John Deere or Craftsman snow thrower?

[GBW]

Hey all.

 

In need of some help here. I'm looking at the John Deere 726E and the Craftsman 2-Stage Snowblower with 9.0 ft. of Torque Item #: 711 952 946 10.

 

These are very close in price so, what makes one better then the other? What would you buy? I know "nothing runs like a deere" but that's not a valid reason to buy one...

 

Thanks folks.

 

Geoff

Edited November 2, 2009 by GBW

[HTHM]

Well, here it is, John Deere is built by a dedicated name brand factory, while the Craftsman are built by the lowest bidder. That being said, JD has gone down in quality IMHO lately.

If you can afford it go to the Professional series.

PS: I bleed green.....

[basskicker09]

i worked at john deere i would not buy anything they make after seeing the quality they put out

[ketchenany]

I've had a Craftsman 4 hp 21 inch cut since 1989 runs well and does my needs.

 

Where abouts in Brooklin GBW? My son in law runs the CT store in Bowmanville and lives at Winchester and Thickson Rd. I visit as often.

[GBW]

I've had a Craftsman 4 hp 21 inch cut since 1989 runs well and does my needs.

 

Where abouts in Brooklin GBW? My son in law runs the CT store in Bowmanville and lives at Winchester and Thickson Rd. I visit as often.

You must not have gotten that Craftsman from him

I'm just around the corner from him, just a bit North...

 

Thanks folks for the replies. I was also looking at the Murray brand but wasn't too sure about them...

[perchslayer666]

Looks at Ariens snowblowers....the best quality in my opinion (and others!)

[johnnyb]

Rick O'Banion has one for sale on the OFC classifieds...can't remember the brand...just an fyi

[GBW]

I have looked at the Ariens units but it's more $ then I have planned for.

 

Yeah, I know Johhnyb tks. It was a yardworks one...

[DRIFTER_016]

When we moved to Grand Valley in the mid 90's we needed a snowblower being on the edge of the snow belt.

We ended up buying a 10 HP 28" Canadian Tire snowblower. It worked great for us except in times of heavy winds (we were in the open) when the snow would pack as hard as concrete. We would just call the neighbour when that happened and he would pull into the driveway with is John Deere 4 wheel drive 8 wheeled tractor with 8 foot wide double auger blower, took care of the problem in no time.

During the 10 years we were living there it got worked hard all winter long. We went through a few sheer bolts on the auger (gravel driveway), a couple of drive belts and a rubber clutch disk. All inexpensive and easy fixes. After break in I used nothing but synthetic oil in the engine and after 10 years of hard use it still starts first pull. A very good deal for the $$$ IMHO.

[Lunker777]

All snow blowers nowadays are pretty well created equal. The same components are generally used for multi-ple companies. Engines especially.

They will all break.... "A machine made by humans FOR humans WILL break !"

The deciding factors should be a little more then the name of the product !

I presume your buying the JD from Home Depot or something. BUT if you have a dealer local.... the John deere blower is what I would go with. Parts and service are readily available.Parts are over night and the shop is right there when need. When you buy a crafstman or murray your buying the product and then have no support afterwards.

If you live in an area where is snows regularly... you dont want to be with out the blower for days while the part comes in or while it gets shipped away to be fixed.

Also, if you can make it to a dealer, they have 4 more models to choose from..(6 in total ) and they have no payments, no interest for 6 months ! hahah

 

PS... I work at a John Deere dealer. I sold approx 20 snow blowers last year, and didn't have a problem with one of them !!! This year I have sold around 10... we haven't had any snow yet, so I can't comment on the performance !

[GBW]

Thanks folks.

Lunker777, if I go with a JD it's not going to be from a big box store. It will be from a dealer because of the support. I even asked the dealer what used items they had as I know the ones made a few years ago were good units.

[I'mHooked]

I picked up a Craftsman 13.5 ft/lb 27" path blower with power steering last November. It was $1550 reg on for $1050, seemed like a pretty good deal.

 

It's definitely one of the better investments I've made.

I didn't need to use the electric start at all. 1 pull only and it fired up every time all winter.

 

Did a great job of clearing. With the power steering, it literally turns on a dime without having to horse it around.

 

We still have to see how it holds up in another 10 years though!

[BillM]

I bought my Ariens from a JD dealership

 

2 Barrie winters so far and not a single complaint.

[dagoat_1]

i have a '71 JD model 110 still purrs like a kitten.

....thats all i will say...

[danbouck]

I have a plastic shovel that I painted green. I haven't had any problems so far!

[Dutch]

Need more info before reccomending anything.

 

How large is your driveway - gravel or paved?

 

Reason I ask - do you really need a 2 stage? I bought a single stage Lawnboy (toro) last year and have never looked back. It's a 4 stoke, so mixing gas is out, really helpful in the winter, not messing around with the correct mix.

 

We just have a double driveway, 2 cars deep and paved, so the single stage is perfect. Never had a problem with plow snow at the end of the driveway either. All my neighbours have big 2 stage throwers taking up a ton of room in the garage. It takes them twice the time to do the driveway as they are at the mercy of how slow the blower pulls them and 2 stage throwers leave at least an inch of snow on the driveway depending on how close you set the feet.

 

You may want to consider a single stage if you haven't researched them yet.

[GBW]

I haven't looked at those Dutch as I didn't think it would do the job. It's a paved driveway, 2 cars wide and 2 deep. I get a rather large pile at the bottom from the plow so this is also why I was thinking 2-stage... So, back to square one, HAHAHA

[Sinker]

I have a toro too. The thing is bullet proof. It will throw snow out of my driveway, over a 6ft fence into the ditch I put a belt in it a few years ago. Its gotta be mid 80's model. Just check the oil, fill the gas, and giver'. I've never even changed the plug LOL.

 

 

 

S.

[Rattletrap2]

GBW,

It does not sound like you have too large of a driveway to clear, but the things you need to take into consideration are:

1) How long do you expect the machine to last?

2) Will you rely on this machine to get you out of trouble if we get a serious snowfall?

3)How much will your budget allow you to spend on this item?

4) How far do you need to throw the snow?

 

I too looked at the Murray units at HD and almost bought one back in 2007 when they had them on sale. I have seen these and the CTC units in action and are for the most part cheap crap! I doubt the ones made today will last long at all with their plastic chutes and flimsy parts.

 

I do live in the snow belt with a large gravel drive. I use an 4x4 ATV with a 60" plow to clear the bulk of the snow and then use my Ariens 1128 to clean up around the edges and near the house. There is no comparison between the Ariens and the other units I mentioned. If budget is a factor, there are smaller or less expensive Ariens. As far as the John Deere units, I can't comment because I've never looked at them.

 

I didn't buy because of the name brand. I tried a friends Ariens first and realized that the quality was far above the others. I rely on these machines and need them to last.

 

Last year, Big Cliff pointed out that Tecumseh had gone out of business and they made the majority of engines such as the "Snow King". This is the engine on my Ariens. I believe that parts and support will be around for a very long time with the sheer number of these engines out there.

 

Anyways, good luck with your research and hopefully you will get what you need at an affordable price!

[hockeyplayerz_14]

i would go john deer.

[GBW]

humm, interesting... tks rattletraps2. so I'm back up to $1000 then, lol.

I need one to last for min. 5 years but I'll have 2 or 3 times the work load as I have 2 maybe 3 driveways each snow fall. Just helping out the retired folks around me when I'm out doing mine this season...

[snag]

Geoff,

 

I'm no expert, but

 

I find a nice dinner, or bottle of wine, or simply "doing" my neighbours driveway with their equipment (and showing them how to start it and maintain it) has saved me $$$ for the past 5 years!

 

Situations differ, respectively........

[GBW]

I know Grant. The problem is, he's had a stroke and she's not able to get out there and do the work so most of last season I was doing the driveway for them just so he could get out and go to the Dr's. By having the snow thrower, it will free up more time to take the kds ice fishing...

[snag]

I know Grant. The problem is, he's had a stroke and she's not able to get out there and do the work so most of last season I was doing the driveway for them just so he could get out and go to the Dr's. By having the snow thrower, it will free up more time to take the kds ice fishing...

 

Gotcha Geoff,

 

Well, take good care of them and they'll be employing the kiddies later!!

 

Cheers,

 

Grant

[GBW]

Oh, they spoil them all the time. LOL!

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