- Thread starter Burdekin
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8ob
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This will depend largely on ground conditions of your friends site , compact tractor will cope if he is digging in reasonably soft/sandy ground conditions and will be versatile when it comes to landscaping etc. Hard/rocky ground he would be better off with a 360 and dumper.
Bob
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Over seas I had a lightly used Kubota 7100 series tractor with a quick detach backhoe, which served me well for over thirty years. It was the perfect size and a very useful type of machine for almost all our small ranch needs.
Smallfry
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I would buy a 360 digger every time. I have a 1.5 ton Yanmar from 1995, and it punches well above its weight, and has never had anything done to it, not even a hose burst. It also lives outside. They are generally reliable, as long as you stick to known brands. What size you buy depends on what you want to do, and where you have to get it. Do not buy an ex hire machine if possible. I dont know if you have the "Do As You Likey" problem there, but its best to get a bigger one that cannot be moved on a trailer. 3 to 5 ton. This has the added benefit that all those friends you never knew you had cannot borrow it. Repairs can be VERY expensive, and everyone wants to borrow, but no one wants to pay.
I find that having the machine is much more convenient than hiring, as I can do a bit and leave it, rather than trying to rush a job because its on hire, and its slashing down with rain, making an almighty mess. Also, once you have it, you can find all sorts of things for it to do.
Hiring does have that advantage of NOT having to pay for repairs, unless you have turned it over or something. But NEVER hire a machine like this without the additional insurance. If something goes wrong or it is stolen, you will be paying for it.
I have a couple of old tractors too, and a Unimog with a crane and three point linkage on it, but the mini digger is what gets used most.
I find that having the machine is much more convenient than hiring, as I can do a bit and leave it, rather than trying to rush a job because its on hire, and its slashing down with rain, making an almighty mess. Also, once you have it, you can find all sorts of things for it to do.
Hiring does have that advantage of NOT having to pay for repairs, unless you have turned it over or something. But NEVER hire a machine like this without the additional insurance. If something goes wrong or it is stolen, you will be paying for it.
I have a couple of old tractors too, and a Unimog with a crane and three point linkage on it, but the mini digger is what gets used most.
God mode restorations
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My honest opinion. You be better off hiring a 3.5t track machine (360) and dumper. If your not familiar with the operation of machinery related groundwork then hire someone who is. Being in the game for most of my life . What an unexperienced operator can do in a day an experienced one can do in a few hours. Most of my works was going in after someone who *** it up to put it all right. Nothing worse when house footings and drainage is evolved
dobbslc
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True! You really only get one chance at putting the trench in the right place as it's quite hard to slap the clay back on the side of an oversized hole
My builder had the footings dug and filled a concrete while I was at work, I came home and it was done!
True! You really only get one chance at putting the trench in the right place as it's quite hard to slap the clay back on the side of an oversized hole
My builder had the footings dug and filled a concrete while I was at work, I came home and it was done!
Can also be worth while on more complex footings to have a setting out engineer come and mark out where to dig.
Arc Tourist
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One thing worth noting for your friend, and I don't know what the equivalent here in the UK may be ?; but in California, we have a free service that is called " Underground Service Alert ", where any known utilities that exist along or running through your property are located and marked out before you start to dig. This service protects you from liability.
Burdekin
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This is what he will be doing as well. He's just bought a property with land and numerous buildings on the Moray coast, is retired in his early 50s so he'll be doing the work himself the majority of the time. He's currently looking at what additional tools and machinery he needs.
Over here you can get drawings, sometimes free sometimes at a cost. But they only show some services, and then it's only down to a certain size. Feeds to individual properties aren't shown. They don't even show where they branch off of the mains.
The majority of my work is on public highways and we rarely pay much attention to the drawings. Instead we just always dig as if their is a service there.
Smallfry
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Thats because your footings are two inches thickTrue! You really only get one chance at putting the trench in the right place as it's quite hard to slap the clay back on the side of an oversized hole
My builder had the footings dug and filled a concrete while I was at work, I came home and it was done!
sako243
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Was just called the 2CX and they did a variant called the StreetMaster (which I have) which was all the options ticked. Extradig, auxiliary hydraulics on the back actor and side (for hand tools). Hydraulic quick hitch on the front and 6 in 1 bucket.Didn’t they do the 2CX air master with a back hoe option? Or am I remembering it wrong? Happy to be wrong
If you had to have one machine I'd definitely be thinking strongly about a backhoe.
Bearing in mind this is a baby 2CX rather than a full size. Mine will out lift most tractors on the front loader (comfortable with 2t to 14ft). She'll fit down a 6ftish alleyway and dig right up next to the walls because of the side shift (something you would struggle to do with a similarly capable 360). The back actor will out dig most 5t 360s and turn within her own length due to the four wheel steering.
Downsides are she's a bit tippy on side slopes (but everything is) and very soft ground she'll make a right mess of (5.5t with no buckets). I find I use the loader and front bucket far more than the back actor. If I need to excavate an area and haul it away I tend to loosen up stuff with the back actor then use the loader to either load a trailer / dumper or simply cart it. If things are positioned right you'd need to have a 13 tonner or bigger to keep up with loading a trailer from a pile but those would outshine it if digging out of the ground.
They take skill to master but they are incredibly versatile machines as people have said but not particularly excellent at any one job (apart from possibly grading surfaces). If I didn't have the 2CX I'd be looking at 5t 360, a dumper truck and possibly a forklift to replace all the jobs that she can do. Not really suited for contract work but great for home use.
sako243
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With regards to the compact tractor / backhoe option I wouldn't bother unless he's going to use the tractor for tractory things afterwards.
I had a backhoe on the back of a Kubota B8200 and to be honest I'm not sure if I ever really used it. The loader was kind of handy but the JCB outshine it in everything for what I did. The back actor on the B8200 struggled to go above my height whereas the JCB has managed to lift some concrete lintels up to 25ft by dropping the jacking legs down all the way with the extra dig out.
Having said that the compact tractor is useful because I use a New Holland 1220 as my lawn mower with a 4ft flail on the back.
I had a backhoe on the back of a Kubota B8200 and to be honest I'm not sure if I ever really used it. The loader was kind of handy but the JCB outshine it in everything for what I did. The back actor on the B8200 struggled to go above my height whereas the JCB has managed to lift some concrete lintels up to 25ft by dropping the jacking legs down all the way with the extra dig out.
Having said that the compact tractor is useful because I use a New Holland 1220 as my lawn mower with a 4ft flail on the back.
8ob
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Quick check points to the property being on red sandstone, thats bigger digger territory.
Bob
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What do we think of this machine for a bit of ditching post driving and a bit of pad digging for sheds on a smallholding?
8ob
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Plant Machinery For Sale in Ireland | DoneDeal
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What do we think of this machine for a bit of ditching post driving and a bit of pad digging for sheds on a smallholding?
Nothing wrong with running older kit if you are handy with a spanner and mechanically sympathetic. Spares are thin on the ground and eye wateringly expensive for a lot of these older machines.
Bob
dan.taylor.1
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Airmaster was the one with a compressor, no backhoe though. Sitemaster had the backhoe.
