from my limited experience.. some Ariens in the size range your looking at didnt have a cast iron gearbox housing.. and those seem to be shunned aside... usually they would have smaller diameter auger/impeller as well.. which is probably more a problem ( given one particular width) for when the snow gets deeper.. say 2 machines.. both 24in.. same engines.. one with 14in auger and impeller.. the other with 12in impeller and augers.. the 14in auger-impeller model will move snow faster..

from personnaly experience.. my father inlaw has an ST10-32.. my biggest cimplaing tring out his machine in 12-15inches of dry fluffy snow.. was that it shoots out the bucket anythign past 1st gear..like it wouldnt chew its bites kinda thing.. i think its got something to do with the low.. square bucket shape more than anything else and im assuming its less a problem with the narrower buckets of the same shape

 

I'd avoid the ST824s with plastic wheels: Need Rims/Tires for Ariens ST824S

 

Deluxe 28 SHO is not only the best bang for the buck Ariens machine out there, it’s the best bang for the buck snowblower across all brands (IMHO) out there. If you want a few more bells and whistles, the platinum 24” SHO has heated grips, and a little bigger engine. I have a 2019 Platinum SHO and love it. I have several neighbors with deluxe 28 SHO’s that I’ve had the opportunity to try. Both very reliable machines with excellent power, easy handling/ starting with auto turn, and able to handle any depth snow or EOD pile. The regular deluxe is a nice machine, you just have to be willing to slow down when the snow gets deeper say 6”+. My SHO is impossible to plug with wet snow. The engine torque/speed, and the SHO impeller/faster impeller just overpower anything I throw at it. I ran other machines for years (still have some of them in the stable). When I shopped for a new blower in 2019, it was my first Ariens, and I’d buy the Ariens again in a heartbeat. Being made in Brillion Wi, and being family owned for so long, parts are pretty easy to get & I'm guessing always will be. Ariens has many Great free online videos to help you if you do need repairs buying a used machine. You can download a more detailed repair manual online for free for most newer machines, which is nice. I don’t recall you giving much info about type or amount of snow you receive, but if you want a machine to last you say 20 years or so, and you get 80-100” a year (or more) with a couple of big storms mixed in), I’d avoid the smaller deluxe machines as I just don’t think you’ll be as happy with them in really deep or heavy wet snow. (there still good machines) Good luck, and always ready to answer questions about my machine, or share videos of it in use.

 

Since you suggest it would be an upgrade, what's wrong with the Toro that you think would be cured by buying an older Ariens using the limiting factor of a $500cdn purchase price? Just wondering. I have a couple of Toros and find them to be solid reliable machines,

 

Nothing is wrong with the Toro. I'm probably just bored and want to try an Ariens out. 🤣🤣
I had a single stage Ariens 522 as my first blower years ago. I don't have enough space to keep multiple blowers though. With the prices of used blowers especially newer ones at an all time high I'll probably just stick with the Toro.

 

Looks like, from these pages, that avoiding EFI Ariens is recommended.

 

I will not own an EFI machine…yet. Far too many problems with these machines and it’s well beyond one-off scenarios.

I made the decision to buy an Alpine Edition Rapidtrak from a dealer and there was two left. The dealer could not complete the PDI-set up for me because of an EFI issue, and both machines were defective right out of the gate. I could have got a Mountaineering and Kraken that were also being offered on promo pricing for excellent discounts, but I passed. I ended up missing out on opportunities to buy other machines because I chose the EFI Ariens.

I won’t make the same mistake again.

 

I have several Ariens snow blowers and the only one I did not like was my 11528 so I sold that one, I also did not like ,my old ST-824 it did not blow snow well. Have 2 10K series Ariens blowers that blow snow really well for classic machines. I just picked up a Deluxe 28, so we'll see if this one is better than the other 28 I had. Just need some snow.

 

what didnt you like about the 11528?

 

May as well stick with your Toro. They're good machines and you know what you have.

 

11528 is a beast for and older blower setup right

 

yea, I had one. it was an animal.
i just couldnt keep it....toooooo many ......i think it had an alum gear case--but i dont see anything wrong with that--just keep it full--they do leak a little....

heck, i sold my deluxe 28 SHO...not cause i didnt love it...but no room......

this last one..PRO 28....looks really strong...

might be close you your platinum 414.....

 

I can say with no hesitation that I am liking the new Predator 459cc so much on our 1336DLE PRO, that I am contemplating getting a 2nd Predator 459cc and putting it on our brand new 2021 28" Pro. Yes, it really does make that much of a difference. Still in the contemplating stage though.

I see that the price has already gone up $70 from what I paid. Gonna be hard not to get one if it goes on sale for what I paid.