March 3rd, 2008
Use of industrial fasteners in crawlers and wheel based equipments
Crawler or track based equipment fit applications where maximum lugging power is the main requirement. They have maximum efficiency in limited area operation. They are rugged machines meant to do heavy duty work while the speed of movement is comparatively less. Wheel Based or machines with rubber tires or equipment is generally employed for light but speed jobs and is in use where speed and mobility are of importance. Both types of equipments use industrial fasteners for compactness and strength.
The relative merits of the two types of equipments are as follows: -
- Wheeled units travel faster and are better for long distance and high speed.
- Crawler units are more compact with fewer bolts in use and s can do heavier jobs better.
- Crawler units are costlier than wheeled units and require more fasteners.
- Wheeled units have steering control while Crawler units use stick control.
- Transportation of crawler units over long distance is done through trailers while wheeled units can be safe driven over long distance.
- Crawler tracks are likely to damage pavements or tarred roads unless fitted with special socket type shoes.
- Wheeled units may slip over very smooth surface or loose footing when increased power is applied to wheels. Crawler has no such difficulty since it moves on its own track having a better grip on the road.
Crawler units generally require more skill in operation, maintenance, and repair then wheeled units.
