Rowski - I'd say the 4-in-1 bucket is definitely on my must-have list. It's an incredible tool. You can also use the heel for a depth gauge for cutting when back-dragging, or the toe for the same purpose (to a more limited extent) when pushing. Or, open it up and push brush a while, then when you've got a load, just clamp it with the jaws, pick it up, and take it to where you want to dump it. And on, and on.
Last month, I was working on a project and a guy was trying to get a T-Post out of the ground that had been put in concrete (and no, I don't know why, either). He wasn't working for me, but I felt sorry for him, he was having so much trouble, so I rode over to pull it with the 4-in-1. (He offered no resistance to the plan whatsoever.) Anyway, I clamped it lightly and lifted, and it just slipped. Second attempt, same result. Third time, I really crunched it - actually "cut it" would be a better way of putting it, because I only came away with the top 3/4 of it. So, for the fourth time, I was very careful to put just enough to crimp it slightly and I got the whole works up that time.
There's also a very clever trick you can use if you've got teeth and the object is a little bit flexible. It's easier to do with a backhoe, and it's easier to do than it is to explain, but the idea is to thread the object (sapling, rod, conduit, whatever) over one tooth and under another. The easiest way I've found to do it is to pull up to it, push down on it with the bucket as you back away from it, then, when the bend appears in front of the bucket, lower the bucket enough more to get one or two teeth under it, pull back forward until the tooth is in the bend, then lift it out of the ground. If you've got a tooth bar, but don't have a 4-in-1 bucket, this is a surprisingly easy way to pull saplings. Impresses the toughest client, too, when it works. When it doesn't, just tell him you were trying to break it off so you could see what was on the other side of it. /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif
Mark
