Trying to figure out how to trench beside road…

[WI_Hedgehog]

Of course if the road is short enough and you have room enough to access it sideways, you can clean it out about 6’ at a time with the front loader. Sounds slow, but it’s actually pretty quick.

I've done that with piranha teeth on the bucket...if there are rocks I like using the root rake grapple better, then removing material with the bucket.

Honestly a tractor isn't the best tool, a mini-ex is (generally speaking). Maintaining a road is different, but cutting a ditch is likely best with a mini-ex [with rubber tracks and a] narrow, toothed bucket, and then cleaned up with a wide material bucket. For trees there's a tree shear and root tooth (and thumb) for the big ones. For boulders you might want a hammer. Mind you I'm not a ditch guy and am only in the planning stages of getting a mini-ex, but from the work I've done a tractor isn't usually the best at excavating.

 

[Jasonized]

So, yes, it did just occur to me to post a picture or two…. Since it’s o-dark 330 right now, it‘ll be a bit!

just some responses to above…
sadly, I can not turn sideways for much of the problem area. Even taking off the boxblade doesn’t give me much help.
I’ll look at the links provided above by Dustball, and see what he found.
I also was hopi g to find a solution that did not require spending multiple K’s of cash..

I thought about trying to bolt a side extension onto the box blade, but was worried about the side toque that would apply. I also have no issue with running multiple passes, to make the trench deep enough.
Anyway, pics tomorrow. Thanks all!

 

[WI_Hedgehog]

How long is the driveway? How rocky is the ground? There's almost always someone around with a mini-ex and for $100/hr the job will get done just the way you want it. When you consider your own time, expenses, and wear on the tractor then hiring someone might make sense, depending.

 

[BAP]

Buy yourself an old Grader. Around here, you can find running 60’s and 70’s Graders that run and work for $3-6,000. They will do exactly what you want them to do.

 

[Old Machinist]

I have cleaned out a ditch with my loader bucket. It's a slow process by digging one bucket width at a time. Position the tractor 90 degrees from the ditch and scoop out a bucket. Move the tractor over and do it again.

 

[Jasonized]

How long is the driveway? How rocky is the ground? There's almost always someone around with a mini-ex and for $100/hr the job will get done just the way you want it. When you consider your own time, expenses, and wear on the tractor then hiring someone might make sense, depending.

Huh…. I just can’t see an excavator doing a parallel trench beside a road that has no sides.. All the trenchers I’ve seen have to straddle the trench…. Oh well, when it’s lighter, I’ll take a photo or two…

 

[Jasonized]

I have cleaned out a ditch with my loader bucket. It's a slow process by digging one bucket width at a time. Position the tractor 90 degrees from the ditch and scoop out a bucket. Move the tractor over and do it again.

Yep! Tried that first. There is only about 20 or 30 feet of road that I can turn the tractor. Even without the box on the back.. Sigh.
Thanks!

 

[D2Cat]

Huh…. I just can’t see an excavator doing a parallel trench beside a road that has no sides.. All the trenchers I’ve seen have to straddle the trench…. Oh well, when it’s lighter, I’ll take a photo or two…

Trenchers do not necessarily straddle the ditch. They create the ditch behind them if it's a ride on.

Not sure what you mean by a road that has no sides? A excavator can make a ditch however needed whether there is a road nearby or not.

 

[Jasonized]

Well, if you have somewhere to drive the excavator, you could make a trench behind it.… my road runs in and out of trees. Where there are trees, I cant be offset from the road. If I drive down the side of the road, but, have to remain ON the road, the trencher would be trenching in the road instead of beside the road…. Sooo… not optimal!

anyway, for now, I did some rearranging of my hydraulic twist on my box scraper, and got it much higher than it was (okay, just past level in one direction, way past in the other!), so got as steep as I could. Still near the wheels, but I got a lot of the road and only a few places that I had to dig by hand.
And as a side benefit, I now had something I could use to score diagonally across the road on downhills, so water migrates out instead of down..

looks like what I could really use is some type of middle buster, but mounted on the side of my box scraper…. Yes, side torque, but i dont think it would excessive compared to hitting a rock on one side!

basically, I’m trying to keep an existing trench clear of silt and redwood detritus… so, not trying to pull through roots. Or rocks.

Oh well, i will see how the road holds up this week, as we are expecting yet another week of lots of rain.
Thanks folks!

 

[WI_Hedgehog]

Huh…. I just can’t see an excavator doing a parallel trench beside a road that has no sides..

Look on YouTube for "excavating ditch," there are lots of videos. I actually don't know of a better tool for excavating ditches than an excavator with finger bucket. If the ditch is being cleaned out then a wide material bucket. There are even crazy tilt & swivel attachments for making perfect ditches behind obstacles when on uneven ground.

Well, if you have somewhere to drive the excavator, you could make a trench behind it.… my road runs in and out of trees. Where there are trees, I cant be offset from the road. If I drive down the side of the road, but, have to remain ON the road, the trencher would be trenching in the road instead of beside the road…. Sooo… not optimal!

looks like what I could really use is some type of middle buster, but mounted on the side of my box scraper…. Yes, side torque, but i dont think it would excessive compared to hitting a rock on one side!

basically, I’m trying to keep an existing trench clear of silt and redwood detritus… so, not trying to pull through roots. Or rocks.

There are mini-excavators so small they can be driven through a basement door and used in a basement. Kubota U-Series mini-excavators are designed to not have the rear end hang over the side of the track so they can operate tight to a wall, house, or in your case: tree. You're saying you need to excavate material in a confined area, the machine is literally named an "excavator" because that's exactly what it does, and mini-excavators are specifically for removing smaller amounts of material in even tighter spaces, which is why Chinese mini-excavators (or micro-excavators) are so popular right now. Plus, the boom (not house, the boom itself) on many mini-exs swings about 90° specifically for parallel trenching in tight quarters. The only thing that works in a tighter space than a micro-excavator is a dude with a hand shovel.

Tractors are multi-use tools, a jack of all trades and master of none, much like a Swiss Army Knife. You want to use it because you have one, and when the only tool you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail.

 

[Russell King]

See post #13-15 for something @D2Cat made for the FEL that seems like it might work for you!

Mirrors for BX

I made these mirrors, super easy. Awesome option, makes a quick backup or look back easy. I purchased the mirrors on Amazon, filed down the plastic a little to fit the 1/2" clamps. When i'm not using them I fold them in to save space.

www.orangetractortalks.com

 

[Jasonized]

That actually l

See post #13-15 for something @D2Cat made for the FEL that seems like it might work for you!

Mirrors for BX

I made these mirrors, super easy. Awesome option, makes a quick backup or look back easy. I purchased the mirrors on Amazon, filed down the plastic a little to fit the 1/2" clamps. When i'm not using them I fold them in to save space.

www.orangetractortalks.com

that actually looks like it would work just fine for me… and as a bonus, I wouldn’t have to crane my neck to watch it.
thanks!

 

[whatsupdoc]

There is a reason why folks buy excavators. Rent a small excavator or hire someone to do it, in the long run
you will be much happier.

 

[KubotaHawg]

Rear grader blade max weight recommendation?

Been a bit since posting but researching rear grader blades and need some advice from the group: I have realized the need for a grader blade in addition to my box blade for maintaining our 6/10 mile private dirt road AND the ditches along to promote/maintain proper drainage. I think I would...

www.orangetractortalks.com

Similar question I had earlier in the year—only my ditches are already there, just maintaining them.

In my experience a tractor of this size is not big enough (weight) to dig much, except for the bucket and only if soft and/or damp soil. I have a few spots right next to culvert ends that driveway is only wide as length of the tractor and it’s tight, but the FEL bucket is the only way to clean gravel/soil runoff out. Heavy blade works well on maintaining our shallow ditches. Key is to make shallow passes multiple times—high throttle in 2nd or 3rd gear with too deep an offset angled bite will stop a 2500# tractor on a dime.

 

[trikepilot]

I spent WAY TOO MUCH time researching just this issue within the last few years. I have a long gravel drive with dirt ditches that fill up with debris and need cleaning out every so often. An offset blade of some sort was what I was thinking but I realized that my B2620 did not have enough oomph to do what I wanted. Plus my ditch is right next to an steep embankment that precludes me from straddling it with the wheels. So tedious backhoe work was what I did. I am staring at a repeat of the job maybe later in 2026 so I will keep an eye on this thread to see if any good ideas pop up.

 

[Jasonized]

Well, I think the simple device show in the post by Russel (https://www.orangetractortalks.com/forums/threads/mirrors-for-bx.43572/#post-813552) is going to work well for me. The cool thing about something so simple, is that you can vary the end digging component. Mine would be quite a bit smaller, as my worst trench (between a drop off and road) is only about six“ wide. More or less. So something that will drag through, clearing out the detritus is all I need. I could even use something like a mini-plow share on the end, scooping it from the trench into the road for later scooping up.
After this next storm clears, I will probably try assembling something to try.
Cheers!

 

[JohnDB]

... An offset blade of some sort was what I was thinking but I realized that my B2620 did not have enough oomph to do what I wanted....

Your B2620 = #1500, 23hp, hydrostat trans 4WD, #1350 lift at ends of hitch.
Video of 24 hp tractor pulling a 2 furrow plough.

(Ferguson TEA 20 = #2500, 24hp, mechanical trans, 2WD, lift unknown but say #1000 at ends of hitch.)

Unknown ballast situation with either of these... the fergie I'm guessing had water in the rear tyres, maybe fronts as well? The LH rear wheel is kicking up dirt so traction marginal at that weight.

So I reckon you are right about the "oomph", but its not the hp, its the weight and (maybe?) the transmission. Probably asking a bit much to ballast your B to double its weight, so only option is to get a second Kubota or trade up. Some of the older ones are much heavier per hp than more modern offerings.

Having got your second tractor and carrying on with the plough idea... a modified single furrow plough, offset out past the rear wheels, which would need more tractor ballast or opposite wheel weight. Some had a coulter disc (like the second furrow in the video) which might help slicing through thinner roots. No chop if stoney ground tho'. Multiple shallow passes probably.

Or any of the other suggestions already made to the OP (who still hasn't posted any of the promised photos so wondering if he/she has lost interest )

 

[Jasonized]

Or any of the other suggestions already made to the OP (who still hasn't posted any of the promised photos so wondering if he/she has lost interest )

Ha… yea, sorry about that! I got busy, kept forgetting to shoot it, then I had it done. Sigh.
didn't think anyone was interested once I got it dug out!

and it’s raining again….. so got it done just in time! Hopefully, I won’t lose so much of my road this storm….
The reason I started this post is that the last (week long+ storm) clogged up the ditches in a couple of places and had a couple of days to play on the road before I found it. After I changed the linkage on my 3pt, I managed to get my box scraper up at pretty much the same angle as some of the referenced back blades… without spending 4 to 6k. So went ahead and dug out as much as I could (it was still just behind my tires, so made the road a little “thinner” in places). On a side benefit, it gave me a nicely angled blade that I could easily gouge diagonal tracks across the road in places!

Supposed to be another week long rain stream... with any luck, I just have to pick up fallen branches/trees this time.
thanks for all the ideas!
Cheers!

 

[Motion]

As Dustball said consider hiring someone with an excavator and clean out bucket. You be surprised how fast a qualified operator with a 4' bucket can move, have him throw the material on the road and use you FEL to clean up. You may end up with a nice pile compost /topsoil.

 

[g_man]

From what you are saying why wouldn't a blade like this work ? Others have said the same thing but maybe you could not picture it. I bought this one used for $400. It's an old TufLine blade.

gg