Finally stopped digging post holes by hand after 8 years of stubbornness

My buddy loaned me his skid steer with an auger attachment for a 40-post job last month and I got the whole thing done in 3 hours instead of 2 days, so has anyone else been late to the machine party?

2 comments

2 Comments

jamiekim16d ago

... I read somewhere that something like 70% of people who start out digging posts by hand switch to a machine within the first year... I lasted eight years though so I guess I'm just stubborn like that. My neighbor told me his grandpa used to say that a skid steer pays for itself in just a few weekends of work if you're doing any kind of fencing or building decks. The auger attachment is the real game changer though, like you said it cuts the time down so much you almost feel like you're cheating...

ellis.felix16d ago

Eight years by hand is some serious dedication man, I respect that. The auger thing is no joke though, I had a buddy who swore by hand digging until he rented a skid steer for a weekend fence job and he never looked back. The trick is you gotta match the auger bit to your soil type, if you're in heavy clay or rocky ground you need a really sharp bit or you'll just burn up the hydraulic fluid. I learned that the hard way on my first deck build, spent an hour cussing at a sloppy hole before I figured out the bit was dull. Also if you're doing fencing, pre-marking your line with a string makes it way easier to keep everything straight when you're on the machine, saves you from having to re-dig a hole because you're off by a few inches.