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Yard-Man 31AE5KLF701 9.5HP 26" 2-Stage Snow Thrower w/ Power Steering
Yard-Man Product Details |
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List Price:
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$1,099.99
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Sales Rank: 70403
Yard-Man
Released: 2004-07-01 |
Avg. Customer Review: 
Media: Tools & Hardware
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Yard-Man 31AE5KLF701 9.5HP 26" 2-Stage Snow Thrower w/ Power Steering
- 9.5hp 4-cycle 2-stage snowthrower
- 26" clearing width 21" intake height
- Wheel drive with 5 forward and 2 reverse speeds and power steering
- New Single Lever joystick chute rotation control
- Fully assembled in carton
Yard-Man 31AE5KLF701 9.5HP 26" 2-Stage Snow Thrower w/ Power Steering
- Tools & Hardware: 0 pages (2004-07-01)
- Publisher: Yard-Man
- Label: Yard-Man
- Studio: Yard-Man
- Average Customer Review: based on 3 reviews
- Sales Rank in Garden: #70403
Click on Product Listings for Details!
Avg. Customer Review:
3 of 21 people found the following review helpful:
Customer Rating: 
Summary: huge but I got it cheap 2005-02-23
Comment: I got the craftsman 88790, a consumers best buy although I haven't used it yet, for $650.00 brand new in a box, I'm hoping I got a good deal. it's 9hp 28" powersteering w/ headlight. from the picture, its basically the same except the hp and I got 28".
15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
Customer Rating: 
Summary: Chute Control problems overshadow an otherwise good machine 2005-02-20
Comment: The trigger control power steering devices work well, as does the 120 volt starter. However the chute directional control often won't budge, and has to be assisted, and then it won't stay in the position you selected as engine vibration will cause it to move around throwing snow where you don't want it to go.
39 of 39 people found the following review helpful:
Customer Rating:
Summary: Great Snow Thrower! 2005-01-30
Comment: **************note: for those experiencing chute control problems, see my info on that below***********************
I actually own the 10.5 HP 31AE5MLG729 version of this same snow thrower. The only difference is the horsepower, as far as I can tell from reading the description and looking at the picture, and the fact that mine came with drift cutters, which you'll hardly ever use unless snow gets more than 21" deep regularly where you live, and you're unable to clear it fast enough.
The unit comes with oil in the engine, which needs to be checked frequently during the first 25 hours of operation while the engine "breaks in". It also comes with a packet of Sta-bil which is a fuel stabilizer, keeping the fuel from "gumming up" or degrading, and is enough to treat 2.5 gallons. Just make sure you don't put the Sta-bil directly into the machine - put it in the gas can when you buy the gas for the snow thrower. Also included on mine were extra shear bolts, which hold the separate blades of the auger to the central shaft, and which break apart if an obstructing object were to get into the augers, and save damaging any expensive parts. There's a handy little storage space for two of them on the handle area of my model.
Assembly is a piece of cake, but make sure you have a sturdy wrench to loosen the skid-shoe nuts to adjust them to the proper height. I had to use a ratchet wrench.
**********I also had a concern with the joystick chute controls, as the models in the store were very hard to turn. During assembly, I simply put a TINY amount of motor oil on the contact surfaces, and now the control works every bit as well as that for the Toro, which a "leading consumer magazine" reported as the easiest to use.
The machine has electric start, which means you plug a cord into the machine and the wall, push a button and voila...running engine. The engine has a two-step choke and a variable speed control (the only speed I ever bother with is the fastest). It also has the typical rubber primer, which you'd use when it's fairly cold out, and the engine hasn't been running for a while. As far as drive speed goes, there are six forward speeds, from "creeper" for really dense, wet, or icy snow, up to a fast "transport" speed. Two reverse speeds round out the drive.
I set the machine up in my walk-out basement, and to get to the driveway you have to go up stairs once outside. With a little assistance from me, and holding the handles down so the front of the machine didn't hit the stairs, this self-propelled beast went right up 5 shallow stairs! Once on the driveway, I pushed down the auger and drive controls, and we were off clearing the recent 14" snowfall. After 7 years of an underpowered single-stage snow thrower which clogged up constantly, I was amazed! The joystick control for the chute directed snow exactly where I wanted it....including OVER the street (approx 40' or so) and into the neighbor's yard! WOW. It also threw the snow directly over a shed (8' tall) I have and into the yard. I even cleared a path through the woods with ZERO effort!
After a bit of fiddling with the skid-shoe height, this thing now clears right to the asphalt, and doesn't get hung up on anything. Packed snow from the plow and snowmobiles running over the plow's packed snow? Not a problem. Simply slow the drive speed to let the serrated auger take care of the icy mess. 14" of snow? No worries-clears up to 21" deep easily.
Leery of two-stage snow throwers because they're hard to handle? Not so with this model, which has power steering. Simply grip the little trigger under the handle on the side towards which you want to turn, that wheel's drive disengages, the other wheel pushes it right around. You can even pull back on that side's handle and go right back up next to where you just cleared.
The unit does have a handy interlock which keeps the auger engaged when you let go with your left hand to change the chute direction.
As for fuel efficiency, I cleared my driveway and my neighbor's, including the packed stuff from the plow going by, plus a 300' trail through the woods, using about 1/2 of the 1-gallon tank.
Of course, nothing's perfect, and this was no exception - the chute wasn't quite adjustable a full 190 degrees as is common with the "crank" type models. Also, I had to adjust the drive speed selector...the machine was going forward in "R1", the first reverse gear. I'd give it 4.5 stars if I had the option.
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