which post hole digger to buy

[Fallon]

Blains Farm and Fleet has the SpeeCo model 65 on sale for $349. Lowest price I've seen after a fair amount of looking.

Lowest new of any brand I've seen is $450 without an augur (another $100-150) in well over a year. Think that one was a SpeeCo.

 

[avalancheMM]

Just bought a used Bobcat 3 pt auger with a 9" bit for $500 CDN, so like, $350 US. Have not yet used it, but appears to be very well built, and well maintained( was a dealer owned rental), and have 6 months warranty. i will keep you all posted!

Regards

 

[tman1020]

Sounds like a good deal.

 

[JKR]

Blains Farm and Fleet has the SpeeCo model 65 on sale for $349. Lowest price I've seen after a fair amount of looking.

That's a deal. It's the same one that TSC has but panted yellow.

 

[newbury]

Need a PHD ! Looking at the TSC and Everything Attachment PHD. I need a 9 inch auger. The EA is $760 and at the top of my price budget. EA seems to build quality implements and everything but the gear box is made in the USA. Open for reviews !!

Chuck

I bought the Agrisupply. Have a thread on it. Here's the results.

Well I now know the brand, quality, difficulty of assembly and if it will work on my B7610.
First of all - This might be lengthy.

My travels brought me within about 2 miles of the Petersburg, Va store so I decided to swing by and maybe get a PHD.

Agrisupply now lists 3 tractor posthole diggers:
#48598 Heavy Duty Post Hole Digger $359.95
#31391 Posthole Digger 50 HP $339.95
#69499 3 Point Post Hole Digger Frame With Gearbox $349.95

I thought any one of the three would do for me, but I like to see things before I buy them.

SO I get there and look. They only had 1 set up, the #31391, and I was told they others in crates, but no #48598's, just #31391's and #69499's, the store guys referred to the #69499's as the "black ones". (They said the metal shroud on it was much cheaper).

Well the #31391 Posthole Digger 50 HP looked ok to me (definitely no Bush Hog but hopefully sturdy enough). So I bought it, a #56932 (9" auger for Dale Philips), and a #56933 (12" auger for Dale Philips). Then also a handful of shear bolts of both sizes. Agrisupply carries 2 line of augers, these looked like the heavier duty ones.

I forgot gear oil, had to buy that later.

Assembly was straightforward. The only problem was I couldn't get the oil drain plug out, but I'll get that later.

Quality - The metal looks good, heavy. The paint job is less than adequate. It's like an afterthought. Big drips, bolts painted solid. Almost reminds me of a rattle can paint job.

So I put it together and found that everything fit and with my 3 PT raised to the max I had about two or three inches of clearance for the point of the auger to miss the ground
View attachment 312493

View attachment 312494

Drilled several hole in fairly soft soil. Seems to work well and a good bang for the buck.

Since then used it about a dozen or so times for posts etc. Oil drain plug came out w/ the correct wrench.

Works well w/ my B7610 and M4700. In retrospect I maybe should have bought another auger or two.

 

[747driver]

That's a deal. It's the same one that TSC has but panted yellow.

They have 1 left in stock here so tomorrow i will go get it. No time today to do it. I will get the 9" auger as well which is on sale. PHD and auger is $450...good deal.

 

[EddieWalker]

I have a Lienbach Line post hole digger that was very affordable, but the auger isn't any good. I replaced the tip several times, tried to modify it to dig better, but in the end, it's just a lousy auger. The gearbox and rest of the Lienbach Line is great, so no complaints there. My guess is that most of the 3 Point post hold diggers are going to be similar in design and durability. What really matters is the auger you get, and the quality of the cutters it has. I replaced my original auger with a Speeco, which was a direct fit from one to the other. It was a huge improvement, but it struggled with really hard packed clay to the point it would just spin when it hit those areas. Not all clay is the same, and some is like stone. We used my SDS Max rotary drill to break up the clay and then dig it out, but that was painfully slow. I replaced the cutting edges and that didn't make any difference. Then I read on here about somebody who had a Country Line auger from Tractor Supply and how good it was. I was desperate and figured for $120 it was worth the gamble. That has proven to be the very best auger I could have hoped for!!!!! It goes through the hardest, most miserable clay imaginable. I've never seen anything like it. If you are going with a 3 point post hole digger, look seriously at the Country Line augers at Tractor Supply and then compare all the others to that one.

If money is not an option, then going with a hydraulic post hole digger is the way to go. You have more control, more pressure and you can reverse out of the hole. I've thought about it. I have a Universal Quick Attach on my backhoe that I could mount it to and power it with the same lines the power my grapple. It wouldn't be very difficult to make happen, I just hesitate at spending that much money when the 3 point one I have does the job.

Good luck,
Eddie

 

[boblibido]

I bought the ETA PHD. It was not packed correctly so my new post hole digger had been dragged and scraped across the ground throughout shipping. I contacted them to tell them of the problem.

I figured since I had paid for a new unit I should receive a new unblemished unit. The manager said if I sent it back they would not send me another one. He said he would send me 5 bucks for a can of spray paint to solve my problem. Spray paint cannot full pitted metal.

First item I had bought from them.
Last item I will buy from them.

On a side note, even though they clearly stated it would be full of oil when I received it, the unit was bone dry. Plus I need to refill it every time I go to use it.

Go figure.

If I had to do it again, I would get the TSC unit. At least then I would have had a new unit.

Have fun!

 

[hunterridgefarm]

Eddie, I have the Lienbach PHD also and agree about the auger. Did you have any issue getting the TSC auger to fit on the Lienbach?

I have been thinking about buying the auger.

David

 

[EddieWalker]

None. The Country Line auger is a perfect fit. The size if the shaft and the holes lined up perfectly. It's like it was made for it. The difference is night and day. I can now dig holes while idling!!!! It just plain digs. Of course, you have to clean out the holes faster to make sure it doesn't dig down too fast. Never push down all the way on your 3 pt control or it might dig too fast. Twice I had it do that on me and it has so much digging power that the rear tires where noticeably compressed as the auger pulled the tractor down with it. Fortunately I can pull it out with my backhoe. Just wrap the chain around the top of the auger bit and lift with the hoe. It makes a massive hole when it all comes out, but it's a fairly fast and easy way to get it out. I've done the pipe wrench with a long pipe on it technique to unscrew it before, and that's rather painful.

Eddie