Excavator Track Shoes
Use and Replacement of the Machine’ s‘ Footwear’
By Steve Sniff
If you were to mention that you are planning to replace your track shoes, most of the world would wonder if you would be going with Nike or Adidas, but our operating engineers know that this job involves something more complex and quite a bit heavier than sporting footwear.
Track shoes are a component of machines that use a track rather than tires to support and move the equipment. Like their footwear equivalents, they are the first point of contact between the wearer and the ground, and as with most machine components, track shoes have to be replaced now and then.
This article explains what a track shoe is, how the installation and removal procedure is done, and what tools are needed to do it. It also covers the pros and cons of using track shoes. Although an excavator is used as a working example, the same principles apply to any tracked machine that has shoes.
What Is a Track Shoe?
Excavators use one of two different types of tracks: rubber or metal. The former is typically constructed of a single piece of rubber and needs to be replaced as a whole. Rubber tracks have a lower initial cost but wear out more quickly. However, if most of your work involves traveling on finished surfaces such as lawn, concrete or asphalt, the
28 February 7, 2025 www. contractorshotline. com