Posthole Digger 3 point posthole auger

[Blueflint]

I picked up a 3 point auger (tractor supply...on sale) to install some fence posts. I got it assembled and on the tractor and did a few test holes tonight. I have a 6" auger, this is mounted on my Deere 1020. The biggest problem I see is the auger wants to screw into the ground pretty quickly. The soil is slightly moist but not wet and I am not into heavy clay, mostly topsoil. I was surprised how fast it would suck into the ground once you got past 8" deep. I am running the engine at 1,000 rpm or slightly above, I can't imagine how fast it would suck into the ground at a faster rpm. Is this normal? What do I need to try to keep it from screwing in so fast?

Thanks, Tony

 

[bigballer]

Can you control depth with the 3pt lift? Seems that would be the best but I have never run one. Too many rocks in my soil.

 

[phiferpharm]

I have just completed installing almost 200 holes for new horse fence posts with my TSC post hole digger. The one thing we did figure out was that it worked the best NOT running it too fast. We also "tightened" it up with large washers placed on the pins where the main pole attached to the tractor and where the bow attached to the pole. The PTO controls allowed me to run it partially into the ground for the smaller poles and right down to the actual PHD head for the corner and brace poles. The speed I ran the PTO dictated how fast it went into the ground.

 

[Blueflint]

As I lower it into the hole I am also constantly pulling it back up but once it get over 8" down, it really want to "go home" pretty fast and it bites in pretty solid screwing into the ground, I quickly lift it and it pops up pretty hard, nothing like the sandy soil in the videos online! Would a slight higher pto speed help...like maybe running the engine at 1,400-1,500?

Tony

 

[Baby Grand]

I've had good luck with our TSC PHD running it just at above an idle and lowering it slowly, using the TPH to control its tendency to "auger in". This is in sandy loam with fairly high levels of clay.

 

[Notforhire]

I've had good luck with our TSC PHD running it just at above an idle and lowering it slowly, using the TPH to control its tendency to "auger in".

This is the system I use, most of the time at idle. I have the same TSC unit with a 12in auger. I've pulled out some good sized rocks and roots with it.

I don't know if the small flutes on a 6in auger have more of a tendency to screw in.:confused3:

Best, Bill

 

[MtnViewRanch]

First thing, simply control the depth with the 3pt hitch control lever. Unless it's pulling the front of the tractor into the air, you should be able to control the depth with the hitch control lever. Never down more than a foot and raise, down a foot and raise. You do not need to come out of the hole, just raise a bit, then back down for another foot of digging.

Second, try doing this at an idle, not just above an idle, at idle speed. "If" the tractor will not do this, then bump the engine speed up slowly. You want to drill the holes with as low of an engine speed as possible.

Good luck.

 

[boggen]

you have an easy problem *big grin* wait till ya hit spots when ground so hard PHD will not go down. "hint tossing some water in hole and letting its over night normally helps a lot"

or when you hit a tree root, and have to unhook PHD and back it out with a large wrench with a cheater bar on it to boot

if you bust the "shear bolt" just do not simply replace it with any regular bolt. make sure the bolt is replaced with a proper grade and same diameter as previous shear bolt. shear bolts are suppose to snap off, if you hit something with PHD, it keeps from damaging the PTO on tractor and other internal parts leading to the PTO shaft on back of your tractor.


for me, i run the PHD as others have said, low idle speed, go down a little bit then bring it up some then back down. and once i reach my mark, i may up the RPM's some with a few up and downs to help clean out the bottom of the hole.

duck tape, or like tape works for me for a "guild line" wrapped directly onto the auger bit, for a depth gauge.

having a 2nd person helping you as a spotter can help a lot with a much better straighter fence line. and getting you all lined up while digging.
all honesty some times it is nice to have a little bigger auger bit than what you need for the posts being put in. so once you dig your holes and going back to put posts in. you can better eye ball the fence line and move a post a couple inches this way or that away. to get a better strait fence line. a slightly bigger hole also helps when ya go back in stamping the dirt around the post to compact the dirt and level the post out. though 2 big of a hole and you have to work a bunch more refilling in dirt back around a post.

it is nice to dig the holes put the posts in and then compact the dirt back around the posts in same day before rain hits the loose soil ya dug out. makes it a tad easier putting dirt back in around the posts. other words don't go all hog wild drilling every hole you can all at once. when ya get a stamper pickup an extra your spotter for both digging and then ligning up the fence posts. quickly becomes the extra set of muscle to compact the dirt back in around the holes.

 

[ctgoldwing]

I picked up a 3 point auger (tractor supply...on sale) to install some fence posts. I got it assembled and on the tractor and did a few test holes tonight. I have a 6" auger, this is mounted on my Deere 1020. The biggest problem I see is the auger wants to screw into the ground pretty quickly. The soil is slightly moist but not wet and I am not into heavy clay, mostly topsoil. I was surprised how fast it would suck into the ground once you got past 8" deep. I am running the engine at 1,000 rpm or slightly above, I can't imagine how fast it would suck into the ground at a faster rpm. Is this normal? What do I need to try to keep it from screwing in so fast?

Thanks, Tony

As other posters have mentioned I also use the 'drill & withdraw' method. I had to put 100 4X4's in for our dogs' fence in the woods - not an auger friendly place. I ran the tractor at about 1000 rpm and would go down about a foot OR until I felt the auger grabbing something (like tree roots) then withdraw it. Our soil here in Connecticut is mostly gravel (glacial till where I am) with a goodly share of potatoes of all sizes.

As my auger was only 3' long I went to a local machine shop & had a 1' extension made out of solid steel rod. That allowed me to get true 3' holes easily for the posts without the need for cement at the bottom.

The long pipe wrench to unscrew the auger is another good suggestion. Fortunately I only needed it once. All the other times I was able to GENTLY rock the tractor back n forth to elongate the hole & extract the stuck auger.

Without the machine it would have taken me a year to finish this project - instead of 2 or 3 weekends.

 

[Jarrod32]

for me, i run the PHD as others have said, low idle speed, go down a little bit then bring it up some then back down. and once i reach my mark, i may up the RPM's some with a few up and downs to help clean out the bottom of the hole.

Another +1 to this procedure. Doesn't hurt to have plenty of weight on the front...even if it just the loader with some weight of some sort in it.

 

[TomSeller]

Man, I am sure glad I have a hydraulic post hole digger on the FEL. Reverse the motor and back out of a root or rock problem. Easy down pressure if the soils is hard.

 

[whistlepig]

As I lower it into the hole I am also constantly pulling it back up but once it get over 8" down, it really want to "go home" pretty fast and it bites in pretty solid screwing into the ground, I quickly lift it and it pops up pretty hard, nothing like the sandy soil in the videos online! Would a slight higher pto speed help...like maybe running the engine at 1,400-1,500?

Tony

Sounds to me you have the process down perfect.

 

[Blueflint]

Thanks for all the reply's. I did several holes today, nice and slow on the rpm and it worked much better. Stalled the engine once but overall low rpm and down slowly worked well. Thanks, Tony

 

[whistlepig]

You'll get better (and faster) with experience. I did.

 

[copperhead1967]

A little late but for future searchers. I have a BX22 and the first time I drilled a hole it went straight into the ground until it hit bottom.No reverse on the PTO so out came the shovels. I learned as I went, less RPMs, raising and lower the auger. Still had it take off a few times.
I was drilling about 40 six inch holes for a fence. My buddy and I came up with a solution, we use a standard 2 ton come-a-long (CAL) and a length 6 or 8 foot length of 3/8 chain. Double loop the chain around the ROPS (Gasp) and use a hardened bolt to secure the ends together about 2 feet from the ROPS. Then place the CAL in between the chain and the boom hook on the PTO boom. It works awesome. I let it out about 5 rotations on the CAL gear each bite and let the auger drill in. It still takes off sometimes but the tractor usually powers thru and pops the auger back up. A few time it actually bogs down the tractor but I can stop or raise the auger before it stalls the tractor. When your done just stop the auger, crank in the CAL and move to the next hole.
I was taking it slow the first time I tried this, made sure the ROPS wouldn't bend and all my rigging was up to the task. I'm not an expert so if you try this, its at your own risk.

 

[teg]

I buried one pretty good, used 36" pipe wrench to unscrew it.

 

[jwstewar]

I actually figure a little trick to mine out the other day. I was able to have the tractor in range (it is a hydrostat) and the PTO engage but the clutch pushed in. I then used the loader to push the tractor back a few inches. This caused the auger to spin in reverse. Wouldn't want to have to do it very far, but in a worst case scenario type of deal.

 

[bullbreaker]

I buried one pretty good, used 36" pipe wrench to unscrew it.

Yep and with a cheater pipe ! Done the same

 

[kebo]

I will add that for me, the key to not burying the auger in too deep is to simply let it dig down a foot or so, then quickly bring it up with the three point lift. If the soil is fairly dry, it will usually sling the freshly dug dirt off of the auger as it clears the hole. Then, it's ready to drop back down in the hole again and let it dig down another foot or so. Be ready to bring it back up again quickly and clear out the hole. Just repeat this until it digs down as deep as you want/need the hole to be.

Practice makes perfect, and once you master it, you will be digging holes with ease, and seldom ever get it stuck. Sometimes though, that errant large root or rock will cause it to get stuck in the hole and you won't be able to just lift it up with the 3pt lift.

 

[EddieWalker]

My soil changes from in layers. If I'm in solid red clay, there is never a problem. But if I hit a layer of what I call grey clay, it sucks down the auger the second it hits it. Sometimes I can ride the clutch, rev the engine and get it to power through once it hits bottom and get it out. Every now and then I have to use the wrench to turn it out, or get the backhoe and lift it out with a chain hooked to the loader.

I like the chain on the ROPS idea. I thought about using a post that hung down and rested on the ground when I'm as deep as I want to go, but that idea had too many issues that I don't want to deal with for something that happens one out of fifty times.

Eddie