The tractor that drives your camera decides how much of the line you actually inspect. Traction, articulation and drive health — the full knowledge page.
A sealed, motorized tractor that drives a pan/tilt camera head through the pipe, reporting distance as it goes.
Usually a brushed or brushless DC motor through a sealed gearbox — the component our repair bench rebuilds most.
The traction interface — see the sections below; this is where most field failures begin.
Active or passive articulation lets the crawler climb offset joints and pass through bends.
Wheel-mounted encoder feeds distance into the report — accuracy is regulatory.
Motorized head inspects laterals and connections without a second entry.
Powered or manual winch manages the tether — see our cable page.
Grease, sludge, sediment and invert sludge defeat stock wheels. The result: slip, burned motors, lost runs, truncated inspections.
Counter reads distance the crawler didn't travel — your report is now wrong.
Spinning wheels against grip load cooks drive motors and gearboxes.
Aftermarket carbide-gritted wheels bite through grease where rubber polishes. TruGrit Traction pioneered this category after a decade of OEM frustration.
Quality aftermarket traction exists for all major crawler brands.
Premium aftermarket traction is engineered to outlast stock — at lower cost.
Our sales division carries the traction line; our repair division installs it during service.
Two traction philosophies — diameter and pipe condition decide.
Lower rolling resistance, easier service, standard on most crawlers up to ~600mm.
For interceptors and heavy sludge — track crawlers float on sediment where wheels dig.
Gritted or spiked cleats upgrade wheeled crawlers in poor conditions.
Lateral launch crawlers steer a mini-camera from the main into connections — the premium capability.
Below wheel diameter limits, skids carry the camera in small mains.
Six-wheel drive with steering axles climbs offsets that stop four-wheel units.
From our repair division's benches: the failure census.
Wheels and cleats are wear items — budget them, replace before they destroy the drive.
Every submersion cycle works the seals; a weeping seal is a flooded motor next month.
Brushed motors have a life curve — brush service is cheap; motor replacement isn't.
Every slip event yanks the tether — traction failures cascade into cable failures.
Pinned connectors corrode in wet environments — clean and re-pack regularly.
Encoder wheels wear and misreport — calibrate against known distances.
The pipe fights back: offsets, roots, protruding taps, collapses.
Step height vs wheel diameter — the classic climb calculation.
Inspection finds them; cutting them is robot work (see our trenchless page).
Sediment depth decides if you need tracks or a bigger crawler.
90° bends demand active articulation or multi-axle designs.
The camera finds the collapse; the crew decides the fix. Knowing when to stop protects the crawler.
Your pipe profile determines the crawler class you actually need — overspending on articulation nobody needs is a spec error.
The 15-minute ritual that triples crawler life. Our repair division's standard PM sheet.
Fresh-water rinse — sewage eats seals over months.
Wheels, cleats, tracks: look for chips, wear bars, flat spots.
Moisture in connectors = corrosion = intermittent video.
O-ring inspection and factory-spec grease on drive shafts.
Roll a known distance, verify the report.
Relieve winch spring tension for long storage.
How we quote crawler packages.
Minimum and maximum pipe you inspect — everything follows from this.
Traction class, ATEX certification, sealed drive choice.
Lateral launch is a big cost step — only buy it if your network has live laterals to inspect.
Most municipal contracts require it.
Traction, seals, connectors, counters — wear parts for what we sell.
Our repair division supports what our sales division delivers — one call.
Both sides of this market are filled with good engineering.
The major inspection-equipment manufacturers built this industry — we service every one with respect.
TruGrit Traction (2015, USA) proved aftermarket parts can exceed OEM specs — a market founded on field frustration, made here.
We sell authorized lines AND premium aftermarket upgrades — and we tell you which is right for each job.
Only manufacturer-published imagery on our pages.
Equipment that works — sold by people who repair it, supported by people who answer the phone.