Patent attributes
Heavy-duty material processors (e.g., shears, concrete crushers) include a jaw that pivotally connects to another jaw. A hydraulic cylinder extends between the jaws to open and close the jaws in a shearing motion. Cutting/shearing/crushing blade inserts mount to detachable blade holders, which in turn mount to one of the jaws. Wedge blocks securely and detachably attach the blade inserts to the remainder of their associated jaw, and rely on force-amplifying wedge surfaces to ensure a secure attachment. The detachable blade holders may include lateral flanges that extend across an otherwise exposed face of their respective underlying jaw bodies to protect the jaw bodies during use. A blade on one of the jaws is laterally adjustable, which helps to free a jam if one of the jaws gets jammed into the space between blades in the other jaw.