Cecil,
We have a pretty long driveway, so I purchased a garden tractor with a 42" single stage augur style snow blower 10 years ago. It is all Sears Craftsman equipment. The engine is a 20.5 hp Kohler...v nice twin. I take pretty good care of it; change oil and lube on on recommended intervals. The tractor also maintains/cuts 1.5 acres of lawn. In fact, I also have the 32" 8hp pull-behind roto-tiller (Sears) also. We bought and used all this equipment to prepare our yard from a bean field to a lawn, Donna-ski and I. It has all performed very well.
The snow blower rocks, but ya gotta have the ponies to dig in. When I hit a deep drift, the engine R's drop a little, but you can feel that Kohler earning it's keep...no problem.
You also need tire chains, and likely wheel weights.
