Common Repair Mistakes

Repairing pistons – Pistons are high-precision parts. When they’re worn or damaged, very little can be done to bring them back to service aside from some superficial polishing. They absolutely cannot be repaired by welding or re-chroming. Doing so may cause premature failure of the hammer as well as costly damage to the hammer’s cylinder. A damaged cylinder is an almost certain death sentence for a hammer as it is a very costly part to replace

Cheap seal kits – Fel-Tech uses and sells only top OEM-quality European or American seal kits. Others might save a few dollars on a cheaper seal kit option only to have it fail prematurely. Remember, the cost of seals is a very small part of the total cost of a rebuild

Improper tie-bolt torque – Tie bolts or tie rods hold the entire hydraulic hammer together from head to chuck housing. Every hammer has a specified torque requirement that often runs up into the thousands of foot-pounds. Too high, too low, or uneven torque can cause tie bar breakage and piston & cylinder wear

Welding chuck housing – We occasionally see hammers with cracked chuck housings. We also occasionally see evidence of welding from prior repairs to chuck housings. In those cases, the crack is almost always in the area of the weld repair. These are hardened steel parts that cannot be effectively repaired by welding. It just won’t last
Welding on any part of the hammer – We often see hydraulic hammers in for rebuild or repair that have had welding done somewhere on either the case or the hammer power cell while the hammer was assembled. This can cause problems where stray voltage can “arc” inside the hammer and cause damage to the piston. If you need to weld something on the case, remove the top bracket and slide the power cell out first to protect it! Call us if you need help!