When I got mine from Home Depot they had free shipping so that was a good deal. Now that Amazon is charging sales tax in Indiana the price winds up being a straight comparison once shipping is considered.I'm not super concerned with having it for/during this upcoming snowpocalypse - but more for in the future as I'm just getting tired of clearing snow - especially the stuff at the end of the drive that they plow up into my drive since I'm on a cul-de-sac.
Trying to stick with one available on Amazon Prime - will save me a ton on shipping. Freight for one of these things without it is $100~150 from what I've seen but $0 for Amazon Prime.
With a two-stage you can also put snow on the neighbors porch. Depending on your current state of mind. (Make that purple)Snow blowers are awesome. It's like being a super hero who can shoot snow at things. Then you can do your neighbors sidewalks, driveways call kinds of fun things.
Tough it out this year and buy a snow blower when they go on sale this spring. Save 25-40%.
Are you set on a new machine?
I bought a late 1970's model Arien's about 5 or 6 years ago off eBay for $100. It's old...but it still runs good and it will throw the hell out of snow. 5 forward speeds and reverse. Pneumatic tires and chains. I was kicking around the idea of buying a new machine...until I used it yesterday and thought to myself...why? There is absolutely nothing wrong with the one I have. Other than it isn't electric start. And I can add that on for $50-$75.
There was a good Snapper listed on here close to you but it sold already.
With a two-stage you can also put snow on the neighbors porch. Depending on your current state of mind. (Make that purple)
Snow blowers are well worth the "investment", we use ours every 2-3 years and every single time it's worth the money we paid for it on that single use!!!
I would *love* to have something like that as I know I'd have it long enough that when I got my property out in the sticks I would still have it - and being quality - it would still be operational.We purchased this Ariens last month and have used it twice during the last snow fall. Even if we only get 3"-6", it is the drifts we get living in an open area that makes this snow blower pay for itself. I am sure it will get a work out today if the snow fall predictions are accurate.
Looks nice - about what did you pay for it?I had a Craftsman 9hp 2 stage that was OK but got stolen out of my garage so I went and bought a Toro Power Max 828 OXE and couldn't be happier. It kicks butt. Smooth and powerful and easy to use. My drive is about 100 feet long and I often have to change the angle of where the snow goes and it has a hand control that points both the direction and the height. Yeah, I paid a lot for it but it was worth it.
No way I could justify this to the wife - it would be easier to justify a new pickup truck with 4wd and a plow haha.
That's exactly what they do to me - and it's always pretty packed and a pain to dislodge.Regular MTD 2 stage/5HP here. Owned it for 9 years. We live in the end of a cul-de-sac and the town always manages to leave a 2ft pile at the end of the driveway. It does a good job on ours and several neighbors driveways each winter.
Yeah - if I can find one that I know will last [i.e. 5+years, preferrably 10+ with proper maintenance] I'm ready to buy.If you have like you said 500-800 to spend you can get a real nice blower. You don't have to spend that much though. I got a middle of the road one from Home Depot a few years ago for i'm sure under 400.00. It's worked well and always started. I don't think I even used it last year though but that happens. It's one of my best investments that I hardly use but the time savings in doing the driveway and sidewalks are worth it alone.
Looks nice - about what did you pay for it?
No way I could justify this to the wife - it would be easier to justify a new pickup truck with 4wd and a plow haha.
That's exactly what they do to me - and it's always pretty packed and a pain to dislodge.
Yeah - if I can find one that I know will last [i.e. 5+years, preferrably 10+ with proper maintenance] I'm ready to buy.
That said - I just did take a 1.5 hour time lapse of me clearing my driveway with a shovel... Compiling it now will post it ... soon.
Here is the video [time-lapse] of me clearing my drive. No music [boring, I know] I will add some later.
[video=youtube;TvPLqB8Zk_g]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TvPLqB8Zk_g&feature=youtu.be[/video]
So what do you think - should I pick up a snow blower?