Posthole Digger Proper way to use post hole digger??

[PhilVA]

Currently helping a friend (while patiently awaiting my new tractor) put in a good number of post holes. The first few so far have seem to not go in so straight. The auger is lined straight up and down at the start but at the end of the hole the auger tends to "wander" in. The hole ends up crooked with the bottom of the hole being closer to the tractor than the top of the hole. It would seem to me that when positioning the auger, the bottom should angle away from the tractor so that when the hole is finished it is straight. Is this correct? Also, this particular auger has a 5' pole that comes off it at a right angle and can be adjusted in length. Is this for maintaining some kind of control? Thanks for helping a new guy.

Phil

 

[prosperity]

When positioning the auger to start. I put the point of the auger where I want the hole, then pull the tractor ahead a couple inches so the auger is tilted back slightly. You'll have to experiment with a couple until you get the feel for the right starting angle. This will give you a straight hole as an end result.

 

[StanInCalif]

Phil, the 5' pole you describe sounds like a leveling handle which some PHD's have for positioning the auger to start the hole.

 

[GlennT]

I watched a guy who does fencing for a living drill a couple of holes recently. He started with the auger straight up and down. Then when he got down about half way and the boom was parallel to the ground, he moved the tractor forward a few inches so that the auger was again straight up and down. I don't know if this is standard practice, but it seemed to work for him.

 

[markie61]

I do it both ways:

-With experience, I can predict how far to tip the auger (pulling the tractor forward) before I start the hole.
-BUT, when experience fails, you know about halfway down whether you are vertical or not and you can move forward a little.

Of course, it makes it a little easier if the wife is watching from the ground to tell me what to do. Maybe that 5' extension could be used to help indicate vertical when you are drilling alone?

Mark

 

[Ekim_Otsiam]

Just be careful when pulling forward with the auger in the ground.I ended up bending my auger when my foot slipped off the clutch and went too far forward. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif Now I just put the tip down and pull forward first.
Mike

 

[PhilVA]

Thanks for all the responses. They were on the money. It seemed to work best putting the tip down and then moving forward a bit. The 5' pole is exactly as described, a pole used by the tractor operator to help with positioning the auger. Thanks again for the help!

Phil

 

[cisco]

The auger head is linked to the arc of the supporting boom - what did you expect would happen? Anyhow, the prior posts are right on. It will not take much practice to establish how far forward you need to move the tractor, after the auger tip touches the ground, to attain a relatively vertical hole. As per posts, be real careful about inching the tractor forward if you need to correct the angle while augering (say, half way down the hole) - it's real easy to bend/break something - that said, we've all done it, and it works just fine.