Howse or Leinbach PHD

hunterridgefarm · Feb 9, 2006

I am going to buy a post hole digger in about 3 weeks. Getting pricing now and would like to know if anyone has experience with these two and how price looks.

Leinbach PHD with 9" auger $420.00

Howse PHD with 9" auger $499.00

Harvard PHD no auger $256,000.00 /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Both are medium duty. I am going to check again tomorrow with my dealer on the Leinbach to make sure that price included the auger...seems a little low compared to others...but at the time he did say it included the auger.

Also any suggestions on additional augers?

RonMar · Feb 10, 2006

I have a leinbach 7200 with the 9" auger and I like mine. It is probably not the most heavy duty but works well with my 25ish PTO HP. It does have some handy features which is why I chose it. It has a pipe handle on the gearbox that runs forward so you can place the bit accurately by yourself without leaving the tractor seat. You can also easilly disconnect the gearbox from the boom. This makes for fairly easy 1 person installation/deinstallation. I install the boom pole on the tractor then back the boom up to where the auger/gearbox/driveshaft are stood against the back wall of the barn. Lean the gearbox out a little from the wall and slide in a single pin, connect the drive shaft and I am off and punching holes without a strained back. The boom pole already has hooks and attach points out on the end. You can possibly use the boom pole for other things such as a lift rig for a chain harrow which is one of the things I am going to use it for.

Unless you are doing something extreme or using it commercially, probably any of the ones you mentioned would work fine.

hunterridgefarm · Feb 10, 2006

Thanks for the reply. I did not see alot of difference in the two but just like to get some opinions before I buy.

I have been thinking about going with heavy duty, not sure if I really need to since I will only be using for corner post and gates, plan on using steel T-post on fence line. But this is something to consider. Not sure if $300-$400 more is worth it for a heavy duty no more than I will be using it. But I will always have a need for one.

I have an old-old two man auger. It has a old BIG chain saw motor on it and that thing is heavy so it is time for a 3-pt hook-up, especially with the amount of holes I have to drill.

MadDog · Feb 10, 2006

One advantage of the Harvard PHD is that if you drill the auger in and can't pull it up, you don't need to stop the tractor, get off, detach the auger and manually unscrew it out of the ground.

...they can talk their way out of anything, without help. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

But you're right, they're still overpriced. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

Maka · Feb 10, 2006

I like the leinbach. Have never had a problem with them and have sold many of them.

Maka

MtnViewRanch · Feb 10, 2006

hunterridgefarm, one of the big advantages of a heavy duty phd is that most of them have a lower gear ratio than the medium or light duty ones. Lower gear ratio = slower auger speed, slower speed = easier, safer control. You could buy a heavy duty phd now and it would be good for your future tractor. Of course this is just MHO /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif
Good luck with all your decisions,
Brian

Devildog · Feb 11, 2006

I got the lienbach 7300, it has the adjustable top link for compact tractors. I got the 12" auger and it has worked great so far.

hunterridgefarm · Feb 11, 2006

I am considering the heavy duty. I will compare price and use to decide if heavy duty is better for me.

5103Owner · Feb 11, 2006

I decided to go with a Lienbach L-7200 with 9" auger. found one at a salvage yard that also stocks used farm equipment for $425. It was used once or twice but is in nearly perfect condition except for a little paint scraped off. /forums/images/graemlins/cool.gif /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

MtnViewRanch · Feb 11, 2006

hunterridgefarm, here are some prices on some phd stuff that I bought about a year ago.
Land Pride PD35 $1495
6,9,12,18,24 inch augers,$1676
The only individual auger price I have is the 18", it was $350, sorry. /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif When I started this reply, I thought that I had individual pricing. At 1st my dealer was selling me the LP25 for $995, I decided that I didn't want any problems and upgraded to the LP35.
Hope that this helps in some way. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif
Good luck
Brian