The blower/vac unit itself is the best i have ever used.  it has plenty of power, it will suck up and shred anything from large pinecones to clumps of frozen leaves.

the problem is the bag.  it lasts for 10 uses or so, but then the cheap plastic zipper fails and the bag is useless.  troy-bilt customer service sent me 3 free bags after i complained.  the bags they sent me have a nice long zipper (like in the picture on this web page).  they lasted about a year total.  when i went to buy a new bag i got the original bag that has the short zipper.  it lasted a day.  now troy-bilt says thats the only bag.  and each bag costs $38 with the shipping.

if you are going to use the vac feature, this is not the unit you want.  i'm shopping for something else

update:  I have noticed that this blower (which is sold in lowes) comes with a DIFFERENT bag than the one you get when you go to buy a replacement.  Dont be fooled, the replacement bag will last you a daya before the zipper splits and renders the bag useless.
The blower/vac unit itself is the best i have ever used. it has plenty of power, it will suck up and shred anything from large pinecones to clumps of frozen leaves. the problem is the bag. it lasts for 10 uses or so, but then the cheap plastic zipper fails and the bag is useless. troy-bilt customer service sent me 3 free bags after i complained. the bags they sent me have a nice long zipper (like in the picture on this web page). they lasted about a year total. when i went to buy a new bag i got the original bag that has the short zipper. it lasted a day. now troy-bilt says thats the only bag. and each bag costs $38 with the shipping. if you are going to use the vac feature, this is not the unit you want. i'm shopping for something else

update:  I have noticed that this blower (which is sold in lowes) comes with a DIFFERENT bag than the one you get when you go to buy a replacement. Dont be fooled, the replacement bag will last you a daya before the zipper splits and renders the bag useless.