Hydraulic Hammer Breaker Attachments

When breaking rock and concrete, there is nothing that matches the power of a hammer breaker attachment. Making short work of large jobs, these attachments provide superior efficiency. Although many brands of hammer breakers are available which offer attachments, some attachments stand out among the others for durability and a high performance-cost ratio. Here are some things to consider when looking for a hammer breaker as well as some of the best hammer breakers on the market.

Best Hammer Breaker Attachment Tools

There are three main types of chisels that are used with hammer break attachments: moil points, chisels, and blunts tools. Moil points are sharply pointed and concentrate the breaking force onto a single area. Chisel attachments are like a standard chisel and spread the breaking force across the length of the chisel point. Blunt tools spread the breaking force across the whole surface of the tool.

Differences between tool types:

Tool Type:	Moil Point	Chisel	Blunt
Breaking Property:	High penetration, medium wedge effect	Medium penetration high wedge effect	High energy transmission
Concrete Type:	Non-reinforced walls and foundations	Reinforced walls, foundations, blocks and columns	Secondary breaking
Rock Type:	Lightly fissured sedimentary rock.	Lightly fissured sedimentary rock and heavily fissured magma. Also good for asphalt and soil.	Good for breaking oversized sedimentary rock and lightly fissured magma.

Hydraulic Breaker Hammers: Things to Consider

The extreme load that is put on hydraulic breaker hammers can lead to many issues. For one, they break easily when they are subjected to loads which exceed the resistance of steel. Secondly, fatigue failures occur regularly before the break, usually happening hours or days before the event. There are several different types of fractures that can occur depending on which type of tool you are using and the type of stress which the tool is undergoing.

However, no fracture is usually related to the material of the tool or manufacture of the tool. In fact, breaks due to material defects or manufacturing defects are extremely rare. So, be sure that a) you’re using the right tool type for the job (moil point, chisel or blunt) and then using the tool correctly.

Proper use of the tool includes:

• Regular and proper lubrication (and avoiding over-greasing)
• Regular repositioning of the tool to avoid overheating
• Advancing the tool in small steps
• Positioning the tool properly (90 degrees to surface)
• Avoiding using the tool as a crowbar and prying away rock
• Rocking the attachment slightly every so often to allow dust to escape between break site and tool tip
• Avoiding putting undo stress on the tool and pushing it beyond its limitations
• Avoid pushing or rolling rocks with the tool

If these factors are kept in mind, the tool will last a lot longer. It will also save you a lot of money not only in the short-term, but in the long run as well. So, be sure to read up on the tool type you decide to use as well as review this list of how to properly use your tool.

Top 3 Hydraulic Hammer Breaker Attachments

1. Rhino Hydraulic Hammer Breaker (RH-68)

Rhino is known for making some of the best hammer breakers on the market. They’re known for their high quality products and have been building them for over 30 years. This hammer breaker by Rhino is no exception.

The Rhino RH-68 is a beast when it comes to crushing rock and concrete. This attachment is built of high quality materials and has a high performance to cost ratio.

The Rhino hammer breaker attachment is suited for both horizontal and vertical rock breaking. Keep in mind to always break 90 degrees from the rock face though. Since this hammer breaker comes with a moil type chisel, it is excellent for mining jobs as well as a general purpose breaking tool. Weighing in at 1170 lbs., it provides powerful rock crushing force.

The tool diameter is 2.68 inches, suitable for breaking lightly fissured or monolithic rock. It has excellent penetration and provides a good wedge effect. It’s more suited towards non-reinforced concrete breaking. It is not a suitable concrete breaker for those looking to break reinforced concrete. It’s also not suitable for crystalline rock or asphalt (however, a chisel attachment is available for these applications, including reinforced concrete – this can be ordered from Rhino directly).

It operates at a pressure setting between 1562-1988 PSI. It also requires between 10.6-18.4 GPM of oil flow. Also, it comes with a full set of hoses as well as a coupler set. There’s even a nitrogen charging kit with this set.

This skid steer hammer breaker attachment is designed to fit 8,000-16,000 lb. class equipment. It fits a wide variety of skid steers and mini-excavators including:

• BOBCAT S450 CAT 301.7 CR
• BOBCAT S550 CAT 301.8
• BOBCAT S570 CAT 301.6
• BOBCAT S590 CAT 302 CR
• BOBCAT S595 CAT 302.4D
• BOBCAT S630 CAT 302.7D CR
• BOBCAT S650 CAT 303E CR
• BOBCAT S740 CAT 303.5E CR
• BOBCAT A770 CAT 303.5E2 CR
• BOBCAT S770 CAT 304E2 CR
• BOBCAT S850 CAT 304.5E2 XTC
• CAT 226D CAT 305E2 CR
• CAT 232D CAT 305.5E2 CR
• CAT 236D CAT 307E2 CR
• CAT 242D CAT 308E2 CR
• CAT 246D BOBCAT E20
• CAT 262D BOBCAT E26
• CAT 272D2 BOBCAT E32
• CAT 272D2 XHP BOBCAT E35
• DITCH WITCH SK1050 BOBCAT E42
• DITCH WITCH SK1550 BOBCAT E45
• KOMATSU SK714-5 BOBCAT E50
• KOMATSU SK815-5 KOMATSU PC30MR-5
• KOMATSU SK820-5 KOMATSU PC35MR-5
• JOHN DEERE 312GR KOMATSU PC45MR-5
• JOHN DEERE 314G KOMATSU PC55MR-5
• JOHN DEERE 316GR JOHN DEERE 26G
• JOHN DEERE 318G JOHN DEERE 30G
• JOHN DEERE 320G JOHN DEERE 35G
• JOHN DEERE 324G JOHN DEERE 50G
• JOHN DEERE 330G JOHN DEERE 60G
• JOHN DEERE 332G CASE CX26C
• CASE SR130 CASE CX30C
• CASE SR160 CASE CX33C
• CASE SR175 CASE CX37C
• CASE SV185 CASE CX57C
• CASE SR210 HITACHI ZX26U-5
• CASE SR240 HITACHI ZX30U-5
• CASE SR270 HITACHI ZX35U-5
• CASE SV280 HITACHI ZX50U-5
• CASE SV340 KOBELCO SK25SR-6E
• TEREX R165S KOBELCO SK30SR-6E
• TEREX R185S KOBELCO SK35SR-6E
• TEREX R200S KOBELCO SK45SRX-6E
• TEREX V200S KOBELCO SK55SRX-6E
• TEREX V230S  
• TEREX R260S  
• TEREX V3505

Design of the Rhino breaker hammer:

2. United Attachments Hydraulic Concrete Breaker Hammer Attachment

United Attachments’ UA1000 hydraulic breaker hammer attachment is a high quality, made in the USA concrete breaker. It is ideal for breaking concrete, chewing up road surfaces, hard rock, asphalt, and good for use on hard or frozen ground as well.

This hammer breaker is designed for skid steers, compact utility loaders, or backhoe excavators and comes with a combo attachment mounting plate. It’s designed for use with equipment in the 1000 ft-lb class. It weighs 636 lbs. for the hammer break itself and around 936 lbs. combined with the mounting plate, tool and attachments. In addition to the mounting plate, it comes with a moil chisel, hoses and flat faced couplers.

The UA1000 comes with a lot of advanced features for a breaker hammer. Some notable features include:

• Anti-blank fire system
• Auto-lubrication system
• Built-in accumulator
• Oversized through-bolt
• Efficient internal control valve (up to 15% more efficient than other breakers in the same class)
• Dual-mounting for both skid steers and excavator backhoes

This breaker has both a low stroke and high stroke setting. On high speed setting it provides fast tool movements but low power. On the low speed setting the movement speed of the tool is slow, but the breaking power is high. This setting can be changed simply by turning the adjuster on the attachment with an L-wrench in the appropriate direction.

Additional Specs:

• Impact rate: 350-1100 BPM 
• Oil flow: 10.0-30.0 GPM
• Operating Oil Pressure: 1750-2400 PSI
• Chisel Diameter: 2.95″ 

3. RAM Hydraulic Breaker Hammer Attachment

Although this RAM Breaker Hammer is designed specifically for the Caterpillar EL220, similar breaker hammers are available by RAM for several other types of equipment (see complete list here).

One nice thing about RAM is they give you two different types of chisels right off the bat, a moil point and a standard chisel. It’d be nice if more companies offered this with their breaker hammers. You also get a toolbox and a hydraulic kit.

RAM basically designs these breaker hammers as ways to replace the OEM hammers designed by the manufacturer. You can save a lot of money by going with these after-market breaker hammers. RAM also claims you can save up to 70% on costs by going with them as well, though that estimate seems a little bit on the high side. However, if the maintenance cost savings is even 25% it ends up being worth it.

Their aftermarket breaker hammers are second to none. You can get a really good deal and get the same level of performance out of these hammers as OEM. The only issue is finding one that fits your equipment.

Here are the breaker hammer sizes available from RAM:

Take a look at the various breaker hammers by RAM and price out the cost differences. We also recommend contacting RAM and seeing if they could cut you a deal.

RAM currently sells as AMS Construction Parts but their breaker hammers are listed under RAM. They operate out of Middletown, OH and are highly rated by customers and BBB accredited.

4. Felix Hydraulic Hammer Breaker (FX-53)

The Felix FX-53 is another great choice in breaker hammer attachments. Designed for a skid steer or mini-excavator, the FX-53 is compatible for equipment in the 5,000-10,000 lb. class.

This breaker hammer is best-suited to breaking rock and concrete, although it works well on other material types as well. With the mount attached, it weighs around 840 lbs., less than the two hammer breakers featured above. So, all things considered, it won’t provide as high of a crushing force as the others.

Also, the tool diameter is 2.09″, slightly less than the two breaker hammers featured above. So, you’re not going to have the same level of efficiency. Though, you do get an extra tool bit which is some consolation.

In fact, this set comes with two chisels, a gas charging kit, a gas tank, a maintenance box (with tools), and a set of hoses. It also comes with a one-year limited warranty.

All in all, this is not the best breaker hammer on the market, but it is a good hammer breaker for the budget-conscious. Since it is made in Korea, you may get a better deal in terms of price but you will lose some power and efficiency.

Additional Specs:

• Impact rate: Not listed
• Oil flow: 6.6-13.2 GPM
• Operating Oil Pressure: 2176 PSI
• Chisel Diameter: 2.09″ 

Designed to Fit the Following Skid Steers / Mini-Excavators:

• BOBCAT S450 CAT 301.7 CR
• BOBCAT S550 CAT 301.8
• BOBCAT S570 CAT 301.6
• BOBCAT S590 CAT 302 CR
• BOBCAT S595 CAT 302.4D
• BOBCAT S630 CAT 302.7D CR
• BOBCAT S650 CAT 303E CR
• BOBCAT S740 CAT 303.5E CR
• BOBCAT A770 CAT 303.5E2 CR
• BOBCAT S770 CAT 304E2 CR
• BOBCAT S850 CAT 304.5E2 XTC
• CAT 226D CAT 305E2 CR
• CAT 232D CAT 305.5E2 CR
• CAT 236D CAT 307E2 CR
• CAT 242D CAT 308E2 CR
• CAT 246D BOBCAT E20
• CAT 262D BOBCAT E26
• CAT 272D2 BOBCAT E32
• CAT 272D2 XHP BOBCAT E35
• DITCH WITCH SK1050 BOBCAT E42
• DITCH WITCH SK1550 BOBCAT E45
• KOMATSU SK714-5 BOBCAT E50
• KOMATSU SK815-5 KOMATSU PC30MR-5
• KOMATSU SK820-5 KOMATSU PC35MR-5
• JOHN DEERE 312GR KOMATSU PC45MR-5
• JOHN DEERE 314G KOMATSU PC55MR-5
• JOHN DEERE 316GR JOHN DEERE 26G
• JOHN DEERE 318G JOHN DEERE 30G
• JOHN DEERE 320G JOHN DEERE 35G
• JOHN DEERE 324G JOHN DEERE 50G
• JOHN DEERE 330G JOHN DEERE 60G
• JOHN DEERE 332G CASE CX26C
• CASE SR130 CASE CX30C
• CASE SR160 CASE CX33C
• CASE SR175 CASE CX37C
• CASE SV185 CASE CX57C
• CASE SR210 HITACHI ZX26U-5
• CASE SR240 HITACHI ZX30U-5
• CASE SR270 HITACHI ZX35U-5
• CASE SV280 HITACHI ZX50U-5
• CASE SV340 KOBELCO SK25SR-6E
• TEREX R165S KOBELCO SK30SR-6E
• TEREX R185S KOBELCO SK35SR-6E
• TEREX R200S KOBELCO SK45SRX-6E
• TEREX V200S KOBELCO SK55SRX-6E
• TEREX V230S
• TEREX R260S
• TEREX V3505

If you’re looking for a much larger hammer breaker, Felix also has hammer breaker available for 20-24 ton equipment with a 5.52″ inch in diameter chisel.

How Hydraulic Hammer Breakers Work

Hydraulic breakers are fairly simple. In general, they consist of five main parts: cylinder, piston, control valve, front head, back head. The cylinder contains the piston and the valve. Through bolts hold the cylinder in place by locking together the front head and the back head. Oil and gas pressure cause the piston to strike. A control valve inside the cylinder controls the piston movement and the tool pin in the front head prevents the piston from shooting out. The back head contains charged nitrogen gas and is used to dampen the blow from the piston as it returns.