Backhoes

[turf cutter]

depends what you can afford and what you need to do with it, a minn digger would be the best choice but you woul need to have alot of work to keep them busy no sence have one laying up 9mts of the year
, the bh
would not be as powerful for digging but for diy around the place an if you have time on your hands the b/hoe is a handy tool. ihave a bh /back actor as they are called on this side of the pond and is very useful . main draw back having to get on off the thing to move it and position the trailer for filling this is were the minne digger would come into its own,other than that am well pleased with it, Good luck with what ever you decide Turf cutter

 

[swick1]

Jd 35d (7000lb) mini ex rents for $250/day here. I got one this weekend with a 33" bucket that still has more breakout than my 1026r hoe with a 12" bucket and it can push over 2x the amount of dirt than the 1026r fel. The rental place isn't making much at all on these.

 

[Gale Hawkins]

I had the same quandary a few years back and bought a 4 year old mini for $12,900 instead of paying around $8,000 for a BH. Now there are many minis like mine for $2,000 or more higher than what I paid for mine. I looked into that when my wife had a garage sale and several people asked about buying it - I parked it at the end of the line so she could say everything up to the excavator is for sale. I told them that anything would sell for the right price but after I looked it up, I came back and said, "except the mini". Paid for itself easy in the 3 years in installing installing culverts, ditching, demolishing buildings, salvaging scrap iron, digging water lines, and planting trees. Narrow my track width and I can go places I can't get near with the tractor, plus no danger of flats. Think about it - it might be what you need, and in my area, if you decide to sell you get a lot closer to purchase price for a used mini than you do for a used backhoe.

While we do not hire out our backhoe I do like having it around the place. Since the purchase price for JD 310B in its worn state was only $1200 more than a heavy duty FEL for the MF 265. Yesterday trying to help a neighbor clean up the extended yard in the from of her house I ripped off the clutch petal when I bent/broke off the clutch pedal mounting bracket.

The lift arm on that side rode up on the stump and now the bushhog is setting on top of the stump. Tomorrow I will try to saw off the stump then use the BH to pull the MF back to the road way so I can get it home so when the part arrives I can install it.

Had I just when with a FEL for the MF 265 I would not have a working 12K pound backhoe to free the 265 with tomorrow.

Short of some accident your mini should be worth your purchase price for years to come.

Some talk about money management but in our case we would have no equipment to speak of becuase we get the equipment to have when needed or just wanted.

 

[boggen]

if the tractor is setup, so you can move a lever and the seat just turns around and you have access to the backhoe. you are golden.

it is the tractors that require you to get off the tractor then climb on to the backhoe seat. that gets to be a pain.

a sub frame 3pt hitch backhoe. helps a lot and when using backhoe the weight is transferred to the tractor.

a 3pt hitch backhoe with no subframe. relies directly on the 3pt hitch to carry the weight to the tractor. and you could end up bending the 3pt up pretty badly.

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i am not to thrilled about trailer mounted backhoes. can be hard to back up with the truck in rough terrian.

mini excavators. vs larger size bachoes on tractor. tough call. personally would go with bigger backhoe on tractor. there are times it is nice to wrap backhoe bucket around a tree limb and drive off (ok safety police will have me arrested for saying that) but also getting my rear unstuck on the tractor. been a few times were i just reached the backhoe out. and pulled the rear end of the tractor right up and out. and the FEL did me little good.

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again try i to encourage folks, to get the backhoe and FEL at same time buying a new tractor. due to most likely the tractor will come setup. for quick easy lever pull and the seat turns around, with access to backhoe levers.

on another note, moving dirt here on the farm. from one end to other end mile to 1.5 miles between locations. i will fill the FEL bucket full of dirt. hit left or right steering brake to do a quick 180. put the gas peddle to the floor. to quickly lower out riggers, and take a swipe of dirt with the backhoe bucket. and then pull out riggers up and put it in gear and off i go.

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tend to see more mention of "woods" backhoes here on the forums. and afew others. give the various third party companies a call. and have them double check for what would fit and what would need to be done for a subframe. some times you need to modify subframes a little bit to fit a given tractor. perhaps drill hole or like.

 

[wschapinjr]

Just got my first back hoe a few weeks ago and wish I hadn't waited so long. I keep finding all kinds of things from stumps to tree burial (clean-up) that I should have done a long time ago. Wife thought I was crazy (probably am) but she is now wanting trees moved/transplanted as well as retaining wall and front steps.
The back hoe probably will never pay for itself but it's there when you want it.
I opted for the Kubota sub frame as it is matched to my tractor in looks and operation.

 

[swick1]

Just got my first back hoe a few weeks ago and wish I hadn't waited so long. I keep finding all kinds of things from stumps to tree burial (clean-up) that I should have done a long time ago. Wife thought I was crazy (probably am) but she is now wanting trees moved/transplanted as well as retaining wall and front steps.
The back hoe probably will never pay for itself but it's there when you want it.
I opted for the Kubota sub frame as it is matched to my tractor in looks and operation.

That being said, sometimes the most logical solution does not satisfy our wants. Just be glad you don't have a boat!

 

[Gary Fowler]

The only thing that is a worse money drain than a boat is an airplane. Tractors are cheap in comparison.

 

[kiotiken]

if the tractor is setup, so you can move a lever and the seat just turns around and you have access to the backhoe. you are golden.

it is the tractors that require you to get off the tractor then climb on to the backhoe seat. that gets to be a pain.

a sub frame 3pt hitch backhoe. helps a lot and when using backhoe the weight is transferred to the tractor.

a 3pt hitch backhoe with no subframe. relies directly on the 3pt hitch to carry the weight to the tractor. and you could end up bending the 3pt up pretty badly.

==================
i am not to thrilled about trailer mounted backhoes. can be hard to back up with the truck in rough terrian.

mini excavators. vs larger size bachoes on tractor. tough call. personally would go with bigger backhoe on tractor. there are times it is nice to wrap backhoe bucket around a tree limb and drive off (ok safety police will have me arrested for saying that) but also getting my rear unstuck on the tractor. been a few times were i just reached the backhoe out. and pulled the rear end of the tractor right up and out. and the FEL did me little good.

==================
again try i to encourage folks, to get the backhoe and FEL at same time buying a new tractor. due to most likely the tractor will come setup. for quick easy lever pull and the seat turns around, with access to backhoe levers.

on another note, moving dirt here on the farm. from one end to other end mile to 1.5 miles between locations. i will fill the FEL bucket full of dirt. hit left or right steering brake to do a quick 180. put the gas peddle to the floor. to quickly lower out riggers, and take a swipe of dirt with the backhoe bucket. and then pull out riggers up and put it in gear and off i go.

==================
tend to see more mention of "woods" backhoes here on the forums. and afew others. give the various third party companies a call. and have them double check for what would fit and what would need to be done for a subframe. some times you need to modify subframes a little bit to fit a given tractor. perhaps drill hole or like.

Well, it would be nice to be able to swivel the seat for the bh, but other than the smaller B series Kubotas, you just don't see that very often unless you get into the really big machines dedicated to being a bh.

Forget the safety police, wrapping the bucket around a stump and hitting the gas is a great way to F^%$ up the bh. There are thread here of guys bending the dipper stick on brand new machines. I'd highly recommend not doing that.

Woods is talked about a lot here because they make a heck of a nice bh. Mine was only about $1000 more than the Kioti version and included a factory thumb. The hitch was VERY solid and it was very rugged and durable.

I'll miss not having a bh, but using $600/weekend as a rental rate including delivery and tax, I can rent a much more capable mini ex for 20yrs before I get to the $12K that a new bh would cost for my larger tractor. I think my Woods BH-70x was about $8500 with tax and install. The $12K was a BH-90x with hyraulic thumb, taxes and install.

 

[Gale Hawkins]

The only thing that is a worse money drain than a boat is an airplane. Tractors are cheap in comparison.

MH's are not much better.

While not even close to new our old JD 310B will sell near our purchase price today. I know a 12K pound BH is too heavy for most that have to work off-farm locations.

Others talk about renting. In our usage experience that does not work well. Our BH sees a lot of 5-55 minute period of usage. The JD is our only FEL/Hoe on the place so having access 24/7 is a huge plus for us.

As long as I am able to climb on/off and keep up the BH short of major internal issues after two years I never want to be without one as long as we own a place with enogh room to park it. :thumbsup:

 

[rjwerth]

The only thing that is a worse money drain than a boat is an airplane. Tractors are cheap in comparison.

I'd love to own a plane...just not quite enough to pay for one (but it's REALLY close).....