Loader New member looking for advice on first tractor - digging with FEL

[jeff9366]

Backhoes are 35% cheaper when optioned as part of a tractor package, relative to buying them later as an addition.

 

[eddie48]

I have an FEL on my 40 hp New Holland. I have dug some pretty big holes with it... certainly big enough to bury a llama in. That's in Connecticut, the land of rocks and tree roots. It doesn't dig quickly but, with patience, you can do almost anything with it.

 

[RalphVa]

Best digging FEL I've had is on the JD 2025R. The 4010 is basically the same tractor, but it would not dig as well with a tooth bar as the 2025R will without. The 1025R I had for a little less than 2 years had a fairly useless FEL: well not useless. You just could never tell when it was gonna dump on you.

Still, I agree with the others, that if you want to actually dig, you need a back hoe.

Ralph

 

[flusher]

I am in the market for my first tractor. It will be used on a 13 acre llama farm that we are setting up. The property is just scrub brush, weeds, and a few trees at the moment. The tractor will be used to clear land, drill holes for fence posts, drive t-posts, and whatever else needs to happen to get the place working smoothly. Also, we unfortunately have to bury the occasional animal, which can take a pretty good-sized hole.

I'm pretty much sold on a Mahindra already. I like the no-DPF engine and beefy construction. Price is nice, too. Local dealers offer packages including tractor, box blade, mower, auger, and transport trailer. I've seen some that have a backhoe as well.

Any opinions are welcome, but I do have a specific question. I'm leaning towards either a 1538 or 2538. Can I use the FEL on those to dig a hole? A friend told me that he thought you'd need at least a 50hp machine to dig with the FEL. As I mentioned, the hole I'm talking about might need to be 3x6 feet by 6 feet deep. It doesn't have to have vertical sides all around like a grave. I know that this is the kind of job a backhoe would excel at, but could the FEL do it?

Thanks for any tips.

You need a backhoe attachment to dig a grave for a large animal like a horse. FEL is for scooping loose material, not for excavating. Try it and you'll very likely end up twisting the FEL arms.

Good luck

 

[newbury]

What is your soil like? Do you have caliche under the surface? If so you may need explosives to get a hole. On the other hand if it's soft sand, no problem.

Also IF you might have other projects (trenching for utilities, digging stumps, putting in foundations) compare the cost of a backhoe on the tractor to a mini-ex.
The main advantage to having the hoe on the tractor is that it can travel a lot faster.

/edit - For example near me Takeuchi TB125 mini excavator - $13000, 3200 hours.

 

[k0ua]

As others have said, it all depends so much on your soil type and how many rocks are in it. I once cut the top off of a small hillside to use it for fill with nothing more than a 36 horsepower tractor (Long 2360) , a toothbar would have made it go quicker for sure. You can dig some pretty good sized holes with a FEL, it will just take a lot longer. If you can break up the soil with a tiller or something else it can speed it up quite a bit. To bury something the size of a llama could take an hour in good easy digging soil or it could take all day if there are a lot of rocks or the soil is very hard. A backhoe would get the job done a lot faster. I built a "shovel" attachment to go on my FEL to dig trenches with, it works pretty well and can be used to break up hard soils so they can be scooped up with the FEL.

So bottom line, can you dig holes with a FEL?, yes you can. Is it quick or easy? Nope. But it can be done. Keep in mind operator skill plays into this in a large part. A toothbar or shovel attachment can help quite a bit also.

 

[Rock Crawler]

I would respond like this:

Can you dig a hole like you mentioned with only a FEL? Yes, given enough time. There are videos of fellows creating small ponds with just a FEL and box blade. So it can be done.

Will you like what you go through to dig that specified hole? No, I expect that you will not like it at all.

I can (and did) dig a 6 deep foot animal grave (deer was dead on my property, we had a sickness go through western PA last year that had deer dropping dead in droves) with just a little Kubota BX25 backhoe. It took maybe 45 minutes to excavate the grave, and 5 minutes to cover back up using the front loader.

So, as usual... the question is not "can you", because if there enough will and motivation a man can accomplish almost anything. The real question is, is this a recommended or generally acceptable/tolerable way to accomplish this? As you see, the response is almost unequivocally no.

A Kioti CK2610 with FEL and BH would be right around $25K and would be a GREAT machine to do what you are asking, and a whole bunch more. It is also not a DPF/DEF engine, and it is in my opinion a much better tractor than a Mahindra. It also will likely cost less, so you win with a better built unit and a lower price. For the price of a Mahindra around here (I personally do not like the brand), you are within dollars of a Kubota. I would buy a Kubota over a Mahindra every day of the week, twice on Sundays. But, that is my opinion and worth nothing more.

If you buy a FEL only tractor, I'm sure that you will eventually get your hole dug. I'm also pretty sure that you will despise the extraordinary time and effort it takes to accomplish such a simple task for a backhoe.

 

[the old grind]

IMO, nothing makes work out of all other attachments like adding a backhoe to a 3ph-equipped tractor that also wants to use tiller, post-hole digger, brush mower, etc. It make s a great counterweight for FEL work, but when you're not digging ...

There won't be a lot of switching w/o leaving the seat as so many wish was std equip. Easy for me to say, as I have dedicated machines, at least a small backhoe that has buried a horse. What I mean is: you can go 'Swiss Army' on any tool, but you have to lug around plenty more gear than any one task requires.

It might 'take two' to mount/dismount the BH, and you'll want to store it in a secure (leeward) place when not in use, more to think about than original cost, esp if buying 'new' to fit you model.

I have a 'stump bucket' that would dig 'some' with one of the '38s mentioned, IMO a better vehicle for such than my Kubota-like 'light duty' NH/Shibaura. (35hp, ~3k lbs with FEL) Modern tractors and accessories are more versatile than the old 'basics'.

I'd agree with OP's tractor choices but suggest you call me, or someone closer to you, when you have to bury an animal. I'd bet you could barter for that with some brush-hogging or tilling ... with attachments you'd switch to and use much more often than a backhoe. just my 50 cents. t o g

(Remember those on/off-road motor bikes that were half-a__ed performers in both places? ... and who uses a Kirby vacuum to buff their shoes or shampoo furniture??)

 

[BigBlue1]

IMO, nothing makes work out of all other attachments like adding a backhoe to a 3ph-equipped tractor that also wants to use tiller, post-hole digger, brush mower, etc. It make s a great counterweight for FEL work, but when you're not digging ...

There won't be a lot of switching w/o leaving the seat as so many wish was std equip. Easy for me to say, as I have dedicated machines, at least a small backhoe that has buried a horse. What I mean is: you can go 'Swiss Army' on any tool, but you have to lug around plenty more gear than any one task requires.

It might 'take two' to mount/dismount the BH, and you'll want to store it in a secure (leeward) place when not in use, more to think about than original cost, esp if buying 'new' to fit you model.

I have a 'stump bucket' that would dig 'some' with one of the '38s mentioned, IMO a better vehicle for such than my Kubota-like 'light duty' NH/Shibaura. (35hp, ~3k lbs with FEL) Modern tractors and accessories are more versatile than the old 'basics'.

I'd agree with OP's tractor choices but suggest you call me, or someone closer to you, when you have to bury an animal. I'd bet you could barter for that with some brush-hogging or tilling ... with attachments you'd switch to and use much more often than a backhoe. just my 50 cents. t o g

(Remember those on/off-road motor bikes that were half-a__ed performers in both places? ... and who uses a Kirby vacuum to buff their shoes or shampoo furniture??)

Quick-attach backhoes are out there. I believe the new Deere 2038R compact utility tractor has one that can be removed from the tractor, or at least with one person and no manhandling anything. I think there are some videos on YT.

Rob

 

[Rock Crawler]

I have a B2650, and I can tell you... if it takes you more than 3 minutes to remove the BH... your doing it wrong.

The pain in the caboose is that unlike the BX, on a B you have to remove the 3-point arms to place the backhoe, and put them back on to go grab your implement.

I would say that it is 3 min tops to drop the backhoe, and 10 minutes to go grab the 3-point parts and slip them on and pin them. Then to go back to the BH, 10 min to unpin, remove and go put the arms away... and 3-6 minutes to get the BH on again because you almost always have to spend 1-2 minutes creeping back and forth to get aligned with the backhoe before you drop it into place on the subframe.

The 3 point arms are the pain in my butt, not the BH on/off. The BH is 100% hands off, no manual work required. The 3 point arms are heavy and involve a lot more manual input to get on or off.