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I am often asked the question, "what is my snowblower worth?" There are no hard and fast rules so let me begin by making some points.
I have taken in over 100 Gilson snowblowers in a wide range of conditions. If the machine is in working condition the owner sees the machine through rose colored glasses. He pictures it in "as new" condition and fully functional. The fact is that age, water, salt and use take it's toll. When I get a used machine I perform triage on it. In a 5 mnute examination I will almost always identify a dozen or more things that need attention. It may be an adjustment, wearing part or correcting for a part that was bastardized or substituted. A vintage machine getting looked at for the first time is almost sure to need several hours (and often much more) to make it mechaincally sound. It may run and even work but that does not mean it's sound or likely to be reliable. If you are not a DIY person the cost of getting this work done by a shop will soon make you wish you had bought a new machine.
There are many legacy brands that shops will not touch. With limited or no parts support they do not want to find themselves deep into a job with no parts availability. This would leave them in the misserable position of billing you to return a non working machine or eating the costs they sunk into your unit. There are many shops that sadly see Gilson machines in this light. The other gotcha is that every machine has it's tricks and procedures and it is difficult to find a technician that really understands your unit. The vintage machine owner wants to be prepared to go it alone. This is some of the headwind an informed buyer will offer.
NOTE: Professional engine service is almost always readily available for just about any machine. Just make it clear that you want the engine serviced.
With all of that considered I can't begin to appraise your machine no matter how many pictures you send or what you tell me. My standing answer is $50. give or take $25 for a complete machine that runs.
Created January 2007 ---- Updated September 20, 2021 |