Truck Cranes Key Terms

Know truck cranes key terms to make a smart buy

If you are thinking of purchasing a truck with a crane, you should be familiar with truck cranes key terms to make sure you get exactly what you are looking for. From mast cranes to articulating booms, each type of truck crane has a different application. Read this guide before you go shopping for truck cranes so you have a better knowledge of what you need.

 

Crane body

The crane body is the bed of the truck that carries the crane. You can get crane bodies in a variety of configurations that allow you maximum storage and hauling capacities. In some cases, the crane takes up most of the truck bed so there is little room to haul items.
Try: See the examples of crane bodies at Iowa Mold Tooling.

Footprint

Footprint refers to the amount of space needed to operate the truck crane. With smaller models, it may be no larger than the mast of the crane. With larger models, it may include the outrigger posts as they are set when the crane is in operation.
Try: See the footprint dimensions at Montana Crane Service.

Mast crane

A mast crane enables you to lift items into your truck. A mast crane has a small footprint in the crane body, which leaves more room to carry cargo.
Try: Reed Business Information provides information about the My-T-Lift mast crane.

Winch

A truck crane winch uses wire rope and pulleys to raise and lower items. Winches can be hand operated or electric. Larger winches may operate with hydraulics.
Try: Beacon Industries has a small truck crane with a hand-operated winch.

Boom

The boom is the horizontal portion of the truck crane that does the lifting. The operator of the truck raises and lowers the boom to move the cargo. Some booms extend to allow for greater lifting capabilities.
Try: See the boom in action at Runnion.

Articulating boom

An articulating boom has one or more sections to it, and each section has hinges. Articulating booms allow greater versatility in the types of goods you can lift.
Try: National Equipment Company offers articulating boom trucks.

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