Starting to have second thoughts L3130/L3830

Anonymous Poster · Apr 20, 2003

Had already decided on 3130 possibly 3830 with fel and 9ft backhoe(bradco) will take 10 days to come in. I am satisfied with price and dealer that I just talk to Friday. Now Two days later my property has had two more slips knocking down at least 60 feet of chain link fence down. My brother in law which has heavy equipment says I would be better off with 4x4 backhoe That the tractor on my hill could be dangerous specialy on cleaning drive off of snow. Offered to pay half the price and leave at my place. and said maby I could make some money with it. Would cost around $30,000. He thinks I would not get much work done because his friend just bought a ford 50 hp with fel and did not like it. He is not to familiar with tractor back hoes he just did not think l they would have the digging force. Maby because he has a huge excavator. My land is 33 acres but mostly hill side I have more than 900 feet of steep drive. and another drive about 75 feet with a parking lot . have one lot needs mowed or brush hoged 25 x 400 antother 750 or so x 60 thats the one up on the hill with my house and 36x50 barn. thousands of feet of dithes that need clean out, just got city water but have too hook it up my self. contractor wants 2 per foot .I have 3 places to hook up. and new septic lines to dig. I would like to have small garden 40X50. That's for starters. Do I need Tractor or Backhoe? Is my land big enough or should I say flat enough for the l3130. /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif I will try to post some pictures of the slipp if I know how and then later post some pictures of my property when I take them.

mkflyfish · Apr 21, 2003

Ky

I haven't read all your posts, but 2 bucks for waterline sounds decent....and it sounds like you have a lot of dirt to move/compact.

My stupid connection won't let me dl the photos, but i will when i have a chance.

Maybe you should consider a tractor to perform normal maintenance of things, and hire out the "big" jobs that need done.

A good, reputable, excavator with a bulldozer and a backhoe can move a lot of soil and recompact it for pennies...er 800 to 1000 a day (Kansas dollars).

Depending on the sliding hill etc. a call to a geotechnical engineering firm may also be beneficial, as they can asses the sliding, and make recommendations on how to stabilize the slope.

Michael

JATO_RaT · Apr 21, 2003

I'm a little confused, what do you mean your property had 2 more slips? Are you saying your land is sliding down the hill? If you put a backhoe on a L3130 or L3830 with 4 wheel drive, do you not then have a 4X4 backhoe? A dedicated backhoe will not likely have a PTO so your ability to brushhog is diminshed. A industrial backhoe will also tip on hills and are very, very heavy. For lots of trenching, I would prefer to rent a trencher over a hoe or excavator. For a leach field, you would probably find it more effective to hire out the work of the digging, perhaps to your brother in law. To make money with a backhoe, (I assume you would restrict it to neighbors since hauling a industrial hoe requires heavy equipment) you really need to be sure of your neighbors and the consequences of digging up something that will need replacing be it electrical, water, gas lines etc, insurance in our state and probably for most backhoe operators is quite pricey. Think about what your future needs are as well. My guess is that after your done trenching the majority of your stuff, your going to wish for a 3 pt hitch and a PTO. I live on hills myself and found my L48 to handle them quite well, there are times I cannot drive sideways on the hill, but that will apply to almost any wheeled vehicle. I don't get snow here, but if a tractor will slide off your road because of snow, a industrial backhow will too. Chains are always an option. Anyway, a few things to consider.

MikePA · Apr 21, 2003

Kytractor, it was kind of hard to pick out exactly what you want to do with whatever piece of equipment you buy. You have a mixture of ongoing tasks, plus a few one time. Let me see if I've divided them up correctly.

My brother in law which has heavy equipment says I would be better off with 4x4 backhoe.
The tractor with a backhoe you priced out is 4 x 4 as well.

That the tractor on my hill could be dangerous specialy on cleaning drive off of snow.
If it's dangerous on a tractor, it will be dangerous on a backhoe.

...his friend just bought a ford 50 hp with fel and did not like it.
Why didn't he like it? What was he trying to do with it?

He is not to familiar with tractor back hoes he just did not think l they would have the digging force.
Depends what you're comparing the tractor backhoe to and what you need to dig.

I have more than 900 feet of steep drive. and another drive about 75 feet with a parking lot. have one lot needs mowed or brush hoged 25 x 400 antother 750 or so x 60 thats the one up on the hill with my house and 36x50 barn. thousands of feet of dithes that need clean out, just got city water but have too hook it up my self. contractor wants 2 per foot .I have 3 places to hook up. and new septic lines to dig. I would like to have small garden 40X50. 
Finally, we're getting to what you want to do with the tractor. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif By the way, did you tell the dealer what you wanted to use the tractor for?

Plowing steep driveways - Recurring task. There are plenty of people on TBN who use a 4x4 tractor on steep drives. Some use a FEL, some use a rear blade, some use a rear mounted snowblower, etc. Many use chains as well. Lots of tractor-based solutions.

Brush hogging - Recurring task. You're not going to do this with a backhoe.

Cleaning out ditches - Recurring task. Cleaned out of what? Do they need mowed (sickle bar mower), debris cleaned out (backhoe), etc.?

Water and sewer lines - This is a one time job. Personally, I would not buy a piece of equipment to do a one time job (unless I just wanted the piece of equipment /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif ), I would hire someone to do this, or rent the equipment to do it myself.

40' x 50' Garden - Recurring task. Plowing, discing, tilling...all jobs a tractor with a 3ph attachment does very well. Backhoe can not do this.

Based upon the tasks you've identified, I'd vote for a tractor and rent a trencher for the water and sewer lines or hire someone to do that. Another alternative, if you want a bigger back hoe, is the John Deere 110, which is a small backhoe with a 3ph on the back.

Anonymous Poster · Apr 21, 2003

The slip(land slide) is a result of having a lot of snow and rain this year. Been here over 12 years, but first time I have had this much problems. I guess were the hill (mountain) has absorbed so much water it has caused the part of the land here and there to slip or slide. Which in turn slid into my chain link fence behind my house at the foot of a hill. Will the L3830/3130 handle the 509 bradco back doe .Digging depith 9"8'.needs 9-12 gpm hydraulic system or would the 408 8"1' depth 5-8 gpm.be better? Operating weight 408 1162#/509 1425#. 408 1162#/ 509 1425#. Your right about 4x4 backhoe. I guess he was referring to that amount of work that could be done with the bigger one like a 310 John Deere. He also said the 3830 were it was a little wider would probably be better. Thanks for reply.

Anonymous Poster · Apr 21, 2003

MikePa, Thank you. A very good point on the danger of the larger backhoe on a hill that you and Rad has made.He (brotherinlaw) was saying tractor could be more dangerous for turning over. Thought I would add the $ 2,000 cost of water line to take off the tractors price and do it my self. The contractor that was going to do it was using small backhoe. The ford person was complaining about the time and ride (Vibration) of his tractor for loading dirt. You had very strong point for recurring task That I did not take into consideration. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif