Who is Maruyama? If you’re not super familiar with the company, you’re not alone. However, Maruyama has existed since 1895, and has traditionally had a presence as a major manufacturer of disaster prevention equipment. These days, Maruyama manufactures extreme-duty, commercial grade power equipment and sprayers for the worldwide agricultural and landscape industry. Representing this manufacturer’s commitment to making durable, reliable, powerful equipment is one of the company’s flagship products, the Maruyama BL9000-SP.
We recently had the chance to put the BL9000 up against some of the lawn care industry’s heavy hitters in our Best Backpack Blower Shootout. How did it perform next to some of the tried and true brands we all know and love? The short answer is, very well. This blower excels in the power department, and it has some other great features as well. But, while almost all the blowers finished neck and neck, the Maruyama BL9000-SP finished our shootout toward the back of the pack. So, what gives?
Power & Performance
We measured the power of all of the blowers in our shootout in three categories. Newton Force, Miles Per Hour (MPH), and Cubic Feet Per Minute (CFM) all factor into how we consider a blower’s power, as well as the much more subjective “seat-of-the-pants” test we like to implement from time to time. 
Starting off in the Force category, the Maruyama BL9000-SP cranks out 35 Newtons of force. This was a mid-table result in comparison to the rest of the blowers, however, most of the blowers all finished within 5 Newtons of each other. The differences in this category, for the most part, are negligible.
When we tested to see what kind of wind speed these blowers were generating, again, we found that the swings in performance between the brands were not all that much. All things told, there was a 30 MPH difference between the Stihl BR700 at the low end of the spectrum and the Shindaiwa EB602 at the top. The Maruyama finished in the middle, generating 189 MPH wind speed in 90° heat and 70% humidity.
At Wide Open Throttle (WOT), the BL9000-SP generates 785 CFM. The competition in this category was a good deal more divided, with the top 3 finishers providing far more CFM than the other contenders. The Maruyama finished 4th overall in this category. Are you starting to see a pattern? Keep in mind that CFM and MPH can drastically change based on the tip size, and where the measurement if being take in relation to the blower.
To learn more about how MPH and CFM testing differs, read our helpful article: Blower CFM and Airspeed: Why Are the Numbers So Far Off?
Where the Maruyama BL9000-SP really shone for us was in the much more subjective category of “feel.” None of the numbers confirm that the Maruyama is the most powerful blower that we tested, but it definitely felt like it. It didn’t even really stand out in our sandy swath test. But, inexplicably, when we fired up this blower, it just felt like this blower was doing the most work.
Run Time Testing
Not to beat a dead horse here, but the Maruyama BL9000 finished in the middle with our runtime tests. We use two tests to determine how fuel efficient a blower is. For the first test, we throw 6 oz of TruFuel 50:1 premix into the bone-dry tanks. We prime and start the blowers, immediately bringing them all to full throttle. At WOT, the Maruyama BL9000-SP ran for 5 minutes and 37 seconds. While this was definitely not the worst result, it wasn’t the best either.
After that, we ran the blowers at WOT on a full tank of fuel. Again, the BL9000-SP finished in the middle of the pack. At an hour and six minutes, this blower didn’t do quite as well as the Husqvarna 580BTS, but ran for almost 13 minutes longer than the Stihl BR700.
Feature Set
One of the things we really like seeing these days with pro-grade blowers has to do with active cooling. Basically, the concept works like this: the intake fan on the blower pulls air across the user’s back as it works, keeping the user comfortable and relatively dry. On warmer days, the difference between active cooling and no cooling features becomes noticeable. 
The Maruyama BL9000-SP also has some nice straps. Of course, all of these manufacturers include padded straps with their blowers, but some are definitely more comfortable than others. The BL9000-SP has a good amount of padding, both in the wide straps and across the back pad. The end result is a blower that felt relatively comfortable to wear around on longer jobs.
Final Verdict
So, as has been stated multiple times in this review, the Maruyama BL9000-SP finished in the middle of the pack in just about every runtime and power test we ran. And yet, it finished 6th overall. How does that work?
For one thing, the BL9000-SP was the joint highest priced blower we tested. With an MSRP of $589.99, it just costs more than other blowers that crank out higher numbers and longer runtimes. Granted, the difference in prices between all the brands only varied by $90 overall, but why pay more when the differences between the brands’ performances were almost insignificant? Of course, if you can find a deal on one, you’d be getting a great, comfortable, pro-quality blower for a better price.
The other thing worth noting is that almost all of the blowers we tested were comparable in almost all other aspects than price. While there was a clear-cut winner in the shootout, the top 6 finishes were all pretty close to one another. At the end of the day, you really can’t go wrong with any of the blowers we looked at. If you decided on the Maruyama, you can rest assured that the BL9000-SP has the power, runtime, and feature set to get the job done.
Maruyama BL9000-SP Features
“Air share” no-sweat backpack padding circulates air flow — user stays cooler!- Extra-wide, padded straps from chest to lower back for greater comfort
- Centered handle and flat top on blower makes transporting easier
- Spring-loaded ergonomic frame with four heavy duty shock springs
- Flat top cap allows for easy access to the commercial, two-stage air filtration system, which filters out fine particles
Maruyama BL9000-SP Specs
- Model: BL9000-SP
- Displacement: 79.2 cc
- Weight: 25.7 lbs
- Fuel Capacity: 71 oz
- dB(A) @ ear: 102
- Max Air Volume: 785 CFM
- Max Air Speed: 189 MPH
- Force: 35.0 Newtons
- Tank Runtime: 1 hr 6 min
- MSRP: $589.99
To learn more about the Maruyama company and their product line, visit Maruyama-us.com .
