Palfinger PK 250 TEC

A loader crane such as the PK 880 TEC works on the knuckle-boom principle: the main and knuckle booms fold together compactly for road transport and extend for crane operation, with hydraulic cylinders driving every movement. At Palfinger, the TEC designation denotes a version with extended equipment compared with the respective base model in the series.

The key advantage of a truck-mounted loader crane over a separate lifting machine is that vehicle and crane form a single unit: the truck drives to the job site, and the crane there handles loading and unloading of construction materials, bulk goods or pallets, without a separate lifting vehicle having to be brought in. Cranes of this kind are common in construction, timber transport and building material distribution.

When buying a used loader crane of this type, the condition of the main and knuckle boom hydraulic cylinders matters for leak-tightness, since leaking piston rods mean lost oil and lost lifting force. The pivot pins at the joints should be checked for play, the outrigger legs for cracking at the weld seams, and the control valves for clean response without the movement drifting on.