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Cutting and milling

Rock chain trencher

A chain trencher carried by an excavator, chain fitted with massive picks, opening a slot with vertical walls in rock; dust and a rock face.
The same architecture, another chain equipment:
what changes is the output and the wear.
Synthetic image.

The same architecture as the chain trencher:
a plunging boom, a chain, a slot with vertical walls.
What changes is the equipment of the chain, made to attack ground that soil teeth will not go through.

Other names for this tool: rock trencher, pick trencher chain, hard-ground trencher, rock slotter.

The essentials
Family
Cutting and milling
Classes (t)
Medium and large
Coupler
All, by plate
Power source
Hydraulic, continuous function — flow and pressure: we calculate it with you for your machine

Identify your coupler →

01 Use

What it is for

On the left, in soft rock, the pick chain opens a regular slot with vertical walls. On the right, in sound rock, the chain no longer advances and the picks wear down. Computer-generated image.
in soft rock, the pick chain opens a regular slot with vertical walls in sound rock, the chain no longer advances and the picks wear down
Left: in soft rock, the pick chain opens a regular slot with vertical walls.
Right: in sound rock, the chain no longer advances and the picks wear down.
What sets it apart:
it is not another tool — it is the same one, re-equipped for abrasion.
Computer-generated image.

We shall not pretend that it is another tool.
The parts that change are the chain, the tool holders and the picks, sized for abrasion and for permanent percussion against a material that does not give way.
The rest is identical.

What really changes is the output and the cost of wear.
In soft rock or weathered limestone, a regular slot is still possible and is worth more than an excavation opened with a breaker.
In sound rock, the advance collapses and the calculation changes completely.

There is a hardness beyond which no trencher is the right answer. We prefer to say so before the order rather than after the first day:
when the rock is sound, or when loose blocks roll in front of the chain, it is the breaker or the cutter you should look at. See this case dealt with.

02 What we check with you

On which machine?

The chain trencher fits medium and large excavators.
All couplers are suitable, via a mounting plate.
The exact excavator class and the coupler system: we calculate them with you for your machine.

What the tool does

Its chain cuts rock, as a trench or as a saw cut.
The cutting width and depth, and the weight: we calculate them with you for your machine.

What is needed on the hydraulic side

It needs a hydraulic circuit with continuous function.
The flow and the max. pressure: we calculate them with you for your machine.

Your study sets the exact value for your machine.

Don't have these figures?
A photo of the machine is enough to start.

03 Your study

Have your machine checked.

Describe the rock as you have seen it:
colour, how it holds, presence of blocks, and what a bucket does to it.
Give us also the length and the trench section to be obtained.

What we need to answer you
  • Your machine Its make and its tonnage.
  • The auxiliary circuit Its flow in l/min, its pressure in bar, single- or double-acting.
  • The coupler in place Its system and its class.
  • The work The use, and the material.

Without these details, the study still begins: we will ask you for them.

Send my photos

or describe your need

Book an appointment with the specialist

Or call 01 84 16 55 49 · our lines are open 7 days a week, from 7h to 22h.

Written study within 3 working days, once the file is complete.

Not to be confused
  • Trencher Principle — the same architecture, with earth teeth.
    Use — it buries a service under a lawn, a path or loamy soil, and it does not get through boulders.
  • Chain trencher Principle — the same architecture, with teeth chosen for loam, stony soil or compact ground.
    Use — it is the tool for services in loose ground, and on rock its teeth do not get through.
04 Choice

What determines the choice

  • 01 — The exact nature of the rock Soft, weathered, sound, fractured:
    those four words do not describe the same job.
    A trial hole is worth more than an opinion, and a photograph of the face is worth more than a word.
  • 02 — The loose blocks A chain works well on material held in place.
    A block that rolls in front of it stops the advance and breaks picks:
    fractured ground is more difficult than hard ground.
  • 03 — The picks and their replacement It is here that the real cost of the day is decided.
    The price of the picks and the time to change them count for more than the price of the tool.
  • 04 — The length to be done Over a few metres, you open it another way.
    It is the length that makes this tool pay, and nothing else.
05 Check

What is checked before ordering

  • A trial or a survey along the line The rock often changes along a length.
    The hardest point decides the average output.
  • The dust produced Cutting in dry rock produces a great deal of it.
    In a built-up area, the watering is planned — where the water comes from, and where the slurry goes.
  • The cooling of the hydraulics The chain works continuously and at high force for hours.
  • The stock of wear parts on the site A spare set on the spot is not a luxury:
    it is what avoids stopping the work.
The ordinary version
If the rock is too hard
Handling the spoil
To go further
A question about an attachment? 01 84 16 55 49 Send my photos