Link-Belt exhibits its highly successful 90 ton telescopic truck crane at CONEXPO

Las Vegas, NV (March, 2005) —
Link-Belt will exhibit its highly successful 90 ton (81.6 mt) HTC-8690 telescopic truck crane at CONEXPO 2005. Introduced in late 2004, customer response to the 90 tonner has been outstanding. Early indicators serve notice that this is yet another of the successful telescopic truck crane designs that have dominated the North American market for the last decade with a blend of outstanding roadability and job site performance features.

Job Site Mobility

To further expand the flexibility of this market leading 90 ton (81.6 mt) hydraulic truck crane, Link-Belt added rear steering and unveiled the new HTT-8690, 90 ton (81.6 mt) hydraulic truck terrain crane. This new HTT joins other models that include the 75-ton (68.0 mt) HTT-8675 and the HTT-8675LB Long Boom.

“It is the next logical step for us to add the rear steer feature to this crane,” said Rick Curnutte, telescopic crane product manager. “Maneuverability is critical to a crane’s productivity and by adding rear steer, this crane will only get better,” says Curnutte.

Long Reach Attachment

Several of the exciting new features on this 90 ton (81.6 mt) telescopic truck crane include a patented Link-Belt design for a simple and reliable locking and latching system for the 140 ft (42.7 m) five-section boom. In addition, there is a new Link-Belt-designed boom that requires no greasing at all because of ingenious Teflon wear pucks impregnated in the full contact wear pad surfaces. And best of all, unlike other cranes in this class, there is no deduct in the capacity chart for telescoping any load. Maximum tip height is 237 ft (72. 2m) with the additional two 16 ft (4.9 m) lattice inserts that can be installed between the boom head and the optional 35-58 ft (10.7-17.7 m) bi-folding lattice. All of these attachment combinations have offset positions of 2, 15, 30, and 45 degrees.

Better View from the Operator’s Cab

The HTC-8690 also reveals the next generation cab that not only is bigger and wider but also has new expanded front glass for critical operator viewing from the 6-way adjustable seat. A choice between dual axis or single axis joystick controllers along with the 540 Microguard Rated capacity limiter and optional air conditioning make crane operations smooth and effortless.

Counterweight Flexibility

The standard modular style counterweight package of 11,500 lbs (5 216 kg) provides excellent roadability and there are options for 26,500 lbs (12 020 kg), 32,500 lbs (1 474 kg) and 39,500 lbs (17 916.9 kg) to further extend the crane’s lift performance. For highway travel, each of these counterweight packages are easily moved to optimize the weight balance between the front and rear axles. The system to raise and lower the counterweight is totally controlled from the comfort of the operator’s cab.

Mobility

Powering the HTC-8690 is the 445 horsepower (323 kW) Detroit Diesel Series 60, 12.7-liter engine with 1,450 ft-lbs (1 966 J) of torque. It’s coupled to ZF’s AS-tronic “automated” transmission with 12 forward and tw0o reverse speeds. This transmission provides all the benefits of a manual transmission but without a clutch pedal, for traveling up and down steep grades. In addition, it has all the smooth controllability features of an automatic transmission.

Air-ride suspension is standard on both the front and rear axles of the HTC-8690. This suspension not only provides a smooth highway ride and on-tire lifting capacities, but it also allows job site travel with all of the 39,500 lbs (17 916.9 kg) of counterweight.

Winches That Perform

The winches deliver 16,880 lbs (7 657 kg) of line pull and 480 fpm (146.3 m/min) of line speed — impressive numbers when compared to the truck and all terrain cranes in this size class. Spooled onto the winch drum is 0.75 in (19 mm) diameter rotation resistant wire rope.

Loads of Standard Features

The new HTC-8690 shares many proven features found on other Link-Belt telescopic cranes such as: CALC (Confined Area Lifting Capacities) lifting capacities, CabWalk, lightweight Stow-n-Go outrigger pontoons, full deck aluminum fenders, and pre-paint.