little hoe,deep down rock

[escavader]

HI,
learning how to use my backhoe[bx-23].read the tips in my owners manual. i have never run one before.so far i can do it ,but i have to think about it,it doesnt come natural like the front end loader does.would like all your thopughts on how to get started digging a ditch or hole,your technique etc.
one question i have is if your down in the hole,and you find a large rock,what can you do?ive seen pics of small hoes getting out big rocks,how are they doing it?
ESCAVADER

 

[SPIKER]

depending on size of the rock, you can often trap the rock under the bucket & the lower arm (pinch it slightly to HOLD the rock and lift it out using as much curl to keep the rock & arm as close to the tractor as possable.) otherwise you can dig around the rock exposing most of it and make a ram put of the hole and chain drag it...

I have done this befor with out much problems I do however have one situation for others who may be able to help ME in a similar situation.

I've got several BIG mofo rocks down in the creek/was out which are probably nearly as big (in weight) as my tractor 1~2 cu yard sized rocks. I would like to get them up & out myself. I can't budge em with the hoe & fel but was thinking I could pull them once out any thoughts on how to get those sized rocks out without hireing it out or builting some intircate hoist setup.??... I was thinking a chain & hook & drag em but so far that seems dang near impossable as they are still deep enough to keep the rock still and spin all 4 tires.

Markm

 

[AntrimMan]

Small hoes and big rocks....
think safety first and if that is no issue then the end of the cut nearest the tractor should be ramp like and not a precipice. Drag the rock up the ramp, getting the empty bucket under it and curl using the ramp as one side of the wedge and the bucket as the other side and the dipper stick as the back. You'll lose a little paint. Or just use the bucket to pull the rock to the top of the ramp and then side bucket it out of the way. Either way, mind the rock doesn't take a bite out of your stabilizer cylinder rod.

rocks bigger than your machines lifting capability... can be pushed or persuaded into a big hole right next to it and buried. Hint... make the hole twice as wide and deep as you think it needs to be and get the rock below the frost line. I'd be real careful trying to pull massive rocks and prefer to push instead. If the rock is in a place (creek) that the tractor isn't comfortable in, then get an excavator or tell the big guy upstairs he won.
Best of luck,
Martin

 

[rdbrumfield]

We had a rock in a big cut. Had to bring down a mountain 90ft to grade. We incountered it at about 75ft above finish grade. We would make cuts beside it as we went down and rolled it to the lower side as we went. When finally at grade, It took 2, that is two, D9 cats to push, spin and coierce it into place to become part of a landscape. It must have weighed close to a hundred tons. We run into them all the time here, deposited from the Ice age. Some we have drilled and blown in place. Most are just buried or hauled away.

 

[KiotiJohn]

You say large rock, but how large? There are some you're just not going to get out with that little BH.
One good way, as mentioned, is to build a ramp down to the rock and try to tie onto it and pull it out, hooking to your draw bar, not higher than that. You may need to add weight to your loader to make sure the front end stays put if using the BH to try to lift it out. If it's large, but not too large, you may be able to coerce it up the ramp by grabbing it with the bucket, and then, keeping the stabilizers just off the ground, drive the tractor forward, the bucket dragging the rock behind.
At any rate, safety is the most important consideration. If you're down far, the walls could cave. If you pull from anywhere higher than the drawbar, you can have a backwards rollover.
Go SLOW. John