Posthole Digger PTO post hole digger experiences

[joerocker]

I have a medium duty Howse PHD and it works fine. As said, it takes some practice getting the holes straight. It will dig a hole in "dirt" 3 feet deep in a minute...In clay it takes longer because the clay will clog it up a bit. Clean it off and finish the hole. Sure saved me a TON of time and MUCH effort putting in my fence. I figure the money saved doing the fence myself pays for the tractor...

 

[EddieWalker]

I have a Linebach Line with a 12 inch auger that I bought from my dealer when I bought my tractor. I paid $295 for it and he told me that was his cost. No profit. From what I've seen on prices, I think he told me the truth.

The gearbox is fine, the auger itself is junk. The problem with the auger is it doesn't have hardend cutting teath. It's cutting head is a piece of steel with an edgre ground onto it.

I tried welding on thicker steel and hargening the edge with some welding rod. Neither worked. When it's sharp, it cuts great, but it gets dull real fast and than it just spins in the hole.

I was told about Pengo bits and did research into them. They have replaceable, carbide teath and cuttint tip that make the world of difference. Lowe also makes a really good auger.

If I was to do it over again, I'd buy either a Pengo or Lowe. If it's another brand, be sure it has the same style of cutting head.

As for size, don't buy anything less than 12 inches. The margin on error for a 4x4 in a 12 hole is very minimal. If you don't get the hole exact, you will have to use the clamshells. Even with a 12 inch auger, you will need some good clamshells, but not as often. Roots, rocks and even different types of soils can and will through off your auger. You never know what's a foot down, and what it will do to your bit as your drilling.

Another misconseption many people make is to think they wont use it very often. Once you have a post hole digger, you'll realize it's one of the handiest attachments you can own!!!!!

Don't skimp and don't go small,
Eddie

 

[flusher]

Have you looked at light duty bucket mounted hydraulic PHDs? Your 7510 hydraulics should be around 7 GPM, which falls within the 5 to 12 GPM range of a light duty HPHD. I'm sure they are a little more money but you will benefit from the down pressure of the loader and they are reversible, both important items if you are dealing with rock. After the initial installation, they also seem easier to install and remove.

I have a PTO driven Leinbach unit that was purchased back in 1994. I have used it very little but it seems to work fine. I prefer the hydraulic units because you have forward/reverse and down pressure.

Has anyone ever priced out a light duty HPHD?

I have a B7510HST with LA302 FEL.
The Kubota manual gives the following pump capacities for the hydraulic unit:
3pt: 4.4 gpm
Power steering: 2.6 gpm

If these are additive, then you have 7 gpm capability. Don't know if this is the correct way to interpret these numbers. Don't know if you can get 7gpm at the auxiliary hydraulic port on the 7510. If I read the Kubota manual correctly, you can only get 4.4 gpm at the aux port.

 

[Neophyte]

If the output is only 4.4 GPM, then you probably don't have the HPHD available to you.

 

[Timber]

I have a Land Pride PHD my self. It is a wonderful piece of equipment. I did pay a grand for it though and I am not sorry I did. New England soil can be very tough to dig in and this thing is a champ. I use a 9 inch auger and it works fine. Digging holes requires a clam shell and bars anyway regardless of using and auger or not. The auger just does a lot of the digging and breaks up the soil. Eddy is right though, it’s good for a lot more than digging post holes. A good auger drill is important though. Replacement tips and cutters is very important. You also have to realize when you have to pull it out and go at it with bars.

 

[Neophyte]

Eddy is right though, it’s good for a lot more than digging post holes.

What else are you using it for?

 

[Timber]

Digging holes for plants. I have a New in ground pool going in next week and I just took down my above ground pool and deck. I have all the plantings that need to be transplanted so I don’t loose them. Mostly roses and very mature hostas; When I build the new deck I will use it to dig the sauna tube holes. I also have those tarp buildings Quonset huts, I set 4x4, on the corner posts and fasten the 2 inch pipes with clamps to stabilize the structure in the wind, It works real well.

 

[dfkrug]

I have a B7510HST with LA302 FEL.
The Kubota manual gives the following pump capacities for the hydraulic unit:
3pt: 4.4 gpm
Power steering: 2.6 gpm

If these are additive, then you have 7 gpm capability. Don't know if this is the correct way to interpret these numbers. Don't know if you can get 7gpm at the auxiliary hydraulic port on the 7510. If I read the Kubota manual correctly, you can only get 4.4 gpm at the aux port.

That's right! Most compact tractors are marketed listing TOTAL hydraulic
flow, the sum of the implement and PS pumps. That is a useless number
of course. The implement flow is important here AND a 4.4 GPM flow is
specced at full engine RPM. Some tractors even share the same pump
for both PS and implements, but I suspect that is becoming less common.

 

[fastpat]

I have a Massey Ferguson 900 post hole auger with a 9 inch bit. It's exactly what I wanted to sink fence posts, trellis posts, and dig holes for planting trees. Well worth the investment.

 

[Glowplug]

Yeah, everybody seems to say that a post-hole digger is proven to be indispensible once you have one. It is handy and used more often than you would think. I remember somebody on this forum mentioning that a great use for a post-hole digger is to drill gravesites for dead cats. And if you're really lazy you can skip the digging a hole step and just drill the cat into the ground!!