Craftsman Snow Blower

I bet there are quite a few members out there who will chime in on this one!  I do have an older thread that is a good one on this topic, though, to get you started:

http://www.mysears.com/Lawn-Garden--6733/topics/Snowblower-Engines/posts#post_58612

You aren't finding reviews on Craftsman snowthrowers because they're new models this year, and as such there aren't any customers who have had a chance to use them yet! However, Consumer Reports has named one or two models as Best Buys.

In addition to the nice new engines, Craftsman offers greater power and better features at lower prices. A regular customer of mine purchased the entry level Craftsman Professional model for around $900, and his comparison shopping showed him that a comparable Ariens would have cost around $1500!

Toro is usually pretty comparable in quality to Craftsman products. In fact, many of our electric leafblowers are made by Toro. I'm not sure why the Toro guy was running down Craftsman, unless it was to scare you away from looking at it and get you to buy Toro. There's no reason to bash, unless a product is really bad. For instance, a $100 lawnmower is pretty much guaranteed to be garbage and should not be bought.

Toro makes a perfectly good snowthrower. Craftsman has a great assortment of high quality snowthrowers at attractive price points. If you compare the suite of features you get with Craftsman to Toro's, and compare the prices, I think you'll find Craftsman a great bargain.

Happy hunting!

I live in the Colorado foothills and have had a Craftsman for about 11 years. It has been a good machine. Maybe not quite as tough as some others but at half the price I can't complain much. It has always started and I have only had one mechanical problem in all that time. I broke the gear box for the auger. I blow a lot of stones through the machine and have put it under a lot of stress with many jams.

I was having trouble finding reviews on the 2009 models as well. I then found Movingsnow.com. They have reveiws on lots of machines. The craftsman is a best buy recomendation from them.

http://movingsnow.com/2009/08/craftsman-30-inch-stage-model/

Also, this machine is made by Troy-bilt. You may be able to find reviews on that. Although you won't beat the current Sears price

They still make Toro? :)

We have a gravel driveway 100 feet from the road. Would this machine be good for us?

Actually...they're both made by MTD....which makes Troy Built, Craftsman, Cub Cadet, Yard Man, ect.   The Craftsman version seems to be the best value.  Although I haven't used it for snow removal, I'm pretty impressed with the overall feel and build of the one I own. 


ColoradoDave said…

I live in the Colorado foothills and have had a Craftsman for about 11 years. It has been a good machine. Maybe not quite as tough as some others but at half the price I can't complain much. It has always started and I have only had one mechanical problem in all that time. I broke the gear box for the auger. I blow a lot of stones through the machine and have put it under a lot of stress with many jams.

I was having trouble finding reviews on the 2009 models as well. I then found Movingsnow.com. They have reveiws on lots of machines. The craftsman is a best buy recomendation from them.

http://movingsnow.com/2009/08/craftsman-30-inch-stage-model/

Also, this machine is made by Troy-bilt. You may be able to find reviews on that. Although you won't beat the current Sears price

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loveskiing said…

We have a gravel driveway 100 feet from the road. Would this machine be good for us?

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Sure, just set your scraper bar up about an inch by lowering the skid plates. They're snowthrowers, not cement mixers.

Does Craftsman sell Cement Mixers, too?

That would be so cool!

   To say that your Toro dealer was steering you wrong is not entirely true. Toro machines  have a more robust build quality than any of MTD made Craftman snowblowers. And to compare a Toro with Craftsman on price alone will only lead you to the most affodable machine. What you need to look at is value. Will a $700 Craftsman snowblower meet the needs of the average consumer? I  would think it will, providing proper upkeep. MTD has been around for years and the parts support is excellent. There are many 20 plus year old MTD made Craftsman snowblowers out there still blowing snow. I have a 14 year old MTD made machine and it still works like new.

I just bought a new Craftsman Snow Blower. It has a 357cc engine. When I saw a Toro at Lowes that looked identical and also had a 357cc engine I got suspicious. Further inquiry proved they were both the same machine- different in name only.

And, you can purchase a Protection Agreement on the Craftsman Snow Blower, to keep it roaring along, year-after-year.

So are all the new ones the MDT?  We just ordered the 88779 its the 2stage 179 cc.  Someone told me to watch out for the other engine make, now I cant remember what the name was

MTD has been making Craftsman snowthrowers for at leastas long as I've been with the company (2005), and probably much longer than that.

Thanks.  So we are OK getting parts and repair if we need to?

Absolutely.

purchase a protection agreement ( in home)  or  ( in shop )

protect your investment for winter's to come!

I just  purchased (5) 9.5 craftsman blowers for me and my siblings said to have Briggs & Stratton engines

BUT there is no throttle control...is this normal????????

Are they all the same long model number?

Sounds right, the Briggs had a red on/off switch on Craftsman models. 

It's clear to me that Craftsman has an issue with their side-to-side chute control on at least their new 26" models.  I've had two at home.  The first didn't work at all. The second is hard to operate.  After my second trip to the local Sears store, the salesman admitted that the in-store units work better because they were disassembled and the gearing was lubed with white lithium grease. They had a "used" 26" there with the plastic still on the front which hadn't been prepped which was hard to operate as well. Read some of the reviews on the 26" models and you'll see it's not just me.