On Wed, 29 Dec 2010 12:16:45 -0500, Jim Elbrecht
wrote:


The first pass is tough-- but usually you can shave edges off to do
the rest. I put drift cutters on mine. Just screwed some
1/8x3/4 stock to each side. It will cut through a 24" bank. [or
tunnel through a 36"g]


That's what I found worked well. Force through the first path, and
then just keep edging 4-6" or so into it. A drift cutter is an
interesting idea, but I'm hoping we don't get many more snows like
that.

It certainly wasn't effortless and I can see that having powered
wheels would make things oh so much easier, but really, for that
price, I couldn't have expected anything more.

This isn't to say that a Toro or some gas-powered monster wouldn't
have been better, but they cost a lot more. Nor do I know that this
won't die in the middle of the next storm; I certainly kept fearing
that it would die in this one but each time it was just the plug
coming loose.

I'm betting that the single stage in your area might be the better
choice. It works better on wet snow than a 2-stage-- and you
don't need to worry about storing gas & oil. And you can work on
the things, literally; 'on the kitchen table'.

It was throwing the snow at least 10 feet - but it was so windy (~40
mph) that all it needed to do was get it up a few feet and that snow
was GONE.

And, best of all, the Significant Other has apologized for referring
to it as my "new toy". Ah, sweet victory!

I like mine because it is quiet enough and 'friendly' enough that both
my wife and kids have taken it for a spin or two. They won't touch
the 40 yr old, 7HP Bolens.

I'm not familiar with the snow joe- but suggest you get a spare paddle
and whatever breaks when you grab a large rock. I couldn't find
any parts locally for my electric Toro & had to wait a week the first
time around. Now I keep spare skids, paddle, blade, and the crazy
shear-mechanism on hand.

They are incredible little machines.

Jim

I'm not likely to hit a rock, I'm plowing a driveway and sidewalk -
but I did read in some reviews that it was a problem getting
replacement belts. The manual has instructions for replacing:

Rubber Plates
Scraper Bar
Belt
Skid Shoes

So it's probably a good idea to get those at least.