I see some post drivers with grapples on YouTube. Haven't seen a vibratory one in the USA though, they seem to be only sold in England. Any recommendations on one here? Life would be much easier if it were a one man show from the cab. This one isn't vibratory but similar concept:
Go the whole hog.
That doesn't work on the ground where I need to use it. Looks good for flat areas and low hills though.
I’ve been in the farm fencing business for the better part of 20yrs and usually work by myself. I’ve tried many different post drivers, both tractor and skid steer mounted, and most have major downfalls when trying to work by yourself. The units like the Danuser hammer with the grapple option do work with only the operator, but good luck ever getting a post straight and plumb without a helper to check it as you are driving. Same with the vibrating type, works superb with two people. Maybe straight and plumb don’t matter in the areas you are working IDK. I build a lot of board fence for customers so it has to look good. My current one man fence building rig is very simple and low tech, just a Shaver HD10 post driver on a Kubota L2501 tractor. I set it up last fall and I’m still refining it but I’ve driven several hundred posts with it and am very pleased. The tractor doesn’t have a loader on it but instead a custom front bumper that can be used for pushing posts to straighten, also has a chain box, receiver and tie down ring. The tractor is easy to get on and off of and the visibility to the bottom of the post driver is very good. I disabled the seat switch so I can operate the HST pedal from the ground standing along side the tractor for minute adjustments. Actually I can operate all the controls I need from the ground, 3pt, HST, steering wheel and parking brake. The driver is plumbed into a power beyond loop so its always live. I usually pair this rig up with my SVL 65 on larger jobs, both fit easily on my 25’ pintle hitch trailer. May not be what you’re looking for, but its the best solution I’ve come up with so far for a one man fencing rig that doesn’t cost $100k+.
I'm mostly pounding drill stem into rocky terrain on slopes. A lot of this I can't get to easily with the skid steer. There's as much of this territory as there is flat ground. How does the danhauser work with drill stem? and through rock? At best I'm driving into limestone gravel, at worst big granite gravel. I've heard the danhauser's will leave you with crooked posts in that type of terrain.
What we used to use in rocky ground was a Munro Digger Driver mounted on a JD 2550 tractor. You could put any pilot bit you needed in it up to about 6” including rock drilling bits. You could get arrow straight posts in almost any terrain but it was slow. Unfortunately the only distributor in North America went out of business a few years ago. My father still uses the Munro on his ranch in AZ but also uses a new method now. In difficult terrain he now uses an auger drive on his Kubota kx040 excavator with an appropriate bit for the material. He’ll then drill a hole bigger then the post, leaves the dust/chips/dirt in the hole and then drives a post in that loose material. The posts drive straight and easy in that loose material and are surprisingly solid when driven to depth. Any post driver will work with this method.
Definitely not a one man operation but we have just completed seven miles of fence with one of these. We have it on a Komatsu skid steer, driving 3” drill stem for line strainers and 3 1/2” for corner posts into broken granite. Some of these video clips look a bit wild, but if your offsider can guide you straight for the first 18”, a nice straight post is easily achievable. https://www.thorrockbreakers.com.au/equipment/post-drivers/
Montana Post Driver. Vibratory post pounder used by quite a few people in this area. Will put a 4" heavy wall pipe through 5" in concrete floor.
Have a look through the NZF Fencing page on Face book a few hill dozer rammer setups on there. This is beginner terrain Run a remote CTL for this one These guys made a good post driver (probably too expensive for the market) The post driver was called a 'kakapo impactor' and their CTL tilt hitch is called a katipo now it appears post illness era. Progressive Group – www.progressivegroup.co.nz
USA there is stuff like this. Premier attachments Use an Eterra to drill a pilot hole? (Made in Washington state fairly tuff)
In the mountains it can be helicopters and hand fencing in places. The Taege is one of the lighter drivers. For the narrow razor ridges and saddles and slopes, the fence route is bulldozed. Then a wire is run out and the post positions marked then the dozer drives down the lines putting in posts. The blade down to control the dozer. High Country Fencing - Farm Fences, Waterways, Pest & Riparian High Country Fencing in Canterbury for Rural & Farm Fencing, (including hills), Waterways, Pest Proof, Residential, Commercial, Guard Rails, and Riparian fences www.highcountryfencing.co.nz Post Drivers - Taege Engineering Ltd “Undisputed Reliability! This is what we’re all about at Taeges! Providing our clients with the strongest drivers on the market, that … Read More → taege.com The testimonial video shows the tungsten tipped 3 and 4 inch drill augers etc for the sandstone etc. Two different model drivers owned by the same guy. FENCEPRO | Post driver NZ | Post Rammer | Hydraulic Post Driver | Fence Post Driver FENCEPRO are the NZ Market Leaders in Innovative Post Drivers that are Tough, User-Friendly, and Versatile. Post driver NZ | Post Rammer | Hydraulic Post Driver | Fence Post Driver. fencepro.co.nz Fairly heavyweight. FENCEQUIP Post Drivers, Pile Drivers, HARDOX Augers, Post Rammer FENCEQUIP Post Drivers. High Performance - High Quality. Made in New Zealand. Contact us today for more information and a quote. Home of FENCEQUIP HARDOX Augers. fencequip.net.nz Like most things some features on each driver has benefits and there are downsides to some.