[TowerTalk] DIGGING A HOLE WITH A BACKHOE

[Al Williams]

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Dick Green WC1M" <wc1m73 at gmail.com>

SNIP
> As many have noted, it's hard to dig a perfect hole with a backhoe or
> excavator. The hole always ends up larger than intended, especially after
> you get in and square it up with a shovel. The pier wound up closer to
> 4'x4'x6' and was more trapezoidal than rectangular (i.e., wider at the
> base.)

1.     Whys square the hole with a shovel? The only need might be to square 
up the visible part above the hole!

2.    "...wider at the base."?  I only have maybe 50 hours using my small 
BX22 backhoe but thats enough to know that the holes are always "wider at 
the top of the hole". This is because most backholes have two arms; the 
first attached to the low base of the tractor the arm then tilts up.
The second arm attaches to the end of the first arm and tilts down to the 
ground. It is difficult to get the outer arm's bucket deep without the inner 
arm hitting the ground

Digging a straight down hole requires a lot of coordinated tractor moving 
toward/away from the hole while also changing both arm angles.

3.    Readers contemplating having a deep, straight sided hole dug should 
find a contractor with a backhoe that has a telescoping/sliding arm mounted 
on the second (outer arm). This telescoping arm can dig straight vertical 
holes 8 or more feet deep.

k7puc