Post hole diggers - Crap or not?

[Ted]

I had never used one of these powered hole diggers before today. But as I had a family member who needed a field refenced, she hired one today from HSS for £80 for 24hrs delivered.

It is powered by a Honda engine and has a corkscrew which you push down where you want to make the hole.

I thought it was utter crap. It came with several corkscrews but even the largest is no good for her 6"x6" gate posts and she was told it would be. It was also advertised as suitable for one man on his own. I managed to drag it across a muddy field but I don't reckon your average DIYer would. But then I found I needed another person anyway as we both had to put our full weight on top of the machine to get it to actually dig any soil out. As soon as it hit a stone, it would stop and we would have to dig the stone out by hand.

Are these machines a waste of time? Do professional fencers use them? There must be some really heavy duty ones that do a better job? I am thinking of digging all the holes by hand now. Unless I can find a man with a tractor and a hole digger. I presume that when powered off the PTO they will be much more effective?

[dig dug dan]

Well ted, depends where you are. They are great in places like norfolk where there is no stone, but crap in hertfordshire where it is all hard flinty ground.
I have a 10" post hole borer on the back of my compact tractor. Only 17hp, but it powers through most ground. The stones just get smashed up.
Even the hydraulic post hole borers like the digga stop on hard ground.
The only way is with an excavator mounted or tractor mounted borer.
The hand ones are a waste of money.
Out of interest, if it is a field fence, why can't you get a local farmer to bash them in for you? My mates post basher can drive a railway sleeper in the ground without a point on the bottom!!



Edited By dig dug dan on 1167414768