<p>Just went on Home Depot site. They have several and ship to store. Own Ariens and have no trouble. Very happy with electric start otherwise would not be able to start it till H came home.</p>
<p>Thanks Mablab. I’ve been trying to figure out whether I want to deal with the snow thrower myself. I once used the old one when DH was sick, and I ended up doing most of the sidewalks on the block because I could not get the darned thing turned around. Our driveway is short, but inclined. </p>
<p>We’ve been happy to learn that electric start is via electric plug. The idea of dealing with a seldom used battery was a turn-off.</p>
<p>The repair estimate came in at $500. So scrapping the old machine is a no brainer. </p>
<p>DH likes Ariens too. The Home Depot store itself is out of all models, but I’ll look more at their website.</p>
<p>Mine is a 7 HP Toro, it has been bullet-proof.</p>
<p>I do wish I had gotten the next size up, which had a taller opening. It’s not unusual for the mounds left at the bottom of the driveway by the town plow to be higher than the opening, and that is a pain.</p>
<p>Oh, bullet-proof sounds good! </p>
<p>For us, the interesting thing is that we would want good height. Our biggest use would be for those very deep snows where we do get a plow on the street (and a driveway mound). But narrow size is better. The 22"old one passed between the cars in the garage. The new ones seem 24"… or 26" to get a higher chute.</p>
<p>I have Ariens Classic 8524. H would have liked the 11 horsepower one but it was to tall for me.My driveway is alittle more than 170 feet and very wide by house.I have no trouble using this machine.Live in the northeast so it does get used.(not this year,thank God) My criteria was that I needed to be able to maneuver it and start it without help from H.Last big storm was 18 inches (last year) and I had driveway clear for husband to drive in after work.Only female in neighborhood who can operate their snowblower!</p>
<p>Holy cow, Mablab2, 170 feet is a long driveway! In our NY house, we lived on the corner and had 150 feet of sidewalk (and a small driveway) - just that was a chore. </p>
<p>I googled your model, which looks nice but is probably more than we need. There are Ariens compact models that might work well. DH will like the no-plastic. And 5 year coverage on the gear case sounds good too.</p>
<p>Ariens makes a 22" wide model:</p>
<p>[Ariens</a> ST22LE Compact SnowBlowersAtJacks.Com](<a href=“http://www.snowblowersatjacks.com/Product-Details/ARIENS/920013]Ariens”>http://www.snowblowersatjacks.com/Product-Details/ARIENS/920013)</p>
<p>(not recommending that site, I never used it, they just have a nice picture)</p>
<p>Thanks, notrichenough. That site is nice, with helpful video too. That 22" model looks appealing. The 24" model may have a little easier controls, but in our case compactness is probably a bigger priority. I think they both “throw high”. </p>
<p>The Ariens models seem a little more expensive, but based on feedback from here and other reviews it may be worth it.</p>
<p>Ariens is made here in WI and we traded in the old heavy one after 20 plus years for a lighter, more maneuverable model instead of fixing it a couple of years or so ago. Best decision ever. Much nicer to be able to clear the driveway without waiting for a pro or kid to be available.</p>
<p>Tis the season to re-open this thread 
</p>
<p>As winter approaches, we are shopping again. Since our driveway is small we really just need the snowthrower for deep snows. We want a 2 stage that is narrow (22" if we can find it - space between the cars is tight) and “throws high”. Consumer Report does not have an recommended 22" 2-stage.</p>
<p>I’m going to look at links above again. Also checking Craigslist.</p>
<p>OP here. We scrapped the old snowblower last spring - too expensive to repair. It was nice having some extra garage space, but we’ve decided to replace it. We checked Craigslist every now and then but never find a good used option. </p>
<p>Yesterday we purchased a 24in TroyBuilt 2-stage snowthrower at Lowes. It was $599. The manager was able to give free delivery due a promotion at our store. I’ll report more once we’ve had our first snowfall. (Hopefully that will be soon - there is a wildfire at Rocky Mountain National Park that needs cooler weather and moisture. _</p>
<p>If I had to do it over again, I would buy extra belts and shear bolts with the snow blower. The belt for the second stage tends to go pretty quickly and always when there’s 10 inches of heavy snow to move. That belt is almost always accessible without taking the whole thing apart. I would also identify the right torque wrench bolt size and have that one out. I actually put it on one of those torquing screwdrivers so it would be ready. Nothing is more annoying than losing your blade at 2AM with 80 feet of driveway still to clear. </p>
<p>And an example of hideous design. My first large snow blower broke a lot of shear bolts. It was a very snowy winter, very cold and I didn’t have time to check out why this was happening. I finally gave up and examined the insides: the thing was designed with the nut side of the housing bolts sticking into the chamber where the blades rotate. Any jiggle and the blade would hit the end of a bolt. I dug out a torque wrench, took the thing apart and inserted the bolts the other way. I checked the manufacturer’s diagrams; they showed the bolts as installed so it wasn’t an assembly error.</p>
<p>What’s a snow thrower? Asked the Texan who is enjoying 80-degree days in December? :D</p>
<p>Darn - we forgot to buy extra shear bolts. </p>
<p>Funny story: Years ago in the heavy snow in NY we went through a lot of them. DH and I were stunned when the salesmen tried to sell us stronger one… “they will never break!”. Ummmm… no… we want the shear bolt to break, not the expensive mechanism.</p>
<p>I know someone who substituted regular bolts for the shears. Wrecked the machine. </p>
<p>They sell shear bolts at Home Depot, Lowe’s, etc. so it’s not a big deal to get some. I made a little box of “snowblower stuff” that had what I needed for fixing it in the middle of the night. We now have a plow do the driveway because it is an arrangement with our neighbors.</p>
<p>It’s not a big deal to buy shear bolts (and hopefully a belt) at the beginning of the season. We’ll get some at Lowe’s soon. Also need to get oil and gas and get the thing tested/running. </p>
<p>DH is excited about having one with electric start. Happily we have an outlet right near the newly cleared out “snowthrower spot” in the garage.</p>