BENCHMARK 420cc 2-Stage Snow Blower - 30" | Home Hardware

Get the BENCHMARK 420cc 2-Stage Snow Blower - 30" at your local Home Hardware store. Buy online and get Free Shipping to any Home location!

www.homehardware.ca

 

if they are aware if this is a rebadged blower where there are some reviews to look at.

Looks kinda like a Husqvarna...

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It looks like a lot of machine for the money. The 5 year warranty is very generous by most standards. Does Home Hardware provide the warranty servicing? The warranty mean little if you don't have a factory authorized service center readily available.

 

Looks like a Re branded Dr blower if you ask me. ALOHA!!!!!

 

Welcome to the forum.

My guess would be it's manufactured in China.

That machine has some nice features like 420cc engine, trigger steering, articulated chute, heated grips and tracks which are not usually found at this price point.

The 5 year warranty is impressive, you will want to find out where the closest authorized warranty repair shop (I'm sure HH will not be doing warranty work) is and read the fine print before purchase.
I would give the machine a thorough inspection, check for flimsy build quality and the operation and ergonomics of the controls.

Track systems are more complicated than a wheeled machine. I would be concerned about robustness and parts availability at this price point and with not knowing who is the manufacturer. Do you actually need a tracked machine?

 

It looks nearly identical to the Hyundai HS7680E:

Hyundai 30-Inch HS7680E 420cc Two-Stage Gas Powered Tracked Snow Blower with Electric Start

The heaviest snow falls mean nothing to you when operating the massive power of Hyundai's tracked snowblower. A whopping 420cc engine makes snow days easier, and comfort features like heated hand grips, power steering, and electric start make it enjoyable.

hyundaipower.ca

There was a previous thread asking who makes Hyundai snowblowers, and the consensus was that it was some unknown manufacturer from China, and that Hyundai does not make their own OPE. They merely license their brand name to be used:

https://www.snowblowerforum.com/threads/hyundai-375cc-28%E2%80%9D-tracked-snow-blower.162087/

From that thread, here's a Biltema-branded one sold in Sweden, albeit with a different engine:

While I'm kind of impressed that they went with a Briggs engine, I'm always hesitant to recommend snowblowers like these because of parts availability or lack thereof. For the Hyundai snowblower, parts are available through Midland:

Midland Power Inc. 376 Magnetic Drive, Toronto, ON Canada M3J 2C4
1-877-528-3772 support@hyundaipower.ca
www.hyundaipower.ca
Imported / Distributed by Midland Power Inc.,

I suspect Home Hardware would also rely on Midland, but I'm not able to confirm that because HH doesn't seem to have the manuals available online.

 

That chute has the same forming tools throughout all three brands

 

Hi Ziggy65 and DB130, thanks for your replies. It does indeed seem identical to the Hyundai. Midland also provides parts for this Benchmark unit and I have contacted them. They confirmed they provide parts and that the manufacturer is indeed in China. So I will read reviews on the Hyundai unit. Thank you very much!

The Hyundai sells for $2,499 CAD so seems like good value at $1,899.

 

It would be good to know where their warranty service centers (shops that will actually be working on the snow blower) are located.

The Benchmark is definitely a good deal when compared to the very similar Hyundai machine.

I believe that you generally get what you paid for and would not buy a snow blower made in China.
IMHO, you will be further ahead (longevity, performance, break downs, resale value, repairs etc.) in the long run buying a better quality machine.

 

Here is the manual:

https://benchmark.midlandpowerinc.com/pub/media/benchmark/user_guides/BS7680_Manual_ENFR_2023-08-03.pdf

 

Welcome to SBF. If I was itching to buy a brand new snowblower, I'd buy an Ariens. American company, easy to get parts and plenty of others that own them, so years from now you'll be able to get a lot of support and YouTube videos etc for the new models....

 

Stick with Reputable Brands like Toro or Ariens, as Parts Support is Solid.

 

Home Hardware should be able to tell you where the authorized service centers are for the machine. If they can't it would be a no sale situation for me. Hopefully it's a local outdoor equipment shop that's close to you. Having a parts source is good but if you need repair assistance it should be close and readily accessible.

 

Which Ariens and Honda models would be the closest spec wise to compare to? I would like 30” and track wheels as I have a large 10 car driveway that has a slight sloping decline

Honda HSS1332CT ($4,999) and Ariens Pro 32 Rapidtrak EFI ($5,999) ?

 

I went on the midland power website and the service center locator shows one in my city of Niagara Falls that’s less than a 5 minute drive from my home

 

I've never used or owned a tracked machine. It's probably overkill for your application.

There's a newer Ariens tracked blower on Facebook for sale (just outside Kitchener). Price is $4100. You may be able to get it for $3500 (plus your saving the taxes). Here is the link.

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There's a newer Ariens tracked blower on Facebook for sale (just outside Kitchener). Price is $4100. You may be able to get it for $3500 (plus your saving the taxes). Here is the link.

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I reached out to the seller and the model is a 926069 Pro 32 Hydro which was the intro Rapidtrak from 2017. Reading on this forum that there were issues with the track system on these and they were discontinued soon after. Does anyone have any experience with this unit?

 

I meant the specific model was discontinued (Pro 32 Hydro) i believe in 2020. There was a forum poster on another thread that complained of the tracks being out of sync or something. I then found a similar comment in a YouTube video comment. Not sure if it was a common issue on those 2017, 2018 models.

 

While it's true you can't buy that exact model new anymore, Ariens offers several machines that use the same hydro drive/RapidTrak setup. The Alpine, Mountaineering, and Kraken models are that machine with added features.

If the tracks are out of sync, that means the tension on each side is not equal between the individual tracks. That is adjusted by tightening or loosening these nuts.

If I were in the market, I wouldn't hesitate to buy the machine mentioned previously.

 

Thanks for the info. The seller wants $3,750 for the unit. Seems a bit rich for a 6 year old model that retailed new for $4,500 CAD at the time.

 

Thanks for the info. The seller wants $3,750 for the unit. Seems a bit rich for a 6 year old model that retailed news for $4,500 CAD at the time.

That's the market these days. Prices previously would be much cheaper, but guys want top dollar.

Personally I would be looking at a wheeled model 9-11 hp for your situation. You'll probably pay $400-750 for something, but you have yo reply fast and be willing to drive up to 2 hours away.

The other option is to cross over the border and buy something in USD, then deal with customs on the way back.

 

I bought this snowblower online and had it shipped to the store. Before buying it I discovered that almost all parts are readily available and that there was a good warrantee. There is a warrantee center ( not that many of them overall) in my town but unfortunately I am familiar with the business and would not bring my machine there for any reason even warrantee. That didn't stop me though because I reasoned that I would likely do all minor repairs myself even if under warrantee. I've thought about the hassle it would be to get the machine in to an appointment anyway, so minor repairs will be done myself.
The machine arrived and I assembled it and checked everything out and was very pleased. It is well built and nothing really cheap at all on it that stood out except maybe the chute control which I could see might need some fairly regular adjustment or rerigging. Nothing overly problematic though. I was planning to haul it back to the store if there was anything wrong with it or if it seemed poorly built.
I have not owned a blower before but do know machinery of all kinds. I would not hesitate to buy this even if i didn't know that much about machinery as long as there was a repair center within a reasonable distance. I would talk to the people to make sure they seem competent and reliable. Most but not all shops can fix any small stuff in a reasonable timeframe. Anyway, a beginner knowledge of repair is going to be needed for all but the most expensive snowblower since you may need to replace shearpins.
As for made in China-most or at least a large amount of good equipment is made there. As db 130 pointed out the Hyundai blower is the same except its engine is a Loncin. There should be plenty of these two blowers getting sold so hopefully warranty network will improve since both Hyundai and the Benchmark will be the same center.
For me I will only use this once or twice a year on my steep to very steep (depending on who's looking at it) long driveway on the west coast so it is perfect. If I lived in the interior and was going to use it a lot then I might consider a Toro, Ariens etc. This machine is not built like those and does not have the huge dealer networks but they are 2.5 times the money.
I suspect the technology is years old maybe 10 or more but was probably mass produced by MTD or whoever at one time, so should be reliable

 

Forgot to mention: The Briggs engine is a 1650 series that has a cast iron cylinder insert. The auger is 12 inch while similarly powered Ariens and other high end machines have a 14 inch auger.

 

Just ordered one through HH. It will be here in 7 days. Can’t believe it’s only $1999

 

How were you able to order one in store? I went to my local store and they didn’t have any in stock. They called head office and they have no idea when they will be back in stock and estimated 6 plus weeks. Ended up buying one at a store that’s 1.5 hr drive from my home. Still haven’t picked it up as I need to borrow a truck due to it’s size.

 

I just called my local home hardware, they ordered it and said it’s coming from the Alberta Warehouse and will be here in seven days

 

Interesting. I’m from Ontario and my local store said they couldn’t order it as there was no indication of any stock to them or from head office.

 

Check with the manufacturer/importer directly Midland Power Inc., they're in Toronto. https://www.midlandpowerinc.com/ good luck.

 

Home Hardware head office is in St. Jacobs Ontario (near Kitchener -Waterloo).
They have 4 distribution centres across Canada - in St. Jacobs and Elmira, Ontario; Debert, Nova Scotia and Wetaskiwin, Alberta.
I would try calling the head office to find out availability.

 

Bought the machine, Home Hardware Benchmark because of the engine really, a few weeks ago and used it today first time. Initial impression, impressive and smooth. Needs some adjustment to the steering cables and the chute angle. Otherwise, I agree with someone who mentioned here that it is a lot of machine for the money. I will keep updating as the winter wears off.

 

thanks! I also just picked one up and still have to put it together. This is my first snowblower so may need some help with adjustments as you suggested.

 

Mine showed up today and wow 🤩 it’s a lot of machine for just under 2 grand.

 

It's October 2024 now and this machine is on sale at HH for 1699! I bought one, they had to order it in but it gets here in a day or two.