How to Decide When to Invest in a new Water Well Drilling Rig

04, Aug. 2025

 

How to Decide When to Invest in a new Water Well Drilling Rig

Shidler & Wilder Wells and Pumps run their new Versa-Drill V-140X every day, and work has never been better.

Shidler & Wilder Wells and Pumps provide comprehensive water well drilling services. Their motto is, “Water is life. Getting it to you has been ours.” And Versa-Drill gets to put the tools in their hands and under their feet that make it all happen. Especially when it comes to water well drilling rigs.

Link to JCDRILL

Since purchasing their V-140X, owner Craig Wilder says things have been good. “We’re as busy as can be,” he says. “We run it every day.”

Purchasing a drill rig is a big decision. So how did Shidler & Wilder Wells and Pumps decide on investing in a new water well drilling rig from Versa-Drill? “It was everything from parts to the service department. Everyone’s been answering our questions.” Craig Wilder adds that the relationship he’s formed with Marcus Laibe of Versa-Drill has helped him trust the company. “Marcus brought one of his first rigs to us. I see him all the time at shows.”

Buying Their Drill

The process for purchasing their brand new rig was simpler than they expected. “I called Marcus up when we were looking at this. We talked about the cost. He initially told me to go with the V-125, but then we talked, and it looked like, for our situation, the V-140X was better. He’s very helpful and very upfront with us.”

Honesty and clear communication are values that Shidler & Wilder Well and Pumps are proud of in their own operations. “We run our business the same way. It’s why we’re busy. We’re upfront with people. We don’t try to beat around the bush.”

It’s not just the operation of the drill that’s made the Wilder men satisfied with their investment. “Purchasing parts and getting service has been very easy,” says Scott Wilder. “It’s quick to get on the with them and tell them what we need, and we usually get it the next day. Parts and services definitely played a role in deciding to stick with Versa-Drill.”

“And their pricing is better than anything we’ve seen,” adds Craig. “That means a lot right there.”

Building Their Legacy

Shidler & Wilder Wells and Pumps has been in operation for over five decades. Based in Petersburg, Michigan, they serve customers across their own state and Ohio. They know their land like the back of their hand and offer on-site water surveys to people considering purchasing property in the areas they serve.

Being upfront is what makes them successful, and Versa-Drill has made it even easier. “We get everything we need from Versa-Drill,” says Craig. “Service is good. It’s always easy to get parts. They’re an available partner. They make things convenient. I’d definitely recommend Versa-Drill.”

Invest in a Versa-Drill Today

How Do I Choose a Drilling Rig - Jcdrill

A drilling rig is a piece of construction equipment used to drill holes in the earth's surface. They can vary greatly in size: they can be huge structures or light enough to be moved manually by one person. Drills can take samples from deposits and test the physical properties of rock, soil, and groundwater. They can also be used for underground installations: tunnels, shafts, or pipelines.

When do I need to drill?

Many jobs require drilling, for example

Drilling: whether to access groundwater or oil.

Geothermal drilling: to obtain and extract heat from the earth.

For more Water Drilling Rig for Saleinformation, please contact us. We will provide professional answers.

Piling to support buildings on unstable ground: up to 2,000 mm in diameter and up to 70 m deep.

Truck Water Well Drilling Rig

Mini-pile drilling, especially for the reinforcement of existing structures: between 150 and 200 mm in diameter and up to 30 m deep.

Quarry blast drilling.

The continuous auger holds the borehole wall by means of auger-driven chips.

The drilling is usually carried out vertically, but can also be horizontal or directional, for example for placing anchors.

How do I choose a drilling rig?

You may need a drilling rig for a variety of applications, such as drilling wells to access natural resources (water, oil, geothermal energy, etc.), building foundations, drilling holes in mines, taking samples from the surface, etc. It is necessary to determine what the drilling rig will be used for and what kind of terrain it will mainly operate on. Depending on the terrain you can choose between different types of drilling rigs: rotary drilling rigs, percussion drilling rigs, submersible drilling rigs, top hammer drilling rigs (with high hammers), etc.

 Crawler Water Well Drilling Rig    

To make the best choice, it is important to determine whether the rig will be used for your core business or for occasional operations, and in particular whether you want to take advantage of the latest innovations or whether a machine that has proven its performance for decades might be worthwhile for you. Safety, reliability, and ease of use are also important factors to consider and are directly related to each other. Using a machine that is reliable and easy to operate according to the manufacturer's recommendations increases user safety.

It is also important to define the type of movement you need. There are automatic crawler rigs and truck-mounted or trailer-mounted rigs, which need to be powered by a generator or the truck carrying them. Once you have defined the type of machine you need, you can calculate the required dimensions based on the diameter and depth of the borehole.

What type of drilling rig should you choose?

There are two main types of drilling rig: self-crawling and truck or trailer mounted. If it needs to move at low speed over uneven areas or very loose ground, you will need to choose a tracked crawler water well drilling rig. The stability of a drilling rig depends on the surface area of the tracks. Therefore, the wider the track, the more stable the rig will be. However, wider tracks will wear out and damage the ground more quickly when moving, especially when turning. 

Crawler water well drilling rigs can travel at a speed of around 4 km/h. They are therefore better suited to jobs that require little travel.

Truck- or trailer-mounted water well drilling rigs are not autonomous in terms of movement or their energy source, which may come from a transport truck or a separate generator. However, they are much cheaper than tracked rigs.