On Sun, 07 Dec 2008 14:56:20 -0600, Steve Kraus
wrote:

I'm looking for a snowthrower recommendation.

We're in the Chicago area so we get dumped on now and then but the driveway
isn't very long and we have used a Toro single-stage (the old kind with the
straight rubber flappers and rubber vanes to direct the discharge) for
years but it's just getting too temperamental. I'm sure a single stage
with the newer curved rubber blades and central discharge chute will be
fine in terms of actually doing the job.

Here are the shopping considerations:

Electric start is a must.

Greatly prefer a model that has convenient system to re-aim the chute so
one doesn't to bend down to turn it with each pass. The old Toro with the
vanes had that but most current single stage chute models that I've seen do
not. Toro "Power Clear" with "Quick Shoot" seems pretty good in that
regard.

Would prefer 4-stroke-cycle but a 2-stroke is not ruled out since we've
dealt with gas/oil mixture for many years.

I know Toro has their 221QE (2-stroke) and 421QE (4-stroke) which fit the
bill but I want to know what else is available as the latter is around $800
which is a huge price for a 21" single stage snow thrower! What else
should I look at?



Ariens are excellent. You'll see a lot of them being used in
commercial applications because they work well, and live a long time.

A 4-stroke 2 stage Ariens of about 8 HP and 24 inch wide will run
around $800 or so. Take reasonable care of it and you'll still be
using it in 25 or 30 years.