Luckily, homeowners can look to a trusted name in outdoor tools — Craftsman. This beloved household name for power tools and outdoor equipment also boasts some of the best snow blowers on the market.

“A lot of people were looking for parts,” said Towle. (That wet, heavy snow can be hard on belts and carburetors.) Steve Hall walks a snowblower to his station for repair at Frattallone’s ...

And when we looked at a higher-end Craftsman model, the 30-inch 88396, $1,200, we saw the solution. Two-stage snow blowers have parts connected to the auger housing, called skid shoes, that ...