This mechanism uses a heavy pivoting upper beam that bites down against a fixed lower bed, heavily resembling a reptile's mouth. It provides massive mechanical advantage for shearing scrap metal or crushing bulk materials, typically driven by a large hydraulic cylinder or a heavy flywheel and crank.
Heard on the job
Keep your hands well clear of the alligator when feeding that bar stock, it will snap a crowbar in half without stalling.
Also heard as
- alligator shear
- crocodile shear