The WE15 is the heavy Trevi Benne root and stump cutter: 2,240 kg of hydraulic pincer with a 1,400 mm jaw opening for 20 to 28 tonne excavators. It exists for sites where mature hardwood root systems must physically leave the ground in volume, and where the carrier is already a 20 tonne plus machine doing the earthworks around them.
Where the WE15 sits in the range
The WE family has two models. The WE10 is the 1,190 kg unit with a 980 mm jaw for 11.5 to 18 tonne carriers; the WE15 nearly doubles the mass and adds more than 400 mm of jaw opening. The step is large enough that the two rarely compete: the WE15 is for industrial site preparation, plantation conversion and biomass recovery on a 20 to 28 tonne fleet, the WE10 for a mid-size civil machine and the run of subdivision and farm stumps. The stump cutter buying guide explains where extraction fits against in-place grinding, tilling and the bucket.
What the published figures mean on site
The 1,400 mm jaw is what makes the WE15 a different tool from the WE10 rather than a bigger one. A mature eucalypt or old pine crown with a wide flare that would need to be sectioned for a 980 mm jaw can often be gripped whole, cut and levered in one sequence, which is where the cycle time saving on large stumps comes from. The 2,240 kg weight is the price of that jaw, and it is a real cost on every part of the operation: lift chart, transport weight, hitch rating and float permits. Cutting force is from a single hydraulic cylinder, so the carrier’s auxiliary pressure directly governs how the edges bite through dense roots, and the current pressure and flow figures must come from the current data sheet with the quotation. No rotation is fitted in the standard factory family; alignment is done with the carrier.
Carrier matching
A 20 to 28 tonne band is the start of the conversation. The WE15 is a two tonne plus object before it grips anything, and the root ball it extracts can be heavier again. Illustratively, take a 25 tonne excavator rated at 5,000 kg over the side at six metres: subtract the head and an assumed 200 kg bracket and hitch, and about 2,560 kg remains for the root ball. A large hardwood stump with a metre of soil-bound roots can approach or exceed that, so extraction happens close in, the ball is cleaned before it is lifted clear, or the stump is split in the hole. The lift chart and attachment mass guide covers the arithmetic. The levering loads also test the hitch and stick, so confirm the carrier’s breakout force and the hitch rating for side loading. On hydraulics, confirm current pressure and flow for the cutting cylinder against the data sheet and check return restriction; the hydraulic matching guide lists what to gather.
Typical work and production considerations
The WE15 belongs on mining and pipeline corridors, solar and wind farm site preparation, large subdivision and civil clearing and plantation conversion, where hundreds or thousands of large root systems sit in the path of trenching, pads and formations and a 20 to 28 tonne excavator is already on site. The extraction sequence is the one described on the WE10 page; what the wider jaw changes is how often the root-cutting step has to be repeated before the crown will lift, which on mature hardwood is where the cycle time actually goes. Sample the site by stump difficulty rather than diameter alone before pricing, because a 600 mm pine and a 600 mm ironbark are not the same job. Where split stumps become biomass, the downstream machine sets the contamination rules: a horizontal grinder tolerates soil and stone, a chipper does not, and old fencing wire is the enemy of both. See biomass and chipper operations for the handling chain.
Limitations and when to step up or down a size
There is no step up within the WE family. Step down to the WE10 when the carrier is under 20 tonnes, when transport weight is the constraint or when root systems rarely need a jaw wider than 980 mm. If the site only needs a stump-free surface rather than root removal, a Dipperfox SC850 Pro on the same carrier processes the stump in place without a crater or a truck movement; the stump grinder versus stump cutter comparison sets out which outcome the contract actually requires. Do not buy a WE15 for a fleet that will use it a few days a year; the mass and capital are justified by volume.
Options and configuration to settle at quotation
Settle the bracket and hitch (and its side-load rating), hose and coupler package, configured weight with bracket, installation and commissioning, and transport implications for the carrier with the head fitted. The transport and mobilisation guide covers the float and permit questions that a 2,240 kg attachment on a 25 tonne machine raises.
Wear parts and support
The consumables are the WE10’s, but the duty is harsher: a 1,400 mm jaw levering a mature crown works its edges, pins and bushes in soil and stone for longer on every stump. Price replacement edges and a pin and bush kit at quotation, confirm Australian stock location and lead time, and inspect any used unit for twisting around the jaws; the wear parts guide has the list.
Confirm before ordering
- Current model designation and factory data sheet with current pressure and flow
- Configured weight including bracket and hitch, and the hitch side-load rating
- Over-side lift-chart check at working radius with the head plus a large soil-laden hardwood root ball
- Carrier breakout force and stick suitability for levering loads
- Transport weight and float permit implications with the head fitted
- Jaw cutting-edge material, replacement price and Australian stock location
- Disposal or processing pathway for extracted stumps and the downstream machine's contamination tolerance
- A demonstration on representative large Australian stumps before rates are set
Frequently asked questions
What does the WE15 do that the WE10 cannot?
Grip and cut root crowns up to 1,400 mm across in one sequence rather than sectioning them, on a carrier with the breakout force to extract them. The cost is nearly twice the mass.
Does it grind the stump?
No. It cuts roots, extracts the stump and splits it. If the contract only needs a stump-free surface, a stump grinder on the same carrier may be the better tool.
Is a 20 tonne excavator enough?
It is the bottom of the indicative band. The lift chart at your working radius with the head and a soil-laden root ball decides, along with the hitch rating for side loads. Ask for a written assessment.
Does the jaw width change the carrier requirement?
Indirectly. A 1,400 mm jaw grips crowns that are heavier once lifted, so the binding constraint is usually the over-side chart and the hitch side-load rating rather than the jaw itself.
Is extracted stump material saleable as biomass?
Potentially, but it carries soil, stone and sometimes wire. The downstream processor and the cleaning step decide whether it is worth recovering.
Other stump & root cutters to compare
Trevi Benne WE10 root and stump cutter
The medium-excavator stump extractor: a 1,190 kg hydraulic pincer with a 980 mm jaw that severs structural roots, lifts the root ball and splits it down to a transportable size.
Get a recommendation, not just a price
Send us your excavator model, hydraulic figures, tree species and typical diameters. We will come back with a carrier-matched configuration and a written specification you can compare against any other quote.