Within the crane business, the all-terrain crane is a luxury model of a mobile hydraulic crane. The reputation of this crane is similar to driving a Hummer or a Range Rover on pavement. All-terrain cranes are considered to be a hybrid between a mobile truck crane and rough terrain crane. One more remarkable quality of this machine is its multi-functional ability to be able to traverse through all types of off-road terrain. One of the main selling features of this specific 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 1959. The crane was intended for use and designed to handle many tasks on construction locations. The industrial strength of the crane's tires could handle all types of tricky terrain and can move small loads in carry mode. In the 1970s, the 4 axle Super-RT 1650 model was introduced by Grove. This unit has an 82.8 meter or 270 foot 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 equipment of the company through the years.
The Crane's Disadvantages
Amongst the major drawbacks of the rough terrain crane was the issue that it was not capable of being driven on public highways with any other traffic. Japan was the only nation in the world which would make an exception to this rule. In addition, 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 placed. These problems with the crane's design ended up being dangerous and serious and lead to numerous RT crane accidents, especially when turning. As a result, low-loaders, lowboys, flatbeds were adopted as the primary way of moving rough terrain cranes.