Trencher Chain Selection Guide

Tooth Every Station (TES)

Designed for standard digging conditions, light to moderately compacted, sandy, loam soils, and loosely-packed gravelly soils. Typically good digging conditions.

Tooth Every Other Station (TEOS)

Tooth pattern designed to give the most production in wet, sticky conditions such as gumbo, wet clay, etc. TEOS allows the sticky soils to be discharged as it comes around the headshaft sprocket allowing the auger to pick it up and discharge spoil to the side of the trench. The TES chain has a tendency to hold the sticky soils causing build-up in the chain and loss of production.

Rock and Frost Chain 50/50: Combination 50% Rock and Frost / 50% Cup Teeth (R&F)

The rock and frost chain will give the highest production in frozen ground, highly compacted soils and rock, allowing the cup teeth to pick up and clean the trench. The R&F chain is very aggressive in tough conditions, but is not as productive in the lighter, normal digging conditions.

Shark Tooth Chain 70/30: Combination 70% Shark / 30% Cup Teeth (70/30)

The 70/30 chain should be applied in compact soils, light frozen ground, baked hard clay, shale or rocky soils. The aggressive shark teeth will slice, break, and relieve the tough soils, allowing the cup teeth to follow and clean the trench. As with the R&F chain, the 70/30 will not be as productive in the lighter, normal conditions as the TES chain.

Chain Widths