Stake driver

Siamsa Sessions

We usually get someone in to drive stakes here, as and when needed.

I’d line up the stakes in advance so whoever drives them is here for less time, meaning fewer hours at the 50 euro/hour fellas seem to charge.

But two local lads now can’t call as they’re busy with other contractor work, so I’m half thinking of biting the bullet and buying a stake driver meself.

There’s a world of fancy, expensive ones on DoneDeal but can anyone recommend a very basic model?

mr.stonewall

Bought a multec up the north a few years ago, brilliant. Make sure to get one with side tilt, and hydraulic top link. Also put on a ball hitch so handy. Have an old car trailer, that's now the fencing trailer. I leave stakes, wire etc in it and clean out the waste every now and then. It's a thing you have for life and very little to go wrong with them
https://multec.co.uk/shop/post-drivers/post-driver-side-tilt-pd2-2/

hopeso

Malone post drivers are fairly common around here....The one in the link is a side tilt, with external controls. If you want very basic, they also make a version without the side tilt, and operated from the tractor's spool valve. Major also make a similar machine, which I can't find on their website......

http://www.malonefm.com/products/post-driver

893bet

Would they be capable of driving a strainer stake?

hopeso

893bet wrote: »

Would they be capable of driving a strainer stake?

Yes

Dunedin

hopeso wrote: »

Malone post drivers are fairly common around here....The one in the link is a side tilt, with external controls. If you want very basic, they also make a version without the side tilt, and operated from the tractor's spool valve. Major also make a similar machine, which I can't find on their website......

http://www.malonefm.com/products/post-driver

What sort of money are they?

richie123

Siamsa Sessions wrote: »

We usually get someone in to drive stakes here, as and when needed.

I’d line up the stakes in advance so whoever drives them is here for less time, meaning fewer hours at the 50 euro/hour fellas seem to charge.

But two local lads now can’t call as they’re busy with other contractor work, so I’m half thinking of biting the bullet and buying a stake driver meself.

There’s a world of fancy, expensive ones on DoneDeal but can anyone recommend a very basic model?

Depending on where u are a crowd called hireagri hire one in North tipp ..it's a kentec top spec model side shift and angle ..on hire for 65 a day.

Reggie.

Dunedin wrote: »

What sort of money are they?

Around 3k inc vat I believe

buffalobilly

bought a malone one here
a few years ago basic enough
machine with side tilt think it
was €2900 very handy machine
about the place

Bass Reeves

richie123 wrote: »

Depending on where u are a crowd called hireagri hire one in North tipp ..it's a kentec top spec model side shift and angle ..on hire for 65 a day.

If you could get another lad with you that wants to do the same in his place and sorted a young lad to drive the tractor you would drive a lot if posts in two days. One collects it and the other lad drops it back. It's the way to go even if you have to travel 50miles to get it. Two lads on the ground and a driver will drive a lot of stakes

hopeso

Bass Reeves wrote: »

If you could get another lad with you that wants to do the same in his place and sorted a young lad to drive the tractor you would drive a lot if posts in two days. One collects it and the other lad drops it back. It's the way to go even if you have to travel 50miles to get it. Two lads on the ground and a driver will drive a lot of stakes

Perfectly fine in that situation, but there’ll always be small bits to be done, including unexpected repairs. Having even the most basic post driver available to go into action when you need it is invaluable. Two neighbors could share the cost of one between them, in some circumstances. I have a very basic one here. The most recent job it done was something like 6 posts, but it was more than worth the effort of putting it on the tractor.

richie123

hopeso wrote: »

Perfectly fine in that situation, but there’ll always be small bits to be done, including unexpected repairs. Having even the most basic post driver available to go into action when you need it is invaluable. Two neighbors could share the cost of one between them, in some circumstances. I have a very basic one here. The most recent job it done was something like 6 posts, but it was more than worth the effort of putting it on the tractor.

Ah you'd put up with bits of pieces of repairs ...if u can hire a top class machine twice over d summer for 2 days do all ur work..you'll save splashing out a couple of grand for a half decent post driver ...if it was me I'd hire.
Be different if you had work for it every week.

wrangler

hopeso wrote: »

Perfectly fine in that situation, but there’ll always be small bits to be done, including unexpected repairs. Having even the most basic post driver available to go into action when you need it is invaluable. Two neighbors could share the cost of one between them, in some circumstances. I have a very basic one here. The most recent job it done was something like 6 posts, but it was more than worth the effort of putting it on the tractor.

+1
Wouldn't be without it now, but I could justify it when I bought it, It was a cheap basic model ,it could only be operated from the tractor, very dangerous, the person on the ground should be operating the postdriver. I have it modified now and on the loader.
but I always regretted not getting the extras.

Grueller

I drive all stakes with the loader of the tractor. Will handle up to a 4" post no bother and a lot faster than a post driver. I hire my contractor to drive the strainers, he gives me 2 days notice of when he is around the area with it on the tractor so I have them laid out. €40+vat an hour, a driver there on the machine and no one needed with me.
I come back along then with the boss here on the ground. He holds up the stake until I sit the bucket on top, he steps back and eyes up for plumb and directs me and I shove them down.

richie123

Grueller wrote: »

I drive all stakes with the loader of the tractor. Will handle up to a 4" post no bother and a lot faster than a post driver. I hire my contractor to drive the strainers, he gives me 2 days notice of when he is around the area with it on the tractor so I have them laid out. €40+vat an hour, a driver there on the machine and no one needed with me.
I come back along then with the boss here on the ground. He holds up the stake until I sit the bucket on top, he steps back and eyes up for plumb and directs me and I shove them down.

Wouldn't work in good hard ground especially with the drought.

BENDYBINN

Here we have a gadget called a sledge hammer, I hold the stake and the young lad operates it. Works well so far...

hopeso

BENDYBINN wrote: »

Here we have a gadget called a sledge hammer, I hold the stake and the young lad operates it. Works well so far...

Grand if you have a young lad......I know my stamina for hammering isn't like it used to be.... :rolleyes::rolleyes:

wrangler

hopeso wrote: »

Grand if you have a young lad......I know my stamina for hammering isn't like it used to be.... :rolleyes::rolleyes:

We say here....if you can drive it with a sledge it isn't worth putting down

Who2

I went to buy one when we got locked down but I still needed a lad with me to drive the tractor. I ended up I got a lad in with a post driver and tractor. I had all the posts laid out, strainers cut from telegraph poles, I had a single strand of wire rolled out to use for a line and after three and a half hours we had around 150 posts driven . He went home and there wasn’t another machine sitting in the corner of a shed doing nothing bar the neighbors borrowing it. You’ll give 4K for a good farmers post driver nowadays. If your organized one day a year driving posts will do the bulk of what most lads need to do.

Grueller

richie123 wrote: »

Wouldn't work in good hard ground especially with the drought.

I am in the driest of ground here. Surrounded by 2 300 cows dairy men, 2 tillage men and a mullocker that no one really knows what he does.
At times I may need a pilot hole with a crow bar but very very rarely.

Siamsa Sessions

wrangler wrote: »

+1
Wouldn't be without it now, but I could justify it when I bought it, It was a cheap basic model ,it could only be operated from the tractor, very dangerous, the person on the ground should be operating the postdriver. I have it modified now and on the loader.
but I always regretted not getting the extras.

What kind of basic model is it? Any chance it’s the type that costs less than 1,000?

wrangler

Siamsa Sessions wrote: »

What kind of basic model is it? Any chance it’s the type that costs less than 1,000?

It'd probably be illegal now, it just worked off an ordinary tipping pipe, no spool valve, side tilt, or hydraulic toplink,
It cost £800 a long time ago

Siamsa Sessions

wrangler wrote: »

It'd probably be illegal now, it just worked off an ordinary tipping pipe, no spool valve, side tilt, or hydraulic toplink,
It cost £800 a long time ago

I have an idea of the one you mean. Neighbour has one like it here. But any time I ask him to drive a few stakes, he insists that using the front loader of the tractor is handier and then proceeds to drive the majority of them crooked!

I might ask him if he’d sell me the actual stake driver seeing as he never uses it.

Bass Reeves

hopeso wrote: »

Perfectly fine in that situation, but there’ll always be small bits to be done, including unexpected repairs. Having even the most basic post driver available to go into action when you need it is invaluable. Two neighbors could share the cost of one between them, in some circumstances. I have a very basic one here. The most recent job it done was something like 6 posts, but it was more than worth the effort of putting it on the tractor.

I manage away, it all electric fences. If a pole breaks I just remove it and stick in a pigtail or if the ground is soft a pencil post. In softer ground in Match/April I drive some with the loader of the tractor. I just made a hole with crowbar and place pole in it and the loader will drive it. Two man operation.

Ground is very hard and rock is an issue so holes for some posts have to be found with crowbar. If a corner post goes I put in two pencil posts and tie it with tying wire. Now I am dealing with dairy bred beefstock mainly. Contractor comes ever second year. We drove about 120posts in about 4.5 hours in late March. We take out any dodgy posts we find. We tapped down another 20-30 posts

duffysfarm

Wouls it be pointless trying to drive posts in that weather with hard ground?

wrangler

Siamsa Sessions wrote: »

I have an idea of the one you mean. Neighbour has one like it here. But any time I ask him to drive a few stakes, he insists that using the front loader of the tractor is handier and then proceeds to drive the majority of them crooked!

I might ask him if he’d sell me the actual stake driver seeing as he never uses it.

Mine is a vector, a good make.
At the very least you need to be able to operate it from the ground, other wise it's a two man job , alright if you've a big job on, but for maintenance where you might be only driving a dozen stakes you shouldn't have to have two.
A neighbour is supposed to be in james hospital after losing three fingers to a post driver, apparently the doctors are using leeches to eat the grease and grime out of the wound

hopeso

wrangler wrote: »

Mine is a vector, a good make.
At the very least you need to be able to operate it from the ground, other wise it's a two man job , alright if you've a big job on, but for maintenance where you might be only driving a dozen stakes you shouldn't have to have two.
A neighbour is supposed to be in james hospital after losing three fingers to a post driver, apparently the doctors are using leeches to eat the grease and grime out of the wound

I have a similar basic one here...a Malone. It's worked from the spool valve too, but there's no second man on the ground to get injured. I can get the stake set up under the hammer using the outside lift buttons on the tractor, then up onto the tractor to drive it. There is a lot of up and down off the tractor involved, but I'm grand with it. I wouldn't mind modifying it to be able to control the top link and hammer from outside, like you did. Did you use a standard chest valve, or would one with a higher flow rate be needed to let the oil back fast enough?

hopeso

Siamsa Sessions wrote: »

What kind of basic model is it? Any chance it’s the type that costs less than 1,000?

For that kind of money, you'd need to be going second hand...But, as used machines go, a post driver would be a fairly safe purchase as there's very little to go wrong with them. Any fault should be very easy to see.

mr.stonewall

hopeso wrote: »

I have a similar basic one here...a Malone. It's worked from the spool valve too, but there's no second man on the ground to get injured. I can get the stake set up under the hammer using the outside lift buttons on the tractor, then up onto the tractor to drive it. There is a lot of up and down off the tractor involved, but I'm grand with it. I wouldn't mind modifying it to be able to control the top link and hammer from outside, like you did. Did you use a standard chest valve, or would one with a higher flow rate be needed to let the oil back fast enough?

Free flow return is job to get oil back into the tractor quick. Easy to do on most. Zetors have it as standard

wrangler

hopeso wrote: »

I have a similar basic one here...a Malone. It's worked from the spool valve too, but there's no second man on the ground to get injured. I can get the stake set up under the hammer using the outside lift buttons on the tractor, then up onto the tractor to drive it. There is a lot of up and down off the tractor involved, but I'm grand with it. I wouldn't mind modifying it to be able to control the top link and hammer from outside, like you did. Did you use a standard chest valve, or would one with a higher flow rate be needed to let the oil back fast enough?

I've a standard spool valve, works alright, one problem is that it blocks the flow from the tractor when lowering the weight.but I'd say the weight wouldn't come down as fast if the flow from the tractor wasn't blocked,
I bought a double valve chest hoping for a hydraulic top link but never bought one, putting it on the loader meant I didn't need the top link

wrangler

hopeso wrote: »

For that kind of money, you'd need to be going second hand...But, as used machines go, a post driver would be a fairly safe purchase as there's very little to go wrong with them. Any fault should be very easy to see.

Problem is that when someone buys one they don't sell them. at a clearance auction they make great money. simple machine, nothing to go wrong as you say