Plower,
Last December I need a posthole digger. I did a lot of looking around. Almost all of the less expensive ones had what looked like the same gear box. The ears on top looked too light. I finely went with a Bush Hog 2101 with 9" bear claw auger. It is a fine piece of equipment, that I'm real happy with. BWY, I paid $635, the area Bush Hog rep. couldn't believe that I got it that cheap.
JerryG