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?
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.
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?
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.