The GeoRipper®27

Incredible tool.

Great tool, but not perfect.

I've done a handful of trenching jobs with this tool at this point, and I'm very satisfied with how it performs. With a fresh chain, it cuts fairly quickly with the cart. Without the cart, it's not easy to handle for more than a short distance. The spoils it leaves are very minimal and nothing at all to clean up. The not perfect parts: the trench width is sensitive to the chain freshness. The chain wears out fast. In upstate SC with hard clay and small rocks in a lot of areas I've been getting about 300 feet before needing to change it. When I change it, the trench is 1/4" to 1/2" wider with a chain that's 300 feet of use newer. That's significant because when trenching in hard ground, customers have a tough time getting 1" PVC to go in if there's more than a couple hundred feet of use on the chain. As far as chain wear, price accordingly if you're using this to perform for customers. You will change the chain often. The last thing is the screws on the shroud. They vibrate out. Make sure you check all the screws before each use. I've lost one personally that looks like it goes into the engine block. It won't start now, so I need to get a screw to put in there to see if it's sucking air through that hole. Probably not a big deal if you're disciplined about checking all accessible screws often. This thing is working so it's a rough ride for the hardware. Last thing is the cart. It's much easier to cut trenches with it, so in that sense it's functional, but it's horribly designed. It feels like it'll fall apart at any second, and unless I'm missing a part, where the hand bar attaches to the linkage there's a slotted part that fits into that shaft. It's slotted and free to move. In use, as soon as you push on it, which you have to do to move, the shaft is pushed down on the inner piece and it rotates free. You have to wire that in the recessed position, clamp it, or drill and install a bolt to keep it extended and locked so you can push appropriately. Horrible design. For what you have to pay for the cart, it is woefully unimpressive. It wouldn't take much to beef up the design and correct the function.

Niche trencher

Great for smaller conduits and quick jobs. Post lights, small sheds. 1/2” and 3/4” conduit. Electrical contractor