CRAFTSMAN Performance 30-in 2-stage Gas Snow Blower Set

3rd winter with this machine

Bought this 30 inch machine (2022) thinking it would help solve my long 220ft hardtop driveway clean up. Since then, in oct 2024 I bought a 2005 Ford Excursion with a fisher plow set up. So the long driveway isn't as big a headache anymore ( I am 70 yrs young) I still needed a snow blower for the back of the house hard top area and in front of the back of the house double garage. So now you know my needs and the equipment I use. This machine is heavy. the actual snow throwing distance even with ...

Manufacturer Defect

Along with everyone else here, my machine just kept burning belts even when it was brand new first use. I contacted Craftsman and they told me that they don't make the machine and to contact MTD. I found an MTD service center near me and brought the machine over to them. They immediately knew what the issue was, the auger pully that is on the engine crank shaft is a split pully (2 piece) and it was poorly manufactured. It does not fit the belt, the belt rides too high on the pully. They pul...

Does the job but room for Improvement.

Bought this 30" model to replace an older, smaller snowblower that just didn't work well any longer. First discovery was the snowblower was not assembled correctly from the start. The auger control cable was incorrectly routed around the chute directing crank handle causing it to have excessive pressure on the lever, snapping the two bolts holding the bracket for the crank handle. After extracting the broken bolts, I replaced them with new ones, adding lock nuts on the back (original bolts wer...

Awful

Chute adjustment is flimsy plastic and won’t hold the chute in place. You fight with it and it just breaks. Unit doesn’t go slow enough to move wet snow without riding up on top of it so it just makes a mess. Brand new unit couldn’t get the belts tensioned enough to move 3 inches of wet snow without burning a belt. Skip this one May have been a lemon, Our Lowes was nice enough to take it back. Instead of send it out for a second time for repairs with only two usages

Not Overly Excited

Spent the $ to get a top level snowblower and am not all that happy. It replaces a 2000 9hp Craftsman which has been a workhorse and a great purchase. The new blower has pros and cons. When working dry powder snow it is super....casts out with distance and clears to the pavement. However, on wet stuff performance is marginal. The auger clogs (maybe it has tines that are too narrow?) and the unit rides up and does not clear to the pavement. The speeds are awful! Forward a-is way too fast a...

Giant Waste Of Money

I bought this in February and have used it in two separate storms so far this year. My Husqvarna 24" 208cc out preformed this unit by leaps and bounds, unfortunately the auger gear box broke so I bought this craftsman. And its the worst mistake I've ever made, This unit has a big motor and first gear is just to fast, the auger turns to slow to keep up with the motor. It will literally ride up on top of the snow instead of cutting through it and blowing it, thus causing you to have to make multip...

New England Tough

My Husqvarna p227 went down during the biggest storm this year. No time to trouble shoot it so i went to Lowes and bought this Craftsman 30" 357cc Beast. Its light, and its fast, first gear on this Craftsman is like3rd gear on my Hus. It seems like the winters here in NH are changing, snow is wetter and heavy over the past few years, and my Hus. couldnt throw the heavy wet snow. This Craftsman can handle the heavy wet snow with ease. Its easy to use and my 83 yr old father uses this with relativ...

Description Wrong

For the features it is one of the best priced units available. I have not used it yet so cannot comment on how it works. The description above is not correct. It has a manual chute control. The following statement should be deleted: SINGLE HAND CONTROL and ELECTRIC CHUTE CONTROL : Guide your snow blower with one hand, allowing you to adjust the chute, speed and other controls without disengaging the drive. No more cranking with the 4-way electric chute control. Craftsman does make a model wh...

Disappointing

The product was incorrectly assembled. It also sat outside in the weather for a year and had rusty parts when it was delivered. I had to return it and was extremely disappointed with the product. Went and shopped elsewhere.

After the 1st year it wont start every year.

this is a great machine, as long as you never need to use it. After running fine the first winter, it needed to have the carburetor rebuilt before it would start. No easy task due to the design. Now this (the third) winter, it once again refuses to start. The carb is a cheap off-shored combo of plastic and aluminum, showing where the corners are cut for the big box store models. I should have went to a local dealer and bought there.