Ariens Professional Rapidtrak™ (32") 420cc Two-Stage Snow Blower

The Ariens RapidTrak Professional 32" is designed & built for professionals, but is also widely used by homeowners who don't mess around when it comes to clearing snow. With the RapidTrak Professional 32", Ariens introduces RapidTrak Sno-Thro technology, an innovative system designed to combine the best of both wheeled & track Sno-Thro machines. The RapidTrak system is designed to move fast, matching the speed of wheeled Sno-Thro models. The track design gives users the option of using a full track system for ultimate grip & traction or adjusting the back wheel of the track up, creating a faster, more maneuverable system. In the wheel setting, it is easy to turn the RapidTrak machine at the end of a driveway or around obstacles. RapidTrak also includes a third setting, which allows the user to tilt the housing of the machine down towards the ground while in track mode, helping to dig into the snow & clean to the pavement. Track adjustments are easy to make. A trigger on the right handlebar allows the user to easily adjust any setting on the go. The Ariens RapidTrak Professional 32" also includes hydrostatic drive, which allows the unit to maintain power through all ranges & depths of snow, keeping the machine moving fast while clearing snow.

After using this only a few times I am getting rid of it. The Auto Turn is absolutely horrible and the machine will not go in a straight line even on smooth flat asphalt. Being a powerful track machine makes it even harder to control. I have tried all the recommended adjustments and it makes no difference.

So far it is excellent.

My use case: I live in a place where we get around 100" of snow per year, and I have a relatively steep gravel driveway about 100 yards long, then a parking area that's about 30' wide by 70 yards long. I don't get the dreaded end of the driveway pile thanks to a quality plow driver in my neighborhood, but I do have 2 rooflines that drop snow into my parking area.

A 32" pro-grade blower is beyond what I strictly need for my use case. But, I'd just as soon get the job quickly, and I need to blow the snow a fair distance.

This thing has gotten the job done. Ariens blowers can move snow. I've cleared all conditions of snow, from blazing new paths through 2' of a couple of months of accumulated snow, to crazy dry fluff, to wet heavy new snow, to packed chunky roof snow with ice mixed in, to full-on, no messing around slush. Like nasty, half water slush during a 3 day warm up to 50 degrees. This thing sent it like Larry Enticer. Until I see empirical evidence that there's a better brand of a blower, I'll be recommending Ariens to anyone who asks. The pro auger and impeller straight up to get it.

I use a tracked Honda HSS1328 at work, so I have that as a comparison, and a Honda was what I thought I wanted to buy before I started researching. Some things the Ariens does way better than the Honda:
1. Straight up moving snow. The Ariens will eat through the snow better. Stuff that would slow the Honda way down, the Ariens powers through. The Ariens will move through any given snowfall faster than the Honda and will take on nastier piles.
2. Speed. I already said it will move through snow faster, but it will transport way faster because of the larger sprocket driving the tracks.
3. Turning. The auto turn feature does work nicely, though you do have to adjust the shoes and auger housing when you get the machine.
4. Controls. The mechanical chute controls on the Ariens are far superior to the electric controls on the Honda. Super fast and super easy.
5. Handlebar height is way nicer for a normal-sized North American human on the Ariens.

Some things Ariens could do to improve:
When in track mode, the machine has a fair bit of downward pressure on the front. This is good, for sure. But the ramp angle on the shoes is pretty steep, so small bumps and inconsistencies in the surface can hang up the shoes really easily, and some wrestling is necessary to free it up. One way you could combat this is to add an adjustable gas strut to control the height of the rear idlers in the Rapidtrack system instead of the notched bar, so you could have infinite control of how much weight bias is on the front of the machine, similar to but better than what the Honda does. Also, just swapping shoes for longer ones with a more gentle ramp angle (such as the Armorskids) seems to satisfy most folks.

Mine did show up without the hex rod that controls the chute rotation, called PED and they remedied it for me. Looked like they just ordered the part from Ariens, then shipped it to me. They were helpful and friendly, but it did mean that I had a blower that wasn't fully functional for a bit during snow season. Could have probably gone direct to Ariens myself and saved PED the shipping they had to pay to send a part to me due to a mistake by the manufacturer.