Made my own Air Spade today

[mckeetree]

Wow!! Can we see pics!!

I don't have any pics but it's awesome. It's AWESOME. Look at all the money I saved. Of course I look like an unprofessional ridiculous hillbilly that is giving the profession a bad name.

 

[tree MDS]

I don't have any pics but it's awesome. It's AWESOME. Look at all the money I saved. Of course I look like an unprofessional ridiculous hillbilly that is giving the profession a bad name.

Aww man, don't you have anything constructive to add?

I know you can do better, I've seen it!

 

[Blakesmaster]

I know you can do better, I've seen it!

Better than a 69 buick washtub bucket truck? I don't think it gets no better than that. lol

 

[tree MDS]

Better than a 69 buick washtub bucket truck? I don't think it gets no better than that. lol

How bout a jock strap big shot? lmfao.

 

[Blakesmaster]

I was thinking a minivan chip truck with some plywood behind the seats and one of those load handler things. ####, I can buy an old caravan and convert it for 500 bucks total. Some people may think it's redneck, I think it's frugal. lol

 

[tree MDS]

I was thinking a minivan chip truck with some plywood behind the seats and one of those load handler things. ####, I can buy an old caravan and convert it for 500 bucks total. Some people may think it's redneck, I think it's frugal. lol

Sounds like it would be good on lawns too!

 

[mckeetree]

I know you can do better, I've seen it!

When did you see it? Did you see it before I painted with that brown house paint this guy gave me? It looks better now.

 

[ForTheArborist]

There is nothing like rolling around area that you live working with the sense that your whole world is on fire, and can't work fast or hard enough to feel better than a hopeless cause. Geeze, the things I've done to get into business and the things I've used to stay in it.... it would make any grandchildren roll on the floor laughing there ### off.

 

[ct greenman]

I'ma thinking a multi purpose contraption here maybe for feather removing during poultry round up and add abit of water in there in the winter and we have a snow maker yea!

Or instant freeze gun for the chickens.

 

[BC WetCoast]

I was thinking a minivan chip truck with some plywood behind the seats and one of those load handler things. ####, I can buy an old caravan and convert it for 500 bucks total. Some people may think it's redneck, I think it's frugal. lol

I've got an old Caravan that I'll sell you. It's already seen its fair share of brush in the back.

 

[mckeetree]

I've got an old Caravan that I'll sell you. It's already seen its fair share of brush in the back.

Brush or bush?

 

[vaclimber]

Used 3/4" galvanized pipe with a Chicago fitting, necked down to 1/2". Used a water heater style cut off valve. Also used a T fitting and made a 6" handle. Made the overall length about 6.5 feet, and hammered the end of the pipe down fairly flat. Going to try it out Thursday. About $40 in parts. If it works well, I'm going to paint it black and put a rifle scope on it. :greenchainsaw:

Dude, that is bad ass! I had written off having one a long time ago. Thanks for the new "tinker project". My periodic excavations for suspected girdling roots will be a breeze (get it?).Ha Ha.

 

[vaclimber]

Update:

Well I finally broke out the airspade today. It has officially been reclassified as an air knife. This thing is bad. I rented a 375 cfm compressor, and promptly blasted a 12" deep, 200' trench in about 15 seconds.

It really only took me about 20 minutes total, and it was cutting through hard compacted clay and roots on a site where they cut the timber with a feller buncher and skidder. I'm real happy with the way it turned out, and I never did find any of the buried utilities. It didn't seem to hurt any tree roots either, but I'd want to cut the pressure back if I had to excavate someone's prize japanese red maple.

The air at the nozzle looked blue, like a propane flame. It got pretty hot, even with heavy gloves, and was pretty loud even with my ear muffs on.

I know how I'm blowing the leaves off the lawn this fall.

Awesome! Sounds like a marketing opportunity to me. Perhaps a set of training wheels with an adjustable depth for ergonomics.

 

[Bowhunter01]

I apologize for not posting pics yet. I will use my wife's camera and post some up. This was really easy to build, and with that big compressor it was awesome. You could blow right through a gravel driveway with it, if you could stand the shrapnel. It takes surprising strength to keep control of the gun, it wants to take off pretty bad. I'm going to have to modify the drainage swale I just cut with it, and I'll get someone to video it when I do, and post it.

 

[Taxmantoo]

I wonder if a nozzle from a sand blaster or commercial air spade would make it more efficient.

I can probably get worn out nozzles for a high volume sandblaster from my neighbor who makes gravestones. (he makes a rubber stencil, lays it over the stone, and sandblasts the lettering)