# Photos of my two recent acquisitions



## PixMan (Feb 14, 2015)

Not intended to be a gloat, but I guess it is. 

First the (somewhat rare) Deluxe 28 with the AX414 motor. Bought new with full 3 year warranty from an authorized small store equipment dealer.


































I use and store this one at my mom's house, which is 7-1/2 miles east of me. Next will be the Platinum 30 that's used and stored at my own home.


----------



## PixMan (Feb 14, 2015)

This is the Platinum 30, a 2013 model which was bought 9/27/13 from the dealer I got it from, used. As you see the (lack of) wear on any parts of the machine you can understand why I paid only $200 less than the current list price of one. I actually paid the dealer, but he was just passing the money on to the owner who is a friend of his. The dealer said he had used it a couple of time during last year's easy winter (here) and one storm this year before moving to a condominium. The dealer will honor the remaining 20 months of warranty.










































Notice how even the paint in the auger housing and on the rotor is almost pristine. That's what made it worth the money. I sold my old Husqvarna for just $50 less than I had paid for it (used) some 3-1/2 years ago. Not bad. My net total of $2761.44 for the two machines is really not bad at all, considering the situation where I am. There's just a few machines starting to trickle in to a few dealers who placed orders in mid-December, most are sold out until April to July.


----------



## gto4evr (Feb 6, 2015)

uh...that is INDEED gloating! I'm jealous of the gas tanks! this also crushes my dream of swapping my thimble tank for these square ones some guys seem to have which apparently have 1/3 more capicity. That oil fill tube with the yellow cap looks like it's in a completely different place than mine. I'll have to check my memory of mine being towards the middle of the engine, not the side like yours. 

Congrats on the acquisitions!


----------



## PixMan (Feb 14, 2015)

Thank you. I think I did OK given it was threatening a big snowstorm when I bought the first one (one storm had just finished plastering us), and was actually starting what turned out to be an 8" snowfall as I bought the used one.

So do you have a machine with the same AX414 motor? What model is yours?


----------



## Kiss4aFrog (Nov 3, 2013)

Very nice machines


----------



## jsolo (Feb 4, 2015)

Reminds me of the tagline in one of the fast/furious movies... There's no replacement for displacement


----------



## joee5 (Nov 30, 2014)

Musta won a few boxes in the Super Bowl huh?


----------



## gto4evr (Feb 6, 2015)

PixMan said:


> Thank you. I think I did OK given it was threatening a big snowstorm when I bought the first one (one storm had just finished plastering us), and was actually starting what turned out to be an 8" snowfall as I bought the used one.
> 
> So do you have a machine with the same AX414 motor? What model is yours?


 
I've got a 2014 Platinum 30 SHO with the AX414. I think based on the Ariens website's description of the "lower profile" that mine has a 2014 Gen III motor on it and your 2014 Deluxe 28 has a Gen II motor that's pre 2014. I'm guessing the factory was using up the last of their Gen II stock before changing over to the new one. I'd much rather have that II setup. I'm getting tired of refilling the gas tank every 20 minutes! I started a new thread about the tanks rather than clutter yours up.

I've got a 70's 24" 7hp ariens as a backup, I like your back up better!!


----------



## PixMan (Feb 14, 2015)

joee5 said:


> Musta won a few boxes in the Super Bowl huh?


No, though that would've been nice. A chunk of my tax refund got eaten up on the net $1250 for mine (the 921040), my mom can afford to buy the one for her place though I handle all her affairs since she's got dementia. That house and it's mated snowblower (plus furniture and a host of other stuff) will be going to my youngest son when he buys the house from her. I imagine it'll be no more than a year or so before she doesn't recognize where she is, and at that point she'll be in assisted living of some sort.

For the time being, he lives there in an in-law apartment of his own, my daughter lives upstairs with my mom. I'm there nearly every day and she occasionally (increasingly so) asks me who I am.

It ain't all rosy for me. This was just a little bright spot in an otherwise stressful life.

I do appreciate that the Patriots won the SB though, and appear to be coming clean in this stupid "Deflategate" thing. Looking like NFL officials had the dirty hand in it.


----------



## PixMan (Feb 14, 2015)

gto4evr said:


> I've got a 2014 Platinum 30 SHO with the AX414. I think based on the Ariens website's description of the "lower profile" that mine has a 2014 Gen III motor on it and your 2014 Deluxe 28 has a Gen II motor that's pre 2014. I'm guessing the factory was using up the last of their Gen II stock before changing over to the new one. I'd much rather have that II setup. I'm getting tired of refilling the gas tank every 20 minutes! I started a new thread about the tanks rather than clutter yours up.
> 
> I've got a 70's 24" 7hp ariens as a backup, I like your back up better!!


 Interesting info there, gto4evr! I was told they used up some remaining AX414's when the supply of 306's ran dry.

BTW, I had a 2004 GTO from '04 to '06, put 48K miles on it. My favorite car I ever owned, hands down. I'd be a "GTO forever" guy if my wife didn't hate the fact that she couldn't drive the manual 6-speed. If I had room (and money) to buy her a spare car, I'd still have it.


----------



## Tachead (Feb 19, 2015)

PixMan said:


> This is the Platinum 30 SHO, a 2013 model which was bought 9/27/13 from the dealer I got it from, used. As you see the (lack of) wear on any parts of the machine you can understand why I paid only $200 less than the current list price of one. I actually paid the dealer, but he was just passing the money on to the owner who is a friend of his. The dealer said he had used it a couple of time during last year's easy winter (here) and one storm this year before moving to a condominium. The dealer will honor the remaining 20 months of warranty.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


This is not an SHO man. I hope you were charged accordingly. 

The SHO was introduced in the 2014 lineup. Its part number is 921040 not 921029. What you have there looks to be a 2013 Platinum 30 with a Gen II AX414 engine. The SHO comes with the improved Gen III AX414 as well as different auger belts and pulleys to increase the auger speed which increases output. There may be other changes to the chassis as well, you would have to ask Ariens.


----------



## PixMan (Feb 14, 2015)

Point taken, mea culpa.

I fixed a few things. 

Like I said though, the machine is USED and cost accordingly. Does it push snow appreciably less than an SHO? I venture not. It rocks.


----------



## Tachead (Feb 19, 2015)

PixMan said:


> Point taken, mea culpa.
> 
> I fixed a few things.
> 
> Like I said though, the machine is USED and cost accordingly. Does it push snow appreciably less than an SHO? I venture not. It rocks.


Probably not that big of a difference I was just hoping the dealer didnt rip you off. If you ever want, I believe the belts and pulleys are readily available from Ariens and I dont see any reason why they couldnt be swapped out to achieve the SHO's faster auger speed. Just ask Ariens to be sure.


----------



## detdrbuzzard (Jan 20, 2012)

nice looking machines you picked up pix man


----------



## PixMan (Feb 14, 2015)

detdrbuzzard said:


> nice looking machines you picked up pix man


Thanks. Though the Platinum 30 was used you really can't tell. I think I put more wear on it with the two storms we've had since I got it than wear it had for the year and 4 months the original owner had it.

I'm unlikely to go looking to make at an "SHO" version, it already far exceeds my expectations on how far it tosses snow. I only have to get get it across a 30 foot wide street, and it does that with the chute deflector tipped down a fair bit.


----------



## loneraider (Oct 26, 2013)

Very nice machines you have there, that one -two punch you have is pretty hard to beat. My deluxe 28 has the smaller 249 cc engine with the plastic tank. Uses a little less fuel but I'd love to have that 414 in it !!


----------



## PixMan (Feb 14, 2015)

Yours is just fine! 

You spent quite a bit less money but didn't get quite a bit less machine by any stretch of the imagination. I think you don't normally get hit as hard as we often do here on the east coast, so you may not have benefitted from the larger motor.


----------



## Tachead (Feb 19, 2015)

Why the heck do you even need a 2 stage snowblower in Toronto man? You guys barely even get enough snow to use a 1 stage let alone a 2 stage lol. An AX414 powered blower would be a huge waste of money and just needlessly burn more fuel.


----------



## loneraider (Oct 26, 2013)

Well I actually live north east of the GTA along the ridges & we get a lot more snow here than the folks in Toronto. A two stage is the way to go especially with the drifting snow ect...As for wanting a bigger motor
its the same reason I drive a litre bike Not that you need all that hp but it sure is a lot of fun.


----------



## PixMan (Feb 14, 2015)

So then why didn't you just buy one instead of the one you got? Even the "standard" Deluxe 28+ has a 15% bigger, 16% more powerful motor than yours, though costs about 20% more.

BTW, my motorcycle that I _ride_ is a 2011 Triumph Tiger 800 ABS. At only 94 crank horsepower it's weak compared to litre class bikes, but more than I usually need for 95% of the riding I do.


----------



## loneraider (Oct 26, 2013)

It was bought off craigslist but barely used when I got it & that was a couple of years ago. Since than the motors have increased in size some what. 254,291 306 414 , If & when the briggs gives out I'll see whats out there for repowering it. It has led's and ariens heated grips with auto turn and a melt buddy.


----------



## PixMan (Feb 14, 2015)

What's a "melt buddy"? New one on me, sorry for the ignorance.


----------



## Shryp (Jan 1, 2011)

PixMan said:


> What's a "melt buddy"? New one on me, sorry for the ignorance.


Small salt spreader that attaches to the blower.


----------



## loneraider (Oct 26, 2013)

A melt buddy is a bucket size salter that is installed on the frame below the hand controls. Its has a trigger release for the salt . I made the holes on the bottom larger to get more salt on the ground.


----------



## PixMan (Feb 14, 2015)

Looking like Ariens might be able to get a little bit more of my money, on top of the heated grips for my Deluxe 28.


----------



## gto4evr (Feb 6, 2015)

PixMan said:


> Interesting info there, gto4evr! I was told they used up some remaining AX414's when the supply of 306's ran dry.
> 
> BTW, I had a 2004 GTO from '04 to '06, put 48K miles on it. My favorite car I ever owned, hands down. I'd be a "GTO forever" guy if my wife didn't hate the fact that she couldn't drive the manual 6-speed. If I had room (and money) to buy her a spare car, I'd still have it.


I've had mine since my beginnings (71 Lemans was my first car 30 years ago and I still drive it as my summer daily driver) got a few GTO's laying about in various states of restoration and no room to keep or work on em. Nice thing is that the wife's totally into them too (her summer car's a 67 Lemans) Too many cars in my yard to have ever gotten near the 04-06 models (plus the cost!) but I know they were fast enough to blow my old school goats into the weeds. Glad you rolled the miles onto them, I hate it when guys park them in heated garages polishing the paint off never daring to actually drive them for fear of putting miles on the od and killing resale value of their perceived retirement account!


----------

