My post hole digger snapped on a job in Boise last Tuesday

I was setting a 6-foot cedar fence line and hit a rock the size of a football about two feet down. The handle just gave out with a loud crack. Had to finish the last three holes by hand with a digging bar, which took forever. What's the toughest thing you've hit in the ground that stopped your gear?

3 comments

3 Comments

jenny_gonzalez1mo ago

Oh man, that's the worst sound. I've had that happen with old clay pipes nobody knew were there. For a rock that size, a digging bar is the only way, but my back hurts just thinking about it. Next time, try soaking the area with a hose for a good while first, it can help loosen the dirt around the rock so you can work it out. Still a brutal job, but it beats snapping another handle.

dakota1601mo ago

That football-sized rock sounds like a real job stopper. @jenny_gonzalez has a good point about soaking the ground, but sometimes you just hit solid stuff. What did you end up doing with the rock once you got it loose?

grant_cooper25d ago

Soaking can help, but honestly with a rock that big it's more about leverage than wet dirt. Got mine out with a long pry bar and a lot of rocking back and forth. Ended up keeping it as a doorstop in the garage, which is a pretty good trophy for a sore back.