicity or ariens for a reason, unit due to the 12" impeller and engine size it can't handle the snow. So what you end up with is a 32" bucket, that you can only take 20" cut with or else you just make a mess. It's like being stuck behind an old person while driving, or someone in the fast lane going 65 while on the cell phone. 

To take a full buckets worth of light snow you will have to walk at a toddlers pace and maybe squirt some KY into the impeller. With the simplicity I never went slower than 3rd gear. These are facts, the 1332 is just designed to handle less snow than its competitors. I think honda has been living off the name recognition and all the rave reviews. 

The 32" simplicity kept breaking down and was too heavy for deep snow so I ditched it. I am sorry to shatter all the other honda owners perception of these units. I know it's not easy to hear. Electric chute controls, and reliability aside, I if you love your 32" honda and don't need their awesome tracks, imagine being done 35% faster and spending 30% less less money. It's a reality with the other machines. 

There is another storm tonight. 10" or so. I want to love this $3499 plus tax machine but with its clear physical specifications, and performance bottle neck, I don't see how it could perform any better. If they come out with a 14" impeller and a bigger engine, I am sold.


----------



## tkrotchko

The other snows with the Honda 1132 we've had this season have been 12-18" of powder, and sub zero temperatures. I can pretty much go through those at full speed with no spillage.

I respect your opinion, but I don't see the design flaws in my 1132 you're mentioning as I use it in actual conditions.

And of course, where I live, tracks are a must because I have two fairly steep grades. The torque at 19.5 foot pounds is decent. Interestingly the 13HP engine in the 1332 has the same torque as the 1132. I'd have to see the torque curve of both to understand the difference between the 340 and 390 engine.

Here's the 390 in the 1332: http://engines.findthebest.com/l/14/Honda-GX-GX390
Here's the 340 in the 1132: http://www.mackayoutdoorpowercentre.com.au/products/GX340.html

Ah, peak torque is the same, but torque at 3600 RPM is about 3 ft-lbs lower on the 340.


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## TomB985

Tonysak, I just wanted to say I appreciate the time you're taking to describe this. My last blower was a Troy-Bilt 30" unit bought new in 2010. It had a relatively beefy 357cc engine, but like yours the impeller was too small to efficiently use the engine power. It would start pushing snow out the sides long before the engine ran out of power, and that was possibly the biggest disappointment I had with it. 

The Honda HS624 I bought and rehabbed is a far more efficient machine, as I can push the oversized replacement engine to it's max load without overwhelming the capacity of the impeller. I suspect the impeller in mine is the same 12" size that yours is. I was looking at new blowers at my Honda dealer yesterday when I was picking up a belt for this one, and your description of the undersized impeller kept me from seriously considering a 1332. If I were to buy a new one today it would probably be the 928. 

So I just wanted to say THANKS for posting up about this.


----------



## tonysak

*Simplicity actually has a 12" impeller*

Results vary? Travel speed difference? Colder temp = lighter snow dono. We have 10" coming tonight, I'll take a video. 

I thought the simplicity had a 14" impeller, i just rechecked and it has a 12". I could have sworn while buying the unit it was 14", I don't have it anymore to measure. So I don't know what accounts for the performance difference between the 2 units. I'll try to call both companies the find out the impeller housing volume, Something is causing the bottle neck on the honda vs the simplicity.


----------



## Hkellogg

Everything has a 12" impelleer from what I've seen on all newer machines , the only blower with a 8x14inch impeller that I saw was an old craftsman drift breaker and that thing was kind of a beast


----------



## scipper77

Hkellogg said:


> Everything has a 12" impelleer from what I've seen on all newer machines , the only blower with a 8x14inch impeller that I saw was an old craftsman drift breaker and that thing was kind of a beast


Two deficiencies jump out at me instantly. Skid pad/wheel is crooked and the scraper bar is not full width. Its a sickness but I can't help it.

I'd love one of those machine by the way. Not that I need a third.


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## tonysak

TomB985 said:


> Tonysak, I just wanted to say I appreciate the time you're taking to describe this. My last blower was a Troy-Bilt 30" unit bought new in 2010. It had a relatively beefy 357cc engine, but like yours the impeller was too small to efficiently use the engine power. It would start pushing snow out the sides long before the engine ran out of power, and that was possibly the biggest disappointment I had with it.
> 
> The Honda HS624 I bought and rehabbed is a far more efficient machine, as I can push the oversized replacement engine to it's max load without overwhelming the capacity of the impeller. I suspect the impeller in mine is the same 12" size that yours is. I was looking at new blowers at my Honda dealer yesterday when I was picking up a belt for this one, and your description of the undersized impeller kept me from seriously considering a 1332. If I were to buy a new one today it would probably be the 928.
> 
> So I just wanted to say THANKS for posting up about this.


YOU ARE WELCOME! That's why I started this thread. It has been a lot of time, thanks for saying thanks. 

I'm not trying to argue with people, conditions can vary, but for having to spend $3499 plus tax there should be more feedback online about the hs1332, other than "awesome". Awesome to me means full, clean buckets at a reasonable speed given the snow conditions, especially in this price range (or even better than that, that should really be the standard performance in the top of the line snow blower bracket).

The light post really needs to be 4" taller because it lights up the back of the bucket, minor issue. It might actually be adjustable. I also put Polly shoes on this unit which is a big improvement. The simplicity had reversible poly shoes standard. 

People love the 928. I am not recommending one or a Honda unit, I was just comparing my experience with the 1332 bucket width to impeller ratio to make a deduction about 928 cleaning performance. I'm not sure how the 9hp is on there. This thread shouldn't be used for 928 comments, maybe start a new thread on those so people can say how awesome the 928 is.


----------



## FairfieldCT

tonysak said:


> You are failing to see the comparison. I'll rewrite a comparison after tomorrow's storm. I am going too fast for the machines design. The other machines can move more is the point of this.
> 
> Yes the honda is a snow blower which can throw snow farther than most. It can not move nearly as much snow as the simplicity 32" signature pro with a 420cc Briggs engine (ariens polar force). That engine has 21 lbs torque, the honda 1332 has 19lbs torque. 12" vs 14" impeller. It's like night and day. My past reviews with it was for light snow. Yesterday we had 6" -7" of heavy snow. That's about a quarter of the bucket. I have a 2 year old daughter, I had to walk about the pace of when she was learning to walk. It was about a half step every second or so. The engine was probably at 70% load. If I went any faster I got spillage, if I continued at that speed the 1332 was acting like a snow plow. Snow kept collecting inside the bucket until it was just pushing and spilling snow in front of it. Snow eventually came up and over the hood due to the build up. The bottle neck is the 12" impeller and the lack power to move a 14". Honda put a mediocre snow blower on a awesome chassis.
> 
> It did chew threw a news paper and didn't break any sheer bolts. I had to clear the blockage as it kept killing the engine.
> 
> It's basically a cool snow mobile with a snow removal feature vs a bad ass snow blower as everybody referees to it by. It really need a pair of bigger balls. Traction going threw a 4" very wet plow drift was great and effortless. I would have had to push the simplicity thru it. Yes the honda went thru it, but it took forever compared to the volume a the simplicity could handle. Anything that entered the simplicity bucket was gone instantly, so I would push the simplicity into a empty space in front of it. The Honda pushed itself, but you need to wait for it to expel the snow ( vs the simplicity 14" impeller). It's a very big difference in snow removal speed and as far as I am concern a serious competitive disadvantage. The reasons to get a snow blower are 1) to ease snow removal effort 2) make snow removal faster.
> 
> They nailed #1 as it moves itself thru deep snow where wheels otherwise would spin. They missed the nail on number # 2. I give it a C again for snow removal capacity on a back to back comparison. If you need a tracked snowblower with a larger engine, there are not a lot of options. If you don't need tracks I wouldn't get this unit. You are paying for the hydrostatic transmission which is awesome, and the honda brand name and a smaller engine and smaller impeller. I have never had a problem with a Briggs engine. Even though it's a 32" bucket, the bucket has a less internal volume than the simplicity or ariens for a reason, unit due to the 12" impeller and engine size it can't handle the snow. So what you end up with is a 32" bucket, that you can only take 20" cut with or else you just make a mess. It's like being stuck behind an old person while driving, or someone in the fast lane going 65 while on the cell phone.
> 
> To take a full buckets worth of light snow you will have to walk at a toddlers pace and maybe squirt some KY into the impeller. With the simplicity I never went slower than 3rd gear. These are facts, the 1332 is just designed to handle less snow than its competitors. I think honda has been living off the name recognition and all the rave reviews.
> 
> The 32" simplicity kept breaking down and was too heavy for deep snow so I ditched it. I am sorry to shatter all the other honda owners perception of these units. I know it's not easy to hear. Electric chute controls, and reliability aside, I if you love your 32" honda and don't need their awesome tracks, imagine being done 35% faster and spending 30% less less money. It's a reality with the other machines.
> 
> There is another storm tonight. 10" or so. I want to love this $3499 plus tax machine but with its clear physical specifications, and performance bottle neck, I don't see how it could perform any better. If they come out with a 14" impeller and a bigger engine, I am sold.


I think you should get rid of the Honda and upgrade to a new blower.... ANY snowblower that has a 14 inch impeller. I'm sure there are plenty of forum members that would be willing to buy your faulty Honda at a reasonable discount.


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## TomB985

That's interesting. Just went on Youtube, searched for "Honda Snowblower" and this was one of the first to come up:






That thing is chomping through deep snow far better than any I've seen before. And it's the 1132, which is the same as the 1332 but with a slightly smaller engine.


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## FairfieldCT

You know, I sincerely feel bad you are unhappy with your machine. You paid a lot of money and for that much cash you should be happy. I don't agree with your ideas on a design flaw, but in your own mind the design is sub par and it is causing you very real distress. Joking aside, why not ask your dealer to take it back? Tell him you are simply not happy and a $3500 blower should last like 20 years. Thats a long time to be unhappy. If he says no, talk to Honda directly. I'm sure they would take it back. I ALWAYS make large purchases like these on American Express. They always protect you.

I can sympathize with you because as you may or may not know I started this season with an Ariens hydro pro-32 (with a 14 inch impeller and that big motor). Buddy I HATED it in my own driveway.... had a few sleepless nights and then called my dealer and he took it back... no hassle at all. Now I have the Honda 928 and I love it. 

The bottom line is YOU need to like what you bought. If you are sincerely not happy, make the phone call and return the machine. The dealer won't take the hit.... Honda will. They will just sell it to a landscaper that is removing snow professionally.. ie, a guy who doesnt care that you used it for a few storms.

PM me if you choose.


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## Kiss4aFrog

Hkellogg said:


> Everything has a 12" impelleer from what I've seen on all newer machines , the only blower with a 8x14inch impeller that I saw was an old craftsman drift breaker and that thing was kind of a beast


I went out and measured the impeller. The housing may be 8" deep but the blade of the impeller is a bit over 5-1/4. Still pretty big but the housing isn't throwing the snow the blade is so if you're going to do apples to apples might want to post the blades width rather than the housing.


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## tonysak

TomB985 said:


> That's interesting. Just went on Youtube, searched for "Honda Snowblower" and this was one of the first to come up:
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SqEXYJIRhIc
> 
> That thing is chomping through deep snow far better than any I've seen before. And it's the 1132, which is the same as the 1332 but with a slightly smaller engine.


60% full bucket see how fast he is moving? Look at his legs...


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## tonysak

FairfieldCT said:


> You know, I sincerely feel bad you are unhappy with your machine. You paid a lot of money and for that much cash you should be happy. I don't agree with your ideas on a design flaw, but in your own mind the design is sub par and it is causing you very real distress. Joking aside, why not ask your dealer to take it back? Tell him you are simply not happy and a $3500 blower should last like 20 years. Thats a long time to be unhappy. If he says no, talk to Honda directly. I'm sure they would take it back. I ALWAYS make large purchases like these on American Express. They always protect you.
> 
> I can sympathize with you because as you may or may not know I started this season with an Ariens hydro pro-32 (with a 14 inch impeller and that big motor). Buddy I HATED it in my own driveway.... had a few sleepless nights and then called my dealer and he took it back... no hassle at all. Now I have the Honda 928 and I love it.
> 
> The bottom line is YOU need to like what you bought. If you are sincerely not happy, make the phone call and return the machine. The dealer won't take the hit.... Honda will. They will just sell it to a landscaper that is removing snow professionally.. ie, a guy who doesnt care that you used it for a few storms.
> 
> PM me if you choose.


Yes I am familiar with your plight, I took your feedback on absolutely loving the ariens then not so much and returning. That's one of the reasons I didn't buy an auto turn unit. So I posted this thread on my actual experience with the 1332, to give people considering this unit my feedback. Nothing more. 

I have already said there are not a lot of options for tracked units. You do not own this unit, you own a very different size model. I am also a retailer I know about charge backs, this is not a charge back situation by any means. That word should only be used in case of a shady dealer and nothing more. There are a lot of customers who abuse charge backs and the small business always absorbs the charges, so please be fair with charge back use in general. 

I have already said the dealer would take it back, he is great. I am choosing to keep it as to not put the dealer out and not loose the 100 bucks or so. I had him special order it, and again there is really no other choice in units. I could sell it easily myself too. I don't even care about the money, people buying in this price range want it to work as it should. I am fully aware of what my options are. There is no need for sympathy, Its just a machine. This isn't a cry for help nor am I stuck with it by any means. I'm just posting feedback after actual use. Thank you for your concern.


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## TomB985

tonysak said:


> 60% full bucket see how fast he is moving? Look at his legs...


Yeah, I see how fast he's going. With that much snow you think that's slow? 

I've only had two snowblowers in my life. The first was a 30" Troy-Bilt that was unable to efficiently move large amounts of snow, and my current HS624. That video shows him moving faster through ~16" of snow than either my current or my previous blower would be capable of. 

I've never had a really high-end blower though, so perhaps the Ariens could move quite a bit faster?


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## Kiss4aFrog

scipper77 said:


> Two deficiencies jump out at me instantly. Skid pad/wheel is crooked and the scraper bar is not full width. Its a sickness but I can't help it.
> 
> I'd love one of those machine by the way. Not that I need a third.


I loved mine enough to pick up a second. 

The wheels being crooked are likely from lack of maintenance and letting them get loose in the adjustment hole and then grinding off the threads while operating it loose to where you can't tighten them down properly. Also damages the hole in the auger housing. The bolts are no longer available but replacements can be found. Just need to use a good quality locking nut. I try to replace most hardware with stainless steel when I can. 

Don't know about the scraper bar but I'm guessing the correct one does go all the way across. Now that I've taken photos, maybe not. Might be because the ends of the auger housing are bolted on and there is a ridge that the scraper fits between.
When I'm able to tip it on it's auger I'll get under there and see.

I'm guessing almost everyone wishes the Honda came with a 14" impeller but it's still a well built machine that will give years of excellent service. Some might be a little unhappy at it's speed in deeper snow but (IMHO) I'd love to have one in my garage.


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## HJames

tonysak said:


> Respectively, I think you are missing my point. All I am saying is all the raving about honda being the best isn't completely true. When using the 32" honda and the 32" simplicity pro, at the same speed I could go considerably faster clearing snow cleanly with with the simplicity. I am just talking walking, not running, nothing crazy, my driveway has a hill. The simplicity Went thru a greater volume of snow faster. I wanted to post this info as if I had it a head of time I would have given the hydro pro track more consideration.
> 
> I had the 32" simplicity for a year so I got plenty of time with it and how much it could process at what speed. The 1332 has spillage so I need to go slower or do extra runs as I already mentioned. If you kept your ariens longer and had no drive issues to distract you maybe you would have noticed a similar observation. Maybe not as the 28" seems to not has this problem or you would have mentioned it.
> 
> Also I think everyone knows you are hard core on wheels. Personally speaking I would never buy wheels again on a larger machine. I work far less with this honda tracks. I think it is a pleasure to drive, to each their own. The spillage was a little more of a WTF honda as their are supposedly the best blower to get, certainly the most expensive.
> 
> *I think we beat the horse pretty good here*.


 And now that the horse is good and bloody. I applaud the fact that you came here and gave an honest review of the 1332, it is after all the reason to have a review section. Having read through the entire thread it seems as though you have explained yourself and the 1332 very clearly and quite extensively on multiple occasions, both for the things that you like and the 1 thing that you don't like, which happens to be a very important to you. Sometimes people have a hard time hearing opinions that they can't understand.


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## sr71

As I commented a few times now....my 1132 is at least 10 years old …no spillage...full buckets....wet or dry stuff...starts 1-2 pulls... no rusting….no issues ever....I'd put it up against any machine in any amount of snow. I bought it for 3 reasons….
#1 (Honda engine) – they always start
#2 Hydro Transmission – easy operation 
#3 Track drive – required for sloped driveway

I am not saying there are not comparable machines but I just can’t imagine any machine that is substantially better - just keeping this thread honest. 

Tony - I know you said you had a dealer look at it when it arrived…. Have them look at it again… you are experiencing issues that I have never experienced….and I believe your 1332 has a little more HP and Torque 

To those who say they can cut through 12+ inches of moderately dense snow at full speed…I like to see video evidence of that. 

For the record my Honda will cut through 12 inches of light stuff with no trouble but if it is “snowball making density” forget it… you have to slow it down to match conditions.


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## tonysak

sr71 said:


> For the record my Honda will cut through 12 inches of light stuff with no trouble but if it is “snowball making density” forget it… you have to slow it down to match conditions.


Thank you for coming out of the closet, a little. I knew I couldn't be alone here. See if you can get a dealer to let you use a simplicity pro 32"420cc, or I am assuming an ariens 32" 420 cc too (look past turning issues if any pop up). There is a whole new world out there. Like I said, I think it's about a 30% performance increase in snow removal volume which allows you to go faster than a half step every second. It's aggressive. Honda clearly gives up volume for distance, I'm just not sure how yet. 

On another note, I read your posts as you try to help other people with issues on here . You are a good guy and a value to the forum.


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## johnd

I also live in the Boston area and just purchased the 1332 in November. I have been extremely impressed with processing capability and distance. In 9 inches of powdery snow from the last storm I was able to move through with a full 32 inch bite at maybe about 70% speed which I think is reasonably fast. You can hear the motor drop some in RPM but the distance and volume are both excellent. Even when I hit the really heavy stuff like 18 inches of wet snow the plow leaves at the end of my driveway this beast is able to churn through still throwing 50+ feet albeit at slower speed. Sounds like you should have the dealer take a look at yours to make sure it is adjusted properly.


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## JRHAWK9

sr71 said:


> I'd put it up against any machine in any amount of snow.




Really? 

How close are you to WI?


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## FairfieldCT

JRHAWK9 said:


> Really?
> 
> How close are you to WI?


So your Ariens is going to move the snow from here to 6 feet over there? The guy you're answering owns a HONDA. He expects you to throw the snow deep into the neighbors yard, lol.

I see all different Ariens premium models working around town all winter and I just have to laugh.


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## 94EG8

I can't comment on the 1132 or 1332 as I haven't used one, but I do own a 928 and one of things that really impressed me about it was the _lack of spillage_. It replaced a couple of old late '80s Yard-Man machines, which IIRC did have 14" impellers, one was a 28" and one was a 33" You could never take more than about a half a cut with either. The Honda on the other hand will take a full bucket width. I've never seen anything take snow like what was shown in that last video with any kind of speed though.


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## JRHAWK9

FairfieldCT said:


> So your Ariens is going to move the snow from here to 6 feet over there? The guy you're answering owns a HONDA. He expects you to throw the snow deep into the neighbors yard, lol.
> 
> I see all different Ariens premium models working around town all winter and I just have to laugh.


 not even worth a response.


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## JRHAWK9

I wish I had a video of this, but they say pictures are worth a thousand words and judging by these picture he's processing a buttload of snow (~22" deep and 36" wide). Here's what the OP was looking to get with his Honda but didn't. Ability to move/process large quantities of snow and throw it a good distance. Those of us who know better have a single stage blower for those pesky small snow events instead of trying to use a sledge hammer to pound a finishing nail and then complaining when it doesn't do the job correctly....lol.


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## FairfieldCT

JRHAWK9 said:


> I wish I had a video of this, but they say pictures are worth a thousand words and judging by these picture he's processing a buttload of snow (~22" deep and 36" wide). Here's what the OP was looking to get with his Honda but didn't. Ability to move/process large quantities of snow and throw it a good distance. Those of us who know better have a single stage blower for those pesky small snow events instead of trying to use a sledge hammer to pound a finishing nail and then complaining when it doesn't do the job correctly....lol.


Obviously light powder (look at the snow blowing around into the air)... The kind of snow an old grandmother can throw with a shovel. It's a well documented fact... Ariens wilt in heavy wet snow.


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## JRHAWK9

FairfieldCT said:


> Obviously light powder (look at the snow blowing around into the air)... The kind of snow an old grandmother can throw with a shovel. It's a well documented fact... Ariens wilt in heavy wet snow.


fact....lol  Show me a video or photo of a Honda discharging that much volume of snow, regardless of moisture level. I'm still searching. All of what I've found and what the OP experienced are they are not physically capable. I've found plenty of videos showing them going through deep snow, but at a snails pace. This does nothing for me. It's the combination of deep snow AND decent walking pace which equates to high volumes of snow being processed. 

I must have a one in a million Ariens then. Just yesterday I removed a bunch of snowy slush which slid off of our metal garage roof because of the 40°+ temps on a sunny day. It was approximately 12" deep, 30' long and 8' wide. It was so heavy I could not even push a shovel width with a snow pusher. The bottom layer was pure slush due to the asphalt driveway being warm from the sun beating on it . I blew ALL of it in the fastest speed and it blew it a good 30'+ without even coming close to overloading the bucket. When I was done I literally had water dripping off the deflector and augers. I can almost guaranty the OP's Honda would have had to approach this situation at a slower speed therefore taking him LONGER to accomplish what I did in a very short time. 

The fact here is Honda uses a smaller impeller turning very fast speeds to throw smaller volumes of snow far. If given the choice between a garden hose throwing water 60' vs a 4" diameter fire hose throwing water 50', which one would you choose for putting a fire out? I know what the fire department uses. 

Having said that, if you happen to be more impressed with throwing distance vs throwing volume, then that's where personal preference comes to play and one can't argue that. But it's a FACT the more VOLUME a blower can process the faster the job will get done.


----------



## ken53

JRHAWK9 said:


> fact....lol  Show me a video or photo of a Honda discharging that much volume of snow, regardless of moisture level. I'm still searching. All of what I've found and what the OP experienced are they are not physically capable. I've found plenty of videos showing them going through deep snow, but at a snails pace. This does nothing for me. It's the combination of deep snow AND decent walking pace which equates to high volumes of snow being processed.
> 
> I must have a one in a million Ariens then. Just yesterday I removed a bunch of snowy slush which slid off of our metal garage roof because of the 40°+ temps on a sunny day. It was approximately 12" deep, 30' long and 8' wide. It was so heavy I could not even push a shovel width with a snow pusher. The bottom layer was pure slush due to the asphalt driveway being warm from the sun beating on it . I blew ALL of it in the fastest speed and it blew it a good 30'+ without even coming close to overloading the bucket. When I was done I literally had water dripping off the deflector and augers. I can almost guaranty the OP's Honda would have had to approach this situation at a slower speed therefore taking him LONGER to accomplish what I did in a very short time.
> 
> The fact here is Honda uses a smaller impeller turning very fast speeds to throw smaller volumes of snow far. If given the choice between a garden hose throwing water 60' vs a 4" diameter fire hose throwing water 50', which one would you choose for putting a fire out? I know what the fire department uses.
> 
> Having said that, if you happen to be more impressed with throwing distance vs throwing volume, then that's where personal preference comes to play and one can't argue that. But it's a FACT the more VOLUME a blower can process the faster the job will get done.


Hi JR

Have you done any research on the three blade impeller that Ariens changed to from the four blade.. Their testing must have shown some advantage. FWIW my new three blade throws more then my 1992 four blade. I am guessing something to do with size of the outlet hole or rpms vs time to get snow into the impeller. I don't know but just asking.

Ken


----------



## Kiss4aFrog

Ok then, just from reading and no actual evidence it might be that three will get the job done and four blades costs more to manufacture, more material, more welding but can process more snow same RPM. I think of it as a "pump".

Going to three may not have been for better performance, might just be to save money and it's "good enough".

I don't know, just tossing it out there since we are ONLY at ten pages ripping on the Honda and want to toss some doubt on the Ariens too. 

If I had the cash I wouldn't mind having either in my garage. Then I could work on my "classics" for fun instead of survival !!


----------



## HJames

Fact: Ariens uses 12" impellers on Compact and Snow Tech Models only
All other Ariens Models of all bucket sizes are fitted with 14" impellers.

This pretty much tells you how much volume Ariens feels a 12" impeller can handle. The largest bucket with a 12" impeller is a 28" Snow Tech model.

Honda doesn't see fit to tell its customers the size of the impeller on its spec sheets, preferring to list snow removal volume in tons per hour.
HS1332TA unit is listed to throw 65 tons per hour which sounds impressive until you see that HS520A a single stage unit moves 55 tons per hour.

So that extra 10 tons per hour only cost $2,490


----------



## snow80

HJames said:


> Fact: Ariens uses 12" impellers on Compact and Snow Tech Models only
> All other Ariens Models of all bucket sizes are fitted with 14" impellers.
> This pretty much tells you how much volume Ariens feels a 12" impeller can handle. The largest bucket with a 12" impeller is a 28" Snow Tech model.


Why do you focus on the diameter of the impeller, which just tells us the area of the impeller opening? You're missing two other critical factors - the depth of the impeller chamber and the impeller RPM. The theoretical maximum volume of snow that an impeller can move per minute is the volume of the impeller chamber times the RPM the impeller is driven. The actual volume of snow moved per minute will be less than that theoretical maximum.

I have no idea how the Honda compares to an Ariens, but I certainly wouldn't make a buying decision based on the area (diameter) of the impeller opening. Speeding up the impeller, which moves the snow out of the impeller chamber faster or designing the bucket and auger to deliver snow faster through the impeller opening into a deeper chamber will both affect the volume or weight of snow moved. The three factors of opening size, chamber volume/auger deliver design and impeller rotary speed are all just design choices. All I care about is how well the designer made his design choices to get the snow moved.

What really matters to us is how much snow is getting moved, and secondarily, how far we can throw it (since we need to move it far enough to get it out of the way).

Honda's specification of tons of snow moved per hour seems like the right way to compare blowers on the first factor, and distance thrown seems like the right way to compare the second factor.


----------



## JRHAWK9

snow80 said:


> Why do you focus on the diameter of the impeller, which just tells us the area of the impeller opening? You're missing two other critical factors - the depth of the impeller chamber and the impeller RPM. The theoretical maximum volume of snow that an impeller can move per minute is the volume of the impeller chamber times the RPM the impeller is driven. The actual volume of snow moved per minute will be less than that theoretical maximum.


I agree...it seems almost all blowers these days have near the same depth of impeller housings though. Some of the older blowers had some really deep housings.



snow80 said:


> I have no idea how the Honda compares to an Ariens, but I certainly wouldn't make a buying decision based on the area (diameter) of the impeller opening. Speeding up the impeller, which moves the snow out of the impeller chamber faster or designing the bucket and auger to deliver snow faster through the impeller opening into a deeper chamber will both affect the volume or weight of snow moved. The three factors of opening size, chamber volume/auger deliver design and impeller rotary speed are all just design choices. All I care about is how well the designer made his design choices to get the snow moved.


Keep in mind the faster you spin the impeller the more your torque multiplier goes down and the less load the motor will be able to handle. You could gear it 1:1 and have an impeller speed of ~3,600 rpm's for crazy throwing distance, but then the torque seen by the impeller is only what the motor is rated at. This would cause the motor to bog incredibly easy. 

Also keep in mind it's the impeller TIP SPEED which mostly determines the throwing distance of the snow (ignoring chute shape, dia, etc). A 14" impeller has ~17% more tip speed then that of a 12" impeller, given the same impeller RPM. This allows you to have 17% more torque seen at the impeller for a 14" vs 12" impeller keeping the impeller tip speed (therefore similar throwing distance) the same between the two impellers.



snow80 said:


> What really matters to us is how much snow is getting moved, and secondarily, how far we can throw it (since we need to move it far enough to get it out of the way).


I agree....



snow80 said:


> Honda's specification of tons of snow moved per hour seems like the right way to compare blowers on the first factor, and distance thrown seems like the right way to compare the second factor.


I agree....


----------



## HJames

snow80 said:


> Why do you focus on the diameter of the impeller, which just tells us the area of the impeller opening? *You're missing two other critical factors - the depth of the impeller chamber and the impeller RPM. The theoretical maximum volume of snow that an impeller can move per minute is the volume of the impeller chamber times the RPM the impeller is driven. The actual volume of snow moved per minute will be less than that theoretical maximum.
> *
> I have no idea how the Honda compares to an Ariens, but I certainly wouldn't make a buying decision based on the area (diameter) of the impeller opening. *Speeding up the impeller, which moves the snow out of the impeller chamber faster or designing the bucket and auger to deliver snow faster through the impeller opening into a deeper chamber will both affect the volume or weight of snow moved. The three factors of opening size, chamber volume/auger deliver design and impeller rotary speed are all just design choices. All I care about is how well the designer made his design choices to get the snow moved.
> *
> What really matters to us is how much snow is getting moved, and secondarily, how far we can throw it (since we need to move it far enough to get it out of the way).
> 
> Honda's specification of tons of snow moved per hour seems like the right way to compare blowers on the first factor, and distance thrown seems like the right way to compare the second factor.


 
Covered in post #16 thru #18 in this thread.

Because Honda decided to use the smaller impeller coupled with lower engine rpm it doesn't move as much snow as quickly as similar units in its class.

So you're saying it doesn't bother you that for $2490 more you only get a 15% increase in the volume of snow moved????


----------



## FairfieldCT

JRHAWK9 said:


> fact....lol  Show me a video or photo of a Honda discharging that much volume of snow, regardless of moisture level. I'm still searching. All of what I've found and what the OP experienced are they are not physically capable. I've found plenty of videos showing them going through deep snow, but at a snails pace. This does nothing for me. It's the combination of deep snow AND decent walking pace which equates to high volumes of snow being processed.
> 
> I must have a one in a million Ariens then. Just yesterday I removed a bunch of snowy slush which slid off of our metal garage roof because of the 40°+ temps on a sunny day. It was approximately 12" deep, 30' long and 8' wide. It was so heavy I could not even push a shovel width with a snow pusher. The bottom layer was pure slush due to the asphalt driveway being warm from the sun beating on it . I blew ALL of it in the fastest speed and it blew it a good 30'+ without even coming close to overloading the bucket. When I was done I literally had water dripping off the deflector and augers. I can almost guaranty the OP's Honda would have had to approach this situation at a slower speed therefore taking him LONGER to accomplish what I did in a very short time.
> 
> The fact here is Honda uses a smaller impeller turning very fast speeds to throw smaller volumes of snow far. If given the choice between a garden hose throwing water 60' vs a 4" diameter fire hose throwing water 50', which one would you choose for putting a fire out? I know what the fire department uses.
> 
> Having said that, if you happen to be more impressed with throwing distance vs throwing volume, then that's where personal preference comes to play and one can't argue that. But it's a FACT the more VOLUME a blower can process the faster the job will get done.


I'm sorry, lol, I'm having so much fun with this post. I just knew my last post would have you writing pages! The bottom line is if a 14 inch impeller means the WORLD to you... don't buy a machine with a 12 inch impeller... I don't care if its red, orange, or purple! This thread is beat bloody red and the horse is unrecognizable. it was a good one though, cause it got everyone chiming in.

Did I mention I think HONDA makes the best snowblowers?


----------



## JRHAWK9

FairfieldCT said:


> I'm sorry, lol, I'm having so much fun with this post. I just knew my last post would have you writing pages! The bottom line is if a 14 inch impeller means the WORLD to you... don't buy a machine with a 12 inch impeller... I don't care if its red, orange, or purple! This thread is beat bloody red and the horse is unrecognizable. it was a good one though, cause it got everyone chiming in.
> 
> Did I mention I think HONDA makes the best snowblowers?


As am I. 

It's not the 14" impeller, it's the performance. 

Never argued against Honda being "the best"....as they do make a darn good blower...it's just not the best performing as the OP pointed out.


----------



## JRHAWK9

ken53 said:


> Hi JR
> 
> Have you done any research on the three blade impeller that Ariens changed to from the four blade.. Their testing must have shown some advantage. FWIW my new three blade throws more then my 1992 four blade. I am guessing something to do with size of the outlet hole or rpms vs time to get snow into the impeller. I don't know but just asking.
> 
> Ken


Hi Ken,
No, I haven't. Like Kiss4aFrog mentioned, it may just be a cost savings decision made by the bean counters. Or with the increased impeller speeds these newer blowers have it may be the case of the 3 bladed ones having a slight performance benefit due to the larger spacing like you mentioned.


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## JRHAWK9

It seems -DAVIDNJ- and I are on the same page.....


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## ken53

JRHAWK9 said:


> It seems -DAVIDNJ- and I are on the same page.....


 Good Link JR. Thanks for posting it.


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## johnd

Is Honda the only manufacturer willing to state a "Tons Per Hour" rating? If the 1332 will move 65 tons per hour, what will a similarly equipped Ariens do? Seems if anyone could do same or significantly better they would advertise it


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## tonysak

johnd said:


> Is Honda the only manufacturer willing to state a "Tons Per Hour" rating? If the 1332 will move 65 tons per hour, what will a similarly equipped Ariens do? Seems if anyone could do same or significantly better they would advertise it


Honda stating tons per hour is a gimmick as its completely relative form of measure. Snow weight and density can vary greatly. There is no standard for this, nor do I think the manufactures would ever get together to create a standard. 65 tons per hr seems like a lot, its not.


----------



## sr71

This is fun......Still waiting for that video of an Ariens going full speed – surely one of the dealers on this thread can cook something up. 

After that we can move on to engine reliability


----------



## johnd

tonysak said:


> Honda stating tons per hour is a gimmick as its completely relative form of measure. Snow weight and density can vary greatly. There is no standard for this, nor do I think the manufactures would ever get together to create a standard. 65 tons per hr seems like a lot, its not.


Gimmick or no gimmick these two manufacturers are head on competitors in the high end space and if Ariens could boast a better spec like 70 Tons per hour I'm guessing they would. From what I see and all I know the two machines are very very very good. Maybe Honda has slightly better velocity and maybe Ariens has slightly better throughput. At the end of the day....so what? Buy your preferred brand that meets your balanced need (whatever that slight edge may be) and be happy with it.


----------



## JRHAWK9

tonysak said:


> Honda stating tons per hour is a gimmick as its completely relative form of measure. Snow weight and density can vary greatly. There is no standard for this, nor do I think the manufactures would ever get together to create a standard. 65 tons per hr seems like a lot, its not.


I agree....

I just received an email notification of the post you replied to and was just logging in to reply with exactly what you did.


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## ken53

When comparing between brands, tons per hour is not a relevant way to judge. This is because there has been no standard set. So it could be considered a gimmick to add another bullet point. After all Honda is missing the impeller bullet point. So they can use the extra one.

That being said...
I'll go out on a limb here and defend Honda. Could it be that Honda is using it as a unit of measure for comparison within their own line up and not implying it against other brands. Or am I being nieve on this one?

Ken


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## JRHAWK9

Density of snow.......

http://www.sciencelearn.org.nz/Contexts/Icy-Ecosystems/Looking-closer/Snow-and-ice-density

Lets have some fun with numbers.

So, using the above densities, that 65 ton/hr rating equates to moving anywhere from 108 CY of wet snow to 1,710 CY of fresh powder in an hour.

Assuming a constant impeller speed of 1,400rpms (which is not the case). This means the impeller is processing anywhere from 60 in^3 to 930 in^3 per revolution depending on the snow type. For reference, the volume of a 12" dia x4" deep impeller housing is 452 in^3. 

yeah, seems like a accurate specification to me.....lol


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## MnJim

Seems like rating by ton is better then cubic yard.

Would it bee safe to assume a ton weighs 2000lbs regardless who weighs it?


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## HJames

IMO cubic feet is the easiest relatable measurement. Snowfall is measured in inches and if I look at a 100' by 50' driveway after a 6" snowfall, I can assume I need to clear 2500 cubic feet of snow. Given a cubic feet rating based on mid range performance, I could estimate how long it would take based on snow density. The measurement in tons gives me no useable information to gage my needs or judge the blowers performance. I agree that Honda uses it as a bullet point measurement, but I'm not sure how it serves as a favorable comparison amongst their own machines as there is no great increase in performance between models. I just can't see how 15% more throwing capacity at a 400% price premium can be a favorable comparison for Honda.


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## JRHAWK9

sr71 said:


> surely one of the dealers on this thread can cook something up.
> 
> After that we can move on to engine reliability


yeah, if it's a dealer of both Honda and Ariens they are not going to want to put something on the web which would make either brand look "bad" in comparison. They would probably lose their license to sell that brand if they did something like that.


Honda probably makes the best small engine around (or at least used to)....


----------



## JRHAWK9

MnJim said:


> Seems like rating by ton is better then cubic yard.
> 
> Would it bee safe to assume a ton weighs 2000lbs regardless who weighs it?


A ton weighs a ton no matter what, but a cubic yard of snow, according to the varying density of snow shown at that link, can weigh anywhere from 76lbs to 1,200lbs.


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## JRHAWK9

HJames said:


> I just can't see how 15% more throwing capacity at a 400% price premium can be a favorable comparison for Honda.


I think you mean throwing distance, as the OP own experience is the Honda's have LESS capacity to throw snow. In other words, they throw less snow but throw it farther due to the rather fast impeller speed.


----------



## Kiss4aFrog

MnJim said:


> Seems like rating by ton is better then cubic yard.
> 
> Would it bee safe to assume a ton weighs 2000lbs regardless who weighs it?


_*Jrhawk9 : A ton weighs a ton no matter what, but a cubic yard of snow, according to the varying density of snow shown at that link, can weigh anywhere from 76lbs to 1,200lbs. *_

Well, not really. Because the US is still *** backwards compared to the rest of the world and their ton is 2000 lbs but the rest of the world using metric, a ton is 2,205 lbs so even with "ton" you need to make sure it's the *same ton*. With the time measurement of tons per hour we are lucky as an hour is an hour everywhere, thank goodness  (well, except on StarTrack).

This just keeps getting better doesn't it ????
I'd still be VERY happy to have a new Honda in my garage no matter how may metric or American tons it processes.


----------



## JRHAWK9

Kiss4aFrog said:


> _*Jrhawk9 : A ton weighs a ton no matter what, but a cubic yard of snow, according to the varying density of snow shown at that link, can weigh anywhere from 76lbs to 1,200lbs. *_
> 
> Well, not really. Because the US is still *** backwards compared to the rest of the world and their ton is 2000 lbs but the rest of the world using metric, a ton is 2,205 lbs so even with "ton" you need to make sure it's the *same ton*. With the time measurement of tons per hour we are lucky as an hour is an hour everywhere, thank goodness  (well, except on StarTrack).
> 
> This just keeps getting better doesn't it ????
> I'd still be VERY happy to have a new Honda in my garage no matter how may metric or American tons it processes.


very true, but if your talking tons in the US it's assumed US tons....otherwise I would have stated metric tons


----------



## HJames

JRHAWK9 said:


> I think you mean throwing distance, as the OP own experience is the Honda's have LESS capacity to throw snow. In other words, they throw less snow but throw it farther due to the rather fast impeller speed.


I was actually making a reference to an earlier post where I compared the OP's 1332 at 65 tons per hour to the HS520A that will clear 55 tons per hour.


----------



## Kiss4aFrog

That works for Ariens as they are based in Wisconsin. But Honda isn't an American company, so do I assume they measured it at "home" or here 

It's likely they all measure in "American" tons simply because the number would be bigger for marketing.

You have to be careful about those assumptions. Like knowing how far you can go before you get to the impeller !!


----------



## MnJim

Kiss4aFrog said:


> _*Jrhawk9 : A ton weighs a ton no matter what, but a cubic yard of snow, according to the varying density of snow shown at that link, can weigh anywhere from 76lbs to 1,200lbs. *_
> 
> Well, not really. Because the US is still *** backwards compared to the rest of the world and their ton is 2000 lbs but the rest of the world using metric, a ton is 2,205 lbs so even with "ton" you need to make sure it's the *same ton*. With the time measurement of tons per hour we are lucky as an hour is an hour everywhere, thank goodness  (well, except on StarTrack).
> 
> This just keeps getting better doesn't it ????
> I'd still be VERY happy to have a new Honda in my garage no matter how may metric or American tons it processes.


I say bullits the rest of the world that's *** backwards.
I live in the USA and a ton weighs 2000lbs and my snowblower is made by cheese heads


----------



## JRHAWK9

Kiss4aFrog said:


> That works for Ariens as they are based in Wisconsin. But Honda isn't an American company, so do I assume they measured it at "home" or here
> 
> It's likely they all measure in "American" tons simply because the number would be bigger for marketing.
> 
> You have to be careful about those assumptions. Like knowing how far you can go before you get to the impeller !!



In this case, if I'm wrong nobody loses fingers though


----------



## snow80

HJames said:


> So you're saying it doesn't bother you that for $2490 more you only get a 15% increase in the volume of snow moved????


I wasn't disagreeing with your concern over cost versus snow removal rate. I was just pointing out that the actual snow removal rate is what's important when considering that factor, not just the diameter of the impeller opening.

I bought a good condition, used, HS80 for 1/5 the price differential above, (which I'm incredibly happy with) so I'm not likely to buy either of those models, no matter how good they are.  I happened to be reviewing the specs recently on my HS80, and it claims to only throw 38 tons an hour with its 8 hp engine. That meets my needs. If I did consider buying one of those models, however, I'd look at many different factors, not just removal rate, and certainly not just the impeller opening diameter.

When I modified the impeller blades on my HS80 with rubber wipers, as suggested by helpful people here, it became obvious that the design of the impeller, including the clearance to the housing and the shape of the blades, is critical to determining how much and how far/fast snow gets thrown.

For a homeowner who only clears one driveway per snowfall, my prime concern isn't saving a few minutes per use. I care about getting a machine that lasts decades (since the HS80 was built in the 1980's, that's kind of important) and starts reliably. Other factors, like maneuverability, how well it powers through deep compressed snowpack, ease of repair, ease of pointing the chute while moving, speed control, ruggedness, how well it chews through ice layers and similar issues tend to be higher factors on my list than maximum rate of snow removal.


----------



## superedge88

I find this thread quite interesting, it's become a Honda vs Ariens thread. 

*Below is my attempt at a non biased response to some of what has been said:*
When most of us spend good money on a snowblower we feel obligated (consciously or subconsciously) to defend "our" brand when we feel someone is "dogging" it. On either side I have read responses that stink of obvious koolaid drinking - meaning that there are many responses on this thread that are veiled as "calling a spade a spade" when in reality it is twisting some truth to make ones "brand" look to be the magical answer to all snow blowing needs.
*
The following is my biased opinion. take it for what it is:*
I think that in reality the two different brands _work_ almost identically. Even when you look at the video that Ariens put together titled "Ariens track machine vs competitor" on youtube. There is no point during the video that the ariens is going at a fast pace, even when it's only going through about 10 inches, the ariens guy is walking VERY slowly. Don't you think that if the Ariens had the ability to go faster then they would have, why not make the Honda look sad instead of slightly slower? So to me any claims that you can go through a mountain of snow in the fastest gear is ridiculous, put up a video of it happening with a Honda trying to do the same and failing. If an Ariens snowblower was meant to go through all amounts of snow, then the manufacturer would have given you 2 gears and reverse. 

Honda is a world wide snowblower manufacturer who's main competition is Yamaha. Both Yamaha and Honda have the same size impellers because they have found that these work best for them. They use a hydrostatic drive because it is more time efficient (no stopping to disengage wheel drive to switch from forward to reverse and visa versa) and less fatiguing when clearing out areas that require a lot of forward and reversing. Both Honda and Yamaha use engines that are tried and true, no mystery to them at all. You know that you're getting an amazing engine from a company that makes AND engineers their own engine. 

After doing some honest research on snowblowers I picked Honda for the above reasons. When I buy something I am going to pick the option that has less foggy mystery to it any time every time. Am I disappointed in how an Ariens works? *NO* But I won't buy a snowblower with questions about its engine. Will an ariens engine last forever? Maybe, depending on which model you are looking at, who engineered that particular engine, who is making it for that model and year, and if good luck shines upon you. Will an Ariens throw as much or a little more snow than a Honda? Maybe, but questions about engine reliability throws any small advantage right out the window when doing a comparison. I simply won't pay high dollar for "MAYBE".

If Ariens started putting Honda engines on their snowblowers along with a Honda type hydrostatic drive I would have some serious comparisons to do. 
These are just my personal requirements when I was looking for an awesome snowblower, if my opinions make you sad, angry or frustrated then take a deep breath, count to ten, and realize... you've been drinking your "brand's" Koolaid, and that's ok, just don't try to make me drink it, I've already found the Koolaid that tastes the best to me and it's made by Honda.


----------



## tonysak

This thread was started to voice my actual Back to Back, head to head, experience between a brand new 32" 420cc Simplicity Pro and my new HS1332. I have used the HS1332 many times now and my observations and options between the 2 have not changed. 

Its funny to see the honda guys come on here and say their 1132 or 1332 is awesome and think I am crazy. I am sure it is awesome, but again, this post is about the back to back differences I experienced first hand between the simplicity and the hs1332. If people could go out and try the simplicity or what I am assuming the 32" Ariens Pro too (same specs plus a larger impeller), you will notice the same thing. 

The hs1332 again, has an awesome transmission, awesome traction and is light/well balanced. I couldn't get it to travel over deep snow very well, it tended to sink unevenly, causing me to have to lift and twist it around. Much like in the Ariens track to Honda comparison. 

The simplicity used thicker gauge steel, was wheel based, uses a friction disc and unfortunately can move more snow than the hs1332. AGAIN, BACK TO BACK, HANDS ON TIME WITH THESE 2 UNITS. The simplicity orange is pretty bad ass too, however that is subjective. 

The honda Engine should last forever, however, I haven't had a brings engine fail either. In terms of the briggs engine being made in china, who cares, so isn't everything else, iphones, LCDs, you name it. I know honda is making some of their engines in china too. 

So this is food for thought for anybody considering these 2 units. I'm not brand bashing, just saying my actual, back to back experience between the 2 units. 

End transmission.


----------



## [email protected]

tonysak said:


> I know honda is making some of their engines in china too.


Yes, there are many Honda engines made in China; Honda has a number of plants there. Most are motorcycle or scooter. All of the 2-stange Honda snowblower engines are made at Honda Thailand, while all single-stage snowblowers and engines are made in Swepsonville, NC.

Currently, just a about 10 or so models of Honda Generators are actually mfg. in China. The rest of the line up is made in :

USA (mowers, small tillers, string trimmers, single-stage snow, GC/GCV engines) 
Japan (pumps, tillers, 2-stage snow, many generators)
Thailand (larger GX engines, smaller inverter-style generators).


----------



## JRHAWK9

superedge88 said:


> So to me any claims that you can go through a mountain of snow in the fastest gear is ridiculous, put up a video of it happening with a Honda trying to do the same and failing.


Don't really need a mountain of snow to do a good side by side comparison. Heck, I bet 6" is enough to get "video evidence" of what we are discussing in this thread . I'm open to such a comparison, I just need somebody with a comparable Honda willing to be as well. Next time we get a decent amount of snow and it's actually light out when I blow (hence the lights I put on as most of the time I blow after I get home from work) I will try to record blowing in the fastest gear. So far I have done it numerous times with up to 9" of snow (last year). See me blow 4.5" of snow at my normal pace using my -PATH PRO- to get an idea of what speeds I'm talking. It's not like it's warp speed or anything....lol

I can appreciate the qualities you look for in a blower and like I have said before, Honda does make a heck of a blower. One must understand though that all brands can't do everything the "best". Honda obviously made the conscious decision to outdistance the competition, which it pretty much does. However one must accept the fact that there may be other aspects of it's performance which may not be "the best". I think this is all the OP is trying to point out.....to get the "Honda fanboi's", per say, to accept that fact.

For me, I never considered Honda because I'm on the taller side and the handle bars and chute control are way too low for me to comfortably operate them. So I never got to the point of looking at their performance.


----------



## FairfieldCT

Omg!


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## m1234

I don't think any substantial conclusions can be made. Even with 128 posts and counting, I think we still only have 1 person who has actually used a Honda HS1332 and is disappointed with the deep snow performance. Most other negative comments just assume that all HS1332 operate this way and have significantly worse performance than competing Ariens and Simplicity models. 

I don't have an explanation of why the OP is experiencing such disappointment with his HS1332 deep snow performance. But to be fair, we haven't seen a video showing the problem, nor has there been supporting evidence showing that most other HS1332 perform poorly in deep snow. I haven't seen anything proving that the Honda is better than a competing Ariens or Simplicity, nor have I seen anything proving that an Ariens or Simplicity is better than the Honda. I've seen lots of assumptions and speculation. I don't think anything will change until we see a proud Honda HS1332 owner compete against a proud Simplicity/Ariens owner in controlled conditions, on video.


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## tonysak

So 1 year later no change in opinion. Since the bucket is only 20" high, i have been having snow go up and over the unit, causing the chute worm drive to freeze up.


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## JRHAWK9

I was just wondering how things were going with it. It's a shame, as they truly are a nice blower. They just need more blowing capacity. 

Check out the video below. It's a newer Ariens taking on a complete full bucket worth and doing it at a decent rate.


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## tonysak

JRHAWK9 said:


> I was just wondering how things were going with it. It's a shame, as they truly are a nice blower. They just need more blowing capacity.
> 
> Check out the video below. It's a newer Ariens taking on a complete full bucket worth and doing it at a decent rate.
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VMYru7Vl_Ks&feature=youtu.be


That looks like an ok speed. What size is your bucket engine? I'd prefer to run full tilt behind the blower. I am talking to Ariens right now, might get the 32" Hydropro Track. But I think i may be trading one evil for another.


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## Kiss4aFrog

You could always add drift breakers and fit a piece of metal between them, solid, mesh ?? Just something that knocks the deep stuff down and keeps it from coming over the bucket and freezing up the chute.

I understand you shouldn't need to but if it's causing a problem and you like the machine it might be worth a few bucks and some time to make a slight mod to it.

Something like :


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## JRHAWK9

tonysak said:


> That looks like an ok speed. What size is your bucket engine? I'd prefer to run full tilt behind the blower. I am talking to Ariens right now, might get the 32" Hydropro Track. But I think i may be trading one evil for another.



that isn't my video, it's just one someone posted here on the forum. It's a 2014 Ariens Deluxe 28.....so it has the 254cc Ariens motor and 21" intake height. 

Mine is a Pro 32 and has the 420cc Briggs motor and 23.5" intake, I believe.

I prefer to go full speed too, but I even think it's asking a lot for any consumer walk behind blower to have that ability with 21" of snow and a full 28" bucket width. That's a LOT of snow to move at 4mph!  Actually....24ft^3 per second at 4mph. Assuming a unit weight of snow at 10lbs/ft^3, that comes out to 430+ tons/hr.


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## tonysak

I do want to get a set of these. Hoping to find someone to make them for me.


I don't remember how to post videos...


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## JRHAWK9

tonysak said:


> I do want to get a set of these. Hoping to find someone to make them for me.


Do you think that will help though? It will help retain more snow, but it's not going to really help discharge it any faster, so if your intake still exceeds your output you will just be pushing that much more snow and then it will just spill over those sides.


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## tonysak

Goings slow I can kinda live with. The amount that spills out the sides requires 4 more passes on my driveway to clean up, or for me to break out a shovel. If I can solve that problem. I can live with it. The unit spills right in the path of the tires on both sides of the driveway, so I need to clean it up or else our cars wont make it up the hill.


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## JRHAWK9

I just used Honda marketing's 72 tons/hour rating on your blower and assumed a unit weight of snow to be the 10lbs/ft^3. I worked things backwards and for an intake size of 20"x32", to blow 72 tons in an hour you would be moving at ~0.6mph (0.9ft/sec). If the density decreases to 5lbs/ft^3, then your speed would double to 1.2mph in order to move 72 tons of snow. 

Do you have a pedestrian GPS?


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## JRHAWK9

tonysak said:


> Goings slow I can kinda live with. The amount that spills out the sides requires 4 more passes on my driveway to clean up, or for me to break out a shovel. If I can solve that problem. I can live with it. The unit spills right in the path of the tires on both sides of the driveway, so I need to clean it up or else our cars wont make it up the hill.



I see.....and now I also understand why you need a tracked machine having a steep incline.


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## tonysak

JRHAWK9 said:


> I see.....and now I also understand why you need a tracked machine having a steep incline.


I also love tanks.


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## Apple Guy

FairfieldCT said:


> I'm sorry, lol, I'm having so much fun with this post. I just knew my last post would have you writing pages! The bottom line is if a 14 inch impeller means the WORLD to you... don't buy a machine with a 12 inch impeller... I don't care if its red, orange, or purple! This thread is beat bloody red and the horse is unrecognizable. it was a good one though, cause it got everyone chiming in.
> 
> Did I mention I think HONDA makes the best snowblowers?



No, Yamaha makes the best snowblowers. Period.


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## wdb

Apple Guy said:


> No, Yamaha makes the best snowblowers. Period.


Uh oh, here we go. Wait a sec, my popcorn isn't finished popping.


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## JRHAWK9

wdb said:


> Uh oh, here we go. Wait a sec, my popcorn isn't finished popping.



lol.....that's only if you take the bait. 

I don't know what he's referring to as "best", but I do like the color blue over red, orange and yellow. So I guess in that regard I do consider them the "best".   However, judging by their apparent underwhelming -PERFORMANCE-, I would have to disagree.


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## Apple Guy

wdb said:


> Uh oh, here we go. Wait a sec, my popcorn isn't finished popping.



I sold a 22 year old Yamaha 828 that still had original belts on it and would through snow farther and would through more snow total then my 2011 HS928w. No comparison. The only think that was not as good was the Yamaha was a cold blooded starter. 3 to 5 pulls to pop off. The same new and 22 years later. The Honda 1/2 pull to 1 pull.

2011 was the year Honda did the engine and impeller imporvments and raised the handle bars 2 inches. The only reason I got ride of it was the parts where not available for it for years, even out of Canada.


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## superedge88

Apple Guy said:


> No, Yamaha makes the best snowblowers. Period.


I'm not taking the bait. Obviously you know everything.


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## SnowG

tonysak said:


> ....snip...
> 
> I think anybody considering the HS928 or the HS1332, will appreciate this information which doesn't seem to exist in any other forums. I won't trade it in for the hs928Tas as I like my dealer and don't want to put him out any further (and loose more money myself). The hs1332TAS drives like a sports car compared to the large simplicity, the 12" impeller bottle neck and the trail of snow it leaves is disappointing. If honda comes with with a 32" unit with 14" impeller, then I will probably trade up and get myself a Honda Power Equipment tattoo.


Thanks *tonysak* This has been a very interesting thread. I bought a HS928TAS this fall, and am sill getting to know it. My dealer had gently steered me toward the 928 when I was deliberating over the extra ~$500 for the 1332, and he said he thought I'd be happier with its performance. I took it to heart especially considering my 928 was his last until his next shipment, but he had three unsold 1332's in his showroom and he probably would have made a few more $ if I went that direction. 

When you make a big purchase it's natural for anyone to look at the compromises and tradeoffs involved in your choices, and when you learn more from post-purchase experience (both positive and negative) it's helpful to pass it on. When it's negative, it's also natural to have some degree of buyer's remorse. Very few choices in life don't involve trade-offs, even if it's just one thing.

I'm finding the 928 leaves a pretty clean path without leaving much side spillage, and is much better in that regard than my prior machine (a 27" Noma). I can also go an acceptable rate of speed (which does vary based on depth and density of the snow) but have no disappointment there. Honda raised the handlebar height for this year's model so I don't have an issue with that, even though I'm 6'3" but the chute rotation control height is way too low and turns in the wrong direction (clockwise to rotate left is counter-intuitive) and I have to think about it so I don't screw up. My other ergonomic complaint is the ground speed control is located on the wrong side of the console. 

That said, the performance is excellent and the engine/transmission is a dream. The quality of the overall assembly shows much care, and the unit is much quieter with no obvious rattles. Although I don't think it's underpowered, I think I could use more power in deep snow and EOD to go at a faster speed without bogging the engine.... but I'm the kind of guy who can always use more power if it's available so that's not really a complaint. (My ideal might be to fit the larger engine of the 1132 to the chassis of the 928?  )


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## Kiss4aFrog

Apple Guy said:


> No, Yamaha makes the best snowblowers. Period.


I understand the bravado of trying to make Honda or Yamaha the best in your mind but it really isn't. If you don't have a Zaugg, you might as well go back to a shovel IMHO 

ZAUGG - Snow Beast Walk Behind Snow Blower - Large Walk Behind Snow Blowers


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## superedge88

Kiss4aFrog said:


> I understand the bravado of trying to make Honda or Yamaha the best in your mind but it really isn't. If you don't have a Zaugg, you might as well go back to a shovel IMHO
> 
> ZAUGG - Snow Beast Walk Behind Snow Blower - Large Walk Behind Snow Blowers



That is one sweet blower!!! I hadn't seen anything like that before


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## dhazelton

I have to say I am less than impressed with my Honda blowers. I have a 724 tracked and a 624 I picked up dirt cheap at auction and neither can handle wet stuff without clogging. I have to crawl when the temp gets over 32 as the snow starts to get heavy. I watch my neighbor with a 20 year old 8 horsepower Toro just rip through stuff. It can't just be about H.P. - design of the augur and bucket and chute has to come into play here.


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## Normex

dhazelton said:


> It can't just be about H.P. - design of the augur and bucket and chute has to come into play here.


 I would be inclined to say that you should verify the gap from the end of your impeller blade to the housing, if there's more than 3/16" gap your 
unit(s) would be a good candidate for an impeller kit such as the one in the link as follow and or you can build your own with baler belt material similar to the kit. Good Luck

SNOWBLOWER IMPELLER KIT


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## JRHAWK9

superedge88 said:


> That is one sweet blower!!! I hadn't seen anything like that before


yeah Zaugg makes a heck of a blower. I've ran across their videos on YouTube before.


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## dhazelton

Normex - there isn't a large gap there, but I want to do it. I started but when I tried to drill through that steel through the chute opening I realized it wasn't happening unless I took the impeller out. Not gonna happen, during the snow season at least.


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## Apple Guy

dhazelton said:


> Normex - there isn't a large gap there, but I want to do it. I started but when I tried to drill through that steel through the chute opening I realized it wasn't happening unless I took the impeller out. Not gonna happen, during the snow season at least.



You need new quality drill bits. Cobalt to be more specific.


RIDGID Coldfire 21-Piece Cobalt Drill Bit Set-4516767 - The Home Depot


You will need a smaller starter bit, so it won't walk, then the size you need for the bolt.

.

.


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## JnC

Apple Guy said:


> You need new quality drill bits. Cobalt to be more specific.
> 
> 
> RIDGID Coldfire 21-Piece Cobalt Drill Bit Set-4516767 - The Home Depot
> 
> 
> You will need a smaller starter bit, so it won't walk, then the size you need for the bolt.
> 
> .
> 
> .



I have those exact bits, used them along with lubricant to drill the holes in the impeller. The amount of work it took to drill the holes I am not sure if drilling them through the chute is feasible.


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## Shryp

First Ariens I did I had a pack of 10 cheap Harbor Freight bits. Actually drilled all the holes with 1 bit. Second one I did I used different sized bolts so had to use an old bit I got from who knows where. I just sharpened it with my angle grinder every couple of holes and that worked great. It is amazing what a sharp bit will do.

Also, it works best if you remove the chute. Drilling with the impeller removed might make lining things up difficult unless you have some type of jig to mark the holes for the impeller and the paddles. You could go with slotted paddles and adjust them once installed.


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## rosco61

*drilling.*

Keep in mind that drill bits have a optimal speed that they cut thru metal.
Start applying drill rpm slowly and watch the debris coming off the bit. Don't overheat it and use some cutting oil or any light oil while you are drilling thru the assembly.


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## RoyP

I know that drilling through the impeller discharge to reach the impeller would be next to impossible on my HS1132. With the machine off, (of course) I can hardly get my hand down that small square hole.

I will put paddles on it come spring time.


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## Shryp

Maybe try a drill bit extension? I just put the bit through the hole, not the whole drill.


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## dhazelton

I've seen people on youtube use self tapping screws like for HVAC duct work but my impeller is thick cast metal, not just thin stamped material. It would be best to do on my drill press. But again, I'm not taking it apart now.


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## SnowG

We got about 10 inches of heavy snow today, and my HS928 TAS performed like a champ. No significant side-spill.


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## JRHAWK9

SnowG said:


> We got about 10 inches of heavy snow today, and my HS928 TAS performed like a champ. No significant side-spill.


I'm sure it did.....just at a slower pace than what the OP would prefer.


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## rosco61

JRHAWK9 said:


> I'm sure it did.....just at a slower pace than what the OP would prefer.


Amen to that.


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## calsdad

tonysak said:


> That looks like an ok speed. What size is your bucket engine? I'd prefer to run full tilt behind the blower. I am talking to Ariens right now, might get the 32" Hydropro Track. But I think i may be trading one evil for another.



If you end up getting the Ariens 32" Hydro Pro Track - please post your impressions. I went back and forth between the Ariens Hydro Pro Track and the Honda HS1332 myself - and just put in an order the other day for the Honda. Still waiting to get it.

Comparing them head to head - I thought that the Ariens had better controls and a taller bucket - etc. But I've known numerous people who have had Honda blowers - and been very very happy with them. My personal experience with Honda engined equipment also makes me think I won't be disappointed. I also found copius reviews of the Honda tracked blowers - but info on the Ariens tracked blowers was few and far between.

I'd really like to see some more head to head comparisons between the two.


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## tonysak

calsdad said:


> If you end up getting the Ariens 32" Hydro Pro Track - please post your impressions. I went back and forth between the Ariens Hydro Pro Track and the Honda HS1332 myself - and just put in an order the other day for the Honda. Still waiting to get it.
> 
> Comparing them head to head - I thought that the Ariens had better controls and a taller bucket - etc. But I've known numerous people who have had Honda blowers - and been very very happy with them. My personal experience with Honda engined equipment also makes me think I won't be disappointed. I also found copius reviews of the Honda tracked blowers - but info on the Ariens tracked blowers was few and far between.
> 
> I'd really like to see some more head to head comparisons between the two.


Ariens is coming out with some tweeks to the hydropro track, so I held off. Like I said it would be trading one evil for another. The honda isn't a bad machine. I didn't get the hydropro track at first because it was 100lbs more than the honda, and thought it would be extra work.

I am getting the black bucket extension to make the bucket taller. 

As far as side spillage goes, if you barely move you get no spillage. But if you look at all the honda videos, instead of seeing clean driveway, you the snow trails, much like when you vacuum carpet, you see where the bucket plowed threw. I'd like to get some side extensions or something to keep the snow in there longer. 

To the guy who thinks i want a 14" impeller. I don't, I have no preference in the impeller size if I get the performance I should get. To that note, anyone who does not wish to contribute positively to this thread does not have to comment and can certainly unsubscribe.


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## lclement

Kiss4aFrog said:


> Post a picture of the augers.


My thoughts as well... have you ever taken the augers out? They could be spinning the wrong way... easy to do upon reassembly. They should rotate inward not outward.

It would be interesting to have the largest ariens pro model, honda 1332 and a honda 1132 side by side at the same time in the same depth of snow and see if what the differences are? Speed, processing ability, throwing distance... etc... until then there are simply so many variables in snow depth and type (heavy vs light) 

I agree that if i spent a ton of $$$$ on a new blower and it didn't meet my expectations i would be frustrated. The only thing i have to compare more 1132 to is an ariens 7524 and a toro 521 which the 1132 puts them all to shame when in deep snow. (20 inches or more)


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## tonysak

Honda just released the new hss1332 which appears to have fixed all the issues I found except for the rounded corners on the bottom of the bucket and bucket height. They now have a 13.5" impeller. Drive disengage on a turning track, electric chutes. It would be nice if they has a larger motor, but the 390cc is the lArgent hOnda makes. I could bog the motor down with the 12" impeller, they use the larger impeller on the 36", it must just go slow. Again comparing it to a 420cc. Putting the 420 on the hss1332 would allow me to run behind the snowblower. 

Wish there was feedback on the tracked ariens with the auto turn.


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## Rocktaco

tonysak said:


> Honda just released the new hss1332 which appears to have fixed all the issues I found except for the rounded corners on the bottom of the bucket and bucket height. They now have a 13.5" impeller. Drive disengage on a turning track, electric chutes. It would be nice if they has a larger motor, but the 390cc is the lArgent hOnda makes. I could bog the motor down with the 12" impeller, they use the larger impeller on the 36", it must just go slow. Again comparing it to a 420cc. Putting the 420 on the hss1332 would allow me to run behind the snowblower.
> 
> Wish there was feedback on the tracked ariens with the auto turn.


Out of curiosity, where were you able to find the impeller sizes on the new Honda units? I've look but been unable to locate that information.

-Robert


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## tonysak

I have. The press release can be found here Honda Introduces HSS Series Snow Blowers - Honda.com

The increase should make a pretty big difference as the old 12" impeller(blower) size was an obvious bottle neck. 

Finger Tip Steering Control – conveniently located hand lever controls allows for easy maneuvering, and disengagement of transmission for easy movement when not powered (all models)
Hydrostatic Transmission (HST) – far superior than traditional disk drive; provides single-lever variable speed control when operating in forward or reverse (all models)
Joystick Electric Chute Control – single joystick control (4-directions) provides precision
control of chute rotation and discharge angle; directly powered by the engine’s power coil; no battery required (all models)
DC Electric Start – no extension cord necessary; easy starting with the on-board battery, which is automatically charged by the engine (all electric start models)
*Blower Diameter Increased – for increased snow removal speed and discharge distance
HSS724A increased from 252 to 300 mm (11.8 inches) over previous model
HSS928A increased from 300 to 340 mm (13.4 inches) over previous model
HSS1332A increased from 300 to 340 mm (13.4 inches) over previous model*
Chamfered Scraper Bar – design allows for edge of scraper to hit snow and ice patches flush and evenly for improved snow clearing to the pavement (all models)
LED Headlight – integrated into cover for improved night visibility; brighter, long lasting, and never burns out (all models)
Auger Height Lever – adjustable gas strut to raise/lower and position the entire auger housing precisely, providing prefect ground clearance over gravel or non-smooth surfaces. (all track models)
Wheel Diameter – increased to 14” diameter with directional tread for more ground contact and improved traction (all wheel models)
Oil Drain location – improved for easier access (all models)
Offset Blower Shear Bolt – unique design that provides for quick replacement and protects both auger and blower from damage (all models)
Auger Protection System – protects the shear bolts (HSS1332 models only)
Hour Meter – monitors hours of operation (HSS1332 models only)
Precision Deflector Chute – double-articulated deflector improves distance accuracy control (HSS1332AATD model only)
Impeller Shield – optimized to more efficiently direct snow into the blower (all models)
Reversible Skid Shoes – increased durability, offering twice the wear surface (all models)
3-Year Commercial and Residential Warranty (all HSS models)


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## Rocktaco

Okay, thanks for that, It's one I have not seen yet. I just sold my 2013 HS1332, not really because of the bottleneck created by the 12" impeller but to get into the new HSS which have all the cool added features.

I had asked in another thread if the impeller was changed in the new models because if not, I would consider the smaller HSS928 over the 1332. Now.... Now I've got another decision to make:smiley-confused009:


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## Skeet Shooter

I hate to argue with someone like AJHawk who is a fellow Packer fan, but I would like to ask a question.

In WI, what is the general kind of snow you are getting there? Lake effect stuff that is heavy and wet? Or is it more cold dry stuff? 

One huge reason I purchased my Honda 928 track was because of the wet snow clearance. I will absolutely confess that when its wet (which is a great deal of the time here in Connecticut) I don't move very fast... Most of the time 50-65% speed for aound the 8" mark. I don't get a lot of spillage at all actually and I'm taking full buckets. But Last year we had one storm that I remember where the temperature stayed around 10*F durring and after it stopped, and it was light fluffy powder. And I had roughly 12-14" of that stuff... I went through it at full speed and didnt have any issues at all. 

Unless you have lived here in the North-east or in Buffalo area the snow that we get is kind of incomparable to what you all get in the Midwest and great north. We mostly get very wet heavy snow, and our temperatures usually hover at freezing, so even after snow has stopped it warms up and begins to melt.

Last little thing. I almost bought the hydro-pro Ariens track... But it was $500 more than my Honda. I looked at the track design and could tell I was going to be in part-replacement nightmare mode for the rest of my tenure with that machine. I liked everything about that machine except for the track design and auto-turn. My friend has a pro 28 NON-HYDRO which works really well except that in the heavy stuff it bogs down quite a bit and he has to take it slow... it does not throw anywhere near as far as I do, and he goes around the same speed. Do I like his blower? Heck yeah! Would I trade my Honda for it? A very close no... 

Ergos are better on the Ariens (I like those heated handlebars), Chute control is better on the Ariens, and I find definitely moves faster in snow or in travel mode because of the gearing.

Snow Clearing is better on my Honda, Traction is better, Noise (yeah I know that shouldnt really be a factor) is much less on my Honda) Hydro Trans is awesome. Mine starts on first pull every time. His takes at least 2. 

Its easy to point out his is not track or Hydro, so thats not a fair comparison there. And both machines are awesome. No hate at the Ariens at all. I love them and would have bought a pro 28 as my second blower at my rental property. My Toro PowerMax HD is worthy substitute that leaves me with a little color envy in regards to the great orange machine of the north. 

Either way. Im happy with what I have and last but truly not least. 

GO PACK GO!!!


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## JRHAWK9

Well, the very first year I bought the Pro 32 we had one 10" snow event. Since then we haven't got crap.  All depends on the temp. Sometimes it's fluffy and sometimes it's wet and heavy.

So, I have to ask, what's the reason you are a Packers fan? Me?? I grew up 3 blocks north of Lambeau and used to be one of -THESE- kids. 



Skeet Shooter said:


> I hate to argue with someone like AJHawk who is a fellow Packer fan, but I would like to ask a question.
> 
> In WI, what is the general kind of snow you are getting there? Lake effect stuff that is heavy and wet? Or is it more cold dry stuff?
> 
> One huge reason I purchased my Honda 928 track was because of the wet snow clearance. I will absolutely confess that when its wet (which is a great deal of the time here in Connecticut) I don't move very fast... Most of the time 50-65% speed for aound the 8" mark. I don't get a lot of spillage at all actually and I'm taking full buckets. But Last year we had one storm that I remember where the temperature stayed around 10*F durring and after it stopped, and it was light fluffy powder. And I had roughly 12-14" of that stuff... I went through it at full speed and didnt have any issues at all.
> 
> Unless you have lived here in the North-east or in Buffalo area the snow that we get is kind of incomparable to what you all get in the Midwest and great north. We mostly get very wet heavy snow, and our temperatures usually hover at freezing, so even after snow has stopped it warms up and begins to melt.
> 
> Last little thing. I almost bought the hydro-pro Ariens track... But it was $500 more than my Honda. I looked at the track design and could tell I was going to be in part-replacement nightmare mode for the rest of my tenure with that machine. I liked everything about that machine except for the track design and auto-turn. My friend has a pro 28 NON-HYDRO which works really well except that in the heavy stuff it bogs down quite a bit and he has to take it slow... it does not throw anywhere near as far as I do, and he goes around the same speed. Do I like his blower? Heck yeah! Would I trade my Honda for it? A very close no...
> 
> Ergos are better on the Ariens (I like those heated handlebars), Chute control is better on the Ariens, and I find definitely moves faster in snow or in travel mode because of the gearing.
> 
> Snow Clearing is better on my Honda, Traction is better, Noise (yeah I know that shouldnt really be a factor) is much less on my Honda) Hydro Trans is awesome. Mine starts on first pull every time. His takes at least 2.
> 
> Its easy to point out his is not track or Hydro, so thats not a fair comparison there. And both machines are awesome. No hate at the Ariens at all. I love them and would have bought a pro 28 as my second blower at my rental property. My Toro PowerMax HD is worthy substitute that leaves me with a little color envy in regards to the great orange machine of the north.
> 
> Either way. Im happy with what I have and last but truly not least.
> 
> GO PACK GO!!!


----------

