Hi All,
Very new to tractors and this is my first post.
I just bought a used Kubota L3540 with LA724 Loader with Quick attach bucket, BH90 Backhoe, and Gearmore Top and Tilt BB 72 Box Scraper.
I need to dig many post holes for a pasture fence, 6" lodgepole posts. I found a used McMillen x975 Hydraulic Post Hole Digger with 6" and 9" augers. My tractor puts out 8.3 gpm (plus 4 for power steering) of hydraulic pressure and the McMillen rep i talked to said the x975 would work with my tractor (need 6-11 gpm). I also have heard that a non down-pressure 3-point hitch post hole digger is useless and that I will get very frustrated without a hydraulic down pressure auger. So.... my questions are:
1. Is the x975 a good choice for my set up?
2. If so, what is the best way to set it up on my tractor? (I like the idea of taking the bucket off the loader and attaching it up front so i can use the loader as down pressure and face forward as i work down my line of post hole locations. I guess another way is removing the backhoe bucket and running it off the back, but then i have to switch seats and get set up for each hole as i go from one to the other).
3. Will i need to install a 3rd hydraulic kit to run if off the loader? Or, can i use the hydraulics that would normally articulate the bucket to run the auger drive head and then use the boom up and down hydraulics to push the auger down into the dirt? No idea???
4. Is there another solution or other way to set this up i am not thinking of or missing that might work better (please don't tell me to forget my tractor and go rent a Skid Steer, even if that is a faster way, which i already know.... i am sick of renting and want to take my time doing it myself, so i am going to set up my tractor the best way i can and get it done). Also, i'd like to stay under $2500 on the entire setup, whatever it involves... that's my budget. I know i can buy a 3-point hitch post hole digger for a lot cheaper, but i want the best and fastest set up i can get with what i have.
The guy selling the used x975 wants $2000 for it and it includes the x975 drive head, 3' hoses with quick couplers, one 6" and one 9" auger both with 2" hex heads (36" long augers), and an attachment for a Wain Roy coupler that he used on his Skid Steer. He said that he will sell it with the Wain Roy plate, but is keeping the other half on his skid steer for his other attachments.
So there it is. That's all i know and am hoping someone can give me some good advice. I am very new to all this so i might not be explaining things exactly right or may even be missing a basic concept (i.e. i don't think i have a complete grasp on what kind of hydraulic set up i need to run the auger).
Any information or advice is greatly appreciated as i want to make a decision on buying the x975 this weekend.
Thanks,
jim
Very new to tractors and this is my first post.
I just bought a used Kubota L3540 with LA724 Loader with Quick attach bucket, BH90 Backhoe, and Gearmore Top and Tilt BB 72 Box Scraper.
I need to dig many post holes for a pasture fence, 6" lodgepole posts. I found a used McMillen x975 Hydraulic Post Hole Digger with 6" and 9" augers. My tractor puts out 8.3 gpm (plus 4 for power steering) of hydraulic pressure and the McMillen rep i talked to said the x975 would work with my tractor (need 6-11 gpm). I also have heard that a non down-pressure 3-point hitch post hole digger is useless and that I will get very frustrated without a hydraulic down pressure auger. So.... my questions are:
1. Is the x975 a good choice for my set up?
2. If so, what is the best way to set it up on my tractor? (I like the idea of taking the bucket off the loader and attaching it up front so i can use the loader as down pressure and face forward as i work down my line of post hole locations. I guess another way is removing the backhoe bucket and running it off the back, but then i have to switch seats and get set up for each hole as i go from one to the other).
3. Will i need to install a 3rd hydraulic kit to run if off the loader? Or, can i use the hydraulics that would normally articulate the bucket to run the auger drive head and then use the boom up and down hydraulics to push the auger down into the dirt? No idea???
4. Is there another solution or other way to set this up i am not thinking of or missing that might work better (please don't tell me to forget my tractor and go rent a Skid Steer, even if that is a faster way, which i already know.... i am sick of renting and want to take my time doing it myself, so i am going to set up my tractor the best way i can and get it done). Also, i'd like to stay under $2500 on the entire setup, whatever it involves... that's my budget. I know i can buy a 3-point hitch post hole digger for a lot cheaper, but i want the best and fastest set up i can get with what i have.
The guy selling the used x975 wants $2000 for it and it includes the x975 drive head, 3' hoses with quick couplers, one 6" and one 9" auger both with 2" hex heads (36" long augers), and an attachment for a Wain Roy coupler that he used on his Skid Steer. He said that he will sell it with the Wain Roy plate, but is keeping the other half on his skid steer for his other attachments.
So there it is. That's all i know and am hoping someone can give me some good advice. I am very new to all this so i might not be explaining things exactly right or may even be missing a basic concept (i.e. i don't think i have a complete grasp on what kind of hydraulic set up i need to run the auger).
Any information or advice is greatly appreciated as i want to make a decision on buying the x975 this weekend.
Thanks,
jim
Last edited:
