The innovative boom and high-tech chassis that make up the walking excavators' unique features allow them to change their wheels and supports to any surface using a variety of hydraulic cylinders. Because of this, the Menzi Muck is also known as a spider excavator in some places.
The movable wheel and claw supports on Menzi Muck tracked excavators allow the fixed tilting edges to be changed according to the task at hand. It consequently generates lifting and tearing forces that are greater than those of conventional excavators. The output of a 9.5 ton Menzi Muck is comparable to a 20 ton tracked excavator.
These products have been around since 1966, when Josef Kaiser built his first walking machine in the firm owned by his friend Ernst Menzi.
The two were friends, but their friendship didn't last very long. According to Kaiser's own narrative, Menzi allegedly stole the idea shortly after the first prototype was displayed and started selling it as the Menzi Muck, while Kaiser started making them with his own company.
These incredible monster machines have been produced and sold by both companies for more than 50 years. Even though there was minimal demand, due to 99 percent of projects only requiring the regular tracked or wheeled excavators.
In the Swiss Alps, where walking excavators were initially created, operating standard wheeled and tracked excavators may be highly dangerous due to the terrain's steep slopes and difficult conditions.
They moved around by elevating the legs with the hydraulic arm and bucket, dragging the wheels along with it, at first having a pair of simple single-axle wheels on the back and a pair of fixed feet on the front.
In the early 1970s, they began equipping their own hydraulic arms with wheels and stabilizer feet so they could sit level on a variety of inclines and have additional leverage, grip, and stability for lifting and ripping tasks.
By the late 1970s, telescoping hydraulics were available, enabling those legs and spider wheels to extend out even more.
Today's spider excavators are fascinating to see in action. The legs can stretch, retract, lift, and bend thanks to the hip, knee, and ankle joints.
The sturdy excavator booms can exert more force than tracked excavators twice their weight, the cabin rotates fully, the legs' ends feature separate, driven caterpillar tracks or tiltable hydrostatically powered wheels.
They can also travel through a wider range of topographies and regions than any other excavator. They are even capable of scaling obstacles and ascending muddy, steep slopes that a typical digger would never dare to attempt.
The most challenging tasks can be completed by spider excavators even in hazardous environments. And if you get the chance to see one in action at an expo, you're in for a mechanical treat; it might even make you think of the popular science fiction film series Transformers.
Comments