Craftsman 277cc Snowblower 28" path Two-stage Reviews

After last winters' record 32 inches of snow fall here in Maryland, I came to the conclusion that my 8 year old 24" $450 snow thrower was no match for it. Unfortuantely, it was impossible to find a good snow thrower once the snow had fallen. I did my research and found that **************** rated this model as a "********", and listed all of the great features you get for the usually highly discounted price of around $880. I read reviews from all over the internet about this model, and the vast majority of owners were very pleased with the performance, quality, and features of this machine. It...

Great piece of equipment. Headlamp burned out, but never use blower in the dark. Notice that I did not give 5 star rating. Reason for that is that there is always room for improvement. This is definitly an adult machine, so no kids. Care must be taken when backing. Love the power turning. Really moves the snow with little effort. Had a little difficulty putting it together, and the shear pin clips really suck. Poor design on them. Overall I give this blower a 9.5.

Please, do not buy a Craftsman snow thrower.  This is the third and final time I'm going to ever work on this snow thrower.  I've had it.  I am an ex-aircraft mechanic of over 8 years.  I never wanted to be a snow thrower mechanic.  The following problems occurred within 6 months after the expiration of my 2 year limited warranty.  I apologize for being technical.  I just wanted you to understand the many different issues I had and not just say, "It's bad.  Don't buy it."

One note - even when operational, IMHO, it was just mediocre.  Starts very easily.

First, there are two handles, one...

This bad boy has been a dream to use in the harsh winter's of Park City, Utah. It starts of the first pull, throws all kinds of snow with ease, has great traction and awesome power.  The joystick feature is a engineering masterpiece.  My previous machine was a top of the line Honda; had to sell, needed the cash.  I was expecting a huge step down in performance when I bought this machine, works every bit as good, in some cases better.

I recently purchased this snow blower in anticipation for the upcoming storm dubbed (Snowmageddon 2010). I never owned a snow blower and this is my first experience using one. I will comment on my entire experience from purchasing the snow blower to using it.

The Purchase

My big concern when purchasing the snow blower was whether it would fit in my car. Luckily it did even though the box was pretty big it just barely fit. I drive a 2003 Mercury Mountaineer so anyone with a full size SUV or mini-van shouldn't have a problem picking this up and taking it home. If you have a small car I would consider...

I bought my snow-blower in January 2010 when were were suffering through some 100 year snowstorms in the mid-west.  I had used a Toro snow-thrower(single stage)  for 17 years but it was not up to the task of 5' snow drifts.  My machine came assembled, oiled and almost ready to go.  It's size took some getting used to but it made clearing our driveway and sidewalk much easier.  Overall if I had to buy this product again I would EXCEPT for my below listed beef.

At the time I bought this snow-blower it had a rebate for the snow-blower and the service plan I selected.  I followed the directions...

Well picked up my new snowblower and put it to work right away. Very happy to see it work its way thru 18 inches of week old snow. What use to take me two hours of shoveling by hand, now takes me 30 minutes and no more sore back.

I read the reviews before buying this unit and so far I am very happy even with the light. Yes it does have shadows from the chute but still gives off plenty of light to see where your going. It is so easy to start with the pull cord I haven't even tried the electric start yet.

I bought this machine on Friday and it snowed Saturday. So I got to use it right off. Within the first 5 min of use I broke one of the 4 shear pins. I guess I picked up a rock or something. It came with two extra pins and it was very easy to change and I was off and running again. The power steering was amazing. The first blower I have used with this feature. The snow was a bit heavy so it did clog up a couple times but the handy shovel/pick they give you worked great. I used the pull starter and it started on the first pull. It was easy to pull over too. Overall I am happy with the first use...

I purchased this Snow Thrower (Craftsman 277cc 28" path Two-stage Snowblower) to replace a BRAND NEW Yard Machine I made the mistake of buying from a ******* before I moved. The Yard Machine quit working after the first time used. ******* would not take a return because they claim it was a Big Ticket item.

Anyway, this Craftsman snow thrower is expensive, but if you want a machine that can handle deep, dry and wet snows (I used it in 22 inches of heavy wet snow yesterday), you'll be glad your standing behind this machine. Assembly was not at all difficult, just be sure to follow the owners manual....

I bought this model 3 years ago, and by the end of the last season the drive system was shot.  The repair shop told me they are getting rich off fixing this base model--which was introduced 3-4 years ago.  The design allows melting snow to seep down into the drive system and wash out the lubricant, and over the summer the parts rust together.  The whole assembly needs to be replaced, and the part alone is $220.  DO NOT buy this or any other models manufactured by MTD!!!

Higher Price does not always mean higher quality in the snowblower world. After only 5 seasons of use my competitor snowblower seized up during the first part of what was to be the worst three weeks of snow of the 2009-2010 winter.

I'm one who thoroughly researches for hours on end when I spend my money to insure I'm getting the best product for my money. We have a partial pebble driveway and I have a tendency to shear pins, bend augers and chute because the height adjustment was never very good on my brand X. I spent hours online and going to look at shops looking at new and used from Honda, Toro,...

I bought this machine in early December after a very heavy, wet snow (26-inches) that had drifted across my driveway, completely burying my car.  The snowblower handled the wet snow without a problem and I enjoyed clearing my driveway and sidewalk so much that I decided to do all my neighbor's walks and drives.

After the snowplow came by and cleared the roads, I was able to use this snowblower to cut through the big compacted snow bank they left across our driveways.

The quality of the machine is obvious once you use it a while.  It has the electric start, but I've never used it since starts...