honda snowblower review

[cat]

Im thinking about buy a honda snowblower 24 in 6.5 hp model no. hs724tcd.
about $3000. new. Is this machine worth the money?. I have a one hundred ft.
driveway that is very steep.

[J&S]

I have used the Honda and it is a nice machine (Friend's machine). Works
well. However, when I bought I purchased from Canadian Tire. 4 year
warranty, 10.5 hp x 29.5" cut.
$1049.00 plus taxes. While it may not have the quality of the Honda in some
people's opinion, the price is much more realistic. At $3000.00 one has to
consider whether the extra value is really there. Having used both, the
Honda does not throw snow as far as my 10.5 and has a smaller cut.

Is the Honda a good machine? Absolutely.
Is it worth almost $2000.00 more? Not for me to say for you, but for me it
wasn't.

My 2 cents.

Hope it helps.

"cat" <chris...@roadrunner.nf.net> wrote in message
news:a0sl4v$dja$1...@horsefly.nf.net...

[Alan]

I did a real lot of reviews on snowblowers last year when I was buying....
From what I saw there were 3 top machines, Toro, Honda and Ariens... ( MTD,
Canadian Tire, Sears all came in a very distant second). I asked my
motorcycle mechanic and he said in his opinion the best machine would be a
Honda engine on a Ariens chassis, but didn't mention a specific one. He felt
Honda made the best engine, but Ariens was far ahead in body, gears etc...

In reviews the 3 mentioned were always top.

The Toro 8/24 (non power shift) was ~1900 + tax
The Ariens 8/24 was about 2300 + tax
There were no Hondas at the time so I didn't know their price (but you have
it)

My neighbor has a Honda 6 and I asked him about it. He said it was a great
machine but 6 wasn't enough, for the heavy deep stuff. He wished he had a 9.
Don't get me wrong a Honda is top quality machine and will last you a
lifetime and under 90% of circumstances the 6 is enough, but for the real
heavy stuff at the end of the driveway, it won't cut it (at times, I saw his
hurting last year), from what I have been told and seen.....

A few things to look at are:(not in any order)

1)weight, some 8s are heavier than others 13s, shows better quality.
2)chute, most plastic are to short to toss the snow high. Steel is better
3)options. some have loads of options for the same price as other with none,
perhaps just a good bargain, perhaps not.
4)throwing distance, further the better
5)local service/warranty
6)Auger. How aggressive is it?
7)Your needs

For a 100 ft driveway, that is steep, hummm tough call. A large machine
would be nice in that it would clear a bigger path, but they are a bugger to
move around.

When all was said and done I bought a Ariens 8/24 and am really pleased with
its performance. I can toss snow from my driveway onto the lawn across the
street (>50'). It is a pretty bare bones machine mind you and pricey too,
but there ya go.

Here are a few pics of mine and the small shed I build at the end of my
driveway to store it.

http://theexchange.roadrunner.nf.net/shed

If you want some specific info drop me a line

Good Luck

Alan

"cat" <chris...@roadrunner.nf.net> wrote in message
news:a0sl4v$dja$1...@horsefly.nf.net...

[Jeff Mackey]

we have the 624 model and have had it for about 11 years...when I was a
teenager, I used it every snowfall for ~6-8 driveways for about three
years...so the thing has about 25 years use or more on it, with nothing
but routine maintenance. We had to replace the cutter bar, belts, one
set of bearings, and regular oil changes of course...nothing we haven't
been able to do ourselves.

It throws the snow much better than any of the generic blowers, and
burns much less fuel. I once made $350 on one tank of fuel (two litres).

This is my testament to the honda snowblower...expensive to buy,
expensive to get parts, but seldom needs parts or servicing...the guy
accross the street has a sears model which needs servicing several times
each year, and I think he's on his second or third blower in the 11
years we've had one.

JM

[Gerald]

Back in 1988 I bought a Mastercraft snowblower,a 10-28, $11**.**from
that time I replaced 2 friction wheels,one set of axle bearings,one
cutting edge,an oil change every year,and a bit of lubrication on the
internal drive chains and bearings,and thats it.One thing I found was
the steel chute would not let the snow go very far,so I lined it with
Crazy Carpet,and a few pop rivets(heads in) you wouldn't believe the
difference this made,especially in the slush at the end of the driveway.
I do my driveway and a couple of others,all are fairly big,and I have
to say this is a good machine.Good luck.
Gerry.

[Jim McCrindle]

"Gerald" <g.a.sa...@nf.sympatico.ca> wrote in message
news:3C3212A3...@nf.sympatico.ca...

> Back in 1988 I bought a Mastercraft snowblower,a 10-28, $11**.**from
> that time I replaced 2 friction wheels,one set of axle bearings,one
> cutting edge,an oil change every year,and a bit of lubrication on the
> internal drive chains and bearings,and thats it.

>One thing I found was the steel chute would not let the snow go very far,so
I lined it with
> Crazy Carpet,and a few pop rivets(heads in) you wouldn't believe the
> difference this made,especially in the slush at the end of the driveway.

Agreed, Even the Sears service guys will recomend this. The steel chute is a
piece of garbage and just another piece of metal to rust. The lining of the
chute with plastic, ie crazy carpet, will allow the machine to discharge the
snow much more effeciently and throw it considerably further.

[Gerald]

I forgot to mention that if your driveway is steep,then you should be
looking at CHAINS,the snowblower don't mind how big the driveway is but
it has to have good traction.

[Vapour]

What I did last year was use a can of PAM around January.. Worked very well,
and got me through the rest of the winter on one can. :)

"Jim McCrindle" <jam...@roadrunner.nf.net> wrote in message
news:a0t7g5$k0h$1...@horsefly.nf.net...

[SteveL]

yea and one thing to remember are chains are $$$, at least they were last
year when we bought our MasterCraft.

And the person above who has teh ARIENS, your engine looks Identical too
mine from the pictures anyways. Might be different up close.

steve

"Gerald" <g.a.sa...@nf.sympatico.ca> wrote in message

news:3C325861...@nf.sympatico.ca...

[Alan]

also, If you were planning on spending that much I suggest you go to fun n
fast and look at a bigger Toro.

Like this one
http://www.toro.com/home/snowthrowers/gastwostage_powershift/1028.html

"Alan" <aand...@thezone.net> wrote in message
news:a0smuq$e67$1...@horsefly.nf.net...

[Jeff Mackey]

Tracks are much better than chains anyday, especially for steep
driveways...you can get the snowblower on your patio and the works with
tracks.

[Alan]

here is a pretty good page....

http://home.gwi.net/~spectrum/snowblower.html#Hints

"cat" <chris...@roadrunner.nf.net> wrote in message
news:a0sl4v$dja$1...@horsefly.nf.net...

[PKS]

Get the Honda but without all the fancy extras. If it takes more than 2
pulls to start it, something is wrong and they are very easy to pull over
you don't need the electric starter. I have never seen a snow blower that
could touch a Honda in how far they can throw snow (wet or powder) and the
track system makes it efortless to use. I worked at a Honda dealership for
alittle over 3yrs and the only thing that goes wrong with them happens when
bonehead people don't replace or adjust the cutting bar and ski's. The
constant scrapping accross pavement actualy wears out the auger housing or
when they are used to throw more crushed stone than snow. (The housings just
arn't as thick or as heavy as most others) You really need to use any other
brand and then use a Honda and there would be no question about which one to
buy!!

"Alan" <aand...@thezone.net> wrote in message

news:a103jd$pcu$1...@horsefly.nf.net...

[Alan]

a can of silicone spray would be much much better. Coat the auger, chute
everything with it.

"Vapour" <dfva...@nospam.netscape.net> wrote in message
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