Cat^® Backhoe Loader: Hydraulic Hammers

Two companies lay claim to pioneering the first rig-mounted hydraulic hammer: the German company Krupp Berco Bautechnik and the French company Montabert. While the attachment’s origin might be debated, it’s no question that the hydraulic hammer has become a staple on jobsites around the world.

Based on hydraulic rock-drill technology, the earliest hammer models were used primarily in quarry settings to break up oversized material or unblock the feeders for crushing plants. Given their portability, hydraulic hammers were quickly adopted for use by the construction and demolition industries.

While popular, the earliest hydraulic hammers did have their faults. Rock drills are in constant contact with material while in use, but this isn’t always possible when operating a hammer. As a result, the early-generation models were prone to failure from blank firing.

Blank firing usually occurs when the target material breaks, but the operator continues to fire the hydraulic hammer. Because the material is no longer absorbing energy from the hammer bit impacts, a shockwave travels up and down the work tool, stressing the housing and internal mechanisms. It takes experience to anticipate when a material will break to avoid blank firing, but modern hydraulic hammers—like the Cat B8 Hammer—have built-in features to mitigate stress and increase the tool’s lifespan.

Cat B8 Hammers can be used on Cat backhoe loader models 414–444 and are suitable for use in a wide range of construction and light-demolition applications, such as breaking concrete sidewalks and driveways, pavement, roads, masonry, site prep and landscaping and breaking frozen ground for utility repairs. They come with a number of features to streamline maintenance and increase their lifespan.

Ergonomically Positioned Hydraulic Lines

Ergonomically positioned hydraulic lines are designed to optimize serviceability, are easily accessible and require no special tools. Housing has been positioned to protect against force and dirt during impact but allow for wrench access. Hydraulic lines and back-head pressure can be checked and charged while breaker is mounted to machine, allowing quick monitoring of breaker's condition.

Gas-Fired Design

Gas-fired design delivers consistently high production over time, making the breaker reliable in applications such as concrete, asphalt, rock and light trenching.

Flat-Top/Top-Mount Style

Flat-top/top-mount style provides a larger work area and excellent operator visibility, with a common footprint and hole pattern for optimum versatility. Top-mount style increases impact power by keeping breaker force and stick force in line. A top-mount bracket will transfer back significantly less recoil and bending stress into the end of the stick, resulting in reduced impact on your backhoe loader’s structure. Full complement of mounting brackets is available to suit coupler or pin-on preference.

Operating Tips

• Choose the right tip or tool for the job. Common options are moil, chisel and blunt. Other types include limestone chisel, hard-rock chisel, pyramidal and super blunt.
• Never hammer at the same spot for more than 15 seconds.
• Don’t activate the hammer until the tool tip is seated securely on the work.
• Don’t use the tool as a pry bar. A hammer is designed to absorb massive in-line blows but not force sideways. Likewise, don’t push big objects out of the way with the tool.
• Always make sure you have enough grease in the hammer.
• Keep other workers well clear of hammering operations, as big chips can fly a great distance.
• Work from the edges (never from the center) on large objects, reducing the rubble as you move forward.

While removing obstacles might be the obvious application for a hydraulic hammer, it is useful in a variety of operations.

Demolition and Construction

When you think of demolition, you might imagine a multi-story building crumbling to its foundations after choreographed explosions take out its supporting structure. Makes for an exciting video, but, more often than not, taking out an entire structure with explosives is not efficient, feasible or desirable.

For smaller structures, hydraulic hammers are more precise and safer—causing minimal collateral damage, if any. If you want to demolish only select parts of a building while leaving the rest intact, the Cat B8 Hammer is the right tool. Selective demolition saves money because you aren’t starting from square one.

Mines and Quarries

In the mining and quarrying industries, hydraulic hammers are used to turn large rock formations into smaller, more manageable pieces for extraction. This, in turn, saves money, increases jobsite safety and lessens the operations’ environmental impact.

Utilities

Given their precision and power, utility companies use hydraulic hammers to reduce project timelines and community disruption when installing pipes and underground lines. They’re commonly used for roadwork to drive posts for guard rails and to break ledges and rocks, ensuring a uniform sub-base.

Agriculture and Landscaping

It may be unusual, but hydraulic hammers have gained traction on farms and larger landscaping projects. In the agriculture industry, farmers use them to remove stubborn tree stumps and break down large boulders for more efficient land use. Landscapers use hydraulic hammers to sculpt rocks and other hard features for aesthetic and practical reasons.

Steel and Recycling

While you might not readily associate hydraulic hammers with steel and recycling, they play an important role in both industries. One of the by-products of steel manufacturing is slag—all the impurities left over after a metal is refined or smelted. Slag collects and hardens in smelting pots and molds, requiring a powerful, versatile tool for its removal. In the aggregate recycling industries, hydraulic hammers are used to break slabs of concrete and asphalt into sizes that can be further reduced by crushers.

Despite the brutal work they take on, Cat B8 hammers can last for years with proper rebuilds and maintenance. Simplified tool removal and rotatable bushings reduce service time and costs.

Your Cat dealer will have the schedules and measurements you need to gauge when it’s time for rebuilds. If you’re not using a hammer- or carrier-mounted autolube system, make sure to grease your hammer every two hours of operation or more often in severe applications.  

For further questions, check out your Operations and Maintenance Manual or contact your local Cat dealer.