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Swather Converted To Self-Propelled Digger
Before building it, we used a conventional 3-pt. mounted auger on our tractor to dig holes to plant trees in. It was not only slow, but gave you a stiff neck by the end of the day from having to turn around and look behind you all the time," says Raymo Alberico, who built a self-propelled tree hole digger out of an old
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Swather Converted To Self-Propelled Digger SWATHERS Swathers 23-1-44 Before building it, we used a conventional 3-pt. mounted auger on our tractor to dig holes to plant trees in. It was not only slow, but gave you a stiff neck by the end of the day from having to turn around and look behind you all the time," says Raymo Alberico, who built a self-propelled tree hole digger out of an old swather.
Dubbed the "Bull's Eye Orchard Auger", it lets the Orland, Calif., fruit grower dig up to seven 19-in. dia. holes per minute - without turning his head.
He started with a 1970's Hesston 6400 swather equipped with hydrostatic drive, which makes it ideal for maneuvering back and forth. It also has 3 ft. of ground clearance underneath.
He built a 9-ft. long A-frame out of 4-in. channel iron and mounted it on front. It raises up to 4 ft. high using the valve originally used for the swather header height control. A 2 1/2-ft. long auger shaft mounts on the end of the A-frame and is driven by a high-speed 20 gpm hydraulic pump and motor. The auger can be fitted with either 8, 12 or 19-in. dia. flighting.
The A-frame is fitted on each side with depth gauges made from pieces of channel iron with disk blades at the bottom. Set screws in the top provide exact depth control.
"In the five years since I built it, I've dug more than 200,000 holes for prune, almond and walnut trees at a rate of 6 to 7 holes per minute," he says. "Holes are up to 19 in. in dia. and 18 to 24 in. deep and I've never finished the day with a stiff neck."
To make the orchard auger doubly useful, Alberico also built a tree-trimming attachment for the machine. It consists of a salvaged fork lift mast which reaches up to 12 ft. high. A 7-ft. International 275 swather sickle bar and drive attaches to the mast and is hydraulically driven by a hydraulic motor.
"I can top trees at a speed of 7 mph," he says.
The machine, which he tows behind his pickup by reversing the gears on the planetary drive, cost about $2,000 to build.
Next, he plans to build a 12-ft. flail chopper and a 16 to 18-ft. spray boom to mount on front.
"It'll be four machines in one," says Alberico.
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Raymo Alberico, 24345 Clark Ave., Orland, Calif. 95963 (ph 530 865-2880).
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