May 2010 Vol. 237 No. 5
What's New
What's New For May 2010
SubSurface Instruments, TT Technologies, HammerHead Mole, Footage Tools, Ditch Witch, Sharewell, INROCK, American Augers, Railhead Underground Products, McLaughlin, Radius Pro HDD Tools, Radiodetection, Heath Consultants, Underground Tools, Inc.
SubSurface Instruments
SubSurface Instruments says its Innspector 07 is a lightweight, hand-held locator that detects buried pipe made of “virtually anything.” The company says the unit can detect underground to a depth of 10-12 feet even while the operator is standing in shallow water. Designed for easy portability, the one-piece, self-contained instrument weighs 2.5 pounds including four alkaline “C” batteries. There is no set-up or calibration before use. 920-347-1788, email:info@ ssilocators.com, www. ssilocators. com.
TT Technologies
Burst and replace water, sewer, gas and other pipes with the Grundoburst static pipe bursting system from TT Technologies. The system is capable of pulling in a variety of replacement pipe including PVC, DIP, ABS, cast iron, fusion welded HDPE and VCP jacking pipe. Pulled by a hydraulic bursting unit, the cutter head’s special cutting wheels split the host pipe. Six models are available for bursting 2-54-inch pipes and larger. 800-533-2078, www. tttechnologies.com.
HammerHead Mole
Active Head Mole piercing tools boasts of a reciprocating head design characterized by a double-strike system that uses the initial impact force to increase production in difficult soils such as cobble, hard clay and hardpan. Active Head-piercing tools are available in 2-, 2.5- and 3-inch models. The one-piece striker contains a set of wear rings that eliminates metal-to-metal contact. The company says this provides a sustaining level of performance. The patented Power Port quarter-turn reverse pneumatically locks the tool into forward or reverse gear, preventing accidental direction change during the bore. The patented rear anvil provides up to 200% more clamp load than competitive models and offers what the company describes as fast and easy field maintenance on the tailgate of a truck. 800-331-6653, www. hammerheadmole. com.
Footage Tools
Footage Tools says all Big Shots (pneumatic piercing tools) are CNC machined to exact dimensional tolerances from a solid billet of nickel chromoly steel and fully heat treated for superior strength and wearability. The pistons have been designed to withstand high impact conditions, to be wear-resistant and to have been treated with an anti-corrosive phosphate coating. Big Shots are available in 2-, 2.5-, 3- and 4-inch diameters. Other features include an easily replaceable cartridge style shock absorber and a flexible air tube assembly to minimize internal deflection. 888-737-3668, www. footagetools. com.
Ditch Witch
Ditch Witch says the model PT30 piercing tool has 70 pounds of impact force per blow at 480 blows per minute. The 3.25-inch diameter PT30 offers three optional replaceable tool heads designed for specific soil types that enable the tool to bore through virtually any soil with minimal deflection from underground obstacles. The soil-specific tool heads reduce wear on the tool. Changing direction to dislodge the tool is easy as flipping a lever; air flow to the tool can remain on, increasing the bore speed. An available bolt-on expander boosts the tool’s diameter to 4.25 inches. 800-654-6481, www. ditchwitch. com.
Allied Construction Products
Allied says its Hole-Hog® underground piercing tools open clean, compacted, self-contained tunnels at the lowest cost per foot. Hole-Hogs come in diameters from 1 1/8 to 6 inches to match a wide range of applications, including tunneling/moling, pipe pushing, pipe bursting and pipe pulling. The Hole-Hog has only one moving part – the striker – and the patented quarter-turn reverse mechanism is easy to use. The treaded anvil and replaceable end-cap design allow for trouble-free switching among various application accessories. Minimal labor and equipment is promised by the company, listing one to two workers, a Hole-Hog, a shovel and an air compressor. 800-321-1046, www. alliedcp. com.
Sharewell
Sharewell reports its heavy-duty LTX series of Lo-Torque Hole Openers is aimed at pipeline HDD projects. The field-replaceable cutters are available in IADC TCI type 5, 7 or 8 and in mill tooth style. Each body can open four different hole sizes. Further, the larger cutters have bi-sealed bearings for longer downhole life. With only the cutters contacting the formation, less torque is required to operate the tool. 800-637-6461, 713-983-9818, email: solutions@ sharewell.com, www. sharewell.com.
INROCK
INROCK® Drilling Inc. says its XTR® reamer platform uses an interchangeable block segment cutter (MT/TCI) to effectively increase reaming pass sizes in soft-medium-hard rock over longer bores. This capability increases drilling performance and provides a low cost-per-foot rock psi range. The company says this intermediate, flexible platform complements its other new cost-effective BMR and premium hard-rock HDX reaming products lines. XTR now accepts HDX premium reaming technology cutters. 713-690-5600, 877-2 INROCK, www. inrock. com.
American Augers
American Augers says its Fly Cutter is ideal for directional drilling operations in clay and sand soil conditions. Described as an aggressive cutter that will act as an efficient piece of product tooling, it is designed with large carbide teeth for maximum cutting action; premier level of efficiency due to fluid distribution around the outer diameter of the bore hole; cutting tips that are angled for use in multiple intrusive ground conditions and steep angled rear mixing wings that are positioned for maximized cutting and mixing of spoils through the drilling fluid. It is available in sizes from 18-60 inches. 800-324-4930, www.americanaugers.com.
Railhead Underground Products
Railhead Underground Products invites HDD specialists to “go green” with its Direct Bore. The unit features a box-end housing with a new stronger door that is designed to take the abuse of those tough condition bores. The unit’s clockable sonde blocks allow for easy adjustment while inserting locating electronics. This capability eliminates the need for any shims between the housing and the bit. Railhead says its Direct Bore Rock Bits are available in sizes ranging from 3.5-13 inches to fit “the largest of HDD rigs.” 817-594-6663, 888-313-7455, www. railhead.com.
McLaughlin
McLaughlin says the V500 low-profile vacuum excavator is designed to provide easier access to confined spaces. The unit features a shorter wheelbase and a height of 84 inches. This allows users to access areas unreachable by larger units. With a 575-cfm blower, 3,000-psi water flow and a 3-inch diameter suction hose, the unit’s low profile provides efficient spoil removal. It includes a three-stage filtration system that allows for both wet and dry vacuum excavation and a quiet pack-power system. 800-435-9340, 864-277-5870, www. mightymole. com.
Radius Pro HDD Tools
Radius Pro HDD Tools says its tools are designed to operate on every brand of HDD rig. Radius Pro says although the bore might be short in length and small in diameter, that does not reduce the difficulties presented by tough ground conditions. The Radius HotShot rock bit is designed to maximize the drilling ability of smaller HDD rigs. The 2 3/4-inch and 3-inch Rock bits not only cut through tough conditions but they allow greater steering for course correction and navigating narrow easements and bore paths. Once the pilot shot is complete, the Radius HotShot allows for the connection of a pulling eye for the return trip. 800-892-9114, www. radiusHDD. com.
Radiodetection
Radiodetection says its RD8000 and RD7000 are ergonomically designed to deliver a lightweight, energy efficient and exceptionally well-balanced locating tool. The receiver and transmitter feature a large, high-contrast, backlit LCD screen that provides the user with clear information in any light conditions. The intuitive and responsive interface is designed so the operator can access any feature easily. 626-796-6637, www. radiodetection. com.
Heath Consultants
Heath Consultants says its Sure-Lock multi-frequency pipe locator ranges from 8.1-480 kHz. The company says with the All Pro “continuous depth” readers a depth reading is continually displayed on the receiver as the target is neared. All Pro provides multi-frequency in a simple two-button operation. This allows technicians to become expert locators more quickly. 800-HEATH-US, 713-844-1300, www. heathus. com.
Underground Tools, Inc.
UTI recently announced a new line of custom-built hole openers for HDD applications. With information regarding the type of rock formation or the PSI of the rock, UTI says it can build a hole opener specifically designed for that particular job. The company says it can cut any type of thread connection and incorporate any type of built-in stabilizer option. Hole openers are available from 8-60-inch OD. The company manufactures a wide range of wear parts for the underground construction industry, specializing in trencher and horizontal directional drilling ground engaging parts. All products come with exclusive DirtSmart® technical service. 866-488-3478, www. undergroundtools. com.
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