I thankfully do not dig the graves, phew! but back hoe versus Hand is a debate that still rages in the Funeral trade, both have pros and cons but the back hoe does have its limits: in the UK especialy in my neck of the woods the churchyards are quite small and have lych gate entrances which inhibits the passing of a back hoe, also the weight of the back hoe can split buried coffins resulting in the ground dropping in certain places etc.

The grave digger, it might take him all day but the job is tidier then if done by the back hoe and when filled in the digger will thump the ground with a hand compactor which tightens the soil around the coffin, this is somthing the back hoe cannot do effectivley without smashing the coffin to bits! lol.

The back hoe can eat its way through the most stubborn of ground whilst the grave digger would if he got stuck would have to bring in jack hammers etc, so all in all both have their ups and downs.

Both the back how and the Gravdigger cost the same, so really the only winner is the chap who owns the back hoe because he can do a grave in under 2 hours and can move on to the next job whilst the poor chap doing it by hand would be at it all day!

Go figure.

Byron