3-Point Hitch Best implement for de-rocking?

[bgiff]

I have a Kubota BX23s with a backhoe and a scraper box. I live in a heavily rock infested area of mountainous N. California. Would a sub-soiler be a good choice to use to rip them up? I need to go just deep enough so I dont wreck my tiller. The rocks range from baseball to 2 basketballs in size (there are some bigger ones, but I generally know where they are and have other plans for those) I noticed my land pride scraper was able to yank out a large fence post concrete piece but I hit it really hard under full throttle, by accident, I would never ram something that hard intentionally! surprised something didnt break.

 

[jeff9366]

Consider Bucket Solutions' Ultra Forks.

You can insert Fork under rocks, then tip up bucket, rolling in rocks for transport.

This firm makes very durable attachments.

LINK: Multi-Spear Ultra Fork

 

[TnAndy]

Only thing that ever worked for me was left and right hands. If you have that many rocks, they will keep appearing like a swarm of locusts every year.

 

[whitepine2]

Only thing that ever worked for me was left and right hands. If you have that many rocks, they will keep appearing like a swarm of locusts every year.

You got that right been picking sense ten and am 74 and still picking where the garden has been,but
also the folks before me have picked. Wife keeps telling me to give up but as I tell her the ones I pick will never bother me again.I think the only way is put all dirt through a screening plant HA HA:dance1:

 

[Egon]

Dedicated Rock Picker.

 

[oosik]

You have rock, I have rock, I think the only people without rock live in the desert or farm the ocean. A while back I researched this "rock picking" situation. They do make tow behind rock pickers - but Oh Lordy - the price. The names I remember are - Dura Grade and Rockland.

And I wonder - if you spend a fortune and purchase one of these tow behind, automatic rock pickers - does it mean that new rocks will not grow in the spring.

 

[stlbill]

The people who owned my home before me filled several wet weather creeks with 4"+ crushed limestone "rip rap" about 6-10 feet wide. This makes for a lot of weed trimming when I could be mowing closer to the creek.

I found a <emphasis> quality </emphasis> box blade with shanks is doing the job well, but of course you still have to pick up the pile of rock the BB creates and put it someplace. Rock is tough work for a subcompact.

Good luck! I considered having heavier equipment brought in to do the job, but it came down to time vs. money. The subcompact does the job, it just takes longer and I <emphasis> live </emphasis> here. If a subdivision association or similar were requiring me to get the job done quickly that might be different. And it is not a terrible eye sore because I work sections at a time.

 

[17 Oaks]

Rocks, you got rocks and here in the Texas Hill Country we OWN them. My top soil runs from 0 to maybe 4 in in a few rare places, And YES a subsoiler is your friend, I use mine to build ditches and clean out old ditches. Luck is its limestone and breaks up easy.

 

[ArlyA]

We of course are in a different situation. We are smoothing up trails and plan to remove rocks and stumps out to help do that. This is glaciated land here so rocks are everywhere and trees grow like weeds. Northern hardwood if that matters and on the edge of boreal. To help with this we are getting a hydrostatic compact tractor with a single blade subsoiler to help lift those blasted rocks and stumps out. With the hydrostatic transmission we can pull into the rock/stump and put pressure on it and lift at the same time.

Arly--- rocks and stumps are us ---- A

 

[N80]

My soil is rocky as well. As mentioned, your hands are going to be the main tool. I have an area below the cabin that I plow and disk about once a year. Afterwards I pick up all the potato and larger sized rocks and chuck them in the woods. There are never less of them.

 

[Bronco82]

This site is awesome. I'm in the same boat. I want to reclaim the back field and keep mowing a little farther out each time, but last time I weedwhacked a little into the field I stumped across an, at least, two-basketball sized rock which was just sticking up a couple inches. That would have wreaked havoc on the mower or tiller. I want to borrow (yeah, it's a common theme of me borrowing neighbours and friends implements until I get the green light to buy my own) a tiller, but don't want to mangle it with rocks. So, I'm thinking bush hog to get all the grass down to see any large rocks sticking up, then box blade with scarifiers down (as box blade is only implement I currently own) and manually remove all visible rocks, and then maybe borrow the tiller to chew it all up, and then back blade it again smooth.

I just got the tractor last December and will be in this house for the next 20 years or so, so I do have the time to pick away at it, and not the money to purchase an ideal implement.

 

[N80]

You can move a lot of rocks with the bucket if they're big enough to be a nuisance and part of the same rock sticking up in some poor farmer's field in China.

 

[oosik]

Bronco - be very careful if you are going to try to unearth rocks that are 2X basketball size with the scarifiers on your box blade. I would recommend an implement - single tine sub soiller - like ArlyA shows or the bucket on your FEL. The single tine sub soiler will provide more leverage and the bucket on the FEL is a much more gentle approach.

 

[Locoweed]

Those things aren't rocks, they are *** stones. They keep multiplying.

 

[ArlyA]

Been there, done that, with a bucket. When I say "rocks" that are generally basket ball, to large coffee table sized.

We have plenty of Canadian shield rocks here. Would you guys like them back??

You can move a lot of rocks with the bucket if they're big enough to be a nuisance and part of the same rock sticking up in some poor farmer's field in China.

 

[Bronco82]

I don't PLAN on removing the rocks with the BB, but more the less locating them, while driving very very slow. At which point I'll either manually remove it, or pry bar into loader bucket as most of the material surrounding the rock will be clay. Joy.

And no thank you, we still have PLENTY up here to deal with.

 

[Bronco82]

While browsing Kijiji, the Northern version of Craigslist, there is a Stone Fork, which replaces the loader bucket, but looks like it may suit the build. I would think that a narrower one would be better suited for smaller tractors due to the lesser capacities required to dig and lift. Similar to what Jeff suggested, but more dedicated to rocks of all shapes and sizes.

 

[N80]

While browsing Kijiji, the Northern version of Craigslist, there is a Stone Fork, which replaces the loader bucket, but looks like it may suit the build. I would think that a narrower one would be better suited for smaller tractors due to the lesser capacities required to dig and lift. Similar to what Jeff suggested, but more dedicated to rocks of all shapes and sizes.

View attachment 515807

That would be awesome for medium sized rook removal. Would love to have that thing. Put some grapple arms on top and it would be useful for so many things.

 

[oosik]

There is a company - ANBO - about 70 miles north of me that can make up almost anything you can dream up. They make grapples in all weight classes and with lower tine spacing just like that yellow stone fork. When I was looking for grapples, it came down to Anbo or Land Pride. I went with Land Pride. Mainly because of the deal my Kubota dealer gave me and he installed the hydraulics and grapple.

 

[LindenBruce]

OP,
I am just a few miles from you and yes the rocks here seem to multiply faster than rabbits. OMG. I think running the sub soiler through your lot about 8-12 inches deep then going sifting through the soil with that yellow stone fork may just do the job. You may have to make a few cross passes. B.