no backhoe yet, thinking more posthole digger in the near future. I bought the better YC480 rotary cutter for my pasture, Christmas trees, and next to the roads. Letting my wife get used to the total idea of the tractor before adding the $3,000 ish backhoe.
My wife wants lights at the end of the property (trenches, conduit) and walkways where there are currently stumps, so I was able to convince her about the backhoe. When I first said, Honey we need a tractor, she said "no we don't". My how things have changed in a year, now that she's seen what it can do, and how much it costs to pay third parties.
A little tip on the backhoe - Around Q3 of 2017, Yanmar made a switch in backhoe suppliers. They were previously using Ameriquip, a company that makes BHs branded for other companies, like John Deere, Mahindra, and Kioti I believe. Nothing wrong with those BHs per se, but Yanmar started sourcing the new ones from Woods Equipment and they're better; 2800 lbs of bucket force, vs. roughly 2000. I didn't know any of this until my 424 arrived with a slightly different backhoe than the one I saw on the dealer lot, so naturally I started asking questions and doing research. I lucked out! If I were buying a 424 BH anytime soon, I'd insist they're giving me the Woods model, and not the Ameriquip (in case they're flushing out any old stock). You can actually tell the difference in these BHs quickly by looking at the stabilizers: the Woods model (identical to their "Groundbreaker BH65") has stabilizer pads that flip, allowing a "spiked" double-tooth contact to be used on soft ground. The Ameriquip BH has flatter, one-sided feet only, and the stabilizer arms angle backwards slightly, away from the rear tires if you're looking down on them.
Kudos to Yanmar for upping the strength and features of the BH, at the same price. Woods makes nice stuff.
