I've had a Husqvarna 2017 ST 324P for just over 5 years now. I have had no issues at all, starts on the first pull every time, still has the original spark plug in it. I only use non ethanol fuel, drain the carb after each use and change oil after every season.
As I mentioned, this is a 2017 year model with a 24" bucket and a Hydrostatic Transmission, unfortunately this exact model is no longer available new. I bought this Husqvarna after I returned a brand new Honda HSS928 because of constant clogging and the Husqvarna has not clogged yet.

Yes, I would buy this exact same model again.

 

I bought a ST227P in late 2014 for winter 2014/2015. Take a look at my blog thread in this forum for a blow-by-blow. At this point I'm not sure that the difference between 200 and 300 series is huge. At the time of purchase, a 300 series gave a hydrostatic drive unit, but today's 300 series has the same friction-wheel drive that mine has. You now need to go up another step to 400 to get the hydrostatic drive. In the same period, other makes have done the same thing, forcing a higher purchase cost for the hydrostatic drive feature. I will share that the friction-wheel drive has been fine for my use. I bought a spare rubber ring just-in-case but it's still in the spare parts bin here.

I clear three to five driveways and several hundred feet of our shared private road here, so my use is bigger than a residential-class machine might normally see. I have several hundred hours on it now midway through its eighth season, and have only had one crippling incident with it, related to the reduction gear units for the "power steering" system. I managed to find enough replacement parts quickly to get going again in a few days, while permanent-fix hard parts didn't arrive until spring. Whatever brand you decide on, do make sure your local dealer keeps parts on his shelf for you, and plan on keeping "consumables" spares like skid shoes, belts and shear pins yourself.

Would I buy another one? Yes. For the duty it sees and for the price I paid for it, it's been fine. Would I like a new Honda or Ariens? Sure, but the one I have at half the cost has been perhaps a better deal at least for me. I have no issues breaking out the tools to work on things, and in the giant scheme of things I've had to service and maintain, this one is way down towards the 'easy' end. If you rely on a dealer or shop for those things, maybe ask them how they feel about your candidate machine.

And... Welcome to snowblowerforum!

We see more than a foot at a time maybe once or twice a year, so the duty tends not to be super severe. Most is 4-6" of 25-30 degree snow, somewhere between firm and soggy. For the duty you describe, assuming less than 18" or so at a whack, no worries. If you regularly see big snow loads and seriously depend on absolutely failure-free primary service, the lower-cost machines may not be the bargain you really need.

 

Thanks to both of you, glad to hear some positive feedback. Yes it would be nice to get a hydrostatic drive, but I don't want to go up to 400 series territory. I'd be looking at a ST324 I think.

Still seems there is quite a bit of difference between the 200 and 300 series. Items like a more stout gearbox, larger engine, larger impeller with an extra vane, chute extension, etc.

I'm fine doing all my own work on it, but that doesn't mean I want to be wrenching on it all the time. And like I said I do have the JD 4010 to do the main heavy lifting, and worse comes to worse, I have several neighbors within a half mile of me that could be called on to clear my drive if needed.

I don't see big heavy snow loads often, if we get a foot of snow in one dump that's usually a lot. Although part of its use will be to clear the snow we clear from the deck, since there isn't much space for us to push snow off our deck. So it will need to move a large amount of snow in a small area once we clear the deck off.

I had also been looking at a Cub Cadet 2x 24. The first machine I had to clear snow here was a Cub Cadet 782 with a snow blower attachment. It spent many hours clearing my parents property, and then mine. It was a pre-MTD machine but seemed indestructible. But I understand Cub Cadets of today aren't quite the same as they were several decades ago. And comparing the Cub Cadet and the Husqvarna, which are similar in price, the Husqvarna seems like the better machine.

Thanks again!

 

@Cd36 in your 1st post you mentioned thinking the Ariens costs $1000 more. The ST324 compares to the Ariens Deluxe 24. I see you're in Canada, but in the US the Ariens MSRP is only $100 more. Is it really that much different up your way?

 

This is just looking at a local dealers website, but the Ariens Deluxe Series 24 is listed at $2,641.

A Husqvarna ST324 can be had for $1,799. So I guess not quite $1,000, just $850 more.

 

Wow. $1349 and $1449 are the prices listed on their own websites. US MSRP of course.

 

May have to try calling and see if they can do anything on the price, but having them drop it $850 seems like a stretch.

Based on the specs alone it seems the husky should be every bit as good as the ariens, but I guess there's a difference between a collection of good parts and actually putting all those parts together well.

 

May have to try calling and see if they can do anything on the price, but having them drop it $850 seems like a stretch.

Based on the specs alone it seems the husky should be every bit as good as the ariens, but I guess there's a difference between a collection of good parts and actually putting all those parts together well.

Or perhaps the Huskey is a leftover machine that they're trying to move?

 

My 2008 Craftsman 14.5 B&S “AYP Husky clone in red”… they made a Poulan Pro version as well

 

Perhaps the toughest duty my 200-series sees is throwing snow I've raked off the roof. Half of the front of the house is porch, so I rake back about 10 feet when it gets to be more than three feet deep. Anyway, by the time it's off the roof and has fallen to the driveway, it's like wet concrete. It throws OK, but it's not a full-speed full-bucket-width bite. Slower and a fraction of the bucket to make sure the impeller speed stays up high enough to throw it where I want to put it. Your deck push-off will likely be similar in weight and consistency.

Point is -- You'll be able to get the job done with almost anything you buy. You will need to manage expectations some as far as how fast it chews and how far it throws. Know that you'll be doing that with almost any machine you buy. It will come down to how much "expectation management" you'll do per dollar spent. It sounds like you'll be doing walkways and smaller patches with the new machine, including the deck push-off snow. With a foot as the max per-episode throwing load, darn near anything will move the snow. How fast and how easy that will be sort of defines your selection options. Faster with a higher power-to-width ratio. But is it worth all the extra $$$ for the ability to move the same snow 10-20% further/faster?

In the giant scheme of things, I'm not at all budget-cramped when it comes to stuff like this. I still look at performance- and durability-to-dollars as a way to determine value to me. The gold standard in this forum seems to be high-HP Ariens machines, and the platinum level is a big Honda. Are those worth 1.5-2.5x the investment in a 300-series Husqvarna? Not for me and my particular use case. For your case?

 

$1799 is the price of a Husky ST324 at Canadian Tire. They were on sale a couple of weeks ago for $150 or 200 off.

I had a 27" - 305 cc Craftsman made by Husky for 15 years. It was a solid unit until the engine threw a rod. I would have bought another, but I had Honda envy from watching my two neighbours.

 

So, your curent husvarna model is a good model, today model have problem with the dash breaking and it mean you cannot shift. One of our family friend has just got a husqvarna, it has nice feature, but the cable management is awfull on it. The engine is also weird in design. the throttle and choke are on the same assembly. There is a red knob for the choke, and on the same assembly you have a little gray piece for the throttle,not a bad design in itself but you have about an inch of clearance between the choke/trottle and the muffler. Might no be the same as what you are looking to buy but if I was you, I'll be looking to buy the same model has your current husqvarna.

 

Just perusing the current Husky specs 224 vs 324. They come with the same engine and drive components. (edited: see later comparison) Look pretty much the same, but in pictures the auger bearings and skid shoes are a bit different. There's a chute extension too. The 324 weighs more, but part of that is the included weight kit. Ad copy says nothing about metal gauge or number of paddles on the impeller, so more hands-on research would undoubtedly help. There's a few $hundred difference in the US MSRP numbers. But same size engine suggests to me that it's not ready to do more work, only that there may be some beefier bits than the 200 series.

PhilThefarmer's comment about the concentric knobs for the choke and throttle don't apply to the one I have. They are separated from the muffler shield by several inches of metal shield over the carburetor. Those controls get used for start-up, but once you decide to do some work the engine runs on governor speed control. Some may like the single paddle control on the B&S engines, with choke past the open throttle position of the paddle and stop below idle end. Six or half-dozen, to me anyway. The same LCT engine shows up on several machines these days.

 

Just perusing the current Husky specs 224 vs 324. They come with the same engine and drive components. Look pretty much the same, but in pictures the auger bearings and skid shoes are a bit different. There's a chute extension too. The 324 weighs more, but part of that is the included weight kit. Ad copy says nothing about metal gauge or number of paddles on the impeller, so more hands-on research would undoubtedly help. There's a few $hundred difference in the US MSRP numbers. But same size engine suggests to me that it's not ready to do more work, only that there may be some beefier bits than the 200 series.

PhilThefarmer's comment about the concentric knobs for the choke and throttle don't apply to the one I have. They are separated from the muffler shield by several inches of metal shield over the carburetor. Those controls get used for start-up, but once you decide to do some work the engine runs on governor speed control. Some may like the single paddle control on the B&S engines, with choke past the open throttle position of the paddle and stop below idle end. Six or half-dozen, to me anyway. The same LCT engine shows up on several machines these days.

Are you sure? Off hand I remember the 324 having a bigger engine than the 224, as well as a cast iron gear box and impeller, vs aluminum and stamped steel.

Gearbox is also 10 year warranty vs 5 year warranty.

 

Sorry -- I was looking at a searched comparison and it showed both with the 254cc engine. Obviously not correct.

 

No Problemo 😎

 

The 2017 year model ST 324P did have the 254cc engine.

 

I like the older Husqvarna machines (early 2000's). The newer ones use a lot of plastic and use cables to engage things. The older machines used all metal except for the large controls cover. Instead of all cables the older machines use metal rods for some controls. Cables freeze up, break, have to replace entire assembly sometimes. The changes seem to be about cutting costs (increase profit) and maybe cutting weight.

I would go with an Ariens if buying new today, Honda if you have the money.

 

If I needed a new machine and Ariens, Honda or Toro weren't available Husqvarna would be my choice but reluctantly. I feel they are hanging their hat on their name and expecting people to pay a premium for their machines that dont stack up to the other big players. They have done the same with their home owner hand held equipment too with many of the cheaper models being rebranded Poulan's or made in china. Their pro stuff is still top notch but they have cheapened their brand in the last decade or so.

 

I don't mean to be an arse here but I read a lot of comments based on gut feeling/ biased opinions made by others , not actual personal experience, I do agree the older model blowers with plastic panels hurt Husqvarna's reputation due to premature breakage of the un lubricated linkages but honestly even those models would have served their owners better if more diligent maintenance were followed.
I read complaints from all makes and models from Toros,, Ariens etc. it seems every brand has a weak point. Husqvarna blowers are no better but no worse compared to other snow blowers of the same caliber or price range, I have had my ST224 for 2 years now and when I compare it to my other blower(2012 model Ariens) that died after10 years of good service, both machines have good features and bad ones.
I am very happy with my ST224.what else can I say ? it has not given me a single reason to complain about, I love it's powerful engine the most. although it consumes more gas than my Ariens but I can live with that,.lol..

 

I’m somewhat interested in the st430t blower. Older reviews are quite bad but it seems the biggest complaint now is the chute that is part aluminum? I have a friend who got one this winter and he said there is no snow condition it can’t handle and we have had a few big dumps of snow, so at least I believe it is a capable machine. Just some other things to possibly worry about.

These machines are feature rich and around a grand cheaper than comparable hydrostatic models from Ariens and Honda.

 

I have a ST330 2018, first year with friction drive (~1000$ sheaper). Overall happy with it. But the new ones is not exactly the same, my has a lct414 while the new ones has a smaller lct389. I wantet looong throwing, big engine, sturdy design and big wheels. THE BAD Wires suck, from time to time they will freeze up. If you use force, you will break the plastic. Sometimes i get water on the friction wheel, frustrating as f.... Chute can turn only 180°, i would like a bit more. Closed auger bearings, if a rope or something gets wound up, its loads of work to remove it. It would be better if i could remove the bearings from the outside. -for me in norway, made in america with 3/8 bolts instead of metric is a downside (engine is metric). THE GOOD 14" cast impleller and long chute, throws twice as far than my neighbours similar size ariens. Eats everything, from water too fluffy. You neee to really feed it with the wet stuff, and it won't clog. Lot's of power from the lct414. Good traction from 16" wheels. Today the 200 series are "low tier" cheap stuff. 300 is more solid, can't find anything that's really cheap and crappy.

 

I have a ST330 2018, first year with friction drive (~1000$ sheaper)THE GOOD 14" cast impleller

I thought all Husky had 12"...Is that three blade impeller now 14"?

 

If my memory serves correctly, and it may not, most complaints with Husqvarna were with parts availability, plastic dash which was prone to breaking, and the use of cables instead of rods. I recall some owners being unable to get parts on machines only a few years old. This was pre-COVID. Of course most everybody has had supply issues of some sort the past couple years.

 

A replacement plastic dash console is about $50 on Amazon as I type this. I am in my eighth season with lots of use. While some have managed to break theirs, mine has been fine with well-lubricated linkages and cables. It also gets stored inside, out of the sun. And covered during the off season, so maybe less ultraviolet epoxidation (read: hardening and cracking) of the plastic.

Parts availability has been interesting, even before the Covid years. Stupid-simple wear parts could take weeks or even months sometimes from online suppliers. My local dealer keeps some pieces like belts, but scraper bars took a month in the first year after I chewed one up nicely. A "steering shaft" took almost three months after the planetary steering gear units chewed on it some.

Meanwhile, I've had much better luck searching Amazon and eBay by part number only for things. The parts are shared among the several "brands" that come out of the same factory, so a replacement like the lower plastic chute section labelled as a Craftsman part, same part number, is an exact match.

In its eighth season here now, I've upped the PM and inspection effort a bit, after identifying the weak spots discovered so far and reported by others here. I stock belts and a friction drive ring, made some much more durable poly skid shoes. I have spare drive section bearings after going through the planetary steering gearboxes a few times now, but also know to replace the grease in them annually. Cables and pivots get annual lubrication. I should probably start looking casually at spare cables soon, as there have been reports of failures trickling in lately. Mine has turned into a bit of a science project at this point, an exercise in seeing how long I can keep it alive, reliable and happy with carefully-planned PM's and a minimum of actual repairs along the way. Only once has the machine been unavailable for service, and that was while I had needle bearings in the little planetary boxes delivered.

The whole spellbinding saga is documented in the 'ST227P Running Blog' thread in this forum.

 

Late to party here but I'll throw in my 2¢ as well hoping it might help someone.

I bought my ST224 new in the fall of 2015 from the local dealer and was put together properly. (Note, not a big box store.) While it hasn't been used frequently any use it does see is almost always in deep heavy wet snow, hard deep snow drifts, and some very cold prairie temperatures. Going on its 8th winter now it's been working great and has never needed any repairs. The only thing I've improved upon it is changing out the crappy OEM Torch spark plug for a NGK. That small inexpensive item made a very noticeable improvement in the way it both starts and runs. As for the plastic dash if you keep it lubed properly it'll last. I feel most the complaints are from those who didn't lube and maintain their equipment well enough. Like most things mechanical they need preventative maintenance. Parts that rub, spin, or slide against one another need an appropriate lube. Seems most 'reviews' I've seen on the web never tell the whole story as to how well they were maintained before they needed repair. Yeah, things will break prematurely if not looked after properly but that's not necessarily a design fault. A good dose of common sense goes a long way.

Any-who, I'd buy another if need be but at my age likely not. More likely I'll be worn out before the blower.

(Disclaimer: Due to inflation my 2¢ is now probably 4¢ but only worth 1¢ if even that much.) Cheers.

 

^^^ Lots of wisdom in that post. ^^^

Can't say exactly how many times I've heard the "It worked just fine at first, then [something happened] and it's not the same anymore". Too often the [something happened] is really something that didn't happen, like needed maintenance. Or something that was done that shouldn't have. Happens on all kinds of mechanical stuff, and leads to frustration when it no longer works as needed or as we might remember from when it was "new".

I'll point the finger of blame on the user and service manuals as much as anything. No manufacturer really wants to scare off a potential buyer with a long list of mandatory service tasks, especially a buyer who may not be able to perform those services themselves. I could probably make a nice wine-budget contribution if I were willing to make service house-calls in the fall, especially considering those services should be done in the spring, at the end of snow-blowing season.

Back to those manuals -- they tell owners a little bit of what to do but not really how. On mine, there's no discussion about oil, break-in, change intervals. Only the guidance to check the level. When? Nope. Change it? No good guidance. The included engine manual has more, but that's TL;DR territory once the engine starts and runs the first time. Until it doesn't start when needed. For the rest of the machine, "common sense" is pretty much the guiding force. Fix things after they fail I guess. I casually preach professionally that 'good sense isn't common' especially when it comes to run-to-fail strategies on critical mechanical stuff. Things never seem to 'fail' on schedule for some reason. It seems to happen most when the need for not-fail is greatest. Hooda thunk?

So what does a comprehensive PM plan look like for a snow-blower? Some combination of regular inspection and mild care during the season, another for annual end-of-season service and PM, and a third for hours- based PM services. The third one also includes a K multiplier for the severity of the duty demanded from the equipment.

In my casual judgement, there's also a serious need for a list of use 'commandments', rules that need to start with "Thou Shalt Not..." and include such bad habits as ignoring skid shoe wear, 'shifting' friction-drive speed with the drive engaged, leaving slush to freeze in the bucket, leaving untreated fuel sitting in the machine, using 'old' fuel under any circumstances, expecting the augers to break up EOD ice by crashing the machine into the berm at speed... It's a pretty extensive list when you start thinking about it. Sadly, the only way that most users learn about such commandments is the suffering after the violation. The "weeping and gnashing of teeth" stuff. What's the best way to deliver the commandments to the new owner? The spectrum of users ranges from the wide-eyed optimistic new owner, the owner who buys cheap and just replaces, the cynic who suffered with all the good that mere common sense delivered, through the pseudo know it all online experts like myself, to maybe the fanatical replace every wearing part every year zealot who can then brag up how perfect his or her equipment happens to be. I write user manuals these days based on the Reader's Digest standard, which targets maybe a fifth-grade reading and comprehension level. That's the lowest common denominator these days. Then ASSume that the reader knows absolutely nothing about the subject matter, so lots of footnotes and references are included.

With some careful maintenance, I really do expect to get $thousands in work-performed from my $hundreds invested machine. Some of those $hundreds invested are actually post-purchase, and include hours as well as the dollars. I can easily increase my longer-term margins with those prudent post-purchase investments. I hope. Just respect those commandments.