# Ariens 10M4. Good machine?



## Del257 (Jan 27, 2016)

I'm new to the world of snow blowers so I'm looking for a little help. I found an old Ariens 10M4 online. Haven't seen it in person yet. From the photos it looks ok. Owner says it runs fine and has papers that it was recently serviced. Looks like the tires will need to be replaced tho. How difficult is it to replace the solid tires with an upgraded tubeless tire and rim? Anyone ever attempt this modification? Still up in the air on whether to spend $300 on this 4Hp machine. Any advice?


----------



## Kiss4aFrog (Nov 3, 2013)

:welcome: to the forum Del257


IMHO I'd get an old Ariens in a heartbeat but not necessarily that old of one for your single "daily driver" at that price.
Is this going to be your only machine ??

You didn't post photos but I think you'd be better served with something 70's or 80's that already has pneumatic tires and has easier parts availability.
That's just my 2 cents.

Good reading and great photos. Run by one of our members: http://gold.mylargescale.com/scottychaos/ariens/page5.html

.


----------



## Del257 (Jan 27, 2016)

Thanks for the advice. Yes this would've been my only machine. I had my reservations too. Oh and I've been on that site you listed. That's what got me into looking for the older machines. Some nice looking machines on that site. Made me want to buy one and restore it... I don't know anything about the new Ariens. Are they reliable? Is Ariens still top of the line? I don't know. I just think everything was made better back in the day so I'll keep searching and cross my fingers that this past storm was the last for this year. lol Thanks again


----------



## nwcove (Mar 2, 2015)

i have an old ariens, repowered with an ohv engine, it is truly a tank ! its not my only machine, but it is my " go to" machine . price is way high on the one you are looking at tho. jmo


----------



## Kiss4aFrog (Nov 3, 2013)

I wouldn't necessarily get a new one but it depends on your wallet.

I have two Ariens around 1970 and they are wonderful, heavy duty machines.

Lets start with how much area you need to clear (2 car, 4car, city, asphalt, gravel ??) and usually how much snow do you get in your part of NY ??

And older Ariens, Toro or even the strong Craftsmans are good choices and parts are still available. When you get closer to the 90's I'd drop the Craftsman but the Ariens and Toro are still good.

You spoke about restoring so I'm going to ASSUME you have some skills and tools and we'll just say NO a new machine and to MTD, Troy, Murray, Cub and especially anything that you don't recognize as it's likely poorly made China stuff.

Just look for a newer Ariens than that one and you might want to check out the Re-Powering section and see if putting a $100 Predator on one interests you. You might find an Ariens or Toro with a blown engine really cheap 50-100 and dropping a new $100 engine gives you a really nice machine.


----------



## Del257 (Jan 27, 2016)

I have a 4 car asphalt driveway and I live on Long Island. If I need a snow blower once or twice a winter its a lot.... I would rather buy used than buy new. I take much more pleasure in rebuilding then spending on new that might not be made as well as the old. Case in point I rebuilt my ten year old Weber grill through warranty parts and parts purchased from ereplacementparts.com. and the cost was less than half the cost of a new Weber.( although new Weber grills are still excellent just very expensive) I actually checked ereplacementparts.com for parts for that Ariens I was looking at. When I saw how limited they were in parts for that machine I started to think twice about buying it.... I'm looking forward to searching for an older Ariens and the advice of finding one cheap with a blown motor and replacing the motor sounds like a great idea and a nice summer project.


----------



## Oneacer (Jan 3, 2011)

Hi Del,

Welcome to the forums, you will get a lot of info here regardless of what you eventually decide to get.

As far as 300 for the 10M4, I personally would not spend more than 75-100 tops. I own a 10M4 and a 10M6, which I have brought up to date with new Engines, split rims and Snow Hog tires. The 10M4 has a B&S and a Predator on the 10M6. I actually like the Predator better, more power ratio in my opinion. I also have an older 7100-2 Yardman, which is all original, except for the Snow Hog tires, which I bring out for the big jobs. All these machines are solid well built steel machines. As with any machine, care and maintenance are key to longevity. Here are my units:


----------

