Wild Bill the 2nd
Gold Member
I would agree with pretty much everything that people have said. I had a NH TC35 gear drive tractor for the 14 years. Rented an excavator to dig my basement, do the septic, and trench utilities / drains. The tractor was then used for the driveway, part of the septic, back-filling, landscaping, mowing etc. It is really good to have the extra weight that last chassis size gives you. I would try to get there even if it meant sacrificing of some HP.
That said I think that 35HP gear or 40HP hydro would be as low as I'd want to go. If you have hills you may want to bump that up another 5 HP.
No one has mentioned the other option of buying a used full size backhoe and keeping it for a few years and selling it for what you paid for it. If you look long enough you can buy right and do the hoe work you need when building.
That said I think that 35HP gear or 40HP hydro would be as low as I'd want to go. If you have hills you may want to bump that up another 5 HP.
No one has mentioned the other option of buying a used full size backhoe and keeping it for a few years and selling it for what you paid for it. If you look long enough you can buy right and do the hoe work you need when building.