Within the crane industry, the all-terrain crane is a luxury model of a mobile hydraulic crane. The reputation of this particular crane is like driving a Hummer or a Range Rover on pavement. All-terrain cranes are considered to be a hybrid between a rough terrain crane and mobile truck crane. One more remarkable feature of this machine is its multi-functional ability to be able to traverse through all types of off-road terrain. Among the main selling features of this crane is that it travels equally well at high speeds down roads.
The Very First Rough Terrain Crane
The very first rough terrain crane was put on the market by Grove in the year 1959. The crane was intended for use and designed to handle many tasks on construction sites. The crane's tires have the industrial strength which can handle all types of difficult terrain and could transport small loads in carry mode. During the 1970s, Grove launched the 4 axle Super-RT 1650 model. This specific model has a 270 foot or 82.8 meter height under hook in production, in addition to a 135 ton lifting capacity. At the end of the day, the rough terrain crane will become the company's most remarkable equipment over the years.
The Crane's Disadvantages
The rough terrain crane is not without its disadvantages because could not be driven on public roads with any other traffic. Japan is the one country that has made this rule an exception. Additionally, one more problem happened when the lowered boom on the crane tended to block the left and right views of the driver, that depends on how the cap was positioned. All these problems with the design of the crane ended up being both dangerous and severe and lead to numerous RT crane mishaps, especially when turning. As a result, low-loaders, lowboys, flatbeds were used as the main way of transporting rough terrain cranes.