PTO Auger vs post pounder

[rockingclawhammer]

Thanks for the input everyone. All my neighbors use augers and RR ties/Cedar or Mesquite posts in combo with T-posts. I have never seen a HD-8 in person but it was recommended by a friend and fence builder on a cattle forum. He is in central Texas which has plenty of rocks and swears by them over the augers. My boys have recently moved out on there own so I cant rely on that free labor anymore and need to stream line to a 1 man show. Sounds like the post driver is the way to go.

 

[DJ54]

I have an HD-8, with full hydraulics, and love it..!! If you get one, make sure you get the one with the hydraulic tilt. You'll tilt it more than a person would realize, mostly fore and aft, especially when you drop the 3 pt. You'll need to tilt the top towards the tractor a bit, every time you drop the 3 pt. I drove close to 400 posts by myself, through an open winter here. Cold, but not enough to freeze more than just a crust. Clay soil was good and damp, but not muddy. It drove the 5" round line posts pretty easy. The 6" corners took a bit longer, but still drove them pretty easy considering.

It is a lot easier to have a helper, if for nothing else to line up posts, and position the tractor. If I drove 25 posts a day, I considered it a good day through the winter, with short daylight hours. But, I was pretty particular having posts in line. Very few times, I was right on the money getting in position. Even with a string strung, always seemed to have to move just a tad. So roughly 70 times a day on & off the tractor is rough on an old guy.

I kept a small torpedo level in my pocket to keep the posts plumb. If it would drift one way or the other, you can use the hydraulic tilt, to bring it back, hitting it a few licks, to straighten it up.

Pipe should drive pretty easy, but myself, I'd probably have to think of putting a wooden headblock in there of some sort, to possibly prevent chunks of pipe breaking off, and flying.

 

[Birdhunter1]

I have an HD-8, with full hydraulics, and love it..!! If you get one, make sure you get the one with the hydraulic tilt. You'll tilt it more than a person would realize, mostly fore and aft, especially when you drop the 3 pt. You'll need to tilt the top towards the tractor a bit, every time you drop the 3 pt. I drove close to 400 posts by myself, through an open winter here. Cold, but not enough to freeze more than just a crust. Clay soil was good and damp, but not muddy. It drove the 5" round line posts pretty easy. The 6" corners took a bit longer, but still drove them pretty easy considering.

It is a lot easier to have a helper, if for nothing else to line up posts, and position the tractor. If I drove 25 posts a day, I considered it a good day through the winter, with short daylight hours. But, I was pretty particular having posts in line. Very few times, I was right on the money getting in position. Even with a string strung, always seemed to have to move just a tad. So roughly 70 times a day on & off the tractor is rough on an old guy.

I kept a small torpedo level in my pocket to keep the posts plumb. If it would drift one way or the other, you can use the hydraulic tilt, to bring it back, hitting it a few licks, to straighten it up.

Pipe should drive pretty easy, but myself, I'd probably have to think of putting a wooden headblock in there of some sort, to possibly prevent chunks of pipe breaking off, and flying.

When driving a T post or a metal pipe in one of these drivers take short strokes to tap it in. It won't take much so you won't have to raise the ram all the way up to drop it hard like you would on a 6' round post.
I will agree on having a helper, I had a job this spring I did that was 146 post from 4"-6" 3' deep into clay. The ground was the perfect moisture for good post driving, one day I had my dad on the tractor and a few other times I had my nephew on it. A few sections I was the lone operator and it gets old getting on and off the tractor to line up the driver and set posts, move to the next one and so on. It also helps to sharpen the post into a wedge if its over 4" but it isn't always needed, on hillsides especially it helps as they like to try to walk themselves on the hill when being driven.

 

[Timm250]

I have an HD-10. I have hit a couple places where there was about a foot of dirt & then real fine sand.

The post wouldn't drive through the sand which surprised me.

The sand packed as hard as concrete & the driver actually split the post and never drove through the sand.

After 2 split posts I got the auger out & dug a hole.

 

[cdaigle430]

For the amount of fencing I do I will stick with the less expensive auger....$3,000 without the base or hydraulic tilt....wow.

 

[Fallon]

Post pounders dont exist here in Colorado. Apparently trying to use them on bigger wooden posts with our hard clay just ends up in piles of splinters. I've had pounded T-posts in & it sucks. Imagine a 6" post wouldnt survive around here. I drilled all my holes & tamped the dirt back in around the posts by hand.