The all-terrain crane is considered within the crane industry as being a luxury kind of a mobile hydraulic crane. It has the reputation 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. Another remarkable quality of this equipment is its multi-functional ability to be able to traverse through all kinds of off-road terrain. Amongst the main selling features of this crane is that it travels equally well at top speeds down roads.
The First Rough Terrain Crane
The very first rough terrain crane was put on the market by Grove during the year 1959. The crane was intended for use and designed to deal with many tasks on construction locations. The crane's tires have the industrial strength that could handle all types of tricky terrain and is able to transport small loads in carry mode. In the 1970s, Grove introduced the 4 axle Super-RT 1650 model. This model has a 270 foot or 82.8 meter height under hook in production, along with a 135 ton lifting capacity. At the end of the day, the rough terrain crane will become the most remarkable machinery of the company through 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 which has made this rule an exception. In addition, one more issue occurred when the lowered boom on the crane tended to block the driver's left and right views, that depends on how the cap was placed. All these problems with the crane's design ended up being both hazardous and severe and lead to numerous RT crane accidents, especially while turning. Therefore, low-loaders, lowboys, flatbeds were utilized as the main means of moving rough terrain cranes.