# Help deciding



## Chernabog (Jan 23, 2018)

Need a new snow blower. Would like a heavy duty , minimum 30 inch. Was looking at the 34 inch TROY Bilt, 30 inch Ariens Platinum and 30 in Husqvarna. I came across this used oneARIENS ST1136 PRO Price: $1,200 (at Jayspower.com). Any opinions on this used one or should I stick with New? Thanks


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## cranman (Jan 23, 2016)

the ST 1136 is like my dream blower...but not for that kind of money. A n ST 10 32.....1132....12 32 12 36 etc are all lifetime blowers...if you can buy one right and are confident you can maintain it.....that would be my first choice. I've got a late 70's 32 in 924 series I did a tall chute, chains, 10 hp late Tec and impeller kit on I won't part with. I've got 2 36 in ST XX36's and a ST 1032 that I'm going to restore/repower. They are getting a little old, and most were used commercially so are beat. If you can get one for $300 to $500, and replace bushings, bearings , do some painting etc.....you'll have a serious machine.


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## jsup (Nov 19, 2017)

Buy local. There are examples of people buying on line and having problems.


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## RedOctobyr (Mar 2, 2014)

That seems like too much, to me, for a machine from the 80's. 

This is the machine's listing page: 
WINTER EQUIPMENT ? Jay's Power Equipment

He says an original MSRP of $3,000. But tractorbluebook shows 1988, and a price of $1,700 at the time: 
https://www.tractorbluebook.com/Equipment-Blue-Book/Snow-Throwers/Ariens/ST1136-Pro

For the 80's, selling new for $1,700 at least seems more plausible than $3,000. 

This is a thread on this forum about someone looking at buying one of those machines, if you wanted to take a look: 
http://www.snowblowerforum.com/foru...338-anyone-have-experience-ariens-st1136.html

I wouldn't try to decide between this particular machine, or going straight to new. I'd look around on Craigslist for a good used one, you should be able to find quite a bit at/below $1,200.


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## AL- (Oct 27, 2014)

Chernabog said:


> Need a new snow blower. Would like a heavy duty , minimum 30 inch. Was looking at the 34 inch TROY Bilt, 30 inch Ariens Platinum and 30 in Husqvarna. I came across this used oneARIENS ST1136 PRO Price: $1,200 (at Jayspower.com). Any opinions on this used one or should I stick with New? Thanks


If your priority is heavy duty , Toro also has a heavy duty( HD) line in the 30" range as one more option.


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## Shane Cole (Jan 15, 2018)

Poulan Pro Snow Blowers PR300ES


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## Jatoxico (Jan 6, 2018)

I believe Poulan would be essentially the same as Husqvarna.


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## Kiss4aFrog (Nov 3, 2013)

:welcome: to SBF Chernabog

I'd look at getting a used Toro or Ariens if you don't mind doing some of the upkeep and repairs yourself. That's just my preference. Very good support and parts availability all the way back to the early 70's, I'd toss in Craftsman if you can find an older one but they're more rare. I have an old three stage 1032 Craftsman Driftbreaker and it's built as well as the early 70's Ariens I have IMHO.

The Poulan if you're buying new, want a warranty and are ok with an economy machine. With care it will likely last you a decade or more just isn't heavy duty. But again that's just my opinion. I think the Husky is a step up from the Poulan.


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## RedOctobyr (Mar 2, 2014)

If you could share some info on the kind & amount of snow you get, the size of the area you have to clear, etc, that would help give people a little better understanding of what you're up against. You might get more-informed recommendations. 

I've heard good things about the Toros, it looks like their HD line goes up to 28". Of note, that 30" Poulan Pro 300ES has a 254cc engine. That's a rather-small engine size for a bucket that's 30" wide. The 28" Toro HD 1028 OHXE has a 302cc engine. Even that isn't a huge engine for that bucket size, to be honest. As a point of reference, my 24" Ariens has a 318cc of the same engine type (OHV), though my model is admittedly biased towards high-power-narrow-bucket. Ariens even makes a 369cc 24" machine. 

This is the Toro's page: 
https://www.toro.com/en/homeowner/snow-blowers/power-max-hd-1028-ohxe-38802

More power is never a bad thing. But if you're getting 3" storms, and it's dry fluffy snow, with a 300 foot driveway, maybe 30" and 254cc is perfectly fine. You'd still have a wide clearing width, and the light snow wouldn't load the engine as much. If, however, you get 12-18" storms, and it can be wet/heavy, with a 100 foot driveway, maybe more power, and a narrower width, might be better-suited. 

You could have a situation where you have a wide machine, but not enough power to move quickly through significant snow. So you'd have to take narrower cuts, or slow down, to avoid overwhelming the machine. Suddenly you're not able to really make use of the 30" width, in this example. 

PS- Chernabog, if that's a reference to American Gods, that's cool. It's an interesting show, and Ian McShane is awesome. I haven't read the book.


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## Madriver (Jan 19, 2018)

The Toro 1028 is a nice machine It feels a little more balanced. The motor is moved to the back a little more than the Ariens 30 inch 306cc deluxe which is balanced a little heavier on the front.
The Toro engines are supposed to have been tuned and load tested at the factory, I'm not sure if Ariens does this.

The gear case on the Toro 1028 is a good size but it's a clam shell aluminum type metal.

The Ariens of course is a top load cast iron case thats bullet proof and a lot less chance of leaking.

Another huge plus with the Ariens snowblowers is 28inch and up has double Auger belts, any torque the motor produces is going to make it to the augers.

I haven't really been impressed with the Troy built, Cub or Husqvarna snow blowers. The metal just doesn't seem to be as heavey a gauge as the Ariens blowers. Also you will find plastic used on the MTD units and Husqvarna.

I guess I'm a Ariens fanboy.


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## barney (Nov 21, 2017)

I'd love to know what the actual gauge of steel is on the various new machines vs the fabled antique heavy steel. 

I watched a vid awhile ago of a review of a new Toro and the guy used a gauge measuring tool and seem to remember that he said it was 11 gauge. Not sure if that's considered heavy or not but after having a close look at my new Toro i'm not worried about it's thickness.


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## AL- (Oct 27, 2014)

barney said:


> I'd love to know what the actual gauge of steel is on the various new machines vs the fabled antique heavy steel.
> 
> I watched a vid awhile ago of a review of a new Toro and the guy used a gauge measuring tool and seem to remember that he said it was 11 gauge. Not sure if that's considered heavy or not but after having a close look at my new Toro i'm not worried about it's thickness.


11 gauge is 1/8" ... buckets are not as heavy gauge as the frame


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## barney (Nov 21, 2017)

AL- said:


> 11 gauge is 1/8" ... buckets are not as heavy gauge as the frame


He measured the thickness of the Toro bucket at 11 gauge. I rewatched the video.


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## jsup (Nov 19, 2017)

If heavy duty is a big part of the decision, nothing is heavier duty than the Simplicty 860 and similar models. Nothing.

The newer the better, look for one with the Power Boost, it's like a CVT for the impeller, changes torque based on load.


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## RedOctobyr (Mar 2, 2014)

barney said:


> He measured the thickness of the Toro bucket at 11 gauge. I rewatched the video.


Got a link to the video? That would be interesting. 

My machine doesn't qualify as "old iron". But hey, maybe any sort of feedback is useful. 

My Ariens is from 2000. The bucket is 0.085", the chute is 0.075". The Ariens driftcutters are 0.140". All of these include 2 layers of paint thickness. 

The bucket would be between 13-14 gauge, from what I see. The chute is around 14-15. The driftcutters would be about 10. 

If the Toro's bucket really is 11 gauge (0.125"), then wow, that is thick, more than I would have imagined. Sorry, I don't have any older machines to check.


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## RedOctobyr (Mar 2, 2014)

jsup said:


> If heavy duty is a big part of the decision, nothing is heavier duty than the Simplicty 860 and similar models. Nothing.
> 
> The newer the better, look for one with the Power Boost, it's like a CVT for the impeller, changes torque based on load.


I had a 60's or 70's Simplicity, that thing definitely was kind of a tank. Too bad mine only had a 5hp engine; it was solid, but somewhat underpowered. 

I think the Power Boost system is a great idea, I wish other brands could use (license) it. It at least sounds like the best of both worlds, lots of throwing distance for light snow, and the ability to increase torque and slog through deep/heavy stuff.


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## jsup (Nov 19, 2017)

RedOctobyr said:


> I had a 60's or 70's Simplicity, that thing definitely was kind of a tank. Too bad mine only had a 5hp engine; it was solid, but somewhat underpowered.
> 
> I think the Power Boost system is a great idea, I wish other brands could use (license) it. It at least sounds like the best of both worlds, lots of throwing distance for light snow, and the ability to increase torque and slog through deep/heavy stuff.


I can't wait to see how it works. Patiently waiting for some decent accumulation.

Not only is it a tank, it maneuvers very easily.


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## barney (Nov 21, 2017)

RedOctobyr said:


> *Got a link to the video? *That would be interesting.
> 
> My machine doesn't qualify as "old iron". But hey, maybe any sort of feedback is useful.
> 
> ...


*At minute 7.35*


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## RedOctobyr (Mar 2, 2014)

barney said:


> I'd love to know what the actual gauge of steel is on the various new machines vs the fabled antique heavy steel.
> 
> I watched a vid awhile ago of a review of a new Toro and the guy used a gauge measuring tool and seem to remember that he said it was 11 gauge. Not sure if that's considered heavy or not but after having a close look at my new Toro i'm not worried about it's thickness.





barney said:


> He measured the thickness of the Toro bucket at 11 gauge. I rewatched the video.





barney said:


> *At minute 7.35*
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z2rIeKMhtSE


Finally got to watch the video. He says "95 thousandths", and then checks something, and says that's around 11 gauge. But that's not 11 gauge, for steel. 

Steel around 0.095" thick is closer to 13 gauge, from some references that I found. And of course the coating (paint, powdercoat, whatever it is) is also being measured, so the steel itself is a bit thinner. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sheet_metal
https://www.tedpella.com/company_html/gauge.htm
https://www.unc.edu/~rowlett/units/scales/sheetmetal.html

For aluminum, however, 11 gauge is 0.091", so maybe his reference was for aluminum gauge thicknesses. 

With that said, at 0.095", it's still 0.010" thicker than the 0.085" I measured on my Ariens. I'm impressed, assuming the difference is 0.010" of steel, rather than just a thicker coating. But it's misleading to call that 11 gauge, which is 0.125" for steel. Better to just talk in measured thicknesses anyhow, that's easier to compare directly.


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## barney (Nov 21, 2017)

Another member in another thread just checked a Toro and an Ariens with a micrometer and came up with 78-85 for both.


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## Cardo111 (Feb 16, 2015)

Madriver said:


> The Toro 1028 is a nice machine It feels a little more balanced. The motor is moved to the back a little more than the Ariens 30 inch 306cc deluxe which is balanced a little heavier on the front.
> The Toro engines are supposed to have been tuned and load tested at the factory, I'm not sure if Ariens does this.
> 
> The gear case on the Toro 1028 is a good size but it's a clam shell aluminum type metal.
> ...


Some good points here. I know in all fairness regarding the Ariens top load gear case you did say "less of a chance of leaking" I bought a new Deluxe 28+ a few years ago it was a rough winter the snowmageddon year and the manufacturers couldn't keep up with demand and quality control likely took a dip my unit had powder coat issues and a leaking gear case. However Ariens quality is usually up there and their customer support is top notch for the industry.

Additionally all Ariens Deluxe series or higher have the dual belt auger drive system regardless of size. The 24 inch models also feature the dual belt drive.


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