Buying Advice Help me find the right tool for my property (tractor, backhoe, mini ex, skid)??

[JohnFourteenSix]

How deep and how wide?

As deep and as narrow as I can get away with. Probably 4 ft deep, 1-2 ft wide. I might need to expand depending on erosion, or which drainage ditches are more effective at carrying water where.

 

[4570Man]

I've had a lot of experience with hoes, and never thought I'd recommend a 3pt backhoe - but for what you want it is the perfect tool.
You've go the right type of soil and the right type of projects and the right tractor to use it on.
Getting the right 3pt hoe enables you to keep your tractor - Your JD is way too nice of a machine to just get rid of without giving it a chance.

I used to have a 3pt. mounted backhoe, on a 33 hp tractor and it did everything you want to do just fine. In fact, I've had several. The hoe doesn't have to be a JD; several companies make good ones. Yes, good 3pt hoes are expensive, but they maintain their value exceptionally well. If you use it a couple of years you may well find that you can get most or even all of your investment in the hoe back. Good quality used ones get snapped up quick.

You do want to find one that is heavily built and attaches to the tractor well. The very best ones have some sort of sub-frame to take the stress of the hoe. Yes, that means get a good one; not a cheap one. The good news is that your budget is reasonable. I get you can get a good 3pt hoe that fits that budget.
This all works especially well because you only need to dig to a relatively shallow depth. Hoes go way up in price when you start to want them to dig deeper. For what you want there are some nice 3pt hoes - Bradco is one - built real well but the trade-off is that they don't dig very deep.

The tractor hydrauics don't enter into the picture. Most 3pt backhoes - and especially the type you want - will have their own internal hydraulic pump and fluid reservoir which is driven from the tractor PTO.

A older used commercial TLB (tractor/loader/backhoe) is a reasonable option if you like to do mechanical projects. But know that by the time they get down to your budget they are going to require quite a bit of wrench work to get them up to a reasonable working condition - though if you enjoy wrench work it's an OK way to go.. And when you get it done you can sell off the 3pt backhoe that you used on your JD to get dirt work done while you played mechanic to the old TLB...
I know, because I've gone that route myself, some years ago I sold our 3pt backhoe and bought an older TLB with 6000 hrs on it. It's OK; not what I'd recommend for everyone. Not everyone enjoys doing mechanical work. For me, it's a hobby.

I hear you on not wanting to rent. I'm the same way. I like to work on a project when I want to, and not be constrained by having to go rent something.
Good luck,
rScotty

3 point backhoe suck and are prone to ripping the toplink off. The better ones you speak of aren’t 3 point hoes. My Kubota L3240 had a less beefy but near identical 4 point mount as the M59s.

 

[finn1]

Tighten your belt and get a mini excavator. This is, first and foremost, a site that caters to devotees of compact and subcompact tractors, mostly weekend warriors, from what I can tell. Some members get very defensive about there equipment, but I personally found a compact tractor really isn’t the Ishtar tool for trenching and digging.

I bought a very small mini excavator (Deere 26G) after looking at backhoe attachments for my tractor as well as full sized backhoes. After the purchase of the mini I bought a tracked skid steer (CTL).

I put less than 15 hours on the tractor last spring, summer, and fall. The two new machines are superior to the tractor for all my work, except blowing snow. If I had a farm, though, the results would probably be different, but I don’t have a farm.

 

[MossRoad]

As deep and as narrow as I can get away with. Probably 4 ft deep, 1-2 ft wide. I might need to expand depending on erosion, or which drainage ditches are more effective at carrying water where.

The reason I ask is would a trencher be adequate for your trenching? A 6" wide trench 4' deep with a trencher would be a lot faster than a backhoe.

 

[JohnFourteenSix]

Tighten your belt and get a mini excavator. This is, first and foremost, a site that caters to devotees of compact and subcompact tractors, mostly weekend warriors, from what I can tell. Some members get very defensive about there equipment, but I personally found a compact tractor really isn’t the Ishtar tool for trenching and digging.

I bought a very small mini excavator (Deere 26G) after looking at backhoe attachments for my tractor as well as full sized backhoes. After the purchase of the mini I bought a tracked skid steer (CTL).

I put less than 15 hours on the tractor last spring, summer, and fall. The two new machines are superior to the tractor for all my work, except blowing snow. If I had a farm, though, the results would probably be different, but I don’t have a farm.

How much did that cost you? My budget is pretty firm on this. The machine you mentioned seems to go for 25k used, which is the limit of my budget. I would have nothing left for a tractor or CTL

The reason I ask is would a trencher be adequate for your trenching? A 6" wide trench 4' deep with a trencher would be a lot faster than a backhoe.

I was thinking about a ditch-witch type trencher, actually. I think the limitation is that I don't see how I could do multiple passes with such a machine to widen the trench without having something to actually dig up the soil that would fall into the trench. I actually did see a ditch witch + backhoe for sale for $3500 a few weeks ago and I've been regretting not having jumped on it.

 

[TractorGuy]

Not gonna get 4' deep with it but a trenching bucket might get you by.

 

[Cat_Driver]

Here's what I did one time.

I got a track skid steer loader, with a trencher attachment, and a backhoe attachment along with other attachments. This combo handled everything but growing crops or cutting grass which I wasn't doing anyway.

My CAT had in-cab controls so I would pull up to an attachment throw a button and unlatch that attachment move over pick up the next attachment and throw a button and lock it in never leaving the air-conditioned cab.

The lift capacity was amazing, and digging trenches with the trench floating over the sand I was working in was a breeze. I could dig a trench so much faster with a trencher over a back-hoe.

It was a 2006 CAT 286 that I used for 10 years and sold it for what I paid for it so the resale on that model was great.

 

[JohnFourteenSix]

Here's what I did one time.

I got a track skid steer loader, with a trencher attachment, and a backhoe attachment along with other attachments. This combo handled everything but growing crops or cutting grass which I wasn't doing anyway.

My CAT had in-cab controls so I would pull up to an attachment throw a button and unlatch that attachment move over pick up the next attachment and throw a button and lock it in never leaving the air-conditioned cab.

The lift capacity was amazing, and digging trenches with the trench floating over the sand I was working in was a breeze. I could dig a trench so much faster with a trencher over a back-hoe.

It was a 2006 CAT 286 that I used for 10 years and sold it for what I paid for it so the resale on that model was great.

How much would such a thing end up costing? It sounds like this is more of what I need, unless I can snatch that $6k TLB. One thing that concerns me about a skid steer is its low clearance, though. I don't know how it will be able to navigate in 12" of muck/mud. My JD does this effortlessly

 

[TractorGuy]

One of the old Vermeer or Ditch Witch trencher/backhoes may be just the ticket for you.

 

[fried1765]

You will want to look at tractors with frame mounted removable backhoes.

^^^^^YUP!