Tractor Sizing Grave Digger Seeking Sub-Compact/Compact TLB for 36" Bucket

[DigSouthArk]

Hey guys, newb to the forum here. I hope I am posting this to the appropriate board. If not, please direct me to the right place.

I am an independent grave digger, currently operating a John Deere 110 TLB with a 36" backhoe bucket. I have decided that the JD 110 is just too heavy and too large for my line of work. Being an independent contractor in a rural area, I find myself working in all types of soil and turf conditions. I read about a lot of people using the 110 for grave digging, but I am convinced that they must be working in hard, rocky, soils and/or working in only one cemetery where the conditions are suitable for such a heavy machine. I find myself working 10 times as hard as I should have to, using plywood and other mats to try to protect turf and prevent my machine from sinking in graves or otherwise rutting up the cemeteries that I work in. This time of year is especially hard on me. I should also mention the that the overall length of the machine causes me a great deal of backache from having to move headstones to get in to the grave sites and having to move headstones to allow enough room to put my loader bucket down for stability.

For these reasons, I am considering replacing my JD 110 TLB with a smaller, lighter, Kubota machine. I will have to buy pre-owned (used), and am looking at either the Kubota B20, B21, B26, L35, or L39. I see other grave diggers running 36" buckets on the L35 or L39, but have not personally ever seen 36" on any one of the smaller machines. My first question is, will the B-series tractors pull a 36" bucket, and if so are there concerns with running that wide of a bucket on such a small machine? Keep in mind that I'm digging in everything from sand, mud, clay, clay gravel, etc. I work within a 50 mile radius, and the soil types vary quite a bit within that distance. Not to mention that we have had extremely wet winters the past few years and severe drought in the summer. The soil in the same cemetery may cut like butter in the winter, and be as hard as concrete in the summer. The market around here seems to be flooded with used B26's, but all other models are very scarce. Are there problems with the B26 that buyers should beware of? Of all of the models that I mentioned, do they all have the reach to dig a 4.5" x 8" hole from one end without having to move around?

Thank you in advance,
D

 

[Ed of all trades]

A friend of our family had a walk behind grave digger, that was years ago but it would be worth looking for. ed

 

[George2615]

A neighbor of mine uses a JD790 with #7 BH for grave digging. I think he only has a 12-14" bucket but his tractor is probably 1/2 the weight of your 110. Sorry, can't help on the Kubota info.

 

[Al 2]

Look up BILLSTMAXX on Youtube . He has his own channel and is a grave digger and posts many of his projects.
One of his latest toys is a very small Kubota excavator and among other things he is always seems to be building a new bucket of some description. Send him a PM if needed.
Al

 

[aczlan]

Look up BILLSTMAXX on Youtube . He has his own channel and is a grave digger and posts many of his projects.
One of his latest toys is a very small Kubota excavator and among other things he is always seems to be building a new bucket of some description. Send him a PM if needed.
Al

I agree on the mini-ex. What you are doing (digging and filling in holes) sounds like just what they are made for and a mini-ex will get into much tighter spots with much less mess than a TLB.
If you currently backfill with the front loader, you might need to make a "blade" to go on your bucket and pull dirt back into the hole and smooth things out, but I would go that route unless you need the loader on the TLB.

Aaron Z

 

[newbury]

<snip>

For these reasons, I am considering replacing my JD 110 TLB with a smaller, lighter, Kubota machine. I will have to buy pre-owned (used), and am looking at either the Kubota B20, B21, B26, L35, or L39. I see other grave diggers running 36" buckets on the L35 or L39, but have not personally ever seen 36" on any one of the smaller machines. My first question is, will the B-series tractors pull a 36" bucket, and if so are there concerns with running that wide of a bucket on such a small machine? Keep in mind that I'm digging in everything from sand, mud, clay, clay gravel, etc. I work within a 50 mile radius, and the soil types vary quite a bit within that distance. Not to mention that we have had extremely wet winters the past few years and severe drought in the summer. The soil in the same cemetery may cut like butter in the winter, and be as hard as concrete in the summer. The market around here seems to be flooded with used B26's, but all other models are very scarce. Are there problems with the B26 that buyers should beware of? Of all of the models that I mentioned, do they all have the reach to dig a 4.5" x 8" hole from one end without having to move around?

Thank you in advance,
D

First:

dig a 4.5" x 8" hole

That's a darn small hole!

Next - Why limit it to BRAND=Kubota and MODEL=TLB?

Why I ask is that my B7610 if I had bought the Kubota packaged BH for it would have been limited to about 6' deep or less. The Woods BH70 I put on it does 7'.

I have not figured out the size of a hoe you need to dig X foot deep from one end, but it's got to be a long one if the grave is X' long, and X' deep, just thinking of the math. I'd expect you need a 12' reach.

It seems you would need some sort of extend a hoe on a tractor or use a mini-ex as suggested to do it all from one end on a small machine.

 

[Trials]

I too was thinking a track excavator would be a better tool for the job. You will still need to lay ply, mats or old tires down to do your turns, but the footprint would be much larger and a track will spread the weight of your rig many times more effectively then tires can. Small excavators are much shorter for getting between the rows. I assume you're not needing to move the soil a great distance either, so a tractor just doesn't seem the ideal machine to be using imho.

 

[/pine]

Not to take away from the thread...but I don't recall ever seeing the topic of "grave digging" come up on TBN (I could be wrong)...

At any rate...I'd like to relate something about the community here...there is an organization of local young men that voluntarily hand dig graves...mostly because cemeteries here are extremely respected and cared for...it may not sound like a big deal but a completely different train of thought goes through ones mind when they pass a cemetery and see men with spades rather than a backhoe etc...

 

[capt_met]

I've dug a couple graves and think you won't want to go any smaller than a L39 sized machine in a tlb. Have you thought of switching to turf treads fr your tires to minimize the impact of a heavier machine? For the tight spaces I'll go along with the others and suggest a mini ex. Good Luck,

 

[Morning Wood]

Mini ex for sure. There's a grave yard here that used to have a tlb. Now they have a mini. After it gets crowded, mini is really the only way to go.