Masonry Magazine January 1978 Page.17
A unit with 34-foot lift height plus a frame tilting device and full hydrostatic drive; four-wheel steer and crab steering features were offered as standard equipment.
Lull Engineering joined the shooting boom competition in the mid-70s with an 8,000-pound, 34-foot lift height, four-wheel drive, torque converter unit also equipped with a tilting frame. Additionally, the new Lull model had an 80 transverse movement of the telescoping boom portion of the forklift, providing an ability to move the load forward without moving the machine.
In the last six or seven years, two newcomers have entered the shooting boom, rough terrain forklift field-Loed Corporation and TCI Power Products, Inc. indicating the growing interest in this market. Although the total rough terrain forklift manufacturing industry suffered severe drops in demand in the 1974-76 period, it has recovered sharply and has been going strong this year and last.
While there have been many advances and changes in construction materials and systems in the past 30 years, certainly the most dramatic has to be in the mechanization of material handling. A few years ago only the largest mason contractors would utilize rough terrain forklifts on their jobs. Today even the medium-sized and smaller mason contractors are using these highly versatile machines on building projects.
It probably won't take several more centuries to see such a dramatic change in material handling, but in the foreseeable future there is little doubt that the present machines and their future generations will continue to maneuver about on construction jobs-picking up, moving and placing materials below grade or above grade, inside and outside of buildings.
Pettibone's B-66 "Extendo" introduced in 1977 can reach 3 ft. 2 in. below grade, with a maximum lift capacity of 6,000 lbs. and a maximum working load of 2,150 lbs. in the fully extended position.
The TCI "Herculift" has 4-wheel drive plus dual front wheels.
(Left) Articulated wheel system keeps load level on this Lull unit when negotiating rough terrain. (Above) Pettibone Extendo 88 introduced in late 1971 was the forerunner of the B-66.