MBW works continuously to lower maintenance and extend life expectations of its rammers. MBW rammers feature the industry’s only percussion system completely free of high friction/heat/wear metal-on-metal reciprocating wear surfaces. The patented design features c-shaped, non-metallic, slide bearings between spring separator and spring box, ram shaft and spring box, and spring box and guide tube. Wear characteristics of the MBW bearings are several times better than traditional steel-on-cast iron designs. Lower operating friction/heat provide positive implications for engine, lubricant and bellows life. Unlike stiff plastic bellows, the MBW vulcanized rubber bellows with stranded steel enforcement reduce jobsite punctures and is far more resiliant to UV degradation. In the event percussion system lubricant is lost, MBW percussion systems are designed to fail a single slide bearing, locking up the system and preventing damage to other bearing surfaces, as well as bearings and seals in the rammer’s gearbox. Because MBW percussion systems generate less internal friction, rammers operate more efficiently, consume less fuel, and deliver more compaction force for the purpose intended. When replacement is eventually called for, MBW slide bearings are replaced at low cost, returning percussion systems to original specification.