Electric Rake & Vac

I would buy it again for the price however, it is a little cumbersome.

Better than I expected, because I was told that gas powered lawn tools works better than electric. I have already ruined two of my gas blowers. This blower is heavy, but powerful just like the professionals use. It can blow away wet leaves and fine debris. It does a good job in vacuuming and mulching, but be careful when it comes to acorns and sticks. I also want to mention that this blower operates with two electrical prongs instead of three prongs were it is hard to find an out door extension cords that only have two prongs. An adapter may not work because it may not fit into the prongs protector collar.

Loved my previous Toro (similar to above) which lasted 7 years. Just bought the 51617 last week so can't rate dependability or quality. But when I started using the 51617, I found the balance to hold the unit was not like the previous one and didn't do as good a job. My dealer at Albrights told me I could use the blower tube and bottom inlet cover to my old one (which had a longer blower tube) and it would fit this new one. I was glad I saved the parts to my old one, and this was exactly what I needed to blow the leaves the desired distance and I could hold my hand near the handle speed control and have the proper balance that suits me. I recommend Toro change the blower tube to the longer one as before.

I have a relatively small home with a small yard. But my neighbors have huge trees that surround my home which drops a lot of leaves and such on my property. This little blower makes quick work of the clean up. In my opinion, for the price this is the best blower on the market. I also use it to dry off the car when I wash it. Great for that as well. The only thing I might want to change is instead of a hi/lo switch, I wish it was a wheel which would give me more control of the power. But I guess that might just make this blower cost more.

I recently purchased the Toro Rake and Vac model 51617 and within minutes of the first use was wishing I had bought one years ago. We live in a rural area with lots of trees and the Rake and Vac made short work of cleaning up leaves, even in flower beds!