back hoe...

What questions do I ask a seller to make clear that that's what I want?

If you only have the trench to do, Sisterpine, I would rent or hire. If you have other things that you could do later, then you might think about buying, but to make sense you'd have to have quite a few jobs to be done gradually over time.

I rented the backhoe attachment for my Bobcat ten years ago and put in a couple hundred feet of waterline in a weekend, never having used a backhoe before. Perfectly doable to learn how to use them quickly, even if you don't get fast very quick.

I later purchased a stick and bucket for my Bobcat and use that relatively often here on the farm for brush and rock removal, things like that. Have not had to put in a trench for quite some time. Just pointing out that there are other alternatives than a "true" backhoe. Things like that aren't perfect for everything a backhoe can do, but they'll do a lot as a compromise piece of equipment.

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-Northern NYS

The terms you'll be looking for are "3 point mount" or "subframe mount"-it'll be one of the two.

Subframe-mount is preferable because it spreads its forces more evenly across the tractor and, probably just as important, is usually MUCH easier to install and remove.

A 3-pt mount may take multiple people and is sometimes quick to install, but can be such a PITA sometimes that you'll come up with excuses to avoid installing or removing it. A subframe mount takes one person about 5 minutes- most of that carefully backing the tractor over the frame so that it is aligned.

I may have over-stated (as did a couple others) that a 3 point mount will damage your tractor. Lots of people use them for years without trouble, but there is a much greater chance of damaging your end links. It's not ideal, but can work.

Now for the bad news.
They may not even make a subframe mount hoe for your tractor. 3 point mounts are much MUCH more common because they are somewhat universal-fit. Subframes only fit one specific model of tractor, so they just aren't out there for every tractor. If you have a newer tractor that has supported dealerships, you're going to have a much easier time finding one, but you may have to buy it new, since matched subframe hoes don't come up for sale, used, separately very often.

What kind of tractor do you have?

With this in mind I would buy a tractor with a loader AND a Trackhoe.

Any farm should have a tractor with a loader But the jobs you have listed would best be done with a good size trackhoe,
A useful size tractor for a small farm is far too light for land or drive clearing. A Dozer would be very inefficient and do a poor job in the basement and foundation ,septic tank or field. A trackhoe can give you clean square holes with the dirt removed and loaded or piled a short distance away.
A trackhoe will do all these jobs very nicely .
Dozers excel at working a few inches deep over mid distances . It would do the driveway the easiest as far as gouging a hole into the property, But a trackhoe with its ability to "reach and Grab" will give you a much more finished and clean look. Things can be neatly piled a short distance from the drive

I owned a couple bobcats with backhoes the biggest I had was a t300 with an 11 ft how. Machine was an absolute beast. Also had a john Deere 110 tlb 44 horse commercial backhoe, also a Kubota 2900 with full subframe 32 horse machine with a backhoe. It was to not good for hoe work. Here's why, an 8 ft how is to short( constanty repositioning ) also is to light . when you get into clay or rock it just drags the machine, same with stumps. In my opinion if you feel you need tobuy a back hhow I would look for a used mini excavator. You can find good deals on a 1500 hr machine. Get one with a 10 ft dig depth. You can Mk some nice side money with it too. Good luck benny

I have a farm build under carnage (sub frame) mount back hoe mounted on a JD 4020 tractor 1970, 90 hp farm tractor,
a few years ago I dug a trench for the neighbor for a electrical line for his new building,

dug in about 4 to 5 hrs, to approximately the same distance and depth my bucket is about 16 wide, and most was close to 48" deep,

I would not buy for one job,

even making it I have a few thousand in my back hoe, (mostly hydraulics and related items),

one thing is to make it work, you will want your hoe to be able to dig about a foot to two feet deeper than you want the trench, that way you will be able to dig more than just a few inches at depth,

many of the add on back hoes are limited when it comes to depth,

I would ask a second question, what else do you have ideas for the machine?

(mine I would not want to dig a cellar or basement with, not big enough for efficient use, to dig footers, sewer line, electrical line, hole to bury a large animal,

they sure beat a shovel, but they are not industrial machines,

get a unit with a sub frame mount, (I have heard of people literally ripping off the three point mounts out of the casting of the tractor).

but if this is basically a one time project and not many future ideas, hiring some one to dig it for you would be money ahead,

Why does the trench need to be 24" wide for electrical?

That's going to cost a lot if you are required to cover it with red dyed concrete. Rent a trencher that will give you a 4" to 6" trench to lay the conduit/cable in.

WWW

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If the grass looks greener it is probably over the septic tank. - troy n sarah tx

Our existance here is soley for the expoitation of CMG

Same question I had: Why the 24" width for an electric run?

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~Only the rocks live forever~

I do not know, it is the power companies rule....probably because it will cost more than a 12 inch wide trench?

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www.MontanaSticksAndStones.com at Goshen Farm

There's an old thread at www.tractorbynet.com showing a big hole in the cast iron case at the back of the tractor from the stress of a 3 pt backhoe. As another poster said, Kubota sells a part to reinforce the gear case to prevent that from happening.

Well, from the book I'm reading(btw: free, and online: http://www.soilandhealth.org/03sov/0...rts/YEHtoc.htm), I'm starting to back away from a basement, and embrace piers. Therefore, maybe rent an auger for it, also?(Maybe just a shovel job; don't know the ground yet)

I'm in a VERY low budget. We live in Philadelphia, currently, and not only do we HATE it, our overhead is crushing. We ARE saving about 1200 a month, though. I can't get any credit with the student loan situation I'm in, and DW doesn't have verifiable income. I can pull about 12000 out of my retirement to build a house with(or place as a down-payment on a layaway program), so we're probably gonna have to get a custom designed kit-house.

The tractor(or whatever) is our means of doing the work ourselves, paid outright; because we're moving 600 miles north, so all our ducks have to be lined up. Then I gotta take a year off work to pull the rest out; so while working the land, and prepping, I need to find a job up there, while family stays here.

In short, it seems a realistic investment to make this happen. One purchase, that goes the longest way...

Why not post a thread outlining your goals ,limitations and resources and asking advice?

From what I see I think Id buy a trackhoe and do the preliminary work then after the house was built if I could bear to part with it id sell/trade it for a tractor.

Maybe the best advice I have seen yet