The all-terrain crane is considered within the crane industry as being a luxury model of a mobile hydraulic crane. It has the status of being similar to driving a Range Rover or a Hummer on pavement. All-terrain cranes are considered to be a hybrid between a rough terrain crane and mobile truck crane. One more great feature of this specific machinery is its multi-functional ability to be able to traverse through all kinds of off-road terrain. One of the main selling characteristics of this specific crane is that it travels equally well at high speeds down roads.
The First Rough Terrain Crane
The very first rough terrain crane was put on the market by Grove during 1959. The crane was intended for application and designed to handle various tasks on construction sites. The crane's tires have the industrial strength which could handle all kinds of tricky terrain and can move small loads in carry mode. In the 1970s, Grove launched the 4 axle Super-RT 1650 model. This specific unit has an 82.8 meter or 270 foot height under hook in production, together with a 135 ton lifting capacity. At the end of the day, the rough terrain crane will become the most remarkable equipment of the company through the years.
The Crane's Disadvantages
The rough terrain crane is not without its drawbacks since could not be driven on public roads with any other traffic. Japan is the one nation which has made this rule an exception. In addition, one more issue happened when the lowered boom on the crane tended to block the right and left views of the driver, depending on how the cap was positioned. All the problems with the design of the crane ended up being both serious and dangerous and lead to a lot of accidents with RT cranes, especially while turning. As a result, flatbeds, low-loaders, lowboys were adopted as the primary means of transporting rough terrain cranes.