# For all owners of 24" platinum show or equivalent, please help!



## Forcefed4door (Jan 26, 2016)

I want to pull the trigger on one of these beast. Surfaces I will be using on, paved driveway and town side walk, a bit bumpy and uphill, but pretty level. I assume I shouldn't have issue with auto turn? And this gas cap ordeal, I read I can remove the strainer for easier to put it back on? I don't wanna strip it out because the other thing I read was its an absolute gas hog with a small tank which is a big downfall. So I will be filling it up every time I use it. Anyone have an estimate run time on a full tank? 

I also see a guy had a stalling issue out of the box. He blamed bad gas. Anyone else have any other issues I should know about before dropping 1500$? No doubt I wanna make a purchase and have no worry for the next 10 years of use. 

I did purchase a 24" cub 3x. Then cancelled the order after reading it blows through sheer pins on the center auger, absolute terrible design. So now I'm not messing around with my purchase. Thanks for reading.


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## knu2xs (Jan 6, 2015)

I'm on my second season with my Platinum 24SHO and have 
no complaints, although a larger gas tank would be a big plus.

Based on the description of your driveway and walks (other thread) you have it made. 
Below you will see a pic showing our main drive, which goes almost all the way down to the 
yellow house in the background. The part of our "top area," not shown, has about the same 
pavement as you described with enough room, elsewhere, to park another dozen cars.

My SHO handles it with ease, except when large, hard, 
wind-packed drifts are involved, hence the chains.










On top of that I have a secondary driveway that until you get 
to the top is essentially a "two-track," just like you would 
find going through the woods (center hump.) Once up to the 
top it has a large open area where 25-30 cars could be parked.

Cut off to pole barn driveway............










I've never timed how long I can run on a tank of gas due to the variables involved, 
which change from session to session. Sometimes it's drifting, sometimes not. 
Also, because I can be so far from my gas, which is kept in the garage, I just refill 
prior to heading to certain areas and have yet to run out of gas. I noticed that this year 
it seems to be using less gas, but that could be due to the conditions I've dealt with so far.

I don't even know if my gas tank came with one of those filter screens, 
if it did I took it out prior to using it for the first time.

Earlier I said that you had it made, where I have it made is that I have 
unlimited room to toss snow and the SHO definitely tosses snow.


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## Forcefed4door (Jan 26, 2016)

Have you had any gripe with auto turn? Any tips on how to avoid that engagement while wanting to go straight


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## knu2xs (Jan 6, 2015)

Forcefed4door said:


> Have you had any gripe with auto turn? Any tips on how to avoid that engagement while wanting to go straight


I've used mine with the stock skid shoes, Ariens poly skid shoes and 
two types of ArmorSkids and have had no problems with AutoTurn.

I did have a little "wandering," very little, but nothing like I expected 
considering the conditions I have to deal with. For years we were plowed 
out and it created a drop off from the lawn to the driveway in many places. 
While blowing one of my skids can be 4-6" higher than the other when 
doing the edges, that's when I experienced a little "wandering."

On our main drive I have that step up to the lawn on one side and on the 
other I drop off into a cultivated field. I found that the chains has made the 
AutoTurn become a total non issue, even when I drop off into the field.

The bottom line is that I like "my" AutoTurn........


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## mastaboog749 (Jan 15, 2016)

Sadly I don't deal with Arien's new enough to really experience this "Auto-Turn" thing I keep reading about? What did they upgrade the differential and it just turns on sometimes? Honestly I use snowblowers from Ariens that are 30 to over 50 years old and they run great so I figure a new Platinum has to be a beast.


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## Forcefed4door (Jan 26, 2016)

Good point on grassy side of driveway. I like to clear a few feet of driveway so one wheel will be in the lawn and one on the driveway when I do the edges. Is it gonna be a mofo to get it to go straight? And I have 2 cars to get close/go around while cleaning up. Don't want it to wiggle into one while getting close to them


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## uberT (Dec 29, 2013)

Forcefed4door said:


> I want to pull the trigger on one of these beast. Surfaces I will be using on, paved driveway and town side walk, a bit bumpy and uphill, but pretty level. I assume I shouldn't have issue with auto turn?
> 
> *AutoTurn is at its best on smoother surfaces. A better experience will be had by fitting poly skids ($30). *
> 
> ...


Myself and one other guy had stalling issues from brand new. I don't know how old the gasoline was the dealer used, and then it's been sitting for a couple of months in my basement. As I noted in my write-up, I added a quart of TruFuel and it seems like it sucked it dry in about 15 or 20 minutes. So, perhaps the run time with a full tank will be ~ 45 mins.

FWIW, my other two Ariens have similar screens in the fill throat. They haven't been problematic but I fill far beyond the indicated "full" level.

The four key elements of smooth running with AutoTurn are:



proper alignment of bucket to tractor
correct tire pressure
scraper bar not set too low
Use of poly skids or ArmorSkids


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## knu2xs (Jan 6, 2015)

Forcefed4door said:


> Is it gonna be a mofo to get it to go straight? And I have 2 cars to get close/go around while cleaning up. Don't want it to wiggle into one while getting close to them


 My wandering, prior to the chains, was minor, but, your mileage may vary.


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## vmaxed (Feb 23, 2014)

I put ArmorSkids on and have no problems with AutoTurn


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## uberT (Dec 29, 2013)

In defense of Arien's AutoTurn, it changes the scope of who can run the machine.There’s no arm-wrestling with this 250 lb chunk o’ steel should your wife or teenager need to cover for in your absence, or they take up a liking of being out in the wild, in the midst of that big storm!! The machine turns effortlessly. My wife could never have managed my old locked axle MTD machine.

With electric start and AutoTurn, Ariens delivers a game changer…assuming they remember to turn off the choke and don’t run over things k:


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## Forcefed4door (Jan 26, 2016)

Decision decisions...


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## Catbob (Jan 26, 2016)

*Ariens Auto Turn*

Please read the forum with heading Ariens auto turn, that may help.


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## 1894 (Dec 16, 2014)

Forcefed4door said:


> Decision decisions...


 You know you want it . Nobody here ( myself included ) is going to try and talk you out of it. We all want to see pictures of *your* new Plat SHO .
So find your local dealer and get it :wavetowel2::wavetowel2::wavetowel2::wavetowel2:

Then you can take this:



and play around in this :



And make it look like this for your dog :


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## Forcefed4door (Jan 26, 2016)

st324p, is that huqavarna any good? People keep suggesting to look at one of them. Not to many reviews on it . And not the greatest reviews either. Is the ariens delux any better on fuel? 45min run time with the sho would take 2 fillups if I decided to do my old man's drive that's almost 1/4 mile long


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## 88racing (Jan 20, 2016)

Decisions decisions .....its up to you in the end

That's what I told myself when I purchased a platinum 30 SHO




Good luck


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## Forcefed4door (Jan 26, 2016)

88racing said:


> Decisions decisions .....its up to you in the end
> 
> That's what I told myself when I purchased a platinum 30 SHO
> 
> ...


Do you absolutely love it without a single regret?


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## Forcefed4door (Jan 26, 2016)

Let's say I wanted to clear a half width worth of 12" heavy wet snow. 1 wheel in the snow the other wheel is on the pavement. Is the auto turn gonna wanna fight me?


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## vmaxed (Feb 23, 2014)

Forcefed4door said:


> Let's say I wanted to clear a half width worth of 12" heavy wet snow. 1 wheel in the snow the other wheel is on the pavement. Is the auto turn gonna wanna fight me?


NO..........:wavetowel2:


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## Forcefed4door (Jan 26, 2016)

Haha ok . I'm getting this over with. Gonna get it from snow blowers direct


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## 88racing (Jan 20, 2016)

Forcefed4door said:


> Do you absolutely love it without a single regret?


When I went to the dealership I had thought I'd wanted a 24 SHO.... Test drove it and loved it but size wise it was a bit smaller than what I needed. 

I was retiring a 11 hp 30" blower and wanted to keep the same width... That's one reason I went with the 30" SHO also why I wanted to purchase a platinum series or above is the counsel controls are one of the best features. Couldn't stand the Deluxe series with reaching over the controls to adjust the chute direction. 

The first outing the steel skid shoes fought the surface of my driveway which is a coarse brushed finish but by putting the Ariens poly skids on, they made it a night and day difference.

Everyone's needs and situations are different...what model and size one individual likes maybe totally different from the next...IMO


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## canadagoose (Dec 5, 2014)

Forcefed4door said:


> I want to pull the trigger on one of these beast. Surfaces I will be using on, paved driveway and town side walk, a bit bumpy and uphill, but pretty level. I assume I shouldn't have issue with auto turn? And this gas cap ordeal, I read I can remove the strainer for easier to put it back on? I don't wanna strip it out because the other thing I read was its an absolute gas hog with a small tank which is a big downfall. So I will be filling it up every time I use it. Anyone have an estimate run time on a full tank?
> 
> I also see a guy had a stalling issue out of the box. He blamed bad gas. Anyone else have any other issues I should know about before dropping 1500$? No doubt I wanna make a purchase and have no worry for the next 10 years of use.
> 
> I did purchase a 24" cub 3x. Then cancelled the order after reading it blows through sheer pins on the center auger, absolute terrible design. So now I'm not messing around with my purchase. Thanks for reading.



That's too bad about the Cub. It doesn't blow through shear pins. 1 or maybe 2 people posted that they broke shear pins. 99.5 % of Cub owners don't have that problem.


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## ProParts (Jan 27, 2016)

Not sure if you already pulled the trigger but we have some Platinum's available: Ariens 921038

Give me a shout if you have any questions!


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## ADD1212 (Jan 29, 2016)

ProParts said:


> Not sure if you already pulled the trigger but we have some Platinum's available: Ariens 921038
> 
> Give me a shout if you have any questions!


Can you tell me the difference between the Platinum and Pro models?


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## ProParts (Jan 27, 2016)

ADD1212 said:


> Can you tell me the difference between the Platinum and Pro models?


Pros have a bigger engine and are built for extended use. Plat + Pro both have the quick chute control and heated hand grips.


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## ADD1212 (Jan 29, 2016)

ProParts said:


> Pros have a bigger engine and are built for extended use. Plat + Pro both have the quick chute control and heated hand grips.


Thanks for the quick reply.


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