# Looking at an older Toro 826,opinions?



## Crazy Charlie (Oct 25, 2021)

Local guy has an 826 for sale.Claims everything works as it should.The price is right 
so just want to know if this is a good heavy duty unit.I have a Craftsman 9hp tecumsa 26" 
that is in outstanding condition but I am very disappointed in the small chute opening size and 
constant clogging with wet snow.Wondering if an 826 is a good performer.Charlie


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## classiccat (Mar 1, 2014)

here's my '87 826...pretty much has everything that could be wrong with one...all in the same machine 😆 . 





That said, I love mine. The Briggs engine is a well behaved monster. Contractor-grade equipment for its time; surprisingly nimble for its size when everything is operating properly.

Here's my most recent unedited vid of it taken a few days ago.





The one area that caused me the most grief was the badly worn impeller shaft...and the secondary damage it did to the other bushings in the gearcase and auger shaft. if the wheel clutches slip, we have the technology (shims & washers) to fix those as well!


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## arienskids (Jan 26, 2018)

Toro uses an impeller bushing, not a bearing like classiccat said make sure that the impeller shaft/pulley has no play in it


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## classiccat (Mar 1, 2014)

arienskids said:


> Toro uses an impeller bushing, not a bearing like classiccat said make sure that the impeller shaft/pulley has no play in it


826 and 1132 are bearings. thread link.


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## arienskids (Jan 26, 2018)

Never seen that before, my mistake!


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## classiccat (Mar 1, 2014)

arienskids said:


> Never seen that before, my mistake!


No worries! if/when that bearing slips, it does quite a number on that relatively soft impeller shaft! I'd much rather them use either a keyed inner race or the oillite bushings used in the 724/824, etc.


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## Toro-8-2-4 (Dec 28, 2013)

If you are handy it may be a good deal. I have replced those impeller shaft bearngs in the past. It is not too bad of a job. I am not a fan of the barrel style augers that Toro used in that era.. It restrics the amount of snow that it allows pulled in to the impellar. It is intended to reduce or eliminate clogging. But it slows down your work speed. If you noticed in those videos the guy was going on the slow side for that depth of snow and he was leaving a stripe on the left hand side. If everything is origniol on it, it is possibly due for some major preplacement of all bearings. If you are handy it may be worth it. Only you can decide. If you need a reliable machine for this week end, it may not be for you.


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## DCH50 (Feb 10, 2020)

classiccat said:


> here's my '87 826...pretty much has everything that could be wrong with one...all in the same machine 😆 .
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Watching your video, Love the Old Toro, but I have to ask, what's the neighbors got, he is killing it with his machine, throwing that snow a mile.


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## classiccat (Mar 1, 2014)

DCH50 said:


> Watching your video, Love the Old Toro, but I have to ask, what's the neighbors got, he is killing it with his machine, throwing that snow a mile.


Thanks! Joe is running an old 5hp MTD that I did a little overhaul for him a few years ago (including of course an impeller kit)!


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## Crazy Charlie (Oct 25, 2021)

Thanks guys,great info and videos!! Charlie


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## classiccat (Mar 1, 2014)

Toro-8-2-4 said:


> If you are handy it may be a good deal. I have replced those impeller shaft bearngs in the past. It is not too bad of a job. I am not a fan of the barrel style augers that Toro used in that era.. It restrics the amount of snow that it allows pulled in to the impellar. It is intended to reduce or eliminate clogging. But it slows down your work speed. If you noticed in those videos the guy was going on the slow side for that depth of snow and he was leaving a stripe on the left hand side. If everything is origniol on it, it is possibly due for some major preplacement of all bearings. If you are handy it may be worth it. Only you can decide. If you need a reliable machine for this week end, it may not be for you.


the reason the guy (me) was going slow in the gopro vid wasn't b/c of the drum auger but rather the spring loaded scraper was pulling back (lifting); it was a wet snow due to the 40 deg temps. I don't think that I've ever had an issue plowing with a drum even with full buckets; no restriction observed. That line on the left side is flinging which I suppose could be exacerbated by the drum ...i think of it as snow that missed the ride to the center of the bucket when the auger rake is traveling back up, it gets flung forward.


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## groomerz (Feb 7, 2015)

When a seller says everything works nothing wrong

Add

As far as he knows. And he might not know much about snowblowers. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## UNDERTAKER (Dec 30, 2013)

*I Always Love Watching BROTHER CC'S Vids. Maybe Some Day I Will Get 1 Of Those Go Pro's And Stick It On My Head For Ever One To See Him In Action. After Watching This Last 1. When I Do A Repaint Of "SR" And Tear Him All Down I Will Put A Impeller Kit In Him. I See You Finally Got The Truck In The Garage. That Must Be The Wifey's Car In There And The JEEP Out Side Must Be The Daughter's Ride.







*


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## classiccat (Mar 1, 2014)

UNDERTAKER said:


> *I Always Love Watching BROTHER CC'S Vids. Maybe Some Day I Will Get 1 Of Those Go Pro's And Stick It On My Head For Ever One To See Him In Action. After Watching This Last 1. When I Do A Repaint Of "SR" And Tear Him All Down I Will Put A Impeller Kit In Him. I See You Finally Got The Truck In The Garage. That Must Be The Wifey's Car In There And The JEEP Out Side Must Be The Daughter's Ride.*


I'm glad SR is getting the love...1st the new shoes, then fresh paint and an impeller kit!

Daughter's ride in the garage for storms since the Wifey likes to zip around before the plows find our neighborhood...this time they beat her to the punch  . (I'm also chasing a CEL on the Matrix)

@Crazy Charlie don't keep us in the dark here...let us know if we need to send you* Toro *brotherhood membership cards!


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## dcinma (Dec 13, 2017)

Crazy Charlie said:


> Local guy has an 826 for sale.Claims everything works as it should.The price is right
> so just want to know if this is a good heavy duty unit.I have a Craftsman 9hp tecumsa 26"
> that is in outstanding condition but I am very disappointed in the small chute opening size and
> constant clogging with wet snow.Wondering if an 826 is a good performer.Charlie


If do the impeller mod it help alot with clogging.


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## Crazy Charlie (Oct 25, 2021)

Thanks again,will keep you posted,for $200 I guess I should take a shot as long as the auger/impeller has no play in it....Correct??


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## detdrbuzzard (Jan 20, 2012)

if you pick up the 826 remember it has dead man controls, i never got use to them so i kept using my toro 2450 until i picked up a toro 521. needing something bigger once and awhile i picked up an 824 powershift


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## crazzywolfie (Jun 2, 2014)

$200 seems like a bit much for one of these. as mentioned the controls take a lot to get use to. it will also likely need the impeller mod because they really don't throw great or far without it and easily clog on slush. also if it has the stock tire they don't get good traction. it will likely cost quite a bit to make it a nicer machine. it would likely be cheaper to just find a nicer machine to start with.


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## UNDERTAKER (Dec 30, 2013)

crazzywolfie said:


> $200 seems like a bit much for one of these. as mentioned the controls take a lot to get use to. it will also likely need the impeller mod because they really don't throw great or far without it and easily clog on slush. also if it has the stock tire they don't get good traction. it will likely cost quite a bit to make it a nicer machine. it would likely be cheaper to just find a nicer machine to start with.


*Those Old School TORO'S Throw That Slush Like There Is No Tomorrow. Never Had A Clogging Issue Yet. The Stock Tires Work But Mine Were 47 Years Old And The Rubber Was Getting Hard. Plus There Is Cracking Along The Rims. But Back In The Day They Were DA' BOMB!!!!! The Dash Is Lower Than The New 1's. But What Do You Expect From Something That Has Been Around a Half Of A Century Now. Don't Really See These New 1'S With That Flimsy Globally Sourced Metal Lasting Half That Long. When I Am AT Home Depot 4 Something I Stop And Look At Them Make My Way Around To The Front Of Them And Just Cringe!!!! They Will Buckle Just Like A Soda Pop Can Getting Crushed By A Small Child. Stare Down The Throat Of Those Old One's And They Are At Least A 6 Inch Diameter Opening. They Are Made To Spray It Out Not Like The New One's With The Square Opening Which Still Boggles My Fragile Little Mind To This Very Day. At The Widest Point They Might Be 4 Inches Across. I am Just Taking Numbers Off The Top Of My Head Now. The Chutes On The Old Ones Are Shorter And Wider Than The New 1's Which Are Taller And Narrow. Which Means It Can Chuck It a Longer Distance. So To Sum This Whole Thing Up. To Each Their Own On What They Like And Don't Like About These Old Schools TOROS. But For Me They Will Have To Pry Them From My Cold Dead Hands If They Want Them. And That Is All The More I Am Saying On This 1 !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!







*


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## Crazy Charlie (Oct 25, 2021)

UNDERTAKER said:


> *Those Old School TORO'S Throw That Slush Like There Is No Tomorrow. Never Had A Clogging Issue Yet. The Stock Tires Work But Mine Were 47 Years Old And The Rubber Was Getting Hard. Plus There Is Cracking Along The Rims. But Back In The Day They Were DA' BOMB!!!!! The Dash Is Lower Than The New 1's. But What Do You Expect From Something That Has Been Around a Half Of A Century Now. Don't Really See These New 1'S With That Flimsy Globally Sourced Metal Lasting Half That Long. When I Am AT Home Depot 4 Something I Stop And Look At Them Make My Way Around To The Front Of Them And Just Cringe!!!! They Will Buckle Just Like A Soda Pop Can Getting Crushed By A Small Child. Stare Down The Throat Of Those Old One's And They Are At Least A 6 Inch Diameter Opening. They Are Made To Spray It Out Not Like The New One's With The Square Opening Which Still Boggles My Fragile Little Mind To This Very Day. At The Widest Point They Might Be 4 Inches Across. I am Just Taking Numbers Off The Top Of My Head Now. The Chutes On The Old Ones Are Shorter And Wider Than The New 1's Which Are Taller And Narrow. Which Means It Can Chuck It a Longer Distance. So To Sum This Whole Thing Up. To Each Their Own On What They Like And Don't Like About These Old Schools TOROS. But For Me They Will Have To Pry Them From My Cold Dead Hands If They Want Them. And That Is All The More I Am Saying On This 1 !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
> View attachment 187365
> *


Glad to hear some positive feedback!! I dont know what is different about the controls?? Deadmen controls? 
Could it be all that different?


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## crazzywolfie (Jun 2, 2014)

Crazy Charlie said:


> Could it be all that different?


well if you bypass them your snowblower will continue to drive down the road blowing snow if for some reason you slip or fall down. he may have positive feedback he may be the only one giving these things that as they are. without the impeller mod these things are almost useless for anything other than snow. the tires on them are also no better than lawn tractor tires which is why you see so many of these machines running chains or some people will spend the money on new x-trac tires. we had some slightly wet snow here the other day and the toro i have clogged up about 5 times in a 2 minute span and gave up trying to use it and swapped to a machine that had the impeller mod


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## asavage (Dec 20, 2021)

Crazy Charlie said:


> I dont know what is different about the controls?? Deadmen controls?
> Could it be all that different?


Looking at the original 826 (~1979-198x?) like my '85 38150 . . .










(that's the CL ad picture, as I purchased it)

. . . a couple of things come to mind:

1) There are just more controls than you have on a more modern machine.

Manual choke lever (not on the control panel)
Primer (1986-on?) on engine
Key ON/OFF 
Throttle -- Slow<->Fast, plus OFF (ignition grounding)
Auger belt control
Chute discharge direction crank
Chute discharge loft (not on the control panel)
Traction speed (R-1-2-3)
Wheel Clutches: Left & Right side
Electric starter cord & button (if equipped; for the 120v version, the start button is on the engine, not the control panel)
Finally, the safety (deadman) levers under the handgrips.
You might think that those hand control levers under the handgrips are for steering or drive or even the auger ON/OFF, but they're only there for the deadman safety switches; they control nothing else.

In operation, the wheel clutches (jaw clutches) behind each wheel are engaged/disengaged individually, allowing you to make turns (by pulling up on one of the two knobs/disengaging that side's wheel). Some people run both clutches engaged at all times when throwing, man-handling the unit to skid the outside wheel to make a turn. But the smooth way is to disengage the outside wheel's clutch. However, you are usually also cranking the chute around when turning, so you've got to both pull the clutch knob and crank the chute handle at nearly the same time, OR disengage the auger so it's not throwing snow in the wrong direction while making the turn.

It's not that it can't be done, but it does take a few times to get it down (from what I've seen/read; I've never run mine, it's in three heaps of parts right now).

2) Deadman controls. As sold, most of these early 38150s have four microswitches wired to a simple module, such that you have to meet one of several scenarios or the engine's magneto (or electronic) ignition will be grounded and the engine will turn off. These four deadman switches monitor:

Auger belt control lever
Traction drive shifter
Handlegrip safety levers' switches (Left & Right)
If BOTH the auger belt control lever is OFF, AND the Traction drive shifter is at Neutral, then the handlegrip safety lever switches are ignored; you can start, warm up, and walk away and the engine will continue to run.

If EITHER the auger belt control lever is ON, OR the Traction drive shifter is at any place other than Neutral, one or more of the handlegrip safety switches MUST remain engaged, or the engine is turned off. 

So, if you're moving and/or throwing snow, you have to have one handlegrip lever pulled up. Either one or both.

There's several ways to defeat this system intentionally, and I assume many people do that (since on this model there's SIX switches that can keep the engine from running*). When it is in working condition, it's much harder for the machine to seriously hurt the operator.

* Switches that, if malfunctioning, prevent the ignition system from operating:

B&S throttle sector switch on the engine (throttle control cable actuated)
Key ON/OFF
(4) Deadman switches
On mine, the Traction shifter's microswitch's lever was broken off, and the entire deadman + Keyswitch were disabled at the engine; I replaced the broken switch, and I intend to re-enable the deadman system and keyswitch.

---

The pre-'82 (?) versions with the B&S engine will have points/condenser, not electronic ignition ("Magnetron" is B&S' branding of this). Something to consider.

Around where I live, not much is available on the used market for 2-stage snowthrowers, and I bought mine without doing my usual pre-purchase research. I'm not unhappy with the construction or design of mine, but I admit that I would not purchase THIS ONE again, knowing now what I do. This is an OLD machine, and while I enjoy -- to an extent -- repair of the sort I'm now engaged in for the past month, it's not remotely economically advisable to buy a machine of this vintage and not expect to have to go over it and hit all the common issues. The bearing behind the impeller is a frequent issue on this model. Belt idlers are shot on mine, NLA and the replacements aren't expensive but require some sleuthing to obtain. Skids and the scraper can be worn beyond service limit. No air filtration originally means a lot of crap can get in the intake -- you'd think operating in snow would mean not much debris to suck in, but mine is filthy. My fuel tank was shot, that was $100 and the new genuine B&S replacement comes shipped with the inside pre-rusted (no kidding). The chute discharge round gear has the usual crack, and I don't weld, so I bought a replacement for a reasonable price. And a whole laundry list of other issues.

In the end, time vs. money comes into play. I think these are excellent machines for someone who enjoys tinkering; few special tools are required to service them. For someone who enjoys doing things _other_ than working on the snow moving tools, I'd advise looking for something with less time on it. In my case, what looks superficially like a decent rig has turned into a time/money pit, but some of that is on me, because I like to "improve" things as I go along, it's my hobby so I can't count the investment the way people looking to buy a tool and just use it would.

HTH


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## dcinma (Dec 13, 2017)

Regarding someone's comment on throat diameter. Im wondering if the smaller diameter on the new machines is to speed up velocity.


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## Crazy Charlie (Oct 25, 2021)

asavage said:


> Looking at the original 826 (~1979-198x?) like my '85 38150 . . .
> 
> View attachment 187423
> 
> ...


Wow!!! Thanks for all that info.The unit looks almost identical to yours,though yours looks orange
and the one im considering is red.May mean something age wise?? Charlie


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## asavage (Dec 20, 2021)

I think mine was just left out in the Idaho/Wenatchee sun too long. Also, that's a screenshot from a CL ad, and the colors are off a bit.

You'll be able to pin down the year of manufacture by the Model and Serial numbers. The Toro model/serial number sticker for the 38150 is located here:



Mine was legible when I bought it, but was destroyed when I cleaned the machine with a medium-pressure pressure washer (DIY car wash cleaning), so take a picture of the sticker _before_ you clean it. This is what mine looked like before it was mangled:



I mounted a brass tag to retain the model/serial number info for the future:




Also, the Briggs & Stratton "Code" number gives the year of the _engine_, which in my case is 19*84* for Toro's 1985 production run. The B&S "Code" is the last eight digits in that long string of numbers (click on the image for larger):



The later engines have this info at the top -- near the spark plug -- of the blower/starter housing; the earlier (1970s) engines have this same info stamped on the front face of the housing, above the starter rope pull.


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## UNDERTAKER (Dec 30, 2013)

Crazy Charlie said:


> Glad to hear some positive feedback!! I dont know what is different about the controls?? Deadmen controls?
> Could it be all that different?


*Dead Man Are The Switches On The Handle Bars. All Parts 4 Them Are Now NLA. If They Still Work MAZEL TOV!!!!!!!!!!! If Not Be Very, Very Careful Running It Not To Lose Control Of The Machine.*


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## UNDERTAKER (Dec 30, 2013)

Crazy Charlie said:


> Wow!!! Thanks for all that info.The unit looks almost identical to yours,though yours looks orange
> and the one im considering is red.May mean something age wise?? Charlie


It Is That BLOODY FREAKING Epoxy Paint They Used Back Then. It Will Fade Out To Orange In The Right Conditions


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## UNDERTAKER (Dec 30, 2013)

dcinma said:


> Regarding someone's comment on throat diameter. Im wondering if the smaller diameter on the new machines is to speed up velocity.


*YEP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!*


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## asavage (Dec 20, 2021)

UNDERTAKER said:


> *Dead Man Are The Switches On The Handle Bars. All Parts 4 Them Are Now NLA. *


You sure bang that "*NLA*" gong a lot 









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Parts lookup and repair parts diagrams for outdoor equipment like Toro mowers, Cub Cadet tractors, Husqvarna chainsaws, Echo trimmers, Briggs engines, etc.




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Model: 38090 (1132 Snowthrower). Model: 38095 (1132 Snowthrower). Model: 38160 (1132 Snowthrower). Manufacturer Toro / Lawn Boy. Toro: 131-4830. Model: 38085C (824 Snowthrower). Model: 38085 (824 Snowthrower).



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