HUSQVARNA ST121E
4.8
5
4
4
Good snowthrowing but with quick belt wear when busy
I bought the ST 121E to compare to my work partner's Toro and Honda single-stage machines' snow removal capabilities. These were used for large estate home snow removal contracts (each estate had several large concrete driveway areas, sidewalks and some stamped concrete patios and walkways). We needed clean removal, non damaging, durable and fast, good for deeper snow and all day usage.
Here is how my Husky ST 121E performed: It started easily. During initial break-in period it was not too easy to push over slightly rough surface of stamped concrete but it was much better after a little break-in wear. It was good from the start on good smooth flat concrete, but there was and still is a problem of getting jolted on the sidewalk expansion joints because of the scraper bar. The auger blades pick up snow cleanly and snow throwing distance is great. The chute aiming handle is great.
The ST 121E is easy enough to start every time with only a few pulls. Sometimes I needed to use choke when it only cooled a short time. It was light weight enough to load in pickup truck by myself, The handle was taller than the pickup with topper so the quick takedown handle was great.
I cleared snow at 5 to 6 estates about 4 times, and cleared snow at 12 other homes during and after several storms in January and February for a total of around 40 uses. Another crew person preferred it over a two-stage machine I was also using. Some snow was only 2" and some was over a foot deep, ranging from powdery to dense packed to crusty to slushy. The performance of the ST 121E was overall very good to excellent in all situations.
As for durability, the lights were at first great but soon did not remain on when operating and sometimes one was off then the other, or both off.
The ST 121 E auger blades wore down faster compared to my partner's Toro, which he used more than his Honda. Maybe it is because the ST 121 E also cleaned off the snow better it also wore down the blades faster. But the auger blades wore down on the edges and exposed the metal on the shaft ends to wear. The blades have to be replaced; the scraper bar is not yet worn down. I think the design is a little flawed here because the middle of the auger blades wore down too but still have the ability to pick up snow cleanly. The ends of the auger blades get more wear because they work harder to propel the machine than the middle of the blades. When the metal shaft ends spin in normal use they define too large a diameter of circle to be protected from scraping the ground once the auger blades wear down as they did. The metal ends, when rotating, stick out beyond the bottom of the curved housing. This exposed metal can damage expensive colored stamped concrete sufaces at the estate homes that the snowthrower was used at. I would hope that the auger blade shaft ends could be shortened so that this won't happen due to short blade life. The metal is also not a hardened steel so the shaft ends can bend. The blade housing can also bend.
The last problem was a horzontal crack across the back of the plenum in a location where the snow is propelled upward through the chute. It may have been caused by jolting and because of frozen cold plastic not being too durable when jolted. Or it could have cracked when a rock or another object was picked up and struck the plastic surface of the back face of the plenum and cracked it. It could have cracked when the machine was dropped a short distance on snow covered ground by a crew member during lifting.
While this ST 121E was used more in a snow removal business rather than a homeowner setting, it shows great promise for the homeowner. It has excellent power, snowthrowing performance and two nice features - lights and chute lever.
February 6, 2012
This product rocks!
I live in Denver CO, we just got 14 inches of snow and this snow blower just cut thru it like it wasn't there. There is plenty of power. Easy to maneuver the unit and the chute for throwing the snow. This snow blower is worth its weight in GOLD!!!!!!!!! I love it
February 3, 2012
cool features
I purchased the snowblower hoping to use it right away and it didn't snow for close to 30 days after purchase, I like the fact of no more mixing oil and fuel any more, easy pull start and the lights lit up for great visability for night use. Great power and performance. I looked on the internet at several other snowblowers and also went from store to store and physically touching each one, there were no questions about purchasing this unit once it touched it. Also the location I purchased it is a authorized service location, so no sending in for repairs. I would recommend this product to others, you won't be disapointed. Let it snow , let it snow....John , Des Moines, Ia.
December 11, 2011
Awesome machine
This is a great product. I am very pleased with the way it is constructed and how easy it is to start. Even though it has an electric start the pull start is so easy to use you don't have to bother with the electric start. I usually dread snow but now I can hardly wait for the first snow fall so I can try out my new toy. I keep starting it up just to play with it and to show it off to the neighbors. everyone who sees it has something nice to say about it.
November 23, 2011