Need to dig a hole. small BH or larger FEL?

[funwithahoe]

I do a lot of excavating with my the loader on my little B3200, so it's very doable. Generally I'm cutting and filling a spot to make a level building site, but digging a hole isn't much different. I like to peel off thin layers of soil until the bucket is full, then lift the bucket just enough so it quits digging. Then I just continue pushing the soil along the surface (you can push more cu. ft. than your bucket will hold.) until I get where I want to pile it. If it's a long distance then I will pick it up and carry it. Using a box blade in tandem with the FEL will make something like this go much faster, plus the scarifiers are great for loosing the soil, even if you have a tooth bar.

I excavated this round pen using this method:

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Actual excavating took 14hrs, moved about 115 cu. yards.

Where did you get your toothbar? Do you ever wish it wasn't on (get in the way)?

I have a b3200 and was really surprised at how well I was able to scoop up top soil but I would guess a toothbar would make a big difference.

Thanks.

 

[DiezNutz]

Where did you get your toothbar? Do you ever wish it wasn't on (get in the way)?

I have a b3200 and was really surprised at how well I was able to scoop up top soil but I would guess a toothbar would make a big difference.

Thanks.

Virtually all toothbars these days are bolt-on. The teeth slip over the cutting edge, and ears at each end bolt thru the sides of the bucket - 2 bolts. < 5 minutes on or off including finding the wrenches. I take mine off for scooping.

Pic of mine when brand new (wow, the whole bucket really was orange once upon a time :laughing

 

[johnrex62]

What Verticaltrx said! :thumbsup:

I have not gotten around to digging anything big yet, but that is exactly how I would think to approach it. Since you have room to manuever, take long stripes pushing with the FEL and dragging the boxblade with the scarifiers down. This will loosen and even drag dirt behind you while letting you scoop and push the stuff loosened on the prior pass. I think the only limit to how deep you can go is the degree of incline and length of the grade in and out of the hole.

 

[Verticaltrx]

Where did you get your toothbar? Do you ever wish it wasn't on (get in the way)?

I have a b3200 and was really surprised at how well I was able to scoop up top soil but I would guess a toothbar would make a big difference.

Thanks.

I think mine is a W.R. Long, cost about $350. I got it at one of the kubota dealerships that keeps tooth bars in stock for these size tractors. I like that it has teeth that are a little bigger than some other brands, but not so big that they look out of place on a small tractor. The slightly larger teeth seem to work great for 'raking' through the soil to get out brush and small roots. It goes on with just two bolts, so it is easy to take on and off, but I like it so much I haven't taken it off since I got it in May. This winter I will probably take it off for snow removal and cleaning the livestock pens however.

Here's another spot I excavated, this is for a 24'x24' pole barn:

Even with a tooth bar and proper ballast there is a fair bit of skill involved in digging with a FEL. You really got to get a feel for the tractor and where the bucket is, since you can't see the bucket edge. In tough soil like the above picture, I just go along pretty slow in low range, 'feeling' how it's pulling, when it starts to slip a little I roll the bucket back slightly, once traction is regained I roll it forward a bit more to continue digging. I pretty much set the boom of the loader at the height I want and roll the bucket up or down to keep on grade.

 

[DiezNutz]

I like that it has teeth that are a little bigger than some other brands, but not so big that they look out of place on a small tractor.

I agree, I like the teeth on yours, when I wear my ATI out I will be looking for something similar to replace it. :thumbsup: Not that I have any drawbacks with mine, but I think wider teeth would help protect more of the bucket edge.

I think the only limit to how deep you can go is the degree of incline and length of the grade in and out of the hole.

That would be correct... you can dig as deep a hole as your tractor will fit into. I have a nice 40 X 80 "hole" that's 4' deep at one end. I'm already at the grade I wanted, but nothing would stop me from going deeper.

 

[TWD]

About 5-6 hours work with FEL on a 40hp w/no teeth on the bucket.

Where my dog was standing and back behind me was leveled out as I went along there was a pretty big ditch there, and also a few trees, and shrubs I ripped out with chain. I also had to move dirt up to the garden which was probably a 3-5 minute round trip. All was done with FEL. I did not find a need for the backhoe. Moving forward I`ll probably use the BH to remove some larger trees though.

1. Scrape 3-5" off the top until bucket is full.
2. Move dirt / Empty someplace.
3. Repeat #1, right next to last position.
4. Repeat above.

If you dig 1 area to deep, and have anything on the back like a BH, mower, etc, I found you could get high centered more easily. Had to scoot out on the BH bucket once before I learned that lesson :laughing:

 

[montelatici]

Well here is the hole I dug with the FEL. I decided to try burying a smaller pile than the big one as a first try. But I think I am getting the hang of it.

 

[Tom_H]

Maybe the best technique might be to dig about a bucket down with the BH for the whole area of the hole then attack it with the FEL for the rest of the depth.

I suggest a similar tack. I have dense clay and this works for me. Put a sub-soiler and some ballast on the top of it on the 3ph. Wet the area down and allow the water to soak in for 3 or 4 days. Set the angle on the sub-soiler to the highest number of degrees possible. Ripping with this device will loosen the soil much faster than the bh. You then can take about 4-6 inches off the top easily with the toothbar and FEL. Repeat for the next layer. The ballast needs to be on the toothbar itself in order to get down pressure. It will also counterbalance the weight when the FEL is full. The drive through trench mentioned above would be the most efficient hole design.