# If you were buying a new snowblower today, what would you buy?



## DavidS (Jan 22, 2019)

Just curious, if you were in the market for a new snowblower, what would you buy? 

Stage 2 or State 3?

Make/Model?


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## JLawrence08648 (Jan 15, 2017)

Stage 2, too many complaints about 3 stage not doing a good job.

Simplicity.


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## tadawson (Jan 3, 2018)

2 stage, most likely Ariens . . . oh wait, I just did!


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## Miles (Sep 16, 2016)

I'd buy a stage 2. The stage 3 seems like a gimmick and I am disappointed that Consumer Reports doesn't know any better. Maybe the stage 3 works best with sawdust at their testing grounds...

I'd buy the Honda 1332 or the top of the line Ariens Pro. I'd have to really look at both.


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## UNDERTAKER (Dec 30, 2013)

* IF Say I was to get a New 1. which I have pondered aboot it would be this Baby.:icon_whistling::icon_whistling: https://www.toro.com/en/homeowner/snow-blowers/power-max-hd-1432-ohxe-commercial-38844 or maybe even this.:icon_whistling: https://www.toro.com/en/professional-contractor/snow-removal/power-broom-38700 k:k:k:k:k: *


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## jsup (Nov 19, 2017)

JLawrence08648 said:


> Stage 2, too many complaints about 3 stage not doing a good job.
> 
> Simplicity.



What he said! Another vote for 2 stage Simplicity. Next after that Toro. The powermax is a nice machine for the money.


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## bigredmf (Jan 16, 2018)

DavidS said:


> Just curious, if you were in the market for a new snowblower, what would you buy?
> 
> Stage 2 or State 3?
> 
> Make/Model?



No to the 3 stage.


Gives us a location and annual snowfall for a reasonable recommendation.


Red


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## DavidS (Jan 22, 2019)

bigredmf said:


> No to the 3 stage.
> 
> 
> Gives us a location and annual snowfall for a reasonable recommendation.
> ...



Seems like everyone here doesn't like Stage 3! LOL.

Live in the Boston area. Snowfall could be a few inches to a foot a time. Brand new driveway with slight incline at the top. 7 car lengths long and 3 wide.

Snowblower will be garaged all winter. Not afraid to spend money as this is (hopefully) a purchase I make every 15+ years. I had a Craftsman snowblower that I loved from 2011 (9 horsepower). But that needs to be retired and time to get something new.

My dad, god rest his soul, always said get an Ariens. But that was 18 years ago at this point.

Thoughts!?!


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## JLawrence08648 (Jan 15, 2017)

Ariens is a good make. So is Toro. Any make will do the job if you buy the right hp to match the width.

There are people on here that have sold their 3 stage and went back to a 2 stage. I believe one person said he thought the 3 stage did slightly better on the EOD (driveway).


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## Miles (Sep 16, 2016)

DavidS said:


> Seems like everyone here doesn't like Stage 3! LOL.
> 
> Live in the Boston area. Snowfall could be a few inches to a foot a time. Brand new driveway with slight incline at the top. 7 car lengths long and 3 wide.
> 
> ...


Well, if your Dad said always get an Ariens, get an Ariens. They arguably are the best snowblowers on the market. I'd get the professional line with the hydrostatic drive and tracks. I like the Ariens Hydro Pro 28" ST28DLET 420cc Track Drive Snow Blower. I have a Honda HSS928, but had to get the upgraded chute and transmission modification. With a 270cc engine, the 928 is a bit underpowered. Going up to the 32 inch models means more cost and less space in the garage. With your size driveway, the 28 inch should be fine.


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## trellis (Mar 14, 2018)

>Seems like everyone here doesn't like Stage 3! LOL.

confessions of a past owner: It's a fine snowblower, but...

I had a 26" with the 357cc engine. Loved the engine, started right up and with normal snow it worked great. The steering levers also worked fantastic. Where I felt it struggled was with snow that would compress and compact. My feeling is that the angle of the front facing auger is not severe enough to cut through the snow and would contribute to compressing the snow as the blower pushed forward. Most likely something that the CR testers didn't find when they used wet sawdust as a snow/surrogate. When I would back up from a wall that I couldn't cut through I would see a flat circle in the middle. So, it all depends up on what type of snow your feed it.... good snow, it's a brute and it will clear out a bunch of snow. Compressed hard snow...


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## bkwudz (Jan 14, 2013)

dont see the benefit of 3 stage, that outer impeller just looks like its waiting to get broken or bent hitting something.

seems like a marketing gimmik, Right, "if 2 stages are good, than 3 are better" is what i'm sure they are hoping the non snowblower geeks are thinking


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## russ01915 (Dec 18, 2013)

Ariens Platinum 30 SHO. Best bang for the buck for around $1,800. Add extended warranty for $99. Machine will be covered for 5 years


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## Lunta (Dec 14, 2017)

A Yamaha YT660 2-stage. Apart from the engine oil bubbling out of the filling spout at the beginning of the season, it has been a perfect machine, and I'm still thankful to this forum for the original advice I received.


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## Hanky (Nov 14, 2014)

Stage 2 for sure most likely a Toro again.


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## barney (Nov 21, 2017)

I'd buy the new Toro PowerMAX 824.


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## tabora (Mar 1, 2017)

Having owned a tracked Honda HS80 for over 30 years since new:

_1. Honda HSS1332ATD (What I recently purchased after A LOT of research)
2. Yamaha YT1332ED (Support only in Canada, though)
3. Honda HS1336iAS (Slightly used, maybe? New is WAY too expensive)
4. Ariens Professional 32 Hydro RapidTrak
5. Ariens Professional 28 Hydro RapidTrak
6. Ariens Platinum SHO Track 28_​


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## russ01915 (Dec 18, 2013)

This was a poll taken on this site less than 2 weeks ago


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## Coby7 (Nov 6, 2014)

I would buy the exact same one again, a Yamaha YT624.


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## Cold1 (Dec 20, 2017)

Definitely 2-stage; 3-stage is just a gimmick, IMO. I'm 100% satisfied with my 28SHO, best blower I ever owned. Having said that, I think I would like to try tracks so if I was to buy one tomorrow it would probably be Honda or Yamaha.


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## CVNY (Nov 26, 2018)

Hss1332aatd


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## WVguy (Nov 24, 2018)

Ariens 24" Platinum, not EFI just carbureted. Storage is an issue when it's in the garage hence the 24". And since I just bought an Ariens Deluxe 24" a bit over a year ago the only thing the current one lacks is the bigger engine and handwarmers. And the handwarmers are an easy retrofit with the kit they offer, I might do that sometime in the future just for grins.

The EFI option is intriguing but I don't see much gain for a lot of possible hassle and expense if/when things go wrong. Carburetors are tried and proven, easy and cheap to fix and/or replace. With the dealer a bit over 1/2 hour away, just the round trip in my pickup probably costs slightly less than a new carburetor from eBay. As far as fuel efficiency goes, if I run it a lot that might be five to eight hours at most during a whole winter. Who cares about the fuel consumption difference for that amount?


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## SnowH8ter (Oct 8, 2018)

2-Stage. Propellers work good on aircraft, fans, air boats, drones etc. Not convinced they're an effective addition to a snow blower's auger/impeller system.


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## 132619 (Nov 20, 2018)

2 stage,toro,ariens or simplicity in a pro model grade line 

i have 4 -mtd made and branded 3 stage in for repairs right now. all lost the inner shear pin of the inner 3 stage fan, their owners unable to retrieve the broken part from the impeller shaft and field replace them,in each case,maybe the odd ones. 
repair is split the machine remove the auger and impeller assembly, remove broken pin and replace. assemble the machine

IMM
look for a machine you as the owner can, field repair by having a small stock of emergency parts .IE belts, shear pins, oil.


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## broo (Dec 23, 2017)

Probably a 2 stage Toro. A bit smaller than what I currently have (31") so I'd take a 28".

A "nice to have, but not mandatory" option for me would be heating handles.


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## Miles (Sep 16, 2016)

I like this Ariens rapidtrak too: https://www.snowblowersatjacks.com/product-details/ariens/926060 This is the newer model of the track, but Ariens seems to have done it right the first time. There is no call-back like the Hondas. The Honda 1332 does have that automatic sensor which stops the auger if it hits a newspaper instead of breaking a shear pin. This is an evolutionary jump for snowblowers. If you get a Honda, make sure it has the modified chute so it won't clog in wet snow.


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