Anyone use walk/tow behind backhoe?

[BeezFun]

I need to repair the waterline next to my house that goes out to the barn, it's a confined area so I can't use a tractor backhoe. I've seen these little walk behind and tow behind backhoes, has anyone ever used them? I need to dig down about 4' in rocky soil that includes whatever they used for backfill right next to the house. Probably need about a 5-10' long trench.

I've used the small tracked backhoes, they're good but a little heavier than I'd like for where I have to work.

 

[Verticaltrx]

I have a 628 Cad Digger towable backhoe that I use fairly often. It works pretty well for small trenching jobs, but in really tough ground it beats you up pretty bad. Weighs about 800lbs so I can tow it behind my ATV, it's about 4' wide in the narrowest position, or you can take the wheels and stabilizers off, put it on a dolly and push it through a 36" door.

I mostly use it for small trenching jobs that are too big for a shovel, but not big enough to warrant a trencher or larger backhoe. For that type of work it does well, also really easy to tow. Not sure what else is available commercially, some of the towable units I've seen are real junk.

 

[lawlopez]

I used a Mantis tiller to trench 250' long skirting around our leach field.
some of it was hard pan clay.
It was so light that it was easy to use but it was tough enough that it survived.
Pretty surprising.

 

[BeezFun]

I have a 628 Cad Digger towable backhoe that I use fairly often.

I watched a few youtube videos of this, looks like it might do the job. Never saw these at the rental places, they either have the small tracked backhoes like toro and bobcat make, or the ones you walk behind. I rented a Yanmar a long time ago, that worked well.

 

[Illini22]

Years ago a company named "dig it" made a couple of different machines. The electric utility I worked for ( com Ed) bought quite a few of the trailerable backhoes to repair underground electric cables ( hrs). These machines were workhorses! They had a hydraulic jack, push it down, unhook from line truck, pull a pin and flip the caster wheels down then raise jack. Pull out another pin on drive wheels to engage them (freewheeling when towing and drive it to the backyards. You could remove drive wheels to go thru a small opening,36" maybe then push it thru gate. Had about a 7 foot hoe that did a great job. Our garage took a snowblade off a garden tractor, welded a piece of c-channel ( 8-12" long) vertically. Then drilled a hole in the bucket of the back hoe. When it was time to back fill we just attTched the blade to the bucket, it was left loose so it would adjust a little to the contours of people's yards. It worked great! Added another 2 foot to the reach of the hoe to pull the dirt back in the hole, and it just rode over the grass. Google "digit" and look at an image. A couple of rental yards by me had the loader/backhoe versions. Eventually we got mini excavators, and I mean mini, 9 up diesels. They could fit thru smaller gates but dont have near the power the "digit" had. It was a
Great machine.

 

[dodge man]

Another idea is a mini excavator, rent it if this is a one time deal. I've seen them whey they are very small. I mean really small, in the 13 hp range, but they are still pretty strong at digging. The one I've seen a local company use is made by CAT. The tracks go in and out, so it will go through some really small openings, maybe less than 36"?

 

[BeezFun]

Another idea is a mini excavator, rent it if this is a one time deal. I've seen them whey they are very small. I mean really small, in the 13 hp range, but they are still pretty strong at digging. The one I've seen a local company use is made by CAT. The tracks go in and out, so it will go through some really small openings, maybe less than 36"?

Yes sorry, plan is to rent, I hopefully will never do this again. I've used tracked mini excavators before and they're great, I just would rather avoid the tracks if possible. They do tear things up a bit if you have to turn and jockey around. There's a real popular walk behind but I can't think of the name, it's something like Predator, or Prada, or something like that. Don't seem to be able to find them at any of the rental places though.

 

[Taylortractornut]

Kobelco sold a walkbehind tracked mini ex with a 180 swing boom called a Super shovel. I used one alot the year I was 18. We did a drain extension under an elevated walk way.
A friend of mine that has a sewer pumping business has a Digit.. I t has lock in and out hubs like a 4 wheel drive truck. Un lock them and lower the tow bar and pull it to the site. It has castor wheels on the back that let it glide over yards.
R&H made on similar under Go For Digger to.
http://www.gofordigger.com/
http://www.tmx-excavator.com/tmx-excavators/
A tip on a track excavator on grass is to lift up the front of the tracks with the bucket and boom and swin opposite of the turn while counter steering the tracks in the direction of travel. It works on 800 pound to 100 000 pound hoes.

 

[BeezFun]

A tip on a track excavator on grass is to lift up the front of the tracks with the bucket and boom and swin opposite of the turn while counter steering the tracks in the direction of travel. It works on 800 pound to 100 000 pound hoes.

Useful tip, thanks

 

[tcreeley]

I have a mini backhoe from Northern Tool. The one they sell today is more rugged than the one I have. It is not the fastest backhoe, but I've dug 120' of a 20" trench 4'-5' deep in clay and hardpan.
It is a good backhoe - had mine over 20 years. I dig drainage ditches, put in sauna columns, culverts, etc. You can always sell it if you don't want to keep it. But the first one I used, I rented. You may be able to find one to rent.
NorthStar Trencherman Backhoe — 270cc Honda GX Engine | Backhoes | Northern Tool + Equipment