reviewer
708Glenn
Hickory Hills IL

Craftsman 88690 Snow Thrower

5 star rating


JAN
13
2009
*I live near Chicago IL, and my driveway is 100ft long and 21ft wide so when my 1982 Toro 724 puked its guts (through a rod) onto my driveway Saturday 01/10/09 and left me with 6 inches of snow and only the driveway finished, I was sick. I thought about replacing the engine, but with the age of the Toro it just didn't make sense. A little research on the internet helped me decide on a new Craftsman 88690 which is a lot cheaper than a new Toro and according to Consumers Reports almost a tie for quality. When I unpacked it and read the owner's manual I was a little disappointed to find out there is no throttle control, but I can say now that I've used it, I didn't miss it. This thing is great and throws snow further than my old machine! It starts easy, is much quieter too. Also, the Toro was a little front heavy and didn't roll very easy in neutral so it needed reverse, but the Craftsman is so well balanced that you don't need to waste time shifting into reverse. Just release the auger and drive clutches, wheel it around, depress the clutches and your off in the opposite direction. Kudos' for that! Another pleasant surprise is the way it goes through the slushy snow that the street plows leave at the end of the drive. My old Toro always jammed up there, but this thing just shoots the slop wherever you want it to go. Very impressed with that too! I notice that one of the reviewers mentioned that the shoot fell off after a short time and he didn't like the design. Personally I don't see anything wrong with the design. Just be sure to snap the lip of each of the 3 clamps UNDER the mating flange when you assemble it, and you won't have a problem. *I paid $788.49 on 01/10/09 after a $140.00 discount and an additional 5% off for using my Sears card. *You will notice a lot of power ratings are now shown in torque values instead of horse power. You can convert torque to horse power by multiplying the torque times the rpm which is normally 3600 rpm for these small engines and then divide by 5252. So for the Craftsman 88690 with the Briggs and Stratton 11.5 torque rating, the equation is 11.5 X 3600 / 5252 = 7.88 hp. That's more than enough power for my driveway. If yours is bigger you might want the Craftsman 881060 with the 14.5 torque rating. Just be careful not to throw snow over your neighbor's house.



I_thumb_up Craftsman 250cc 28" path Two Stage Snow Thrower is recommended by 708Glenn

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5 star rating
"It loves snow"
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5 star rating
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