Removing Juniper Trees - Which Backhoe to use?

[Pettrix]

I have some small to medium sized juniper trees to knock down/remove. I have 2 options for a backhoe rental:

Kubota M62 ($275 for 8 hours plus $80 drop off/pickup = $355)
or
John Deere 310K/L ($350 for 8 hours plus $300 drop off pickup = $650)

Which is the better tractor to use for the best bang for the buck?

 

[LS Tractor Owner]

Either one will work fine.... I ripped out a whole line of junipers that had been growing for 25 years with my BH on a 25hp CUT.

Both those machines would make it easy work.... well to dig them out anyway.

 

[Hay Dude]

How many junipers is “some” junipers?
The backhoe will have longer reach, if reach would be helpful (it usually is). The backhoe will also have a higher capacity bucket and dump height, which will help when shuttling loads of tree debris from the dig site to the pile.

 

[RickB]

The one with a hydraulic thumb. If neither are so equipped, the one with the mechanical thumb. If neither are so equipped, the one that will accomplish the task in the least number of days. If you think they would finish in equal times, the Kubota.

 

[Thomas]

I would lean towards backhoe...dig them out may have travel for fill and smooth ground,if any time left on rental before being pick up do some ground touching up.

 

[STx]

An excavator. Backhoes are too slow.

 

[Pettrix]

Excavators are good but lack the bucket height to dump the junipers into the 30 yard dumpster (6 feet in height)

 

[Pettrix]

I think I will go with the Kubota M62 as it's almost 1/2 the price of the John Deere. Although the JD is a more powerful machine, no doubt.

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[RickB]

Excavators are good but lack the bucket height to dump the junipers into the 30 yard dumpster (6 feet in height)

Funniest thing I've read in a long while.

 

[4570Man]

Excavators are good but lack the bucket height to dump the junipers into the 30 yard dumpster (6 feet in height)

My Kx040 excavator boom will go as high or higher than the front bucket on the M62. The lacking ability would be if the dumpster is farther away than I can reach. The excavator moves slow. I’d want a thumb and grapple to do the job the 310 probably has neither.